Romance With The King

Chapter 4

“Right, Eve? Isn’t Princess Louisiana beautiful?” Princess Cahsey repeated once again, and it felt really really awkward.

The eye contact between Lady Eve and Prince Oliveros was broken as Prince Oliveros looked away and cleared his throat. Lady Eve focused her attention to Princess Cahsey after that.

“Yes. She’s indeed beautiful,” Lady Eve said.

When I looked at her, I couldn’t feel easy as her eyes were piercing cold. Her overall facial expression may look like happy and smiling and all, but the eyes never lie. Her lips are curved in a friendly smile, yet, her eyes were just simply… cold.

“Oh, she is. In fact, she’s one of a stunning lady,” Prince Oliveros jumped in the conversation, startling me as I felt his arm wrapping around my shoulder, bringing me close to him as he looked at the two ladies. “Aren’t you, my princess?” Creed asked as he looked at me, his eyes held a message to go with the flow.

“Hush, Creed. It’s kind of embarrassing to be saying such things in front of people,” I said, trying to act all flushed and embarrassed.

I just realized that I actually vocally called him Creed. I usually call him Your Highness, or Prince Oliveros, but never Creed.

I believe that it requires a deep connection to mention someone by their second given name.

I mean, I do call him Creed on my thoughts since Oliveros is a name with a lot of syllables, but I never had the guts to call him Creed with my voice. It just unexpectedly came out now.

Cahsey gasped as she got excited on her feet. “You did not!”

“Huh?” I questioned.

“No way my brother allowed you to call him by his second name,” she said as she covered her face, squealing.

“Oh really? Aren’t you just interesting, Your Highness?” I said to Creed, looking straight back at him as our faces got close. I couldn’t help but capture his cheeks between my palms as I failed to resist myself from getting worked up by his charms.

Creed continued with our act, doing the same thing as what I did to him; capturing my cheeks between his palms. “Yes, I am. But aren’t you just so adorable up close?” He complimented, which I know was out of the act we were in right now, but now, he was pinching my cheeks, then my nose.

“Oww.”

“Sorry. I got carried away by your adorable face.” He said, and what he did next almost got my soul separated from my body.

With a blink, our faces held no distance as I felt his lips kissing the tip of my nose.

“Is that enough for an apology?” He smiled.

“It was more than enough.”

“Ehem!” Princess Cahsey cleared her throat. “Do not forget that Lady Eve and I still exists. We might also get bitten by ants after being so close to something so sweet.”

“Sorry,” I grinned.

“Well, that’s okay. You guys are bound to get married, anyway. And I can’t wait for that day to come! Because! Finally, a sister!”

In a heartbeat, Princess Cahsey’s hands are wrapped around my arm, and I was no longer by Prince Oliveros.

“I really want to get to know you more. Dinner is still hours away, so I’m gonna borrow her, brother,” and with that, I was dragged away by the small lady, taking me to a place I am pretty sure that I do not know. I’m pretty certain though that it is somewhere within the palace grounds.

The standing image of Prince Oliveros Creed was fading away the farther I was dragged away by his royal sister.

Oh, no.

Prince Oliveros is left alone with Lady Evelyn!

“So, may I know you full name, sister?” Princess Cahsey asked when we reached a place that had a view of some small lake. It looked peaceful. The ground was covered in healthy green grasses, and there were wooden benches and round tables.

“I uhh, I am Louisiana Morisgor.”

“Morisgor. That’s such a nice surname. Too bad it will be replaced with Schulz.”

“Well, that’s okay. I don’t really mind, if it means marrying the man my heart is beating for,” I said.

A servant walked in out of nowhere, approaching us.

“Can you please bring us some tea that the Lord Timotheos has brought as presents?” Princess Cahsey requested. “Is tea okay with you?”

No. “Yes. Anything is fine.” Tea is not my thing. I couldn’t manage to say the fact that tea is not what I want. However, my mother used to teach me to drink tea to get myself used with it. It was kind of a thing that ladies, even lords drink. It is somewhat common for nobles, especially those teas with rare herbs.

“Good to hear,” she smiled at me, then back at the servant. “Tea, please.”

The servant walked away, and I watch their fading figure, not really wanting to be alone with Princess Cahsey. I might say some unnecessary things.

“Pardon me, Princess Louisiana, but are both of you in love?”

“I-“

“You and my brother. Like… are both of you really in love?”

Her eyes were extremely serious as she forced a deep eye contact between us.

I panicked. I was very bad at lying, especially when I lie alone, and have no support to back my lies up. Given that it was only the two of us, I decided to do the best thing I could resort to; to tell the truth.

“Princess Cahsey, to tell you the truth…”

“Yes?”

“I really do love your brother. I’ve always thought highly of him, I admire him and his capabilities, ever since I was such a little girl. However, I do not think my feelings for him is sincerely reciprocated. It is true that we did not meet for the first time. I’ve been to royal gatherings too, and I’ve ran into him at times, but I believe that was not enough to really get him to grow some feelings for me. I also believe that feelings such as love cannot grow at such brief time, which is why… I want to use this opportunity to get my feelings mutually returned.”

“Oh… thank you so much for your utmost honesty, Your Highness,” Princess Cahsey smiled at me as she held my hands at the top of the table. “Do not worry, though. I believe you’re not someone who is hard to love. I sense your sincere and generous heart. I also believe you have a logical and just beliefs. And aside from that, you are a fine lady. If only you are one of the noble’s daughter, I will believe it right away that many gentlemen would ask for your hand. But as a princess, you have to carefully pick the man you should live your whole life with.”

“T-thank you for such kind praises, Your High-“

“Cahsey, remember?”

“Cahsey.” I smiled. Cahsey grinned. “Then, you can call me Lou.”

“I am also honored to have you allow me to address you that.”

We exchanged smiles like some two idiots that shares telepathic communication. It kind of felt nice.

The servant came back with another servant, as they placed two teacups and some small ceramic that I believe had tea on it.

“Anyways, I am really rooting for you and my brother. Do not worry. My brother may be mean sometimes, and even really serious as if he doesn’t know how to laugh, but he is a good man. Also, I’d really love to hear more background about the two of you. Would it be okay for you to share your insights?”

“Yes,” I said. “So, you are aware right? That this marriage is really for political reasons, right?”

“Yes.”

“Harsh, but the reality is most of the royal weddings are out of political reasons and for power, so most of them really don’t find real love with their partner. Well, I may be hoping and dreaming for too much, but like I said, I want to use this opportunity to make him love me too,” I said with a hopeful tone and expression. “Want to hear a secret of mine?”

Cahsey grinned sheepishly as she sat next to me, moving closer so I could whisper in her ear, despite that fact that the servants were meters away from us.

“The truth is, your brother doesn’t know that I actually like him.”

“Wait. For real?”

“Yeah. I’m a coward myself. Your brother seems to love another, so I don’t want to make things between us more awkward. Because if that would be the case, then I don’t know how I will really move things up between us.”

“Love another? Perhaps, are you saying that he is still in love with Lady Eve?”

Oh. So, she knows that Lady Evelyn and her brother were used to be lovers.

“I believe so.”

“But they ended their relationship like…” Cahsey counted on her fingers, stopping at four. “Four months ago!”

“Oh, Cahsey. Real love doesn’t fade that fast. Your brother must have loved Lady Evelyn for real.”