This is directly after the first part I posted--So if it seems confusing in the beginning...bear with me. I'm still working out the kinks with this one. And I decided to post just five pages at a time, so this may end a little oddly...
“Are you enjoying your time here?”
I turned, startled, half-remembering that Marina was there in the bath with me and half-daydreaming about Alexius.
Marina was one of Hayani’s servants. A beautiful Spanish girl with dark, curly hair and very pretty brown eyes, she was very polite and adored the fact that I was a gypsy and therefore related to her in some small way.
“Yes, I am. Marina…tell me: is it unusual for a master to show affection to his slaves?”
“Very much so! Master Hayani will give us gifts on the holidays and praise us when we do good work, but…he doesn’t show affection to any of us girls. He only shows affection to Miss Timian. It’s quite rare for members of this family to take courtesans anymore, but that doesn’t mean they won’t…”
“Oh, okay,”
I left it at that, letting her comb oils and perfumes through my hair. I liked being treated like a princess, but according to her and several of the other servants, they had access to anything of Hayani’s as long as they had his permission first; he wouldn’t deny them access to anything they truly needed or wanted.
“Why, hmm? Did something happen last night?”
”Nothing at all,” I stammered, avoiding eye contact with her.
“Ah, you can tell me anything. What happened?”
“Alexius kissed me,”
It wasn’t a lie, but I wasn’t telling her that he proposed to me. I wasn’t telling anyone that.
“Oooh! Do you like him?”
”Of course I do! How could I not?”
It was nice to talk to someone in Spanish. My mother spoke in Spanish all the time around the house, and it was comforting to speak it in so casually. I could ask Alexius to speak to me in Spanish, but it would probably be out of his comfort zone; the Arcelus almost always spoke in French formally, and in Hebrew or German informally. Alexius knew I was terrible with Hebrew, though, and spoke to me in French.
“I wish the best for you,” Marina giggled, winking.
“Perhaps you’ll fall madly in love and marry him! Who knows?”
There was a knock at the door and I jumped, not expecting anyone to knock on the door. I wasn’t even considering the fact that someone would interrupt my bath…not even when I saw whom it was.
Alexius was standing in the doorway when I turned, barely dressed; the only clothing he had on was a nearly-sheer towel wrapped around his waist.
He smiled at Marina and she immediately took that as her sign to leave. I was nearly begging her not to with my eyes but it was too late; she was gone and Alexius and I were all alone.
I pondered what to say to him for a moment. Alexius was still my master, but…he didn’t seem so the way he had approached me.
He smiled warmly, urging me to go ahead and question him.
“My lord, what are you here for?” I asked, my mouth dry.
“Last night, I couldn’t help but think about you as you lay beside me. I knew from the moment our lips touched that there was something different about you. I deliberated for a quite some time and I came to the conclusion that if God so willed me to propose to you without incident, perhaps I should also consider a marriage. A physical one.”
I was so shocked I could barely say anything. I knew that Alexius could be romantic, but I’d never heard or seen him work his charm on a woman. I was completely speechless, searching for something I could say to him. I decided that actions were better than words and ran into his arms, burying my face in his bare chest.
“I’ve waited a long time for you to say those words, Alexius,” I whispered, leaning up to kiss him.
“There’s been nothing I’ve wanted more, you see. Well, than to actually do what those words inclined,”
Alexius chuckled, locking the door. Luckily for us, no one would be able to open this door once we bolted it shut; it was only door in Hayani’s house that didn’t have access through a key.
“Well, what’re we waiting for? Let’s get started, Alexius, my dear prince…”
The bath, the hall, the parlor, the bedroom—it would take a bit of lying to convince anyone that what had just happened hadn’t. Actually, it would take one hell of a cleaning job and a lot of lying to convince anyone that we hadn’t just…
Books and papers were strewn all over the parlor; the bedroom was a complete mess; furthermore, I was quite certain that everyone had heard the giggling…and the slamming…and various other noises that couldn’t go unnoticed.
But now, lying there half-asleep—and quite sore, mind you—it didn’t seem so bad. Actually, I was quite surprised at how unusually happy I was. Was it what we’d done, or was it Alexius? Ever since I’d met him, I was much happier than I’d ever been in my entire life. I felt hope, and I felt truly loved.
My fingers were knotted in his hair, my head laid against his chest. I thought he was asleep until I heard him chuckling.
“What’re you doing?” He chuckled, opening his eyes.
“Nothing…” I murmured, kissing him.
“I was just thinking about the mess we have to clean up,” I giggled.
Alexius chuckled, rolling his eyes.
“Ah, don’t worry about it. We’ll have to tell them, anyway. Be grateful that father isn’t here,”
“Uh, yeah,” I chuckled, rolling my eyes.
“We wouldn’t have done that if he were here,”
“True enough, Rin,” Alexius agreed, smiling playfully.
I was surprised at how steady his heartbeat was; I could still feel mine thumping up against my chest like an angry hummingbird.
“What now?” I whispered.
Alexius raised an eyebrow, taking his pocket-watch off the desk. I opened the lid and saw the time, closing it back. It was nearly four in the morning and I was asking him “What now?”!
“I guess we can talk…unless you want to go to bed,” I sighed.
“I can’t sleep,” Alexius laughed.
“He’s going to have to find out sooner or later. I swear, he’s inescapable…like Satan,”
I giggled, nodding in agreement. I was tired, but I wouldn’t be able to sleep, either. Julius haunted my dreams constantly, and I knew it would be even worse after…this.
“So,” Alexius began, clearing his throat.
He sat up and I followed, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“Of course, we’ll have to tell everyone,”
“Mmhmm,” I agreed, nodding.
“We don’t have to tell father now, of course; let’s enjoy our next few weeks of freedom first. But Marceaux, Hayani, Timian…everyone here has to know now. Romeo, Sarah…”
There was a long pause and Alexius sighed.
“And my father,”
“We don’t have to tell him, Alexius,” I argued, clutching him tighter.
“Really, we don’t. I mean, even if I’m…”
Oh. My. God. I was probably pregnant and I hadn’t even thought about that. Oh my…
“Alexius,” I nearly shrieked.
“Yes, Rin?” Alexius asked, looking over at me.
“Well…you know how we just…well…Alexius…what if I’m pregnant?”
Alexius took a moment to reply, obviously not expecting me to say that. He unwrapped my arms from around his neck, clasping my hands in his.
“Rin,” Alexius began.
“No matter what, I’ll love you. If that so happens, my dear…well, I’ll still love you. I’ll love both you and the baby. And I’ll take care of both of you, too,”
“Do you promise?” I demanded, snuggling closer to him.
“Oh, Alexius, do you promise?”
Alexius kissed me, smiling warmly.
“Yes, Rin, of course I promise,”
I took solace in that, sighing lightly.
“Has anyone ever told you how wonderful of a man you are, Alexius Arcelus?” I laughed.
“No, I don’t think they have, Rin.”
There was a long silence after that. I contemplated what I should be doing now. Sleeping or talking? I nudged Alexius and sighed when he didn’t give a reaction.
“Are you asleep?” I murmured.
“I was,” Alexius groaned, opening his sapphire eyes—reluctantly, of course.
“I’m sorry, go back to sleep…”
”No, no, I’m fine. Did you have a question?”
“Not really. I just…”
I leaned up and kissed Alexius, caressing his face gently. He smiled, kissing my hand as I pulled it away.
“I cannot wait to marry you,” I whispered.
“Aye,” Alexius chuckled, wrapping me in his arms as he fell asleep.
I was awake before Alexius the next morning. I was very happy about that, too; I had wanted to surprise him after such a wonderful night.
After kissing him and slipping on a robe, I slipped out of the room. The halls were quiet and peaceful, unlike how they had been prior to this morning. I took a relatively quick bath, so I had plenty of time to roam the gardens and corridors before Alexius would even stir.
After I’d gotten dressed, I went to Alexius’s parlor next door. The books and furniture were all over the place, thanks to last night. I rolled my eyes and chuckled, starting to clean the room up a bit.
I noticed the volume I’d seen Alexius reading the other night and picked it up. Of course, the words seemed like nonsense to me; I couldn’t read. Well, not very well, at least. Alexius had taught me the alphabet and how to spell my and his names. Most words seemed completely foreign, but I recognized quite a few. Well, parts of a few.
“Rin?”
“Alexius!” I screamed, turning around.
He was leaning up against the doorframe, smiling. I, however, wasn’t. I was breathing heavily and my heart was slamming against my chest.
“You’re up early,”
“I figured I might as well fix up the parlor. What do you say?”
Alexius shrugged.
“You still can’t read?” he inquired, taking the volume from my hands.
I shook my head. No, I couldn’t.
“I’d be delighted if you could teach me…again…”
“Of course. Now, I’ve taught you the basics, but perhaps I should—"
“Alexius? Brother, I’d be delighted if you could come to the door,”
“Marceaux!” I whispered, turning to Alexius.
“It’s fine,” He murmured.
“Come on in, Marceaux, its unlocked—"
“Marceaux!” I screamed, snatching him into the room as soon as he’d opened the door.
Of course, me being a mere fourteen and he being nineteen, I couldn’t hold his weight; the two of us collapsed onto the floor.
“Damn it, Rin, what’s gotten into you?” Marceaux hissed.
I scrambled to lock the door but Alexius was already there, calm and composed. He locked the door and smiled, helping his brother stand.
“What? I swear, whatever it was, I didn’t do it,”
Marceaux help up his hands in surrender. All I could do was laugh.
“No, no, it’s not like that. We…have something important to tell you…”
I tugged at the gold chain on my neck, letting Marceaux see it.
“This was mom’s, Alex. It was father’s engagement present to her…Why would you…oh my…”
“We’re engaged, Marceaux. And,”
I paused, giggling. I took Alexius’s arm, smiling.
“Last night, Alexius and I…well, we had a wild night,”
Marceaux’s jaw dropped. He looked astonished, his blue eyes wide with surprise. His glance went from me to Alexius and it finally fell on Alexius. He grinned.
“Well, Alexius, you’ve finally become a man,”
“I’ll remember that statement when it comes time to divide inheritance, you hear me?” Alexius hissed, smirking.
Marceaux grinned, nodding.
“So, how was it, Rin?” Marceaux teased, winking.
I blushed. I myself had to grin.
“It was perfect, Marceaux, and that’s all I’ll tell you,”
“You’re no fun! Either of you!” He teased.
“Well, you know…there are people who must know about this. Mimi, Yani, Julie, Ali, and Lulu. And father…and Romeo…”
“He doesn’t have to know,” Alexius hissed.
“I’ll do as I damn well please; he can burn in Hell for all I care,”
Marceaux looked taken aback, but he knew that Alexius wasn’t in the mood to argue. For the first time in my life, I saw Marceaux bow; he swept his arm across his chest and bowed so low that I swore his head touched the floor.
“As you wish; my mouth is closed,”
”It had better be. Get the others, would you? We can tell them now…don’t you think? And send a sealed,”
He paused and nodded, making sure Marceaux knew what he meant. He must have, for he took Alexius’s ring from the nightstand.
“…letter to both Emi and Razael in Paris. If you could send a slave to get it there within the next few hours, I’d be delighted,”
“Surely, brother, as you say,”
With that, Marceaux left. I looked at Alexius in astonishment; I couldn’t believe the display of respect and submissiveness I had just witnessed.
“He bowed to you,” I gasped, looking over at Alexius.
He shrugged.
“Part of being the heir. You know how they talk; my son is supposed to be both cursed…and blessed,” He sighed.
“Our son,” I murmured.
Alexius looked over at me, but I shot my head down, afraid of the emotions I would see in his eyes.
“I meant no disrespect…I merely…”
“No, no, that’s not it…thank you,”
I shot my head up, looking completely confused.
Alexius smiled.
“You really love me, don’t you?”
I nodded. Of course I did! Was he blind?
“Yes, Alexius, of course I do, love,”
“God bless you,” Alexius purred, holding me close.
I nodded into his chest, wrapping my arms around him. I hoped that our time together would never have to end.
The day went passed in a blur. Quite a few days after that went past in a blur, the more I think about it. Everyone welcomed me into the Arcelus family, telling me how much of an honor it was to have someone like me in the family. I thought that was odd. I was a slave; I had no status. I couldn’t read or write—what business did I have marrying into the richest family in the world? What business did I have marrying Alexius? What business did I have carrying his child? What business did I have being so close to God?
God…I’d started believing in Him again. The moment I met Alexius, I had started to believe again. I prayed like I should and actually felt loved again. I wasn’t sure what I was—Jew, Christian, Muslim—I just knew that I believed that somewhere out there, there was a God who led the Israelites out of slavery, sent His Son to die…and led me to Alexius.
The next day I actually remember was close to the end of our trip. Romeo had come down from Paris, so I rarely clung to Alexius like I wanted to. Apparently, Julius had been using Romeo as his toy while I was away; Romeo complained to Alexius that he’d endured ten whippings in the first two days we’d been gone.
“The man is mad, Alexius,” I’d heard him murmur.
“Why can’t you send him into exile?”
“Hush, don’t you dare talk like that!” Alexius had scolded him.
“That isn’t your place to decide,”
It wasn’t my place to eavesdrop like that, but I wanted to know all that I could. Wasn’t I supposed to be a princess? If Alexius was the so called “Prince of Israel” now, what did that make me? The Princess?
That conversation had taken place a few hours ago, though, and now I was lying on one of the divans by the marble fountain, Alexius talking to Romeo in his parlor.
I felt so alone; ever since Romeo had come, he’d been sharing a room with Alexius. He slept at the end of his bed on a pallet—which automatically meant I couldn’t cuddle with Alexius like I longed to. He’d apologized, but it wasn’t his fault; it was Julius’s. If he hadn’t been flogging Romeo mercilessly, he wouldn’t have taken consolation here.
I wished that someone would come and talk to me after an hour or so, but no one did. Well, not until Hayani noticed me all alone.
“What do we have here?” he chimed, tilting his head as he smiled at me.
His accent always threw me off; he was Israeli, a Jew, just like the rest of the Arcelus, but his accent was more Scottish than anything. Alexius told me that he’d lived in Scotland for years before moving to Barcelona. He was handsome, I had to admit, and Timian was lucky to have such a man.
“I wish I could be with Alexius,” I sighed.
”Oh, Romeo doesn’t know?”
“Not really. Well, no…I guess not,”
”Ah, poor girl. Why don’t I tell you a story, hmm?”
I shrugged. I supposed so; it wasn’t as though I had anything better to do, after all. What would a story hurt me?
“When I heard that I would be engaged to my cousin, Timian, I was thrilled. Well, until I met her. She had no desire to marry me, saying she didn’t want an arranged marriage, but Julius forced it on the both of us. She refused any gifts I gave her. Well, I figured the only thing to do was to kill her—with romance. I literally threw myself on her and when that didn’t work, I played hard to get. Once I acted as though I couldn’t care less, she became wildly attracted,”
Hayani paused, smiling devilishly at me. He seemed to be hiding something naughty, but I didn’t mind. Despite the night Alexius and I had a few nights ago, I was still a child in his eyes.
“Anyway, now we’re married and she lives here with me. We’re moving to Israel soon, though,”
“Why?” I inquired, tilting my head.
Hayani thumped his stomach.
“She’s pregnant,”
“Oooh,” I murmured.
“The estate here doesn’t have a nursery, but one of the ones in Israel does. Like with Alexius. Once he marries and has children, he’ll probably move out of Paris. Hell, he might move out of the country and off the continent, over the seven seas to get away from his father,” Hayani chuckled, winking.
He meant the two of us, of course. Alexius and I would move away; Alexius and I would marry; Alexius and I would have a baby together.
“Rin, you know that you can interrupt the two, right?”
“I can?” I inquired.
Hayani nodded, smiling.
“Yes, of course. Now, you can’t just barge in the room and demand to speak to Alexius. You’ll have to knock, bow, and inquire if you can talk to him. Okay?”
I nodded, hugging Hayani.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
“You’re welcome, dear,” He laughed.
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