Sofia

"I wish I were as elegant as you," Hannah murmured, watching Amber intently as the blonde Princess poured our tea.

"You will be in time, Hannah; it takes years of training to be this perfect," Amber replied blatantly.

She was nice, but the girl terrified me.

It was like watching a porcelain doll come to life.

"Couldn't we stay here while you work in the village? It's the same concept, isn't it?" Laura asked, taking a sip of her tea.

"It's going to be lonely staying at Nightingale alone all day while you're at work," Hannah complained, biting into a small sandwich.

"You will be in school, girls. You won't be alone," I assured them, "with any luck, I will be your teacher, and we won't have to be apart,"

I sighed, placing my chin in my hands.

Their relentless pestering gave me a headache, my arm hurt, and they were embarrassing me in front of my future sister-in-law, which didn't help my attitude.

"I would like to make you a proposition," Amber spoke softly, placing the teapot back in the middle of the table.

"A proposition?" I asked, taking the bottle of painkiller out of my bag and

taking two.

"I want you all to stay here. The girls are both princesses and will attend Royal Prep; they deserve to have the best education and need to prepare to be Queens themselves." Amber stated firmly.

I tugged at my hair, annoyed that they were ganging up on me.

Amber had a point, though. The girls had an opportunity for a real education.

The idea of them being Queens made my heart swell.

"I won't stop you from going to an exclusive school, girls; it would do you both some good, but I don't think living here is the best idea," I answered sternly.

"I have to disagree; you are going to be spending all of your free time here with my brother anyway. It would be easier for everyone, including the horses, if you moved in," She shrugged, taking a sip of tea.

"I suppose you have a point," I admitted, biting my lip, "a trial period couldn't hurt, I guess,"

There was no talking any of them out of this.

I might as well play along for now.

"Yes!"

"Excellent, now, Sofia, go tell my brother the good news. He needs to hear it from you; he wouldn't believe me if I told him," Amber shooed me away.

I knew I wasn't her ideal tea-time playmate, so I quickly excused myself and left.

The hall of past kings and queens came into view, and my curiosity got the better of me. I slowly made my way down, looking for my grandparents, until their portrait came into view.

I stood in front of the painting and took in every detail of my grandparents.

Reginald was strong-looking with deep green, soulful eyes, sandy-blonde hair, and James's smile, while Julianne was very feminine and had long red hair with light blue eyes.

"They look so happy," I whispered to myself.

"They were," King Roland's voice echoed beside me, making me jump, "this was painted right before Miranda's adoption was finalized,"

"Your majesty, I haven't gotten the chance to say how sorry I am for your loss. Their death must have been tough for you," I curtsied.

"Thank you, Sofia. It was, but I got to tell them both goodbye before they passed," he patted me on the shoulder, "my brother had done so much for me in my life, I wish I could have repaid the favor,"

"You mean abdicating the throne so you could be king?"

"Yes. My wife, Anne, died during childbirth with the twins. I was so lost without her, I still am too, but Reginald, as always, did everything he could to make me happy," He sighed sadly.

"I thought he abdicated because you had a male heir?"

"Male heirs don't make a difference in Enchancia; Amber is the true heir since she is the eldest, but she abdicated to James two years ago. If anything were to happen to him, it would go to you or one of your sisters since Miranda abdicated when she left," he explained.

"Is it okay with you if Laura and Hannah attend Royal Prep? They need to be ready if something does happen,"

"Amber has already talked to me; they will start the day after tomorrow."

"We were lucky to find such caring people. Thank you, your majesty," I wiped away a tear, and he smiled.

"Please, call me Roland, and I know my brother would be so happy knowing his granddaughters are being taken care of. He would have adored you," he leaned down and kissed the top of my head, "just as I do. I couldn't ask for a better match for my son."

I blushed and clasped my hands behind my back, "Thank you, Roland," I giggled, "he is an amazing man,"

"He can be," Roland said sternly, "but promise me one thing. James can be impulsive, arrogant, and selfish at times. Promise me that you will look past his misgivings if the time comes that he does something reckless. Everyone is capable of making mistakes, but you must give him the chance to understand and correct them,"

"No one is perfect, and of course, I promise I will forgive him if that time ever comes. Unless he does something to break my trust," I chose my words carefully, wondering if he knew something.

"Of course. Thank you,"

"Sofia!" James called happily, jogging toward us, "are you ready for supper?"

"I won't keep you any longer, please, come find me if you need anything," Roland bowed.

"I will; thank you so much, Roland," I curtsied back.

James pulled me into a warm hug and rested his chin on my head, "what were you and my father talking about?"

"You," I stated vaguely, hugging his waist, "he wanted to tell me how glad he was that we were together. We talked about my grandparents a lot too,"

"So am I, Sofia. I can't believe how fortunate I am to have you," James kissed the top of my head, and I smiled into his chest.

"I'm the fortunate one, James," I laced our fingers together and let him lead me to the dining hall, "I am going to the village first thing in the morning. Mama and Papa's ship leaves at eight, and I want to be there to see them off before I go job hunting,"

"Are you going to try to convince them to stay?" he asked, pressing my hand to his lips.

"I am going to try, but at the very least, I want to stand on the dock as they sail away. Maybe it will help mama take the situation seriously,"

"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked, a hint of panic in his deep voice.

"Why? Are you afraid I'm going to have second thoughts and go back with them?" I tried not to laugh.

"I am now!" his eyes widened, and I jumped up to throw my arms around his neck.

He caught me and held my legs around his waist as I nuzzled his neck with my nose.

"Trust me," I whispered in his ear, "I told you I'm going to stay, and I meant it. I love you, James,"

His grip around my back got tighter, and he pressed me against the wall.

"I love you too, Sofia," James breathed, trailing kisses from behind my ear to my collar bone.

I loved how his lips and the rough texture of his stubble felt sliding across my sensitive skin, and I found myself wanting to know what they would feel like in other places.

I had given him my first kiss not even nine hours ago, and here I was pressed up against a wall with my legs around his waist.

I found his mouth with mine and kissed him feverishly, desperately wanting him to carry me to his room.

James ran his hands along my torso under my dress, grabbing my bare hips with his strong hands.

I couldn't control the urge to let him assert his dominance over me.

Of course, I wanted to be independent, but we are still getting married no matter what happens.

His touch felt so natural, as though it was meant for me.

"James, take me-" I moaned into his mouth seductively as his hands began traveling up my stomach.

"Ahem," someone behind us warned.

"Baileywick!" James jumped, placing me on the ground and keeping me covered if I needed to fix my dress.

"Your majesty, dinner is ready in the dining room. I assume Miss Sofia was asking you to take her there," Baileywick stated, waiting for us to begin moving.

James took my hand in his out of sight of the steward, winked at me, and I did my best to compose myself before we joined the others.

The dining room was empty when we arrived; only two plates sat across from each other.

"Where are Laura and Hannah?" I asked Baileywick, looking around confused.

"The Princesses are having dinner with Princess Amber in her room, at Princes Amber's request. This dinner is for you and Prince James," he explained.

"That was nice of her; you have a good night, Baileywick. You can have the rest of the night off," James smiled, waving.

"Nice try, your majesty. I am aware that you both went out this afternoon unchaperoned, but I will do my best to make sure that doesn't happen again," Baileywick replied flatly.

"Sounds like a challenge," James whispered in my ear, making me shiver.

I already had to keep checking that the warm liquid between my legs wasn't leaving a noticeable spot on my dress.

He wasn't helping.

I would do my best not to overthink the situation and enjoy it.

"Yes, Baileywick. We will behave ourselves," I replied, gently nudging James in the ribs.

"Oh, yeah, we are sorry for disobeying you, Baileywick; it won't happen again," James's reply wasn't even a little bit convincing, but the steward let us eat our meal in peace while he stood, silently, by the door.

"Come to my room after the girls go to sleep," James whispered low enough Baileywick couldn't hear.

"I will, but James-"

"Shh," James pressed his finger to his lips and pointed at the steward, "later,"

I nodded and bid them both goodnight as I entered my dark room.