The truth was, Kylee was honored and glad to have been proposed to. But while Thomas was a good man, he was not the man she could see herself growing old with. He could give her a life of ease, and bliss. He could give her something that many would not consider giving; and one that Aden could not give.
Since she had accepted his proposal, Thomas has been showering Kylee with gifts and attention. Everything he had was hers, and he made sure she knew it. He had started drawing up a guest list, and she was going to all the dress makers in town to find the perfect gown. She would only be married once, and "only the very best gown would do," Thomas would say. She smiled at the thought of him, and then frowned as she looked into the mirror and saw the women looking at her strangely.
Kylee quickly found that everyone knew her past. It did not matter that she was kind, or funny, or beautiful. To the women of Wimshire, she was a whore. Living that down would be difficult.
"You would think she would be embarrassed. You'd think she would not go out in public! But here she is, marrying
OUR
Earl?" The women whispered, but it wasn't really a whisper at all. It was like the yell of a sick person- because while their voices were low, they were still very loud. Kylee told the woman fitting her that she would come back another time, and left right away.
~*~*~
"Again!"
Aden charged at his opponent. He had gone three rounds and lost each one today. He was falling apart at the seams. Each day that Kylee was gone, he felt more useless. He had originally thought she would come right back, but she was proving him wrong. And proving him weak.
He finished the round, barely pulling his first win of the day, and headed to the library. Lately, he was there all the time. He would try to find the book she was reading on the night they first met. He had looked at nearly every book with a blue spine in the library, but to no avail. He walked in and sat in the chair she always sat in. He looked out the window, watching the birds fly by. She was just like them; never staying, always flying away.
His pride had gotten the better of him. Normally he would have gone after her. He would have brought her home, to his bed. It is, after all, where she belonged. But now, he had so many things to consider. He had to worry about his image, the needs of the people, his responsibility to serve them. There was no room for the love he felt for Kylee. Yes... Love.
Had he forgotten the way she cried out for him? Or the way their bodies seemed to light on fire when they touched one another? Had he forgotten the way the moon hugged her curves, and the sun kissed her face? In everything she did, she was good. She was pure. And she was everything he wanted.
His father had not understood that to him, Kylee was not just another servant girl. She wasn't a play thing for him to use and send away. He had fallen for her. And now, he only wished that his father had understood; because he felt completely alone. No parents with whom to discuss his troubles, no friends.. He had only Analeigh. But he did not love her. He did not want her.
~*~*~
"We must do something, Quincy. This will not solve itself! They are both so stubborn, and so proud. She will never just come back to him, knowing he will not marry her. And he will not go groveling at her feet for her return!"
Mira paced back and forth, a plot scheming in her mind. Quincy just sat and watched his adorable wife. When they were not eating, sleeping, or fucking, she would talk only of her best friend and the king.
"Darling, you must let this go." His voice was very deep, and it boomed so, that Mira jumped in surprise. She had forgotten he was there for a moment; her thoughts going a mile a minute. "What is meant to be will be. We should not meddle in the affairs of others. Least so, the king."
Mira stopped pacing and looked up at him. Slowly, a smile spread across her face. "I know what to do."
While they had only been married a couple of months, Quincy had come to know her very well. Once Mira set her mind to something, it would be done. Now, he just had to figure out how much trouble this would get him into.
~*~*~
Kylee sat by the pond, thinking about everything she had experienced in the last couple of years. She had lost her mother and her home. She had been forced to serve the queen, then forced to lay with the prince. She had lost her virginity to a man that had stolen it away, only to fall in love with him.
Aden. She hadn't been giving him much thought with everything going on, but she had heard from Mira that he was very unhappy lately. She was sad to hear that he was sulking; she had the feeling it was her fault. She hadn't even the courage to say goodbye. She knew he would look at her with those stormy eyes and she would fall apart.
