CHAPTER TEN

Saturday, October 1

I was at a freaking match-maker party. They tried to dress it up as some sort of fancy ball or what-ever, but the only females in the room were either old, important to the government or something, or married to someone important. Ninety percent of the guys here were under thirty, single and 'noble' or whatever. The King had insisted that I dance with all the 'bachelors' at least once and I hated it. This time the four-year-old actually could make it. He was a cute little kid with bright green eyes and light blond hair. Kind of adorable except for the fact that he's a total brat.

Lord Marcus kept looking at me from across the room, but he hadn't come and asked me to dance yet and stupid etiquette said that I wasn't allowed to ask him just to get away from all the other handsy snobs that asked me. And everytime I looked at him I saw Shane. Shane had practically said I should date Marcus. For my image. I mean, from the one short conversation I'd had with Marcus he was nice - he was normal - but... I couldn't stop thinking about Shane. Shane, who makes my heart thump, who I was kiss until he won't be sad anymore, who keeps pushing me away.

"Your Highness!" I groaned as another voice spoke when I had finally managed to escape the hand-happy bachelors. I looked up and blushed when I saw that it was Marcus. "I hope you don't mind, but as I said last time, I'm not much of a dancer, so I was hoping we could take this song to talk?" He requested and I smiled. No more dancing.

"Sure." I agreed and he led me over to an empty table and even pulled a chair out for me.

"Eventfull couple of weeks?" Marcus asked when I sat down with a sigh and I laughed.

"You could say that." I half smiled, I couldn't explain why it was so easy to talk to Marcus. "But, it'd be a major understatement of epic proportions." This time last week we were in court. That made me think of Shane. "Were you going to vote guilty? For Shane?" I asked before I could stop myself, looking up into Marcus' baby blues. Marcus didn't say anything for at least a whole minute, just looking at me.

"Yes." He finally answered and my heart thumped painfully, and not in the good way that Shane made it. "He wasn't sorry, he admitted he'd do it again. hardly an upstanding, law-abiding citizen."

"He's a kid, he got angry at something I said, he reacted, that's hardly a reason to be charged with terrorism." I rolled my eyes, kinda angry, but I didn't know why.

"You may be a Princess, your Highness, but you are way too naive." Lord Marcus scoffed and I narrowed my eyes.

"You may be a Lord, Marcus, but you are way too much of a jerk." I shot back at him and he sighed.

"The higher circles of Cyrus society are well versed in the old Laws." Marcus said when I went to get up from the table. I had actually liked him, but I couldn't explain it when I started to dislike him for voting against Shane.

"You-you know about...?" I frowned a little

"A Princess must be married before she can take the thrown and pregnant within a year or the courts can over-throw the Crown and give it to the next in line... There is not next in line." Marcus said and I sighed and sat down, looking down at the table. "I like you, Princess, I was going to wait until later..."

"I thought you were a nice guy, Marcus, but you wanted to throw an innocent guy in jail for a prank."

"He's a jerk, Princess." The way he said wasn't the same as Shane. "I like you, I don't want someone who would do something like that to get near you, to hurt you... I... I wanted to ask your permission to court you." I gasped and shot my eyes to him.

"I-..." I just shook my head and stood up and walked away. I'm not sure, but I think he just asked me to marry him.

Princess Miley

Sunday, October 2

"Miley." The King nodded to me when he came into the dining hall for breakfast. I averted my eyes back to my breakfast and I could practically hear him frowning. "You didn't seem all too happy with young Lord Hawthorne last night, I thought you two were getting along?"

"He-he asked my permission for him to court me." I mumbled, I looked it up online, apparently that meant he wanted to do some sort of fancy dating.

"You could do worse, I admit." The King mused, nodding.

"I just-I just don't know what to do anymore." I picked aimlessly at my eggs.

"Warring emotions, I presume?" He guessed in a conversational manner, as if this was an every day occurance. "A boy in America that captured your heart? It's common knowledge that you and one Jake Ryan were besotted with each other."

"It's not Jake." I just said. Seriously, was nothing in my life private? "I just-I don't even want to do this whole marriage thing when I'm fourteen, let alone with someone who cares so little for the value of another persons life. Marcus said he was going to vote against Shane at the hearing, he was willing to send someone to jail over a prank. Not exactly prime marriage material."

"He may not be what you deem as 'boyrfriend' material, Miley, but I am sure someone of his status would be of value as a husband."

"I don't want a husband, I don't want him as a boyfriend either, and I don't care about status or value. He was voting against Shane." I pushed my plate away and leaned back.

"Then, what do you want from Lord Hawthorne?" King Altiyan questioned, leaning forward slightly. What did I want from him? I wanted for him to say that he wouldn't have voted against Shane.

"I want a friend." I decided, I might have thought of Marcus like in a crush sort of way; sure, he's gorgeous, his eyes are the most amazing blue, and he was actually nice to me in a non-phony way, and he was normal. But... I see his blue eyes and I think of hazel, I see his perfectly styled blonde lockes and I think messy black tousles... Life was too complicated for romance right now anyway. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Unfortunately, what I wanted didn't matter in this country.

"A friend can be the best spouse." The King said before starting to eat his breakfast again.

"So you think I should date Marcus?" I questioned, but he just pretended not to hear me. "I wanna go back to school." I whined, at least at school I only have to think about one confusing boy, and not being courted and getting married as well.

And that's how I found myself back in that tree. Waiting, hoping, praying for Shane to come. I'd come out here every day during the week and he hadn't come back after he said he wouldn't. By seven o'clock that night he still hadn't come and I was pouting all the way back to my room. Shane's room was right across from mine, yet the only time I'd seen him was in class, and he refused to even acknowledge me then. He didn't even show up for meals. Why was he avoiding me? He wouldn't even make eye contact with me. I bit my lip and glanced at Shane's door. I glanced at the guards and sighed, they weren't going anywhere, Shane was avoiding me, lights out wasn't for another two and a half hours. I closed my door and slid down, sitting on the floor in the hallway. I was going to wait for Shane. I was going to wait for him to either come back, or leave in the morning.

Shane's door was very boring; plain, white, a peep hole, a doornob. Boring. The hallway was even more boring, gray, stone, only the occassional lamp on the wall. Boring, boring, boring. I don't even know how long I'd been sitting here. The lights were still on so it was less than two and a half hours. But, it was clearly too long.

"Princess." Shane's door opened and he was suddenly in front of me. "Lights out are is in ten minutes, you need to get inside." Was all he said before he started to turn away again.

"Wait." I quickly stood up and he paused, keeping his back to me. "Please, Shane." I heard him let out a slow breath. "Why are you avoiding me?" I whispered beggingly.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Princess." Shane denied, his voice hard. "You need to go to bed."

"Shane, please, Shane, talk to me?" I pleaded, I grabbed his wrist and pulled him away from his door, forcing him to turn around. "What-what's going on, Shane, why are you avoiding me? Did I do something wrong?" Shane sighed and looked around the hall. I t was completely deserted except for the guard guys. Then, he pushed me lightly until I was back against my door. "Stop." I whispered when the guards started to move forward. Shane looked at me, confused and I tilted my head slightly towards them. "Leave us alone." I commanded the guards and Shane reached behind me to open the door and then he started pushing into it backwards.

"Princess." It was the way he seemed to be able to make me feel the word when he said it when he closed and locked my door. "Please, Princess, you need to stay away from me." Shane had me backed against my door again and he was towering over me, his eyes dark and full of emotion. Pain, hurt, begging. I wanted to kiss away all his pain, I couldn't explain the need I had to protect him, it was unnatural.

"Why? Why should I stay away from you, Shane?" I demanded and his eyes darkened even more.

"I'm not good to be around." He growled out darkly.

"Why not?" Shane laughed bitterly and stepped away from me. I felt cold without his body heat.

"I'm just not, Princess." Shane went to sit on my bed and I followed.

"Lord Hawthorned asked to court me." I don't know why I told him that.

"You-" Shane choked, but he refused to look at me. "You should, he-he's good for you."

"He was going to vote against you at the hearing. He told me so." I said and Shane stiffened. "Is that why you're avoiding me? Because you think I should be with Marcus?" I questioned softly.

"Please, Princess." Shane got up and I frowned, he seemed to want to be as far from me as possible. "You don't understand-"

"Then make me." I interrupted, I didn't know what he was going to say, but I knew it wouldn't be good. "Explain it to me, Shane, make me understand."

"It's not safe." Shane almost shouted and I was shocked when he grabbed me by my forearms and pushed me against me door again, holding me tightly. "Princess... Just-just trust me; I am not good for your image." Before I knew what was happening I could suddenly, feel, taste and breathe Shane. His lips were so soft and demanding, kissing me hungrilly and yet softly at the same time. I couldn't help but fall against him, letting him comnpletely smother my senses.

Shane's lips parted and his tongue pushed against my lips. I think I might have moaned a little, but at that point I wasn't sure of anything any more. I let Shane kiss me and I clumsily followed, trying to keep up with him. I ached to reach for him, to hold him to me, to stop him from running away from me again. But, Shane was still holding my arms up and his rough, fingers were searing against my skin. I was starting to get dizzy by the time Shane pulled away, but I whimpered a little and he moved back to me. He kissed me again, softly, nipping a little at my bottom lip, making me let out a weird sound that I think was somewhere between a moan, a whimper and pur. He did it again, teasing my bottom lip lightly until I started to feel like I was keening, then he pulled back just enough to lean in and do it again. Next time Shane tried to pull away I followed him, trying to keep kissing him. Shane kissed me one last time before he pulled out of my reach and I whimpered and pouted and I felt like stomping my foot.

"I-" Shane sighed, resting his forehead against mine fore second. His grip on my arms loosened and he started to step back. I slowly opened my eyes to look at him through half-lidded eyes. His eyes were dark, almost black, and his lips were slightly parted, letting soft puff of air through. "F#ck!" He swore, stepping away from me quickly and I frowned, reaching for him. "Just-just trust me, Princess, it's not safe for me to be around you or you to be around me." And thern the next thing I know Shane is outside the room and I'm leaning back against the door feeling like I'm about to giggle with happiness or cry because he left me again.

O! M! A!
Abby in NCIS is adopted, but she has a brother O.o
I just watched the episode and I was so shocked.

Sorry it took so long to update; I've had work, and then my Moms birthday, and then work again. I'll try to update sooner next time.
Sadsies :( I only got three reviews (thank-you to my ever-loyal reviewers) Can I get 6 before my next update? Pretty please? Pretty, pretty, pretty please?

I love all my readers, and my reviewers even more.

So psyched; getting my Joe Jonas Fastlife CD tomorrow :) Finally!

XOXO
Peace, Love, Miley-Girl