The Perfect Prince (9 page)

 

Lush plant life hung tastefully from the ceiling and grew in the corner of the living room, vining its way to a sun room off to the side. Nadja sighed, wryly thinking that she had indeed gotten her little garden. It brought her little pleasure.

 

Another fish tank, one with dark blue waters that was hard to see through, separated the bathroom from the main living area. From her vantage point in the natural hot spring tub, she watched the tank. Occasionally, she would see the fin of what looked like a two-headed shark swim by.

 

The bathroom was red, carved from the mountain. The tub came up in the center of the bathroom floor, rising from the ground and bubbling constant warm water. Nadja couldn’t find a drain in the bath, but did find a button on the wall that showered water down from the ceiling into the center of the bath.

 

There was the normal toilet and sink, and a vanity counter that curved around the circular walls with a long mirror over it. Beneath the countertop were numerous cabinets, some with towels and others with toiletries. With a turn of a knob, the outside light directed throughout holes in the ceiling would dim and brighten.

 

Nadja had seen her bags from the Galaxy Bride’s ship in the front hall. She’d just have to unpack later and settle in. She wanted to see how Olek liked her rearrangement of his things. If she was going to be forced to stay as his wife, then she was going to make things exactly how she wanted them.

 

Well, she thought bitterly. Not like she wanted them at all. She’d rather he led her to a little shack with a hole in the roof and made her peel potatoes all day. That would have made her happier than she felt now.

 

Her tears began anew.

 

* * * *

 

Olek sat miserably on one of his high-backed chairs. His fingers drew in absent lines along the sides. He could feel the strange sadness coming from the bathroom, radiating off his wife. She refused to speak to him, but he could see the outrage in her every step as he brought her into the castle. When he opened the front door to his home, he hoped for a small smile or a gasp of pleasure. He’d worked hard decorating his house in hopes of pleasing his someday bride, as did all the Princes. She didn’t even glance around. It was as if she didn’t care.

A deep ache filled his chest and he sunk lower into his chair. This wasn’t how he envisioned married life. He wanted peace in his home. As the ambassador of the Draig, he had battles and negations and threats of war to deal with nearly everyday. It was stressful. The peace of his people depended on him.

 

To his surprise, Nadja came out of the bathroom. Her hair was wet around her shoulders but brushed back from her face. She was swimming in the folds of his robe.

 

Her eyes and nose looked red and Olek frowned to see it. She had been crying. He hadn’t heard her though, only felt her pain.

 

“Where’s my room?” she asked. Her voice was nearly as hollow as her eyes, as she looked past him. She waited patiently, not hurrying him along to answer.

 

Olek saw her shiver.

 

“Fire,” he said. The fireplace lit. Nadja barely blinked as she glanced at the flames.“Does everything work on voice command?” she asked, listlessly.

 

“All but the overhead lights.”

 

“My room?” Nadja asked again, breaking off any conversation he might start.

 

“Our room is this way,” Olek stood to grab her bags for her and led the way.

 

Nadja said nothing. She silently followed him down a short side hall near the front entryway. She kept her eyes averted, refusing to remember anything that happened the night before in the tent. Truth be told, her wanton actions mortified her. And that she had acted such to an obvious stranger humiliated her even more.

 

Taking two steps up, he led her into a massive oval room. A large bed was in the middle, lowered down so that it was only a short step up from the floor. Like the bathroom, this room had light tunnels carved and scattered throughout the ceiling.

 

There was another fireplace carved into the wall. A fur rug lay out in front of it.

 

On one side of the room, down two steps, was a large circular closet with a balcony window that showed out over the countryside. It was gorgeous.

 

If Nadja was moved, she didn’t show it.

 

The bed had a green coverlet embroidered with the royal emblem of the fierce dragon. Nadja barely blinked as she crossed over to the bed. With a stiff hand, she drew back the covers.

 

“I’m taking a nap,” Nadja said, laying down and turning her back to him.

 

Olek swallowed. There wasn’thing welcoming about that declaration. There wasn’thing to it at all. Her words to him were dead.

 

“I’ll be working in my office if you need me,” Olek said quietly. “It’s right next to the kitchen.”

 

“I won’t need you,” she muttered in return. Nadja stared at the fireplace. Her whole body wanted to fight, to scream at him, but her life had taught her it wasn’t wise to yell at the man who held the power over you. Anger was best dealt with quietly and bottled in. Then, and only then, could Nadja render a dignified response, and avoid being put into punishment.

 

Her words tore at Olek. He dimmed the overhead lights to let her sleep. As he walked away, he heard her mutter, “Fire.”

 

The orange of flames lit over the walls of the short hall. He took a deep breath and left her alone.

 

Open!”

 

Olek looked up from his stacks of documents and frowned. He pushed his hands through his hair in frustration and quickly smoothed the locks down, brushing the side plaits over his shoulders.

 

“Let me out, you….”

 

The muffling of Nadja’s words was lost as they tapered off into an angry growl.

 

He stood and moved around the haphazard pile of papers on his desk to see what she was up to. Hearing her continued muttering of outrage, he’d guess her short nap was over.

 

Nadja stood before the large front door. Her hair was pulled back into a large bun at the nape of her slender neck. She wore a silk blouse and slacks, both her own clothing from her bags. Her short boots tapped impatiently on the marble floor as she stood, hands on hips, glaring at his front door.

 

“Sneaking out?” he asked, unable to hide his amusement at the scene.

 

Nadja blushed to hear his voice, but kept her back to him so he couldn’t see it. To her horror, her dreams had been of him, naked, touching himself and touching her. They still burned in her mind and body.

 

When she felt she was controlled, she turned to look at Olek. He was still dressed as he had been that morning in his formal green tunic. His long hair was braided down the sides though the locks looked as if they had been slightly tousled. He was achingly handsome to look at and her heart fluttered in a trill of excitement.

 

Olek saw the red tint to her face and took it as anger. He had hoped that by letting her sleep, she would wake in a more reasonable mood. It didn’t seem that was going to be the case.Nadja, who in fact had been planning on sneaking out until the door refused to budge, replied, "I didn't realize I was a prisoner. I wanted to get out of this house and go for a walk.”

 

“You are not a prisoner, solarflower,” Olek murmured softly, coming forward.

 

Oh, how he wanted to touch her. "Is that what you think it means to be royalty?"

 

She didn’t answer.

 

“Nadja,” he continued, emboldened by her silence, but not her stern look. “We are not prisoners here. You are as free as any other. I know the stories from other cultures where royalty isn’t allowed certain privileges, but we are not so strict. You can have a life. We do have to live by example and we do live to serve our people, but we are not prisoners to them.”

 

“So I have a job,” Nadja concluded darkly. “What is it? Holding your crown at 
ceremonies or wearing an outfit to match yours and smiling pretty for the cameras?” Olek grimaced.

 

“I don’t want that life, Prince Olek,” Najda said, wishing desperately that he could understand. But, being who he was, she was even more afraid of telling him who her father was. If word got out, he and his family could be embarrassed and scandalized. They could ship her back in hopes of avoiding public dishonor. They could ship her back to avoid attracting her father’s certain kind of wrath. Gripping onto her dream with both hands, she said, “I wanted a simple life. I want a garden.”

 

“We can live simply,” Olek returned. Then, lifting his hand to the sunroom, he said, “And there is your garden, solarflower. I’ll build you a hundred of them if it makes you happy. I’ll turn our whole home into a garden. If you want a cottage home, I will build you one in the forest. If you want the mountains, I’ll build you one there too. We can vacation there. I want you to be happy, Nadja.”

 

“You think you have all the answers,” she sighed. Her eyes were hard. “You really have no idea.”

 

Olek was confused by the low words. He stepped forward, studying her face.

 

What was she trying to hide?

 

“Nadja, what is this really about? Are you trying to disappear from someone or something? Are you in trouble?”

 

Nadja tensed at his perceptiveness. She hadn’t expected him to guess her secret so soon. How else could she answer, but to lie? “No.” Olek detected the falsehood instantly. She really was a bad liar and refused to meet his eye.

 

“If you were, you could tell me,” Olek persisted quietly. “I would stand by you, help you. My family would stand by you. You are one of us now.” His words caused her to tremble, but she hid her vulnerability and gave him a dark smile. She was sure when he knew the truth that he wouldn’t be so willing. “I told you no. 
Don’t make me repeat myself.”

 

“Fine,” he returned softly. “Keep your secret for now. But I hope one day soon you will come to know that you can trust me with it.” Nadja turned back around, effectively cutting off the conversation. Enunciating her words, she demanded, “Open this door.”

 

“It’s not a good idea to wander about without an escort,” he began.

 

“You mean a prison guard?”

 

“Open,” Olek instantly commanded. The door pulled up to let her pass. “It’s easy to….” Nadja strode out without a backwards glance.

 

“.…to get lost,” he finished faintly.

 

Olek sighed. He was at a loss. He felt helpless. Nothing he told her seemed to make her happy. Sighing, he fought the urge to follow her. He turned back to his office 
and the pile of work he had started on his desk. He knew the first step of reaching any negotiation between two troubled people was a show of trust. And that is exactly what he would do. He would show Nadja he trusted her, even if she didn’t trust him.

 

* * * *

 

Nadja was lost. Not that she really cared. She was sure if she kept wandering around the red stone halls someone would run across her and force her to go back to Prince Olek.

At the end of each hall were little carved squares with markings on them. Nadja guessed they were encoded directions. She couldn’t read them and couldn’t begin to figure them out, so she ignored them. She turned aimless corners, stopping to look at the sculptures and paintings before moving on. The palace was almost as decorative as an art museum. It was exquisite, though Nadja would never have admitted it, as she snarled at the lovely pieces.

 

“Princess Nadja?”

 

Nadja froze, the title irritating her to no end. When she turned, she saw the Queen and moved to curtsey.

 

“No, no,” the Queen said lightly, with a pleasant smile coming to her features.

 

“Do stand, Nadja. We only save such things for public ceremonies. Our people like to watch our old customs, but it doesn’t mean we have to live with all of them everyday.” Queen Mede glanced back over her shoulder to the hall she had just left. It was most distressing. Ualan's wife Morrigan had indentured herself as a slave and her other son’s wives were being just as stubborn. Except for Nadja, who knew the truth of what she had become and was hopefully accepting it, the other Princesses had no clue who they had married.

 

It was just as well. Queen Mede understood that it was hard to see past the crown and her son’s wanted to be sure their wives chose for themselves without the added attraction of money and power. This morning, before her shock, Nadja had appeared quite taken with Olek and that gave Mede hope.

 

“Is Olek with you?”

 

As Nadja opened her mouth, the Queen realized she couldn’t have been more wrong. Nadja was most discontent, just as the others.

 

“No,” Nadja answered flatly, turning stiffly back to the painting. Her tone hardened, as she said with a private laugh of irony, “He’s working.” Working man my--Nadja fumed, unable to finish the thought with the earnest queen staring at her.

 

“Working? Again?” The Queen sighed. “I hoped he would take a few days off now that he was married.”

 

Nadja said nothing. She was uncomfortable discussing anything with Olek’s 
mother.“It doesn’t matter to me,” Nadja said, before she could stop herself. “I would rather he kept himself busy and away from me.”

 

“Away from….” the Queen repeated only to stop in confusion. “Nadja, are you…?”“I am fine,” she whispered. Giving another curtsey, she murmured, “If you would excuse me.”

 

“Wait,” the Queen said. She desperately wanted to get to know her daughters and Nadja was the only one her sons would allow her to see just yet, as she was the only one who knew the truth of her station. “What are you doing just now?”

 

“Getting myself lost,” Nadja answered honestly.

 

“May I keep you company?” Mede asked, hesitant. “I could take you shopping in the village. We could get whatever you wanted. You still need to be fitted for new gowns, shoes.”Nadja took a deep breath. The Queen was eyeing her silk blouse and slacks without malevolence. What else was she going to do? She was tired of looking at paintings. Slowly, she nodded, “All right. I wouldn’t mind some fresh air.”

 

* * * *

 

Later that evening when Nadja arrived home from her shopping spree with the Queen, Olek was still in his office. He had gotten nothing done, thinking about Nadja instead of work. Absently he had drawn endless sketches of her naked body, her face, her smile on the corners of his documents. His body ached for her in a way he could barely contain. Even when she was gone, her scent stayed with him, teasing his already overheated desire.

“Just put the plants in the sun room,” Olek heard his wife say. “I’ll arrange them how I need to later.”

 

He heard voices join hers and the footsteps coming across the marble entryway.

 

He knew where Nadja had been, as the Queen had secretly sent a servant to tell him. He smiled, having to remember to thank his mother for the consideration.

 

“Olek?”

 

Olek flinched. That was the voice of his mother. Almost like a nervous schoolboy, he began stacking his papers on his desk to hide the naughty sketches he had done of his wife. When they were put away, he stood to cross over to the hall.

 

Nadja bit her lip as the Queen called out to her son. All day the woman had done nothing but list Olek’s good qualities for her. He was such a brave fighter, a good man, an expert negotiator, a hard worker, would make a good father--wink, wink.

 

“Mother, Nadja,” he acknowledged with a smile. Quizzically, he turned to the mass of servants who were following Nadja’s directions and putting things away.

 

“Your wife is quite the shopper,” the Queen mused with a grin.

 

Olek didn’t care. He could well afford her anything she wanted and was pleased to see that she was making herself comfortable in his home. He wanted her to arrange things exactly as she would have them.

 

“I needed some things,” Nadja said a bit defensively. “This house is decorated for a man, not a woman.”

 

Olek crossed over to where some plants lay on a table, their dirty roots spread out beneath them as if they had been dug out of the forest. He looked at Nadja, lifting his brow. “You can’t eat these,” Olek said. They were ugly little plants so she couldn’t have picked them for beauty.

 

“That’s what I told her,” Mede said. “But, she insisted.”

 

“Wait,” Nadja said, pointing at a man with a long box. “That one goes over there in the bathroom.”

 

Olek shared a grin with his mother. Quietly, he moved to sit before the fireplace as Nadja continued to give instructions. She handled herself with politeness and knew exactly what she wanted. The men showed her respect, their eyes smiling at her in instant adoration. He watched carefully, as she charmed each and every man in the room with her reserved nature--every man including him. She was truly a Princess.

 

An older man, wearing the sturdy tunic of a craftsman came to the door. He looked around. Then, seeing the Princess, he smiled and came forward. Olek watched as Nadja pointed to the sun room and motioned with her hands. The carpenter nodded his wrinkled face, bit his lip, calculated his thoughts, and then answered her. Nadja smiled, motioning him to go ahead with whatever it was she was planning. The man began measuring the entryway into the sunroom.

 

“I should get going,” the Queen said. Turning to her new daughter, she smiled,

 

“Nadja, I’ll see you tomorrow for those dress fittings. The seamstress said she would be here by nine.”

 

“Fine,” Nadja answered, smiling at the woman. Olek wished the smile was for him. “Don’t forget you also promised to show me the family library tomorrow.”

 

“Maybe Olek could take you,” Mede suggested, eyeing her son meaningfully.

 

“I would love to,” Olek murmured. He watched as Nadja’s back stiffened. He could just see the frown darkening her features.

 

Mede waved at her son, who in turn lazily motioned back to her in kind. He shot her a disobedient grin. His eyes once again strayed to Nadja’s back.

 

Olek waited. His brow rose quizzically, as the delivery men left, leaving boxes and packages spread about in their wake. Nadja didn’t look at him directly. He couldn’t help but stare at her.

 

“My lady, I can start tomorrow morning if you like,” the carpenter said in his stilting accent, putting his measuring tape away.

 

“That would be wonderful,” Nadja said, walking the older gentleman to the door.

 

“Come whenever you’re ready.”

 

“Yes, my lady,” the man agreed. Then turning to Olek, he bowed, “My lord.” Olek waved his hand at the man and smiled, vastly amused by the whole scene.