Page 7 of Kingdom of Betrayal and Unknown

He’s the prince.

Prince of this realm, Bellhollow.

No one would bat an eye at whatever he decided to do. He would just need to have a word with his father and then anything could happen.

“Sadly, there isn’t a finishing school around here. I am needed at home, helping my mother, who is pregnant. We have several things to do before the baby arrives,” I gently explain after several seconds, looking at him briefly.

“Fortunately for you, I have a tutor to help you with such things. You will meet the tutor once a week. They will give you elocution and etiquette lessons about everything you need to know.” He turns to me. “You just need to tell me now what day is best to meet up with the tutor.”

I wave my hands in front of me dismissively. “Oh, I don’t need anything like that. My family is happy with how we are living. I would stick out like a sore thumb if I started acting really proper. Not that it’s a bad thing, but it’s not how we live in this town…” I trail off.

Prince Archie grabs my hand, halting our movements. I look him in the eyes, trying to read them, but he’s not showing anything.

“If you are to be my bride, then I need you to become queen material. Right now, you have a lot of work to do,” he states. “So, you will be meeting with the tutor and learn how to be the future queen.”

I clench my teeth, biting back a response as I stare at him.

“Br-bride?” I whisper.

“We’ll talk about this on another day. Right now, I need you to tell me what day works for you to come to the palace and meet with a tutor.” He lets go of my hand and starts to walk. “It will be for a couple of hours in the afternoon, but you’ll need to walk to the palace so block out a whole afternoon.”

A whole afternoon.

Disgust, anxiety, and worry roll through my body as I replay his words in my brain.

If you are meant to be my bride.

I don’t want to be his bride. I don’t want to have anything to do with him, yet he is making wild declarations. Looking around the town, I realize no one is close to us as we get further away from the town square.

“I need to talk to my mother and see when I’m available,” I finally say. “With the baby coming, there is a lot to get done,” I reiterate once again. It’s like I’m talking to a brick wall. “I still live with my parents and need to make sure it is okay with them before giving you any dates.”

Maybe if I put it off long enough, he’ll forget about it, and me. That would be a blessing, but deep down, I know he’s not going to let it go so easily. Right now, he seems homed in on me and it makes me feel uneasy… very uneasy.

“Get rid of your walk for that day. It’s once a week, and we’ll use that time to get you lessons with the tutor.” He looks at me, his lips a thin line.

He’s completely disregarded what I said about me still living with my parents. Does he not understand that it’s different in this town for women than for him living in the palace?

“I’ll need to talk to my parents about it and get a good time for you. I still live with them and help out around the house so I need to make sure the time works for them,” I explain.

Most unmarried women still live with their parents, or they move into housing for single women. Women who aren’t married can’t live on their own, it’s an actual law. I don’t know why, but I’m not complaining either. I’m glad I am still at home to help my parents out with this unexpected pregnancy.

“Please, sit,” he says.

I hadn’t realized we had made it to the clearing in the forest. There is a basket with a blanket on the ground. Was I so in my head that I didn’t even realize how far we had gotten? I need to be more vigilant when I’m around the prince.

On the ground, I get comfortable as he sits directly in front of me, pulling things out of the basket. Thankfully, I see a simple sandwich with some sort of meat on it, something I’m used to.

I’ve heard rumors from people who have visited the palace that they eat fancy food. They hadn’t even been able to describe what they had seen since it was so different.

Part of me is curious to know what it was, but I don’t want to figure it out by going there myself. I don’t want to set foot in the palace for anything, and I don’t want to eat their food. I’m happy with what we have here, even if sometimes it is a bit bland and boring.

I love my life in Bellhollow.

“Here you are.” He hands me a sandwich.

“Thank you,” I whisper and take a bite of the sandwich.

We sit in an uncomfortable silence for several minutes, eating our lunch. I look around the forest, admiring the way the leaves have started to change already, falling off the trees and turning pretty colors; red, orange, yellow, brown. Winter is coming soon, and I’m excited. I love it when the snow starts to fall, covering the cobblestone roads and making everything look so peaceful and undisturbed.