Day twenty-seven.
"Miss Alicia, Miss Braelyn, Miss Blake, Miss—"
"Lara."
"No, your Royal Highness, my name isn't on this list. Please stop trying to add it."
Jay sighs and looks over, once again, at his faithful servant and best friend. He always finds it hard to look away when he starts watching her because she's quite the sight to him. She's one of the most beautiful girls that Jay, even as a prince, has ever met. Honestly, Jay would rather her name be on that list of ladies of high stature and wealth. If it were, he'd have no qualms jumping aboard the marriage train.
Unfortunately, though, her name isn't on that list – and none of the names on the list are ones he likes romantically.
Alicia is younger than him. She's great – bubbly, fun, and loves to spend time with him – but her energy tends to be too much for him. She's an amazing friend and more like a little sister who will help him pull pranks on the guards than she really is a potential wife for him. Besides, he's pretty sure she has her eyes set on another prince, and he's all for their relationship starting off. Alicia deserves to be happy with someone who can keep up with her endless energy and balance her out at the same time. Jay can't do that.
Braelyn, like Alicia, is more of a sister to Jay, albeit she'd be like an older sister rather than a younger one. Braelyn is calmer, like Lara, but occasionally gets herself involved in minor manipulations across other kingdoms – led, of course, by herself. She's become a name to respect. Jay loves her dearly, but marriage to her would see more like a trick. Like Alicia, Jay thinks that Braelyn has her eyes set elsewhere.
Blake is Braelyn's twin sister, and Jay's current bane of existence. She constantly is over at his home, talking business and trying to sway Jay's father to her opinionated mannerisms. Rather than being a potential marriage candidate for him, Jay thinks that Blake has her eyes set more on the heart of Jay's father. Jay doesn't much care either way. Blake is definitely not made to be his future wife.
And then there's—
"Stop staring, Jay, it's incredibly rude!"
—Lara.
Lara Elizabeth Night, the girl of Jay's dreams and the only woman he can see at his side in his life.
He's been in love with her since they were children, when her parents died and she was taken in by Jay's grandfather only because her grandfather had been his close friend. Lara has never belonged to a royal family, but she has always had the behavior of belonging to one. She's proper and formal, studious, respectful. Lara is everything a future queen should be, except for holding the birthright necessary to be one. For every class Jay has ever attended, Lara has learned it better than him.
"Jay," she growls.
He blinks and takes his gaze away from her, looking around the room. "Sorry, Lara. I was… thinking about who to choose."
She huffs at him. "Well, you'd better decide soon. Your father will be extremely upset with you if you don't."
"I don't care what he thinks. I don't care what anyone thinks," Jay grumbles.
"I know. But the kingdom depends on its ruler, and that will be you if anything happens to your father."
"I know."
The two are silent for a long moment, before Jay grabs her hand and pulls her to her feet. "Lara, let's run away! Just the two of us. Then we'll never have to worry about royal marriage and the kingdom and—"
She gives him a look. "They'd accuse me of kidnapping you."
"That's not a 'no,'" he points out.
Lara rolls her eyes. "You exhaust me," she informs.
He smiles. "But you love it."
"Yes, well, that's arguable," she retorts half-heartedly.