The Prince - 3. Chapter 3

The evening of the party truly was a gala affair. The cake was five tiers high and there was enough for the girls to take some home to their family. Alexandra looked lovely and she was the loveliest girl there. She introduced me to her best friend, which I knew was her lover. She was also pretty but yet in a different way. I couldn't put my finger on it until I saw them beside each other smiling. There was a difference, Alexandra's eyes sparkled when she smiled where her friend always had a serious look.

As I danced with each girl, I found out many of them had boyfriends but protocol dictated that they had to come. I think about 75 percent had boyfriends or were in the process of getting married. To qualify for this event, the girl had to be single as of the day of the event.

Father had arranged a display of fireworks that everyone in the realm could see. They were set off at the top of a small mountain range which allowed them to be seen by everyone in the villages. It truly was the event of the year and would not be repeated until my child reached 16.

As the party died down, I was in the reception hall wishing all of my guests a good night, when George came to tell me I had a special visitor in my sitting room. I knew who that would be but I couldn't leave the reception hall until all of the guests had left.

About 2 hours later as the last of the guests left, I walked quickly to my sitting room, which would become the room for my valet. As I entered the room, there was Alex with a smile and immaculately dressed.

I took his hand and led him to the settee, sitting down, I pulled him so that he landed on my lap. Now Alex is taller than me by about 25 cm so I had to look up to see his eyes. They were twinkling and drawing me into the warmth.

"How was the party? I saw the fireworks from the window they were fantastic."

"The party was fun but I think my feet went numb. Do you know how many single women are in the realm? I stopped counting at 55 and there looked like twice that amount waiting to dance with me. Your sister looked lovely, she was the best-looking young lady there. Even my Father raised an eyebrow as I danced past them."

"I'm glad you picked my sister. What happens next?"

"She'll be wined and dined as they say. After 6 months she'll be moved into my quarters with her Maid-in-Waiting. She'll occupy her permanent rooms except when I sleep with her."

I looked at him as I said that. I could see he didn't like that. "She must become pregnant with my child within 4 years after the marriage, otherwise the marriage will be annulled."

"Can't someone else do that?"

"No, they'll test the child to be sure it's of my blood. Don't worry about that for now, it's in the future and maybe by then we'll find a way." He looked very sad. "Can you get pregnant?"

"No, of course not."

"Do you want to experiment and see if it's possible?"

He looked at me very seriously. His eyes seemed to be questioning me, is he sure, will this work, do I want this, do I love him, will he love me forever. All of these questions were floating through his mind, I could see it in his eyes.

I took his hand and led him into my bed-chamber. "Alex from the first moment I saw you playing basketball, I knew there was something in you that I wanted. Your honesty, willingness to be patient and to share your knowledge. I also knew you loved children. No one knows what the future may hold but if we don't take the chance then we'll never find out."

I sat down on my bed and pulled him to sit beside me. I turned his head so I could look into his eyes. They spoke volumes about who he is and the love he holds. "Alex if it was possible, I would marry you. But it isn't possible, people think because you rule that you can make up the rules and you don't have to live by those rules. That isn't true, yes we can make rules but every rule we make applies to us as well. If we didn't do that the people would revolt and then anarchy would set in. People would die, innocent people, homes, and workplaces would be destroyed, the only thing that prevents that is fair laws for everyone. Because of that, I'll marry your sister at a fabulous wedding, you'll be my best man and be with me every step of the way.

"But what about the wedding night?"

"We'll have adjoining rooms, one for your sister and me, one for her Maid-in-Waiting, and one for my Valet. So who's going to know who sleeps where. There is one thing that must be done, your sister has to prove she's a virgin. So she needs to be careful what she does with her lover."

"If she isn't a virgin?"

"She'll be killed, then I'll be able to select another wife until I reached the age of 25. After that no more wives which means that'll be the end of the kingdom as we know it."

"How will they know it's my sister's blood?"

"They will take a sample just before our vows. They will compare that to the blood on the virgin sheet."

"What's a virgin sheet?"

"It's a special white cloth placed on the bed to collect the blood when her hymen is broken during penetration."

"But that doesn't necessarily mean you are the one to break it."

"Right, her girlfriend can break it but she has to have her hymen so that when it's broken the blood will be the same as the one taken before the vows."

"Could it be my blood? We are brother and sister."

"No, even though you are brother and sister there are differences in the blood that could tell who is who."