In Chains by C. Noble (ebook reader with highlighter .txt) 📕

Part III


Several months passed since their unofficial engagement and first kiss. Neither had been shared to their parents. They were well accustomed to sneak out of the palace at odd hours to spend the night wandering beaches and forests, although Hadrian never again suggested horses. Darcey was impatient, wanting her next birthday to come sooner. Not merely to get the wedding over with, but to be able to be with Hadrian, to not have to leave him to trifle with any miniscule thing.
Hadrian, she knew, felt the same way. But in the intervening months, he had not brought up the subject of an early marriage again. It would still be another nine months to wait, but he seemed willing to submit to it, provided it keep Darcey from whatever it was.
Walking alone in the garden one day her impatience ran thin and she thus accosted him: “My love, answer me without hesitation. I want to know…what you were thinking about before you actually proposed to me. Three months ago.”
Hadrian was evidently hesitant to talk on the subject, for while not hesitating exactly, he did not come out with it immediately.
“I was thinking, my fairest one, of how much I loved you. You were so perfect, so lively and beautiful, how could I think of anything else?”
“You know this isn’t the truth. Please, Hadrian. I really want to know.”
“Darcey…it is only because I love you, and would hate to disappoint you, that I tell you this. There is an island nearby where couples may get married without being the proper age. It’s a horrible, violent, seedy type of place, but I know of many who have sealed their fates on that island, for better or worse. As soon as the thought entered my mind, I banished it and punished myself. I could not, would not have put you through such a terrible experience.” Pain crossed Hadrian’s handsome face. There was something hidden there, something that he refused to share with anyone. One day, Darcey would like to know what that something was. But until then, she trusted him.
“Hadrian, I’m sorry. For making you remember. I love you too, and if you want to wait until next year, then I will,” Darcey grabbed his hand.
“I don’t want to wait. But I have to…so this will have to suffice,” Hadrian leaned in and offered her another heart stopping kiss.
“Well, if I have to wait…” Darcey giggled. Maybe waiting for their wedding wouldn’t be so bad.
In fact, it was almost fun to pretend that Hadrian hadn’t proposed to her and that they were engaged of their parents’ accord. That they spent every waking hour together. That they were in love. But she knew that the fun would wear over the intervening months. She was a pretty patient girl, but that was almost impossibly distant for a teenager in love.
They wound around the palace gardens and back to the towering marble beast where their parents were waiting. There was another ball scheduled for tonight, and they had to start getting ready. Ever since Darcey came home, there had been a monthly ball even larger and grander than the last. It was getting tiring, but as long as Hadrian was there, she could bear it.
Hadrian smiled down at her as they neared the courtyards. A warm feeling spread over Darcey’s chest that he could be so bold as to walk so close to her, to pretend to have even the warmest feeling for her, when both their parents were so near.
Rounding the last bend, the smile disappeared from his face and he moved a few inches farther from her. He dropped her hand regretfully and stared strait ahead. Darcey mimicked him, crossing her arms protectively over her chest. She looked away from her watchful parents, a wistful look tempered with resentment shading her face.
“Ah, my darling! Come, come dear. There is much to be done for tonight, and the tailor is here for your final fitting,” Queen Martinaque embraced her daughter and bustled her off to her cavernous rooms. Darcey threw a pained look back at her fiancé, who was trying valiantly to look indifferent.
Darcey’s mother flew into her daughter’s massive closet and pulled out a decadent silvery gown with crimson and golden embroidery on the skirt and bodice. Gossamer flowed from the train and billowed to the floor and covered the long princess sleeves.
An army of servants, including Tania, stripped Darcey down and laced her into a cool silk corset. The dress parachuted down over top of her. Yanking it past her hips, she impatiently twitched as the fleet of maids made last minute adjustments.
“Darcey, please stop that fiddling! Honestly darling, one might think that you have a nervous disorder,” her mother commanded. The Queen was sitting on Darcey’s bed watching the proceedings.
Soon she retreated to her own chambers to be dressed. To her daughter’s infinite relief, more than half of the tiresome palace ladies’ maids went with her. Darcey was left with an even dozen to finish her dressing, hair, and makeup. Tania stood by overseeing it all.
In just over an hour, she was ready. The maids all evacuated her dressing room to finish assisting their queen, leaving Darcey to stare at her reflection in the mirror. The girl that looked back was exquisite, with her emerald green eyes highlighted and her deep brown hair rising and falling in intricate patterns.
A knock on her door brought her back to earth with a thump. She slid into her diamond white high heels and trod softly to the heavy doors. She opened them and gasped, grabbing the diamond necklace hanging at her throat.
A dashing young man in tails walked into the room. His dark hair was slicked back. The strong jaw line was freshly shaved and smelled of expensive cologne. But instead of the laughing black and purple eyes that could make her heart twist, sharp blue ones met her gaze.
“Will!” Darcey gasped. “What are you doing here?”
“I just wanted to see how you were doing. You’ve been so busy with your fi-,” his voice broke over the word, “fiancé…I haven’t had a chance to talk to you.”
“Oh. Well, I’m fine. And it’s so good to see you again.” Darcey surprised herself by moving behind the door and closing it slightly. Will didn’t seem to notice, but backed off nonetheless.
“I really should go. Carissa’s waiting for me,” Will paused and looked up into Darcey’s eyes. “Uh…Carissa Romero. Her parents are –”
“Lord and Lady Romero. Yeah, I met them a few months ago, when my,” she paused, struggling to speak. “My…engagement was announced. So you two are…?”
“Dating, yeah. Dante wasn’t happy, but he’s got some girl on Obweji that he’s with a lot. Carissa’s the girl my parents wanted me to meet. It’s not like an arranged marriage, but they’d hoped… Anyway, I’ve got to go. See you later, Darcey.”
The door had been closed only five minutes when another knock brought its mistress running up again, pulling back her voluminous skirts. Instead of the blue eyes that she last saw, affectionately familiar black eyes shredded in purple quickly darted inside. No matter what he did, he always managed to look gorgeous.
“Hello, my love. You are absolutely ravishing,” he turned quickly and locked her door. “Not that unusual, really.”
“Ah, sweet Prince. You are deliciously charming, and you don’t look that bad yourself,” Darcey winked and smiled, tilting her head up, expecting his kiss. It didn’t come for some time, which surprised her.
“Is something wrong?”
“No! No…it’s just that I can’t believe how lucky I am. You’re really perfect, you know…”
“I’m really not. I’m a princess who was raised like a pauper. You…you really are a prince. Prince Charming,” Darcey closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the doors, exposing the soft skin of her neck.
He leaned in, but stopped less than an inch from her. She could smell his casually expensive aftershave, his hand milled Japanese soap. His hands wrapped around the back of her hair and her silk clad back. Darcey’s hands splayed out against the cold door, pushing herself against it.
“Nine months are going to be hard to wait. You know that, right?” Darcey gasped, tripping over her lacey underskirts.
“You have no idea,” Hadrian whispered into her ear. Instead of backing off and leading her down to the awaiting ball as he should have done, he leaned farther into her and kissed her.
Whether or not it was possible, Darcey was pushed even farther into the doors, almost absorbing them. The kiss, soft and warm and full of love, seemed to last forever. Darcey eventually began to wonder whether or not someone would come looking for them.
Almost as if he were reading her thoughts, Hadrian reluctantly pulled away. Eyes locked on hers, his hands slowly made their way down her arms to her hands. He pulled her away from the door and opened it, eyes still locked on hers.
The quiet moment shattered as they heard footsteps coming down the hall. They were heavy and tumbling, but heading their way nonetheless. Hadrian dropped her hands hastily and took a step away. He peered anxiously down the hall, straining to decipher how far away the person was.
Very suddenly, King Julian appeared around the corner, a customary wine bottle in his hand. He saw his son and future daughter in law standing in her doorway and laughed, his overweight belly jiggling.
“Ho-ho, you two! Hurry up there, we’re all awaiting your royal presences,” the jolly old king smiled. He was too dull to guess at what had just passed, too drunk to care. He tottered around the corner again and laughed happily down the hall at some merry joke of his own. His son waited until his embarrassment of a father and screw up as a king was out of sight before he turned back to Darcey.
“Come on. If we don’t follow him, he’ll come back. I couldn’t take that right now,” Hadrian said, a touch of irritation in his voice. He grabbed her arm and gallantly tucked it in his. He then led her down a maze of corridors to the grand ballroom, where over a hundred guests were awaiting their latest couple.
This society was very different from what an outsider might imagine. Far from the island casual that had been Darcey’s first introduction to her new home, this set of people seemed transplanted straight from the ballrooms of British royalty.
Illustrious gems lit up the wrists and throats of the ladies bedecked in brilliant silks and laces. The gentlemen all wore expensive tails with pomaded hair, gold and silver cufflinks and supple black leather shoes.
As Darcey and Hadrian walked out onto the most prominent balcony overlooking the towering ballroom, the musicians stopped playing. The few couples that danced froze and turned, the rest followed suit.
They were looking down on a hundred faces and carefully constructed smiles. This society was filled with pride at the sight of their two brightest stars coming together after seventeen years apart.
Darcey looked down at them, and could feel Hadrian’s eyes on her. She looked up into his and smiled. He responded in kind and squeezed her hand. From far below, they looked every inch the young royal couple in love. It wasn’t that far off the mark.
Darcey turned away from her handsome fiancé to peer once again into the crowd. Instead of a sea of distant faces, she could see more detail. She saw her parents in the center of the crowd, beaming up at her. Hadrian’s mother was with them;