A Convict's Lover by Kayla Trautman (the false prince series .txt) 📕

"It was no trouble. I just want to make sure you're alright. I haven't slept any night since the marriage. I've taken a nap during the day but I couldn't bear to sleep at night knowing that you weren't safe." He said. She turned and headed for the buffet table, "You shouldn't have worried about me so much. Sleep is important."

"And you're telling me that you slept through the night there?" He asked. Julie grabbed a plate and placed a muffin on it before heading to the table, "There were nights when I slept by myself." Although they weren't many. She kept her eyes down on her plate.

"Julie, you're my sister. I have to worry about you. That's not going to change." Jacob said. She sighed and looked up at him, "Jacob, please. I don't want to be a burden." He came around the table to kneel beside her and took her hand, "You are not a burden. I worry about you because I love you. We're family."

She sighed and turned to look at her plate, "But I cause you to worry too much." Jacob stood and kissed her hair, "You'll learn differently someday." And then he strode quitely from the room. She was left to quietly eat her muffin. It was her favorite but she never managed to take more than a couple bites. Breakfast for her for the past two years has been nothing but bread and butter.

"Good morning." Daniel said as he entered the room. She looked up as he walked around the table to sit in front of her. He hada plate of food already. How long was he in the room? "I didn't hear you come in." She muttered.

He pushed a fork through a sausage link and took a bite, "I know. You seemed to be lost in your thoughts when I came in. It seemed rude to intrude." She gave a small shrug and looked back down at her plate, "I wasn't really thinking about anything important."

***

 Julie was sitting on the porch just watching the birds and clouds fly by when the door opened. She looked over and saw that it was Daniel. He smiled and came over, "Hope I'm not intruding on your thoughts again." She shook her head, "You're not."

Daniel took her hand and stood her up, "Come with me. I've prepared a lunch for us." She shook her head with a polite smile, "No, thank you. I'm not hungry." "Oh come on," He pulled her towards the steps and smiled, "Please?" His dimple shown in his smile and she remembered how much she loved his smile.

"Okay." She whispered as she let him lead her off of the porch and around the side of the mansion. She saw that a few yards away from the mansion there was a blanket set up for a picnic. She looked up at him and asked, "What's this about?"

"It's a lovely day for a picnic. It would be a shame to waste it." He answered as he led her over to the blanket. She sat down and  he sat across from her. He pulled two glasses and a bottle of whine from the basket and handed a glass to her. He filled their glasses and held his glass up to make a toast, "To a new beginning."

She hesitantly raised her glass a little and looked down into her glass. He took a sip of his whine before saying, "It's usually customary to take a sip after the toast." She looked up at him with a smile in her eyes and then tipped her head back as she set the glass to her lips. She drank the whine until there wasn't even a drop left.

When she lifted her head back up she found him laying on his side, laughing. "Well that's one way to make a toast." He said. She watched as he pulled the food out and set it up for them. When he was done she just sat there and watched him eat. He looked up at her and asked, "Why aren't you eating? You barely ate anything for breakfast."

She sighed and looked down, "I've gained a small stomach over the past two years." "Well that's about to change. You don't have to keep living like you did when you were with him. Eat." He nudged her plate towards her.

She looked up at him and she saw the determination in his eyes. She didn't want to eat anything. She gave in and picked up a half of a sandwhich. She saw the smile in his eyes as he took a bite of his. She nibbled at her sandwhich. They ate in silence but their eyes were never far from each other. It was a comfortable but tense silence at the same time.

When they were done Daniel put the food away and moved the basket to the side. He still layed on his side and he arm propped up so he could rest his head in his hand. He looked up at her and patted the spot next to him, "Why don't you try to relax. The day's not getting any nicer."

Julie sighed and turned around so that her side faced him. She held her knees to her chest and looked straight ahead, "Daniel, I was thinking about this a lot. I still don't want to tell you what happened but ... there is something that you should know." She saw him sit up and move closer to her, "You can tell me anything."

She looked down at her feet and took a deep breath before sighing, "Daniel, a month after I married Jeffrey I found out that I was pregnant. I was three months pregnant. It was yours." "A baby?" He touched her back and asked, "He made you give it up, didn't he? Is it a boy or girl? I can get him back."

"No, Daniel. He didn't." She interrupted him, shaking her head, "I didn't know that I was pregnant until ... until I had a miscarriage. I didn't know what was happening until the doctor came and took care of me. When Jeffrey found out he was furious and said that if I didn't have the miscarriage then he would've forced me to have one himself. He was going to beat it out of me.

"But that doesn't matter anymore. I just thought that you should know that there was a child but ... the doctor said that my body was too stressed and it couldn't ..." Daniel put his arm around her and pulled her against him in a half hug, "It's okay. It's not your fault. I'm so sorry." She could hear the pain in his voice at the same time that he was trying to comfort her.

She layed her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes, "I wanted to have your baby. Maybe then I would've been able to fight through everything. I would've had something to live for." "I know." He said. "But we still have time to try again."

Julie looked up at him and his blue eyes gleamed down at her with just pure love. She reached up and touched her fingertips to his jawline and looked at his lips. She remembered what happened yesterday afternoon when he had kissed her and her stomach tightened. She pushed him down on his back and half layed over him, her head hovered over his. She leaned down and softly pressed her lips to his.

He reached up and ran his hand up her neck to the back of her head to bury his hand in her hair. He took some of the pins that were holding her hair tightly together and her hair loosened around her head. Her lips moved slowly and hesitantly against his and he matched her slowness and let her lead. He didn't want to push her too far.

She pulled back to look at him and saw the fire in his eyes. The passion that was ignited between them was clearly burning him alive. "I love you. " He whispered. She put a finger to his lips, "Shh. Don't complicate things right now." She removed her finger and kissed him again; this time with more passion and fuller.

Julie gasped when he rolled her over onto her back and climbed on top of her without pressing his weight down on her. He spread kisses all over her cheek and down to her neck, "How does my feelings for you complicate anything? I love you, Julie. I can't live without you. If you send me away and never want to see me again ... I will obey but I won't be far. I'll be just down the road waiting for the possibility that you may change your mind ... if you don't ever change your mind then ... then I'll just have to live my life alone."

She couldn't control her breathing or her heartbeat. She was feeling excitement, anxious, and fear running through her veins all at the same time. It was overwhelming. She placed her hands on his chest and curled her fingers into his waistcoat, "Daniel ... I can't. I'm too damaged. I can't ... deal with any kind of relationship right now."

He lifted up to look down at her and cupped her cheek in his hand, "It'll be okay. In time you'll be able to move past all of this. I'll help you. You can live your life and be happy the way you should've been before." She sighed and closed her eyes, "I think I would find the feeling strange if I ever get the chance to. It's not something that I'm familiar with."

"Miss. Mortoff." A voice came from a man nearby. Daniel rolled off of her and they found the butler, Mr. Reeves, standing a few feet away from them. "I beg your pardon, but your brother has requested your prescence in the sitting room."

She sat up and tried to fix her hair as much as possible, "Thank you, Mr. Reeves. I'll be right along." He nodded in acknowledgement and turned towards the house. She sighed, "I wonder what it is he wants. It must be important. He obviously knew what you had planned and he wouldn't have interrupted us if it weren't."

Julie and Daniel met Jacob outside of the sitting room; his face was full of fury. Julie frowned and took his his hands that he held out, "Jacob? Is everything alright?" "Father's here and he wishes to speak with you. Percy and Henry are in there with him now." Jacob sighed, "You don't have to go in there. I can send him away and tell him to go to hell. He doesn't deserve to even speak your name yet alone see you."

Daniel folded his arms across his chest, a frown settling in his brows, "I'd love to see him although it wouldn't be words that we'd be having." Julie looked at the closed door and then up at Jacob, "I'll talk to him and see what he has to say. It ... couldn't hurt." The look he gave her told her that he knew differently but he turned and opened the door to the sitting room. He went