Chapter Seventeen
S lade
Ten years ago...The aftermath of the ball
I knocked on her window, hoping she’d open up and answer. She left me stunned in the garden and now I wanted to know everything. I had no idea Raven felt that way about me. She always treated me as a friend, nothing more. I knocked again. My balance was a little shaky in the tree, but I kept the branch steady. She needed to open the damn window before I fell and busted my ass.
The plum curtains pulled back to reveal her porcelain face. A frown etched onto her features, and she quickly unlatched the lock and opened the window. “What are you doing up here?”
I waved my hand so she’d move and maneuvered myself through the tall glass. I hopped over her desk and landed on my feet. After brushing myself off, I turned to look at her. “What was all that about?”
Her mouth made an o shape, and she shook her head. “Nothing. Maybe a little lapse in judgment, but nothing you need to worry about.”
She walked across the room and took a seat on her bed. The bed was a queen-size, four poster frame that was royally fit for a princess. Raven wasn’t just any princess though, she was more like a gothic badass that made every man weak in the knees.
Including me.
I followed her to the bed and took a seat beside her. She raised a perfect black eyebrow at me. “This isn’t helping, Slade.”
My lips dipped into a frown. “What?”
She placed her hands in her hair and let out a silent scream. “You drive me insane!” She raised herself up from the bed and started to pace.
A laugh escaped my lips. “That’s funny, because I was thinking the same thing about you.”
Her feet came to a stop, and she gave me a harsh glare. “I haven’t done anything to you! I’ve been the supportive friend you’ve always asked me to be!”
I leaned back, placed my hands on the bed, and crossed my feet in front of me. “Yeah, some friend. I thought friends were honest with each other.”
Her lips pursed. “Now I’m confused.”
“How long have you felt this way?”
Her cheeks turned a bright pink. “A while now.”
“How long is a while?”
Her violet gaze met mine. “Why does it matter? You’re just going to go back to your girlfriend anyway, and I’m going to be matched up with Mr. Can’t Keep His Hands to Himself.”
My hands grabbed onto the comforter. “Richardson touched you?”
Her eyes grew wide. “Not in that way! Ugh, I mean he’s just one of many that Father has lined up for me. The other day, he sat me down and had a long conversation with me. It’s time for you to grow up and start thinking about your future and who you want in it...blah, blah, blah. According to him, sixteen is the proper age to be arranged.”
I sat up and placed my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands. “Fuck!”
The bed dipped beside me. “Yeah, but it is what it is. I can’t keep fighting him, It’s exhausting and I don’t have the energy for it. Plus, it puts Mother in a difficult place, and I don’t want to cause her any more stress.”
Suddenly, an idea popped in my head. I lifted my head and gently took her face in my hands. Her eyes stared at me with wonder. “Marry me.”
Her jaw dropped open. “What?”
“Marry me,” I repeated.
She shook her head. “Have you lost your mind? You have a girlfriend, and I...”
“You have me. We can make this work. I can be your King and you can be my Queen, we can get your parents on board.”
As she backed away from me, my hands slid down her face. She stood up and went to the other side of the room. I thought she would have wanted this, that it would be an easy way out of the situation she was in.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, my mind jumbled trying to figure out her thoughts.
She wrapped her arms around herself. “Everything.”
I leaned back. “I thought you would’ve wanted this...don’t you want to be with me?”
Her eyes were hard. “Not like this.”
My hands curled into fists, “Not like what?”
“I’m not an obligation, Slade. You don’t want to marry me because you want to; you’re only doing this because you feel like you have to. You don’t want me like I want you, and that would be a fate crueler than death. I’d rather be married to a complete stranger, than suffer through that.”
I stood from the bed and took a step towards her, my eyes never left hers. “I want you.”
She shook her head, denial spreading through her body. “No, you don’t.”
There’s always been something between us, but I never acted on it because she was a princess and I was a servant’s son. In her father’s eyes, I wasn’t worthy of her love. He would never let us be together, but hearing how she felt about me, sealed the deal. I wanted her, and I’d do whatever it took to prove that to her.
Before I could think, my feet moved of their own accord. The next moment, I was standing in front of her. Her violet eyes were wild with various emotions, and they widened when I took her face in my hands. Her cheeks turned a bright shade of red as I leaned in. I closed my eyes and my lips touched hers.
RAVEN
Oh my God...He was kissing me. I’d never in my life dreamt of something so magical. My body tingled when his hands gently cupped my face. His lips on mine was a feeling I couldn’t explain. I never wanted this moment to end. Slade was everything...and even though I was technically the Princess, sometimes I felt that he was more royal than I was.
He pressed against me and I didn’t fight him. My hands bunched in his shirt, bringing him closer. He licked the seam of my lips and they parted, giving him entrance to kiss me deeper. Fireworks exploded behind my eyelids, and a new feeling washed over me.
Lust.
I would’ve gladly given him my virginity if that meant he wouldn’t stop kissing me. One of his hands roamed into my hair while the other went to my hip, teetering the line between my tank and shorts. A small amount of skin was exposed, and that was enough for shockwaves to race through my body.
We were completely captivated by the moment that I didn’t register a knock on my bedroom door. He broke away from me, his silver eyes darker and more heated than before. I wanted to give in to him. To forget the horrible world around me and just live in the moment.
That would never be a reality, though. Living as a royal meant that my privacy would be invaded at any given point, especially if Father was involved. A sigh escaped my lips, and the loss of his arms brought reality crashing around me. My feet moved across the floor to the door. After a breath, I opened the door to see Lewis standing outside.
“Miss, your father requests your presence in the ballroom.”
Too tired to fight, I nodded. “I’ll be down in a minute, thank you.”
A warm smile graced his lips, and he left shortly after. I placed my head on the door briefly to gather my emotions and to calm my nerves. Being left alone with Slade brought on so many feelings I didn’t know how to react.
He was my person, even if he didn’t know that for the longest time. And now that he wanted to reciprocate my feelings? How the hell was I supposed to feel?
Could it really be so simple? To marry him and all our hopes and dreams would come true?
No. Not in this family. Not with the man ruling the country. Father would do something to split us apart. He liked Slade as a friend for sure, but when he declared his desires to marry me, Father would flip his shit.
“What’s wrong?”
A shudder passed through my body. I wanted to tell him everything. How my emotions were a wrecking ball. How I wasn’t confident in my abilities to become Queen of our country. I was weak and Father showed me that years ago.
I turned around and met his gaze. He was searching my eyes, looking for holes in my armor. He wouldn’t find it. I refused to be weak in front of him. He couldn’t see me break.
I squared my shoulders and released a breath. “We can’t do this right now.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and raised a brow. “Yes, we can. Stop pushing me away. Hell, I’ll go make our plans known.”
My eyes almost popped out of my head as he walked towards me. I placed my hand on his chest. “No!”
His jaw ticked, and I knew he was doing everything he could to rein in his temper, but I was pushing him to that limit. When Slade wanted something, there was no standing in his way. I just hoped for both of our sakes, that he would eventually listen.