Today was the day he was going to do it. He had everything ready, the picnic, the sunset and the ring.
Anya nearly stumbled upon the ring when she was looking for her slipper and he barely managed to hide it from her that day.
He had sent word to Anya from one of his servants, Joanne, so she could get dressed so that they could walk together. He managed to convince his bodyguards that he wouldn't go far.
He went to check on the picnic to see if everything was okay.
It was only a 10 minute walk from the castle to the picnic.
When he finally got there, everything was in order, the brown picnic basket, the candles and the cherry flambé with strawberries covered in chocolate.
Anya loved strawberries but she didn't eat much. He didn't blame her, she was used to eating little, sometimes for days. It was how she survived in her young age.
How he wished he could have taken away her suffering when she was young. She sometimes would wake up screaming and trembling form her nightmares. He tried his best to comfort her and make her happy. Although he didn't know much of her past, he didn't pry. She would tell him when she was ready.
He was very patient and he loved her more than anything and he was content to have her in his life.
He headed back to the front of the castle, assuming that Anya was already waiting for him. He smiled at the thought of her dressing up.
She always put up such a fuss with the servants, complaining that the dress was too tight or too itchy. But somehow, she tolerated it for his sake.
She was beautiful no matter what she wore, so he didn't care how she dressed but he always liked her better at night, when her clothes were off and she was naked underneath him, their hands clasped together, finger interlaces, thrusting into her as he looked into her eyes...
He caught the smell of a rose perfume and immediately recognized it as Anya's perfume. The one he bought for her.
He picked up his pace but didn't see her.
He turned slightly around and caught a glimpse of something red. He went after the retreating figure and realized it was Anya.
He would recognize her anywhere.
Her wavy light brown hair was just shy of her waist which swayed in the wind.
The red gown with golden embroidery was hugging her skin and flowed down to her ankles; where her red shoes glowed with golden sparkles. The edges of the dress were decorated with golden flowers.
The dress was the same style that his cousin, Fiona, wore.
He followed her, careful not to make any noise since her hearing was better than his.
He followed her and noticed she was walking towards the shrubs with beautiful red roses that shined.
She stopped and bent slightly, smelling the flowers.
She touched it gingerly, as if they were the most delicate thing in the world.
"How beautiful." she murmured softly, mesmerized by the flowers.
He planned to surprise her with a kiss on her cheek and a hug from behind but his lips said something else.
"Not as much as you." He said.
She jumped and turned around. Her arms and body quickly going into the defensive and she was so near punching his stomach that he took a step back.
She blinked and realized it was her boyfriend, Artie. She was so entranced by the flowers she didn't sense him coming.
She lowered her arms, her body returning to normal as she took in his red tunic with golden embroidery. She could make out his muscles in his arms and shoulders. They weren't huge but just right.
The ones she liked very much.
His face was no longer a child but of a man with his beautiful blue eyes and golden wavy locks that still looked the same after two years.
"Artie!" She yelled, her heart pounding from the shock. "Don't do that! I could've hurt you."
He laughed heartily, and smiled her favorite crooked smile. "Oh, I doubt that, you love me so much."
He loved joking with her, thanks to his drama class he used to take in Worcestershire.
He looked upon her bare throat and chest. The top of her breasts showed slightly.
"Hmph, keep that up and I won't love you as much." She said, folding her arms.
He pretended to be hurt and dramatically placed a hand on his heart. "That hurts, I thought you loved me but I guess it was my boyish charms or maybe the nightly…"
She stopped him with a kiss before he could continue. She knew what he was going to say next and if he did well… let's just say they probably won't make it in the castle, let alone their bed.
"Oh stop it, Artie, you know I'm kidding."
He smiled and hugged her while giving her a quick, passionate kiss on her lips.
"I missed you." She said. It was late in the evening when he called for her. He missed her too. He couldn't stay away long without her touch. When he finally had the chance, he made up in special ways that would make her scream in pleasure.
"Hmm, I missed you too my love and that's why," He began while grabbing her hand and walking back the way he came earlier. "I sent Joanne after you, I have something special planned today."
"Did I have to dress up?" She said, gesturing towards her dress. "You know I hate dressing up."
He smiled and twirled her around with his hand and pulled her close to his chest.
"You look stunning in that dress but I always preferred you without clothes on…" he trailed and she hid the blush on her face in his chest.
He always had to joke about their nightly fun whenever he had the chance but he only did it in private.
He lifted her face and kissed her cheek.
"You always look beautiful when you do that." He said which caused her to blush even more. He loved the way her blush crept on her cheeks and gave her a flirtatious look.
"Come on, I have a surprise for you." He said. He took her towards the forest.
After a while, they stopped and he covered her eyes with a cloth so she wouldn't see
"What are you doing?" she asked, while she instinctively tuned into her senses, trying to get a bearing of where she was and where they were headed.
"Don't worry. Just trust me."
And so she did, she trusted him and let him lead her. She distinguished the smells of roses and tulips and something else...
It smelled like food and candles burning.
"Are we close?"
"Sort of, just a minute more." True to his word, she felt a breeze on her face and it pushed her hair back and the smell of food and candles bombarded her nose.
He took off the cloth and she gasped at the scene in front of her.
A green cloth with yellow embroidery was on the ground and on each corner were lit candles on top of it. She noticed the candles weren't melting so it meant they were lit a few minutes ago.
A brown picnic basket was in the middle with plates and two glasses and a big bottle of champagne surrounding it. Roses were spread out around the cloth and bouquets of roses were on top of basket.
She stepped back slightly and felt Artie strong arms wrap around her stomach as placed his head on her shoulder.
"What do you think?" He asked softly.
She didn't say anything; instead she turned around and kissed him, hard. She pulled away and sighed. It was peaceful moment, in his arms. She felt safe, like nothing could ever harm her. She loved this feeling and Artie always made her happy.
"Thank you." She said softly. He smiled, took her hand and lead her to the picnic.
As they sat down and he took a plate and placed the strawberries covered in chocolate and the cherry flambé on it.
She was about to reach for the plate but Artie stopped her. "What?" She asked, surprised that he pulled away the plate from her.
"Allow me." He said while he grabbed a strawberry and held it to her mouth.
He wanted to feed her.
She blushed but ate the strawberry and felt the juices run down her throat and into her body.
They took turns feeding each other and talking about their day. He took out a bottle of champagne and poured some for themselves.
They drank it and looked out onto the sunset.
She felt the warm spring breeze on her face and sighed happily, feeling the warmth of the sun touch her skin.
He looked at her. She was so happy and he loved seeing the smile on her face. He would do anything for her to see the smile on her face and he felt complete with her. His world was upside down until she came and made it straight again.
He decided it was time to ask her. He took a big breath and cleared his throat to get her attention.
She turned and saw his face. He was smiling.
"Anya?"
"Yes?"
"I have something to tell you."
"yeah?" She said, wondering what he had to tell her.
"You know I love you more than anything in this world," He said.
She knew that and was sure of it but she wondered why he decided to say that right now.
"Oh, Artie, I know you love me." She said.
Then, unexpectedly he kneeled on the floor with one knee raised and took out a small black box. He opened and a ring with a small pink diamond sparkled on a gold band.
She gasped at the sight and he looked up at her. "Anya, I love you so much and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, will you marry me and be my queen?" He asked with so much love and sincerity in his voice, tears came to her eyes.
This ring here represents my heart
But there's just one thing I need from you (say "I do")
Yeah, because
I can see us holding hands
Walking on the beach, our toes in the sand
I can see us on the countryside
Sitting on the grass, laying side by side
You could be my baby, let me make you my lady
Girl, you amaze me
Ain't gotta do nothing crazy
See, all I want you to do is be my love
She was caught off guard and her voice got stuck in her throat. She loved him, she knew she did. But this…this was so unexpected but she didn't care as long as she was with him.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and answered.
"Y-yes, I'll marry you. I do! I do! I do! I do!" She threw herself at him and they both fell while he placed the ring on her ring finger.
He was ecstatic that she said yes. He couldn't be any happier. He loved her and being together for the rest of their lives was what he always wanted and needed.
She was dropping tears of joy and he wiped them away with his thumbs.
He held her face and kissed her with all the passion and love he had in his heart.
"Thank you!" He said as he held her face in between his hands. "You've just made me the happiest man alive."
He kissed her long and hard and they lay down on the ground, entwined, feeding each other and smiling and with Anya checking her ring constantly that gleamed in the sun.
She was so happy and now her happiness would never end.
Or so she thought as a man looked upon them from a distance.
Jealousy and anger rushed through the man's veins; he was going to destroy the King of Far, Far away and make Anya his.
But to do that, he would need some kind of a plan and so he went to call upon the spirit of the Fairy Godmother…
The link for dress for Anya is on my profile so check it out.