Princess charming

“YOU’RE SO SURE THAT I WILL BE YOUR WIFE SOMEDAY, AREN’T YOU?”

While dinner was going on, Corinne noticed the looks Carlos kept giving her, but she made it blatantly obvious that she wasn’t going to give him any attention. Carlos obviously not used to being ignored decided to speak out.

“So why did you skip breakfast this morning?”

Corinne pretended as if she did not hear him and focused instead on cutting the chicken piece on her plate. Her father noticed though and threw a sharp glance her way, but her mother placed a hand gently on his arm as though she was calming him.

Camilla stifled a laugh and reached out for her glass of wine. All of these went unnoticed by Carlos father, he was focused on his meal instead.

Carlos did not give up, he looked for Corinne’s leg under the table and kicked it lightly. But lightly or not, Corinne was pissed and looked up at him with a glare.

“What do you want Carlos?” She made sure she stressed his name. The tone she used made everyone to turn looking at her and Carlos.

“Is there a problem? Corinne?” Her father asked.

“No father, I was just asking Carlos here why he was playing a game of footsie with my legs”.

Everyone turned their attention to Carlos, he shrugged “I was just asking her why she wasn’t here at breakfast”.

“I was sick! There, you have your answer now could eat my dinner in peace.....?” “Please” she added, and continued her dinner like everyone on the table was not looking at her. She stabbed her carrots furiously and paid no attention to anyone. The tension on the room after her outburst was so thick, you could cut it with a knife.

Corinne cleared her throat to break the awkward silence and tension.

“What are we having for desert?” She asked weakly.

Corinne’s parents were still stunned from their daughter’s outburst and same expression was on the Montez face.

But everyone soon got over it and did not speak a word to Corinne, except her sister that reached out under the table and squeezed her hand comfortingly, Corinne shot her a quick glance of gratitude and poured out a glass of wine to drink.

Dinner was cleared out and desert was served. Corinne cut out a good size of chocolate cake, her favorite -she could sense her mother’s handiwork here-, she scooped a large sum of cream and dumped it on the piece of cake and then she took a forkful into her mouth. She was very much aware of the rest of the table occupants sending glances her way.

“I am sorry for my outburst, I’ve just been so stressed lately it won’t happen again”, she said with a flat tone and a straight face. That is what her father would expect from her, and the never to become father in law. Submissive indeed, she scoffed.

Nobody actually responded to her apology, just a shrug here and there which she was grateful for. She couldn’t indulge in any conversations with anyone at that moment. She continued with her desert when she was done, she poured herself a glass of wine and asked to be excused from the table.

Camilla also followed suite, Corinne knew her sister just wanted to follow her to make sure she was alright, that she was grateful for but wished she wouldn’t follow her. She just wanted to be on her own for a while, unfortunately her father had other plans in mind.

“I’d say, why don’t Carlos and Corinne take a walk in the garden and get to know each other, since they would be getting engaged soon”. Her father turned to Carlos and his father who both looked pleased with the idea.

Corinne turned to her father with a shocked and mildly annoyed expression.

“Father I just had wine, two glasses plus this” she lifted up the glass of wine she was holding, “for dinner, can’t the walk wait till tomorrow?”

“You having wine does not stop you from having a walk with your fine young man here”.

She turned to send a ‘help me’ look to her mother, but even she knew her mother could do nothing once her father’s mind was made up on something. She sighed and nodded slowly.

“Okay your majesty”

She turned to Carlos and made the universal ‘shall we’ sign, then turned and began walking away from the room. She felt herself staggering a bit, she knew she have had too much wine that evening and smiled to herself. If the little guy wants a walk, she might as well frustrate him in her drunken state.

She soon felt someone walking behind her, “Carlos” she said in a flat tone. “Stop shadowing me and walk by my side if you are to take a walk with me”.

Carlos walked and fell into step beside her. Corinne walked as quickly as she could in her drunken state, the faster they get to the garden and get this evening done with, the better for her.

She took the route that leads to the backyard through the kitchen and contemplated getting a glass of water, she was drunk she knew. She shook her head against the idea, she needed to be woozy as anything to deal with the man beside her.

Corinne opened the door and gestured for him to step out first, when he hesitated she arched her brow at him. “Romantic night walk in the garden? Won’t be possible if you keep standing there like a statue”. Her words dripping of the ever so present sarcasm.

Carlos moved past her into the cool night air and she shut the door behind her and continued walking without saying anything to him again.

“Are you always like this?” He broke the silence.

Corinne looked sideway at him, she thought about ignoring him but changed her mind instead. Wether she ignored him or not, she was still going to be stuck with him for an hour or so. ‘You thought she wanted saying for life? Nahhhhh, not going to happen’.

“What do you mean by ‘are you always like this’ ?” She threw back at him making air quotes with her fingers.

“I mean are you always this sarcastic, mean and cold?”

They were walking by the garden fountain, Corinne stopped and dipped her hand into the water, she retracted and finished her drink in one big gulp, then she placed her glass carefully on a flat surface.

Carlos looked at her carefully and expectantly, waiting for her to give answers to his questions.

Corinne instead dipped her both hands into the fountain again, brought it out and patted her cheeks with her wet hands.

“Mmhmm, so cold” she sighed. “So cold, just like me”.

She turned and looked at Carlos, he matched her stare. At least she heard what he said and she is not trying to ignore him.

“I am not cold Carlos, neither am I mean. Sarcastic? That I am and everyone in this palace knows that. But then again I am the sweetest girl they could ever have been with, if you think I am lying you can ask around the palace”. She batted her eyes and gave a sweet little girl smile, filled with sarcasm of course.

He shook his head, this girl is impossible to be with or talk to, but he was going to break through her walls. He wants her and he always gets what he wants.

Corinne finally stopped playing with the water and continued walking, she took a path that led through the rose bushes, stopping only to inhale the scent of the flowers and to point out the significance of some of the flowers out to Carlos.

Carlos walked closely behind her, she stopped abruptly and turned, he was not fast enough to stop and he bumped into her. Corinne stumbled and because of her tipsy state, she couldn’t stop herself from tripping. Carlos shot out a hand quickly to stop her from falling, she regained her balance but he still left his hand lingering on her waist, she shot a glare with fiery intensity .

“Get your hand off me now mister”

“Still ever rude, what? No ‘thank you sir for saving me from falling flat on my face before you’?” Carlos smirked.

Corinne was irritated and yanked his hand off her body, but Carlos wasn’t done he took few steps towards her more and she backed away.

“You wore that dress to impress or possibly seduce me, didn’t you?”

Corinne looked at him with much disgust as she could muster, “do not flatter yourself Carlos, I dress for myself and this dress have been mine for a very long time, so how comes I am wearing it now to impress or ‘seduce’ you”.

Carlos took a step more closer and raised a hand to touch her face.

“Don’t you dare come closer or touch me Carlos, don’t you get it?”

He dropped his hand and smirked slowly. ‘Dear God, he is so ugly with that smirk. Doesn’t he have a mirror or something?’ She thought.

“You hate me that much, don’t you?”

Corinne sighed, at least he is getting it now, “hate is a strong word to use mister, I dislike you and the whole idea of this” she waved her hand back and forth between them.

“Well, that sucks because unfortunately for you, I want you”. Corinne made a face ‘what is his point?’

“And guess who always gets what they want?” He continued, Corinne made a face ‘here comes the spoilt baby boy talks’.

“That would be me Corinne, and I want you. I want you by my side as my queen and I will get that”.

Corinne burst into fits of laughter, she kept laughing for a long time, unable to control it because of the influence of the alcohol in her system too. Carlos stood just looking at her laughing when it got too much for him, he spoke up.

“You can laugh for all you want princess Corinne, we are going to be married soon, the sooner you start getting used to the idea, the better for you”.

Those words wiped the laughter off from Corinne’s face and she looked at Carlos with a straight face.

“You are so sure that I will be your wife someday, aren’t you?” He shrugged in response.

“Well, we will see how that will play out, won’t we?”

Immediately she said those words, Carlos pushed her to the wall and pinned her with his body then he kissed her. Corinne immediately pushed him off her and gave him a hard slap, Carlos was stunned by it and his grip on her loosened she took the opportunity to detach herself from him and ran away.

Corinne was walking so fast she wasn’t looking at where she was going to. She bumped into someone, she looked up and saw it was her mother with her sister. One look at her mother’s face and she bursted into tears, her mother opened her arms for her and she ran into her mother’s arm.

“I’m so sorry darling” her mother kept whispering while stroking her hair.

“Come let’s go inside, it’s getting cold out here”. Camilla gently pulled her out of her mother’s arms and led her inside.