by Ashenden, V.
"I don't want the damn thing! I want you!"
"You can't have me!" she screamed, her tears falling.
"Then I will stay!" he shouted. "I will stay and stay and stay until even you do not believe your own words! I will stay so long you will marvel that I was telling the truth, that I want nothing but you, and you will forget that ever I was a king, and perhaps by that time, we will both be so old and gray we will have time for nothing but to die together, but still I will rejoice that at least I have that!"
"Why?" she cried. "Don't you know how hard that will be for me, seeing you every day? Please, Court, if you love me, just let me go. Let me have my stall and you can have your castle. Please, just leave me alone."
He stomped away, and for a moment Sienna thought he was leaving, but he just picked up his brush, came back, dropped to his knees, and began scrubbing again. Sienna cried softly as she started scrubbing, sniveling and wiping her eyes. She could not even see the floor anymore. She dropped her brush and covered her face. Court's arms came around her, his hands moving over her back. She did not hug him. She merely kept her face covered as she cried.
"Sienna," he whispered. He pulled her hands away, lifting her jaw, putting his forehead against her forehead, looking into her wet eyes. "Sienna, I'll never regret choosing you over a crown. But I would always regret choosing a crown over you. I have to wait for you. I will wait for you. I don't care how long it takes to prove it to you. I just hope you don't regret it."
"Me?" she whispered.
"Yes. You're going to find out one day that I haven't left, that I'm still here, and you're going to realize that I'm never going to leave, that you're never going to be alone. And that's the day you're going to regret it, regret that you wasted our time waiting for something to happen that never happened, and you're going to run into my arms and you're going to apologize and I'm going to forgive you and kiss you and tell you I knew all along. And even then, it won't be too late."
Her lower lip trembled. "I've been alone for so long, Court. I'm scared. I'm so scared you're going to leave me."
He held her cheek in the palm of his hand, their noses touching. "I'm not. You're not alone anymore, Sienna. You'll never be alone."
And then he kissed her. She whimpered into his mouth, and then her whole body melted into his arms. She had no more power to refuse him. Her arms slipped around his shoulders and she drew him in deeper.
"I'll never be a queen or a princess."
"Good. Because I only like stable girls."
She kissed him again, her fingers gripping the back of his neck to hold him in place, her head turning so she could open her mouth wider, breaking again after a moment.
"If your family ever visits," she said, "I'll probably embarrass you in front of them, and you'll have to make excuses for me."
"I already have my excuse picked out. I will tell them I'm madly in love with you."
He kissed her once more. It was making her lightheaded. Her heart was so warm and happy. It wasn't something she was used to. She wanted to shout it out loud, do something to express her bliss, but it was all she could do just to catch her breath.
"We'll struggle," she whispered. "In the winter, they'll be no guests, and we'll be so hungry, and we'll have to sell the cow, and we'll lose half the chickens, and the stable will be freezing cold."
"We'll keep each other warm all winter long, making love by the fire."
She gulped. "I've never done that."
"Neither have I," he said.
It was her turn to kiss him, her breathing turning into moans that vibrated through their bodies. Her hands were gripping him harder, running down over his back.
"Think we can close the tavern early tonight?" she asked.
"Only if you think our customers can do without drinks."
"We don't have any customers."
"Then it'll be a very quiet night," he said, his arms moving down her body, slipping under her legs and her back. He picked her up as he stood, moving toward the door. She turned the lock, and then he carried her up the stairs and took her into his old room.
"At least," she whispered, "we'll have a full eight rooms if we share."
"That's good," Court said, laying her down on the bed, "because I am so very greedy and I shall not wish to lose even a single coin when I could have you in my room with me."
"I'm not going back to my stall?"
"Never."
"And you're going to help farm the eggs?"
"Every morning."
"And you're going to help clean the stables?"
"Every afternoon."
"And you're going to help scrub the floor?"
"Every evening."
"And you're going to make love to me?"
"Every night."
The End
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Peasants and Princesses
Chapter Two: Parlor Tricks
Chapter Three: A Royal Visit
Chapter Four: Princes and Knights
Chapter Five: The Mute Maiden
Chapter Six: The Masquerade
Chapter Seven: The Prince and the Pauper
Chapter Eight: Courting Court in the Courtyard
Chapter Nine: The Witch
Chapter Ten: The Dark Dragon
Chapter Eleven: The Knight's Code
Chapter Twelve: Fun and Flowers
Chapter Thirteen: The Croquet Challenge
Chapter Fourteen: The Ailing Queen
Chapter Fifteen: The Proposal
Chapter Sixteen: The Return of the Dragon
Chapter Seventeen: Into the Tempest Forest
Chapter Eighteen: High Treason
Chapter Nineteen: The Confession
Chapter Twenty: On Wellington's Shoulders
Chapter Twenty-One: Off to the Gallows
Chapter Twenty-Two: A Wedding to Remember
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Revenge of the Dragon
Chapter Twenty-Four: The Stable Girl