The Dark Prince’s Chosen Bride

A Late Arrival

The Dark Prince’s “home” was an immense, sprawling fortress of black sandstone and pointed turrets surrounded by rich woodlands.

They arrived in the pale, lavender light of dusk and were met by a single groom at the stables. Emilia had assumed that the Prince would return to a little more fanfare, yet she was being smuggled in like a bottle of rum in a nunnery.

“I’m going to take you to our rooms through the servant’s door, so you don’t attract attention,” the Prince said, taking Gallant by the lead and motioning Emilia towards the back of the castle.

“Why am I avoiding attention?”

“Do you want the whole of the Fay Court out here watching you? Because once one fairy knows you are here, you will be swarmed.”

“Point taken. But give me just a moment, please.”

He watched his little human bride walk around to the front of the carriage and pull a handful of something from the pocket of her cloak. Faren realized they were walnuts. Before he could bark out a warning about the ill-tempered stag, she was offering the massive beast the nuts in her flat palm.

Tior bent gingerly, then took the nuts in his velvety, black lips and munched them with delight.

“Did you just feed an ancient forest spirit nuts?”

“Yes. You did a wonderful job carrying us so far, didn’t you, good boy?” Emilia reached up and stroked one soft, furry ear. “Oh, is he not allowed treats?”

“He’s allowed whatever he wants, but he has a famously bad temper. Most of the grooms are terrified of him, and the few that do care for him are given the same combat pay as our soldiers.”

Emilia shrugged a little flippantly. “Perhaps if you gave him more treats, he wouldn’t be so grouchy.”

“I‘ll take that into consideration, my lady.”

They crept into the castle, avoiding as many people as possible. The hallways were as dark as the outside of the castle, lit by sconces that seemed to burn starlight instead of fire. The walls were covered in woven tapestries that dripped with mythology and lore. Even the floors were covered in sumptuous rugs of lambs wool, hushing their footfall and making everything strangely silent.

They reached a heavy wooden door, painted with the image of a dragon in flight. Faren pulled out a heavy key and unlocked it.

The first thing the Prince did was unleash Gallant. Like an arrow shot from a bow, the hound eagerly took off, sniffing every nook and cranny he could fit his nose into. At least the dog took no time making himself at home.

Inside of the suite was a circular sitting room with a pair of damask settees beside a blazing hearth and a dinette table for four nestled against a massive window looking out into the moon-lit forest. Three hallways branched out from the sitting room, each appearing to have two or three rooms down the corridors.

Emilia had hardly stepped into the sitting room before a door down the shortest corridor opened and out came a young man with a bare chest and buckskin breeches.

“Faren! Tanya and Algar have been on tenterhooks waiting for you,”the man exclaimed, dashing toward the Prince and clasping him warmly by the shoulder.

“Beck!”

“And this must be your lady bride.”

“Indeed, this is Emilia of Lan. Emilia, this is Beckett- my friend and personal attendant. He can help you with anything you need this evening. Tomorrow we will get a maid for you, but until then, Beck is your man.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Emilia said, dropping into a curtsy.

It was then she noticed that Beck had small, ivory bull horns sprouting from his scalp. One of the few things humans were taught about the fay was that most of them bore features of animals or nature. She was sure she would see uncannier things in the coming days. But, still, Emilia had to try hard not to gawk.

“No need to bow to me, lady. I just fetch this grouchy old man the cream for his itchy arse.” A devious smirk was on Beck’s face as he spoke.

“Beck, I’m going to slow roast your toes if you scare my bride away with your terrible jokes,” the Dark Prince was laughing. It was clear there was a deep fondness between these men, and it put Emilia at ease. It reminded her of Harriet’s teasing.

“I’m going to show her the suite and then go see my family. Can you make sure her trunk is brought up and see if you can get her some supper? Oh, her hound will need some dinner, as well.”

“Certainly, I’m sure you’re both starving. Are you eating here, Faren?”

“Not tonight. You know Tanya. She will have a full dinner waiting for me in case I came back late.”

“The Queen probably has an entire suckling pig in her sitting room.” With a flash of a smile, Beck hurried out of the room.

Faren began his tour.

“This is our sitting room, feel free to add your own touches. That hallway is Beck’s chamber and where your maid will live. Down the left corridor is my study and our private bath. And here,” he said as he put his hand on the small of her back and guided her down the middle hall, “are our living quarters.”

“And these rooms?”she asked, pointing to the first two doors they passed.

Faren frozen mid-step and cleared his throat. “Those… those will be nurseries, someday.”

Emilia knew her cheeks were crimson and felt her neck burn hot. Of course she knew she would be expected to bear the Prince children, but the reality hadn’t hit her until now.

The last door was their chamber, and it was stunning.

A black lacquered four-post bed was draped with a canopy of satin so fine it looked like spider silk. The foot of the bed had a matching chest, and each side had a small table with a silver wash basin. Twin wardrobes stood side by side on the far wall. And, at the heart of the room, logs were already burning in a basalt- tiled fireplace.

Emilia walked around the room, taking in all the beautiful trappings of her new home.

“It’s lovely,” she spoke softly.

The Prince’s face showed both pride and pleasure as watched his little bride touch the silk of the canopy and trail her fingers across the silver brocade of the blanket.

Then he remembered one more new member of his family still needed a bed.

He opened the chest and withdrew a throw made of downy sheepskin and laid if beside the fireplace.

“I’ll have a proper cushion made for your dog, but this should work until then.”

As if on cue, Gallant came tromping into the room, nose high in the air. Emilia bent and patted the sheepskin, and the hound happily plopped down.

“He is going to grow spoiled here!” she joked.

“Get used to it.” The look on the Prince’s face told her he fully intended to spoil them- both herself and her dog.

With the blazing fire going, Emilia began to sweat. She slipped off her shoes and shimmied out of her cloak.

Emilia looked down and immediately regretted it.

The atmosphere in the room changed, becoming charged and heavy. The Price seemed to register the gauzy, sheer gown she still wore from the ceremony that left her body practically bare to his gaze, just as Emilia realized she was alone in a room with a man and half-naked.

He seemed to drink in the sight of his bride, her soft curves and untamed hair bathed in the warm firelight. His eyes roamed over her, and she saw him flex his fingers, as if he had to suppress the urge to let his hands do the same. Emilia saw the hunger in his eyes as he looked at her. But here, in the privacy of their chamber, she wasn’t embarrassed. Something in her enjoyed how his eyes devoured her.

Beck chose that moment to burst through the door, pushing Emilia’s trunk and shattering the tension. He left and returned moments later, arms laden with food.

He carried a jug of chilled pear cider in one hand and a plate of soft cheese spread on a slice of dark rye bread. Beside it, a mound of late-summer blackberries topped with clotted cream in the other.Tucked snugly in his elbow was a bowl of minced lamb for Gallant. He set them down nimbly and bowed out of the room, saying, “If you need me, my lady, please wake me.”

Alone once again, the Prince cleared his throat.. “I’ll leave you to rest. I’ll be back in the morning to escort you to breakfast.”

He stepped toward her, and to her surprise, gently lifted her hand to his lips. The Prince planted a tender lingering kiss on the back of her hand, and she swore her blood began to thrum beneath where his lips touched her skin.

Then he left.

Once she broke free of the daze of his mouth on her skin, she wasted no time gorging on her meal. She even licked the cream from her fingers like a gluttonous child and drained the jug of cider to its dregs.

She stripped off her ridiculous gown and threw it into the corner, happy to never see it again. It was a gift from her King and Queen, but it would spend the rest of its life collecting dust for all Emilia cared.

Gallant had also cleaned his dinner bowl and was now soundly sleeping, so she opened her trunk and found her book of poetry.

Book in hand, she slipped between the soft linen sheets and let out a sigh. Her belly was full and she was safe - for tonight at least. Cocooned in a warm bed, she began to read.