“You’re playing me for a laugh, and I won’t stand for it! Prince or not, you can’t treat me like that!”
“It’s not a joke, I swear!” I scramble to make her believe me as I approach her. “Anyone would want to marry a woman who makes biscuits like you do—”
She throws another mug at my head, and I duck again, ceramic shards ricocheting off the wall and scattering around me.
“You’re just like the rest of them!” she shrieks. “Don’t you see that sign? Can’t you read?” she screams, pointing to a blackboard with a list of house rules, one of which, apparently is “No Marriage Proposals.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine! I’ll buy the next round! I’ll buy all the rounds!” I say, trying to placate her.
The next mug lands too close for comfort.Shit.“Okay, I surrender—please—just listen for one moment, will you?”
Perhaps Aren’s anger is dissipating—or more likely, she’s out of mugs, because now she’s merely standing there, hands balled into fists at her sides, eyes blazing with fury.
“Thank you,” I say, risking standing up straighter. “I meant what I said—you’re perfect for me— Just wait!” She moves to grab a plate next but pauses, letting me speak. “You know that I’ve got my reasons, and I meant that proposal with every fiber of my being. But it’s tough to explain with you threatening to bash me in the head every time I open my mouth.”
Aren purses her lips as if she’s holding back every curse she knows. The heat of her glare could light a bonfire.
“I promise you, my proposal is not a joke. My future—everyone’s future—depends on this. Can we at least discuss my proposition?” I ask.
“I will never, ever marry a lousy, spoiled prince like you.”
“Great. That’s perfect. I don’t want to marry you, either. That’s exactly why I chose you. Can you sit down and hear me out?” I motion to a nearby table and chairs.
My response must have taken her by surprise, because the murderous look on her face evaporates. “What?”
“I said, I don’t really want to marry you, either.”
“I knew it.” Aren looks as if something large and painful is trying to crawl up her throat. Her face scrunches up, and her eyes turn glassy.
Damn! Every time I open my mouth, I put my foot in it. I realize I might have said something truly heartless, but I didn’t mean it that way. I hurry to explain. “You know the real reason I came to Evandale. The Rings I carry. Veteria. The bride search was a ruse. The truth is that I never intended to marry anyone, but I do need your help to pretend that I am.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.”
“I wish you’d said yes so we could have avoided all this.” I wipe my brow with my handkerchief. “Now you’re really going to have to pretend to be in love with me to make everyone believe it, or I’m toast.”
Her forehead scrunches in confusion. It’s kind of cute.
“I didn’t mean to surprise you, but with everyone watching, it was the first thing I could think of. And I thought it was perfectly romantic,” I say. “I really thought I could sell it.”
Aren scoffs. “What possessed you to think I would say yes?”
“My wit? My looks?” I laugh. She doesn’t. “And my title? Iama prince, you know.”
Wrong answer.She narrows her eyes and cocks her head, looking at me like I’m a bug she’s about to squash. “Tell me the truth. Why did you ask me to marry you?”
I know it’s a risk, but I have no other choice. I need a bride to parade through Alarice and Loegria, to fool the Usurper’s spies watching my every move. Who else could I ask to do such a thing?
“As you know, I need to go to the Great Waste.”
That gets her attention.
“No, you musn’t.” She shakes her head in worry. “I know I told you about King Osian but Veteria said you shouldn’t go.”
“Too late. Just hear me out! You’d make a perfect cover for me, to pretend we’re going to ask the Oracle of Alba to bless our marriage.”
She studies me for a long moment. “That’s crazy.”
“I know how it sounds…but listen. I need to get to King Osian’s castle without tipping off the Usurper’s informants. With a bride on my arm, I can travel across borders on a Wedding March and get the Oracle’s blessing at Alba, as the unification treaty demands of a royal marriage, without escalating existing tensions into war.”
