Greg's Rambling Prompts - 2. Prompt 218 - The Arrival

“How much…how much time?” I stammered, looking in the mirror still not quite believing it was me looking back. I had never worn clothes as fine as these, never wanted to really, and it was still hard to believe how different I looked. High born I might have been, but I had never lived as one.

Mine was a minor noble house, but an old one. We could trace our lineage back over a thousand years, farther even than the current king. To some that was considered important. But no matter how far back our line extended it didn’t change the fact that our holdings were small. No bigger than a modest merchant and that would be a kind description. That being the case I had always lived simply and worked right alongside the commoners. Noble birth doesn’t fill one’s belly.

“About an hour,” my mother answered me, running her hands down my back straightening my clothes. I glanced at her reflection and saw her gentle smile. She understood. This was a huge event in my life. This was my wedding day. And the day I would meet my future wife – for the first time in my life.

Mine was an arranged marriage – arranged even before I was born truth be told. The king’s hold on the throne was tenuous. His family had held the throne for several generations, but he was not the next in line for the succession when he took the crown. All agreed that his older brother was incompetent, but the noble houses would have been much happier with a nice regency instead of the mysterious death of the rightful heir. To placate those nobles the king sought a union with a nice, old noble family. And there weren’t too many families older than mine. So the king arranged a marriage of his newborn daughter with my parents while my mother was still pregnant with me. I had always wondered what would have happened if I had been born a female instead.

My mother squeezed my shoulder in support. “You’ll be fine Gaire. The Princess is very beautiful and supposedly very sweet. She’ll make you a fine wife.”

“What am I to do with a wife mother?” I asked voicing what had always been known but never voiced before. “What kind of husband can I possibly make for her? How long before she figures it out and runs to her father and I’m sent to the headsman?”

I looked at my mother and saw tears running down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry my Gaire. You’re father and I never meant to cause you pain. If we had known…if we had known that you would prefer men… Oh Gaire!”

I knew my mother was hurting and I also knew how much that admission had cost her. It wasn’t exactly illegal or shameful to be gay, but it was rarely spoken of. And it was never acknowledged in the noble houses even though there were many that were. Marriages of convenience were often used to cover such things, but it was doubtful that such a thing would be tolerated for the heir to the throne.

My mother quickly got her emotions back under control. “It will work out Gaire,” she said, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than me. “What happens between a husband and wife in the bedroom is really a minor part of the time you will spend together. “ A small blush started to form on her cheeks.

The smile I gave my mother was forced, but I wanted to let her know I would try my best. Besides, this really wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have with my mother. I wasn’t sure I wanted to have this conversation with anyone.

It seemed like only moments before I heard the carriage pull up in front of our house that the king had sent to pick up his future son-in-law. I gave myself a final look in the mirror before I headed towards the entranceway wondering what was to come. I could distantly hear a deep male voice ask if I was ready and heard the murmur of my father’s reply. I couldn’t suppress a small shiver at that voice, but I told myself it was simply nerves of a soon to be husband. Besides I needed to suppress those kinds of reactions.

I stumbled as I reached the bottom of the steps and saw the messenger that had been sent to collect. A more beautiful man I don’t think I have ever seen. His dark hair framed his face in waves and was a perfect match for his dark green eyes. Just the hint of a beard graced his strong jaw framing his smiling face. He had broad shoulders and a full chest that tapered down in a classic V.

“You must be Gaire,” he spoke as he reached out to catch me before I fell. “My cousin is most anxious to meet you. Truthfully so am I since I am to be one of your gentlemen in waiting. I’m sure we will become quite close as time goes by. I am Prince Marc by the way.”

“Uh…gentleman in waiting,” I mumbled, confused by this perfect specimen of manhood. What was a prince doing playing messenger? And how on earth was I to stay focused when this man’s presence scattered my thoughts.

Marc smiled even bigger as he led me towards the carriage. “Yes. No husband to the heir can be left without a companion and my uncle chose me.” Marc leaned in closer to my ear and I shivered once again as his warm breath brushed my ears. “Truthfully the king is trying to keep me in my place since the former king was my father,” Marc whispered. “I, however, am more than pleased to serve you. There are so few men in the palace close to my age. I’m looking forward to the adventures we are sure to have.” Marc paused and looked right in my eye, smiling impishly. “I’m really looking forward to getting to know you quite….intimately.”

I gaped at Marc in astonishment and I’m sure my eyes had to look a little wild. Luckily Marc was busy bowing to my parents and saying his goodbyes. I was fairly sure he missed my total befuddlement. But he couldn’t possibly be saying what I thought he was saying could he? No. This man was much too handsome and manly to be interested in me in anyway. And that was assuming he even preferred men in the first place. I was positive I had to be imagining things. I told myself I was just nervous and seeing things as I’d like them, not what was really there.

Marc settled in the seat across from me as the carriage lurched forward. There was a twinkle in his eye as he stared at me and I began to feel uncomfortable once again. “My cousin is certainly a lucky woman,” Marc finally said breaking the silence. “You really are quite handsome.”

I felt my stomach lurch once again as confusion washed over me once again.