3. The Wedding #2
She regretted that she always wore her hair cut short and had nothing to cover her body with now.
There was no hiding that she was not even remotely like the other ladies of the royal court, where the ideal beauty was slender and willowy - fragile as a porcelain doll.
Skylar was nothing but. She trained every day since she was strong enough to wield a sword, so her muscles were well defined.
And while she could hide her strong posture with a cleverly cut dress, there was nothing she could do about it now.
"I'm not going to apologise for how I look," she growled, her brow twitching while she tried to conceal her anger.
"I'm not asking you to do that."
"Can we be done with it already?" She scoffed, losing her barely upheld patience. "Or are you planning to stand there and stare at me all night?"
The General sighed and brushed his brow with his hand. His face seemed tired.
"You really thought I would just force myself on you?" he asked, baffled.
Skylar raised her brow. "Well, it's not exactly forcing. I'm your wife. Isn't that what we're supposed to do?"
"Still, I don't think you have the slightest inclination to lie with me. And just so you know, the feeling is mutual."
Skylar frowned. She didn't expect that. And even though she was relieved that he had no intention to bed her, at the same time, the outright rejection stung her pride. It meant she was not even good enough to be desired.
"I... didn't know it was optional," she admitted quietly.
"Look, this whole marriage is only the means to secure the alliance for the King. And as much as all the courtiers would preach how important it is to have an heir as soon as possible, I don't feel any pressure to start trying for one right away. And I'm a gentleman,
so I'm not going to force you to do anything."
"That's... not what I was expecting."
He scoffed, annoyance clear on his handsome face. "I don't care what you were expecting or what you think of me. But like it or not, you are my wife now. All you need to do is respect me. Do you think you can do that?"
"I can try, at least," she said.
"Then I'll do the same. Still, we need to set out some ground rules for this partnership to work."
Skylar cocked her brows. "Rules?"
"Yes, rules. But first," Gawyn strode to the bed, picked up a nightdress, and tossed it at her, "put this on. You'll catch a cold if you just stand there naked all night." There was no particular care in his voice, just a logical argument.
"Then we'll talk," he added and left the bedroom.
Skylar was standing in place for a moment, still too stunned to process what had happened.
Finally, she shook her head and put on a nightdress.
A sudden cold shook her body. The nights were chilly, and her gown wasn't exactly designed with keeping warmth as the primary objective.
Skylar rolled her eyes and put on a robe, covering her body closely.
Suddenly she felt embarrassed, especially since Gawyn seemed to have no interest in her body.
When she left the bedroom and entered the main sitting room, The General was already sitting on the sofa with parchment and quill in his hand.
In the flickering light of candles, he looked very handsome.
His solemn face focused entirely on his writing.
Skylar cocked her head, staring at him - he wore small glasses in silver frames.
He seemed somewhat less threatening, more human than a marble statue.
"Are you planning to stand there and stare at me all night, or are you going to sit?" he said, not lifting his eyes from the parchment.
Sky didn't miss the fact that he threw her own words back at her. She wrapped her robe tighter around her and sat in the armchair opposite the table.
Gawyn lifted his head and took off his glasses. He put the parchment in front of him and then pushed the plate laden with food toward her. "First, eat."
"I'm not hungry," she replied, narrowing her eyes. She didn't like being ordered around, even though her stomach growled loudly when she got a whiff of delicious food.
"Is that so?" Gawyn asked, raising his brow. "You look very pale. I need you to focus now, so please, eat. You haven't eaten anything during the feast."
"And how would you know that?"
"I was sitting right next to you."
"You didn't seem to pay much attention."
"I always pay attention," Gawyn replied. His voice was calm, but his grey eyes were piercing.
Skylar rolled her eyes and pulled the plate closer to her, hesitantly picking up a fork.
Gawyn, satisfied, picked up the parchment again and put his glasses back on his nose.
"As you are well aware, the royal court rules are different than here, in the countryside. Because the name of Gryphonheart is respected far and wide in the whole kingdom, I need you to behave with the utmost propriety. I wasn't worried when the deal was concerning your sister but you with your...
peculiar previous occupation...."
"Serving in the army, you mean?" she interrupted with a sweet smile. "You can say it. I don't think it's a hard term."
The General's frown deepened, but he chose to ignore her and continued. "From what I gathered, your general education is lacking. That's why I've already hired the best tutors to assess you and fill the gaps swiftly."
"Wait, you did what? What tutors? I'm not a child to be schooled!" she protested.
Gawyn sighed, took off his glasses again, and looked at her. "Then, tell me, which family is responsible for enforcing trade laws on the merchants' guilds?"
Skylar opened her mouth, but she had no idea what to say.
"No? Then maybe when was the latest treaty with Torringland signed?"
"I'm sure it was in the last hundred years or so." She shrugged.
"What is the order of standing up from the table after the luncheon during the royal banquet?"
"There is an order?" Sky asked, surprised.
"Still think you don't need tutoring?"
"Fine!" She huffed. "You have a point. But it's not my fault, all right? I was never meant to go anywhere near the royal court."
"And yet here we are. I have no interest nor time to listen to your excuses. We are leaving for the capital at dawn, so let's get through all conditions quickly and get some rest."
"So, how many of those conditions do you have?"
"Not nearly as many as I should have put down," he grumbled, pushing the glasses up his nose. "Next, you will attend all the social gatherings that protocol demands, with me or without."
"Oh, that one sounds like fun," she snarked.
"It's rather tedious, really," Gawyn said, ignoring her sarcasm. "But as Gryphonhearts, we are expected to show up at those happenings. Moving forward, you will cease those ridiculous swords training of yours."
Skylar straightened her back and gave her husband a death stare. "I most certainly will not."
"Yes, you will. First, it's unbecoming of a lady of your status to dabble in male arts, and second, believe me, with all the tutoring and socialising, you will have no time for training."
"Well, watch me then." She scoffed. "I've trained every day since I can remember. You can't force me just to give it up!"
"You will be making a spectacle of yourself," Gawyn concurred through gritted teeth.
"I'll make sure no one will see me then. What's the harm?"
"It will get out sooner or later."
"I don't care!"
"But I do," he growled. The stony mask of his face was finally cracking. The vein on his temple budged and pulsed. "You are Gryphonheart now, and my wife! Anything you do will affect me too. I will not have you tarnish my family's good name!"
"I will not sign it," Skylar said, her voice ice cold. "I will do whatever you want. Take the tutoring, let you parade me at the royal court like a newly bought cow, or whatever you people do at those fancy parties. But I will not stop my training."
They glare at each other for a long while. Neither wanted to back off or turn down their gaze first. Eventually, Gawyn scoffed and fixed his glasses up his nose.
"Fine," he hissed. "I will scratch that one. But rest assured that I'll make sure your schedule is so busy you wouldn't have time to breathe, not to mention keep up with this ridiculous thing."
"You're welcome to try," Sky replied, crossing her arms defiantly.
"Next point. I have my tailor scheduled for tomorrow. He will take your measurements and provide you with a wardrobe suitable for the court. I have some dresses delivered already, but I doubt any of them would fit you properly."
"Fine."
"And finally, as I've already said, I do not expect you to share my bed. There is a room prepared for you in my estate. But I don't want a word about it leaving our home, is that clear?"
"Why?" she asked, cocking her head.
"Do I have to explain every tedious detail to you?"
He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
He looked tired. "The nobles love gossips. So far, I have managed to avoid ridiculous speculations, and I do not wish to change it. If you let a word slip to the wrong person, we'll never hear the end of it. As if I can't satisfy my wife or whatever other absurd things people would make up."
"Oh, right. No problem here."
"Good. That's all. Sign it, and we should be able to live peacefully together." Gawyn moved a parchment and quill towards her.
Skylar picked it up and scanned the document, pausing at the scratched condition. Well, at least she managed to win this little battle, so his conditions were acceptable overall. She signed her name and then paused for a split second.
"You're a Gryphonheart now," Gawyn said, reading her perfectly. "You should get used to it."
Sky bit her lips, wrote the unfamiliar name, and pushed the document back at him.
"Here. Are you happy now?"
"Not really, but it will have to do for now," he said, rolling the parchment. "I suggest we get some rest now. There is a long way ahead of us tomorrow. You can take the bedroom."
"Where are you going to sleep?"
"Here," Gawyn said, patting the sofa.
"Fine. Good night," Skylar said and retreated to the bedroom.