Thank you so much for your reviews and kind words! I am so glad you love the story! I changed the title slightly and updated to a better summary! Please keep reading and reviewing and I will update as soon as possible!
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Sabrinav317—I love the Vampire Diaries and that is in fact where I got his name from. As you will notice, Damon, does have some Ian qualities, but not completely the same. Damon has dark hair like Ian, but it has soft curls to it. I believe the both share the same brilliant blue eyes though!
Prnamber3909—I spell her name as Nada, but it is pronounced like Nadia. I wanted something a little different! Don't worry you will all get to meet her…but I'm not saying when or where! ;)
Chapter 4: Selection Strategies and Midnight Green
Caleb's POV
When Damon left for dinner, I heard the light girlish laughter ascending from the floors below. The sound was musical, refreshing, and terrifying all at the same time and my heart palpitated as I thought about choosing a wife from thirty-five beautiful women. I had no idea how I was going to manage that task within the next few months. Part of me wished that I could switch places with Damon; he didn't share these agonizing pressures. His life seemed so easy compared to mine and he would get to marry another royal.
I paced my study, not realizing how much of a cage the palace was until now. It had been twelve hours since I had my suite and I felt like I was going insane. No amount of visits from my family could end the madness of staring at the same four walls; it was like a prison. Mother said some of the girls might feel like when they came to the palace and I was now determined to give them as much freedom as possible.
I sighed as the clock in my study chimed; it was ten o'clock. Where could Damon be? He was supposed to be my informant on the selection candidates when he returned from dinner. Though I had no idea how to narrow down thirty-five women to one, I hoped his information would guide me toward an elimination strategy. Would I first send home those that I did not find physically attractive or should I get to know them? I had no idea but maybe Damon could help me with this matter.
"Who am I kidding? I haven't even met them yet!" I said, crumbling up a piece of paper from my desk and throwing it at the door. This was the most maddening processes I had yet to encounter and I had been through extensive tactic training.
"If you didn't want to see me, I can leave." I looked up at the sound of my brother's voice. I had not heard him knock or seen him standing in the doorway.
"I'm sorry, I'm just—ugh—frustrated with being cooped up in here!" I spat, resisting the urge to crumble up more paperwork. "I hate this waiting!"
"I don't pity you," Damon said nonchalantly as he looked around my study. "I would have been her sooner but I was commandeered by Cady in a tickling war."
I laughed. It would never be the same around the palace without my brother and sister teasing each other. Their relationship seemed perfect, while I struggled to find common ground with Cadence. However, Damon and I always got along very well. He was the best friend I had aside from Sebastian, the French Prince.
"But I do have some news," he said as a wicked smile spread across his face and his blue eyes shined with a hint of mischief.
"Do tell." I took a seat on my desk and crossed my arms to muffle the sound of my racing heart.
"Well, they are all incredibly beautiful but there were definitely a few standouts," he started, his eyes squinting as he tried to recall the details. "For starters, when I left here I ended up colliding and being knocked on my ass by a petite auburn-haired girl. But Cal—I-I don't even know how to describe it."
"Describe what? What did she do?" I was intrigued. It wasn't very often that my brother was lost for words. Damon was usually very articulate and knew how maneuver himself. "Was she like Nada?"
"Yes and no," he shrugged. "She had these amazing green eyes and I've never seen anything like them before! She's also a little spitfire! The girl went off on me for being inconsiderate of others before she realized who I was." He laughed to himself, his eyes sparkling with the thought of her. I hadn't seen Damon talk like this about anyone before. "She rambles when she gets nervous and most interestingly, she seems to be a tomboy!"
"What is this little spitfire's name?" I asked. I was intrigued by his behavior and what he had to say about this girl. She seemed to be fascinating.
Damon laughed again; I must have been missing something. "Well thats interesting you should ask because she gave me three names. Her actually name is Rosanna Parker, but she would like to be called either Rio or Parker."
"Hmm," I said, taking in everything he said. "You know, Damon, maybe Mother and Father are right, maybe you shouldn't get too involved with the girls. I woudn't want anything to happen to you, especially since you already seem to like this girl." I knew I was treading on unsteady water right now but I couldn't fight the jealous feeling growing in my stomach. I hadn't even met the girls yet and Damon was on a first name basis with them; it didn't seem right. This was my selection after all.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Damon said putting his hand up as if he were talking to a horse. "I am working on building a relationship with Nada right now! Why the hell would I make an illegal move on one of your girls?" His words sounded like acid and I could tell I had hit a nerve. "First you asked me be your informant and now you're acting liked to steal your girls? Are you kidding me?" I could tell his temper was rising. If I didn't defuse it fast, he would not help me anymore and that was the last thing I wanted. But maybe Damon was right, maybe I had overreacted, though his actions right now were not helping his case. My brother was one to get defensive when there was a slight bit of truth in the accusation.
"Just be careful around them, Damon. I don't want you to get in trouble," I warned. "But what else did you discover?" I knew changing the subject would help him to calm down.
"Just that Cadence thinks you should pick the model with blonde hair and blue eyes. I think she said her name was Cierra or something. To me it sounded like Cady wanted you to pick her because she looks like her Barbie dolls." Damon and I both laughed, knowing that he was probably right. I didn't know how I was going to get past that comparison when I met her in person tomorrow.
"So we've got Barbie," I laughed, making a mental list. "And Rio, was it?"
"Yeah and there were also two girls that stopped me in the corridor on the way up here. They seemed pretty normal and down to earth. I think they said their names where Bandy and Toshia." Damon shrugged and picked up the piece of paper I had thrown earlier.
"Well, only thirty-one more to learn about," I joked.
"If I were you, I would probably send some of them home tomorrow, like the girls you don't find physically attractive. It might make your life a little easier," Damon suggested with a shrug. Just then I realized that he was trying to be helpful and I felt bad for assuming that he fancied one of the ladies. "Remember Father suggested talking to each of them for a few minutes? He said it would give you an idea of what you might be looking for personality wise. Just make sure they aren't mental before you marry them!" Damon laughed.
"Yeah, I was thinking about that," I admitted, knowing that I needed to do something along those lines. "I will figure something out."
Damon's POV
It was a little before midnight when I left Caleb's room with heavy eyelids. I slowly started down the hall when I realized I had left my strategies notes in father's study. He would be extremely disappointed in me for leaving important document lying around, especially when I was supposed to be studying them.
As I walked, my body went on autopilot in its state of exhaustion. Before I realized what I was doing, I was standing in the garden with my notes in my hand; it was almost as if I had been sleepwalking. I took in a deep breath, the cool night air stinging my nostrils but filling my body with a sense relief. It had been one hell of a day and I wasn't sure how to process everything. Not only was the palace overrun my thirty-five girls, but my brother was losing his mind from isolation. Then there was Rio and her vivid green eyes that kept appearing in my thoughts. I kept trying to replace them with thoughts of Nada and her possible upcoming visit. I couldn't let a pretty girl distract me from my future and I felt that was with Nada.
I was suddenly pulled from my thought when I heard soft footsteps behind me and I froze. I hadn't expected anyone to be up at this time of night, let alone walking around outside in the gardens. Could it be rebels finally making their next move?
"You couldn't sleep either?" asked a feminine voice. My body instantly relaxed as I realized it was one of the ladies of the selection. "Looks like we both wanted to walk off some anxiety."
I turned around to see those haunting green eyes staring back at me. My breath hitched in my throat as I fought to find my voice. "Yeah, I guess you could say that," I answered after regaining my composure. What was happening to me? I didn't even know this girl.
"I used to do this all the time at home, but only in my backyard. I didn't think it counted as breaking curfew if you were on your own property." She smiled lightly, the moon lighting her gentle features. Rio looked simply stunning in this light. "So what made you come out here?
"I'm not sure," I answered honestly. "I went to go get my paperwork from the office and ended up here. My feet took me where the rest of my body was too tired to think to go."
"Must have been fate," Rio said, looking up at me through her thick lashes. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't help but stare into her eyes. "My dad always said the body's knows what it wants before the mind does. Guess your body knew it needed to have a break or get away from something."
"I bet you're right," I said, my voice shaking slightly. Is that why I felt nervous around her? Was my body telling me she was something special to pay attention to? No that couldn't be it! I was interested in Nada and couldn't be swayed by a pair of green eyes. "What are you running from out here? You know it's dangerous outside at this time of night without a guard, don't you?"
"I can take care of myself," Rio said with a smirk. "I guess I'm just anxious about being in a new place and about meeting your brother tomorrow. I just don't want to be sent home on the first day, that would be embarrassing!" A she spoke I saw her shivering slightly.
"I don't think you have to worry about going home," I admitted, taking off my suit jacket and draping it over her shoulders. "Here, you're shivering."
"What makes you think that?" She asked, cuddling into the warmth of my jacket.
"You're shoulders were shaking," I laughed, knowing she wasn't referring to her shivers.
"You know what I mean." She gave me a pointed look and I couldn't help but smile sheepishly.
I had back myself into a corner and wasn't sure how to respond. "Erm—I mean you are beautiful and, from what I can tell, you have a good head on your shoulders," I said, letting the truth come out. "My brother would be stupid not to keep you." As a blush fell over her cheeks, I mental kicked myself for letting the last part come out. "I'm sorry," I muttered kicking the grass under my shoe and running a hand through my hair.
"For what?" Rio looked surprised. "You didn't say anything wrong. It was actually very sweet of you to say that. I just hope that you're right."
I felt a little pang of jealousy for my brother. Something inside me wished that Rio thought I was worth it but I quickly pushed that thought away. I couldn't think like that especially not about a selection girl.
"It's getting late. Can I walk you back to your room?" I asked, offering her my arm. I let my eyes wander away from Rio's for a moment and looked up at the palace. I noticed my brother standing on his balcony, watching us from the third floor. I gave him a nod before he turned to go back inside. A feeling of dread washed over me and I hoped he didn't think I arranged this meeting. If he did, I would surely hear about it later.
"That's a good idea but I don't know if I'll be able to sleep. I am nervous about tomorrow and I want to make a good first impression. Do you have any suggestions?" Rio asked.
"Wait a minute," I said stopping as we reached the foyer. "Earlier you said you didn't really want this and you were here to get away from your mother. What changed?" I was confused.
"I decided since I'm here I might as well get to know your brother. I think I have terribly misjudged your family for years." Rio's cheeks reddened with her response.
"What do you mean?" I couldn't explain the feeling inside me at that moment. It almost felt like a mixture of jealousy, inquisition, and amusement.
"Well," Rio started before pausing to think about how to answer appropriately. "I guess I just thought you all were pompous snobs that didn't think about the people's needs." She did not look at me as she spoke, her eyes focused on the ground.
"I see." Ouch that hurt. I wondered if that was what most of the country thought. If it was, we were not doing our job as rulers.
"But then I met you and saw how you acted around the King and Queen and your sister. The Report doesn't really show your human sides that I saw from each of you today. Honestly it was refreshing to me." A small smile came over her face as she looked up at me.
"I'm glad you can see that we do care," I said honestly, as we walked up the steps. "I would love to travel to all the provinces to see what they are like and maybe get to know the people. I don't know if it plausible, but it seems like something we need to do as rulers. Personally, I want to get to know my people better."
"I agree. I mean how can you expect to govern someone if you don't know what it's like outside of the palace walls? It's a whole different ball game out there!" Rio was starting to get fired up. "If I were to become princess, I would make sure the people knew that they were cared for without a doubt and help those in need."
I was amazed at how openly and passionately she spoke about things. Rio Parker was definitely not like any other girl I had met before. Most girls would stray from the conversation about public affairs and ask about the royal lifestyle. She cared about the people and it was evident. I could see a younger version of my mother within Rio, but much more eccentric. I never knew what she was going to say or do next and she intrigued me.
"Well, it sounds as if you would make an excellent princess," I said with a smile. "Now you just need to win my brother's heart." There was that odd feeling again as I spoke about her possible future with my brother. I shook my head, pushing those thoughts and feeling away again. "Well, I guess this is-" I was suddenly interrupted by a loud siren echoing throughout the castle.
