I got a really nice guest post yesterday and I am thankful for it. Something you don't know about me is that I have never touched American soil..

The farthest west I have travelled is up to Lisbon, Portugal. So how apartments/b2b/Housings work there are all new to me. In India, we own our apartments/bungalows etc. There are no leased apartments etc. Usually we buy or build spaces to accommodate for extended families as well as guests rooms as well as private spaces for family members as well. The kitchen and dining is always shared..

Having a huge acreage is a good idea... Will give it a thought surely.

Also, this is my very first foray into writing for fun. I really am winging it and while I have the full plot and plan ready in my mind, these small technical details are always surprises.

Apologies if I make a few mistakes along the way... But I am sure the story will turn out good eventually as Edward and Bella are going to be great to play with !! Cheers.

On to the story...

xxxxx

We finished our breakfast soon. The bags were already packed and the rooms checked out and we started for the airport.

oxoxoxo BPOV oxoxoxo

We reached Heathrow at around late evening. Had I been alone, I would have taken the subway. Granted it may sometimes be a pain when you have luggage, but it is still seemed cheapest and best option according to google.

Carlisle was not of the same opinion. He got us individual London cabs and we were to reach home in an hour or so.

Looking outside the cab as it found its way through the city, I now understood why people loved London. London had a charm, a beauty that made you fall in love with it.

The drive through Bond street and Piccadilly was enthralling and I forgot all my stress and fatigue. It was fun to ride and keep looking at maps to figure out where I was.

Edward and I were in one cab and the others took another. Edward spoke, only to the cab driver. A British Edward was funnier to hear. I was apparently invisible to him. Not that it bothered to me anymore. I was used to being invisible to people. I had decided to enjoy whatever life threw at me and had stopped expecting anything from him. The feeling was extremely refreshing and a big smile spread across my face.

All my life, I was expected to be a person that was perfect from someone else's standards.. And that too was never enough. I was expected to speak in a specific way, dress in a specific way, eat, behave, show or hide emotion, all conforming to a standard set of rules...

Everything and anything I did was always scrutinized and criticised. And not just by my family but the media and society as well. I was always labelled the "Outsider Princess".

My grandfather is a descendent of a royal lineage. He is the Prince of the big and beautiful city called Sambhalgad in India. René or Reena devi is the elder daughter of Prince Raja Pratap and Rani Maya and their legal heir to the line. She would have been 'The Princess of Sambalgad' who would have owned and run the estate. However, Grandfather did not let that happen.

While there is no monarchy left in India now after democracy was established, the people of the city and the royalty have a history that can never be erased off. This royal family is still treated and respected as the 'Royal family of Sambhalgad' and a lot is expected from everyone. René's younger brother or my Maternal uncle, Prince Vikram was now declared the next in line to my Grandfather. He handles the estates and will eventually own everything. He never liked me but I was raised to show him respect. I have two cousins I grew up with but they were always treated as the 'next in line' Princes. I was a princess and I always got everything that a princess would.. but I was treated very differently..

Marriage was always used as an legal arrangement between two princely families to establish business interests through relationships. Money always exchanged hands. René was to marry the prince of Udaipur when she reached 21 age. Grandfather loved her dearly and breaking all trends, he let her go to US to live the life of a commoner, get an education and experience life as she wanted. René was to come back home by 21 years of age and get married.

When René got pregnant at 18, she not only broke his trust but also made him bow his head in shame to the family she was to marry. Had she introduced Charlie in a acceptable way, Grandpa may have considered..

Grandfather got her married to Charlie for namesake. It did not matter whether Charlie and René loved each other or not, but the child needed a surname. René was whisked away immediately after the wedding and did not see Charlie for 5 years, after which they got legally separated. Rene was threatened to be cut off financially and emotionally if she tried to see Charlie.. She was never again given the same status and respect by anyone after I was born. She was never allowed to work or earn, and never got to leave the palace. Everything was available in surplus... except freedom.

Granny knew this had broken René, and so she stood up for her as much as she could. Every year in my vacations, I was allowed to meet Charlie. And by doing so Rene enjoyed a month of breathing space outside of her golden prison in Seattle. Granny was the only reason that this happened. Granny did everything to make our lives easier... as much as was in her power.

When I was 17, I was planning to follow in Rene's steps and go to US to get higher education, be free, live my life...The day I would be of legal age, I would be free to do as I wish.

Grandfather and I had a talk before I left India and this is when I understood this history. I also understood the dark truth behind my existence.

I was to be Rene's redemption. I had a choice, either his way or the highway.

Grandfather expected to me to marry as per his wishes. If not, René and I would be cut out and thrown out. If I obeyed, I would be given René's share.

I briefly considered disobeying. If I didn't obey, I would have had freedom! However, while such freedom seemed nice to me, it meant no money at all. Charlie had a meager pay that got him by and being royalty, Rene was never allowed to work... And she had no savings.

I grew up in isolation and never dreamt of love and all the flowery things that other girls my age did... So the decision to marry or not marry would not affect me personally but it would devastate the lives of René and thus Charlie as well..I didn't want grandfather's money but this money meant I could finally give my parents their life back again.

I decided then to obey Grandpa.

But I had only one condition. I would not marry a Prince.. Anyone else would do. Absolutely anyone. Even Edward, who had clearly told me that he didn't want to marry me...

oxoxoxo

Whoa... Edward said he didn't want Bella??Reviews please..Jupi