Hello all! I'm back! Our rugby trip was uber fun. We came in 7th, which is the highest any rugby team from our school has placed! Yay! If I can't get the next update up on Saturday morning, it might have to be withheld until Sunday. My grad is on Saturday. (wow, that's scary)

Tiger Lily21: Oh, do you now? You're an awesome writer. I've enjoyed all your stories so far. It's easy to make a couple little mistakes now and then, (I've totally had my fair share), and you update way faster than I do! Keep up the good work!

Areida Rivers: Hmm... Alone time with Jarrod and Fiona. I have a feeling I'd have to change the rating for that ;cD (just kidding!) Thank you for the compliment! I only have one sister, and we love each other to death, but even we have our spats. And they get violent, I'll tell you.

Phillipa of the Phoenix: I'm sorry! And, hey! You can't have Obi-Wan in your closet! He belongs in mine... (at least the Ewan McGregor version XcD) But I assure you, there will be plenty of moments for all that Fiona-Jarrod stuff coming up!

PrincessofRain: OKAY!

panemonium: Which is weird because this story has almost matched 'Cave of Wonders' in number of words, but is still five chapters shorter. I'm not going to tell you if you're right, but you're on the right track. ((mysterious look)) Oh, Tyrell notices, but he thinks it's a good change, so he's not going to say much. And Warren's really really quiet. Tyrell does take Jarrod to task a little in the not the next chapter, but the one after that. And I like that you think out loud. It shows that my story really makes you think. Yay!

Dreamer at Heart: Yeah, the kind of, 'Oh, hey! I have grad, a hugechoir concert, and three exams coming up. Hee hee hee ((dies))' That's me in a nutshell right now.

wishingIcouldthinkofsomething: Thank you very much. I know how it is. Sometimes I don't get time to review. I hope you are right!

kyliegirlie22: Wow, thank you!

livingdead2010: Yay! Okay!

little miss tiny shoes: That would be a nice change in scenery, wouldn't it?Jarrod should just bite the bullet and do it.

Glaze: yay for all the reviews! You are so smart! You must stop guessing (correctly!) my plotlines! XcD I'm just kidding though. You can guess all you want, I won't stop you! It actually is nice to see someone who knows where the story is going. It confirms the fact that the story flows nicely. yay!

awaiting impatient person: You sound busy! I know how that feels. I'm just run ragged lately. I hope you have enough time to enjoy the update.

W00T! My legs are bruised, my back is sore, but I'm still so happy!

Lulai

Chapter Eighteen: Conditions

"A letter fer ye, milady," a butler addressed Fiona, holding out a dish with a note on top. Fiona stuck her needles into the bundle of wool and took the letter with a nod of thanks. The butler turned and walked out of the room, closing the door silently behind him.

Fiona,

I may have found a solution to your problem. If you would care to meet me for lunch, it would be greatly appreciated. Please bring along your sisters if you are so inclined.

It was signed, J.

Fiona looked at the bold hand, and a sliver of hope wedged its way into her brain. She immediately stood and went to find her sisters.

"Lady Iphaga- Ipheg- Nia is in here," one of the manservants stuttered. Fiona smiled at the furiously blushing boy, who couldn't have been more than fourteen. Nia herself had problems pronouncing her own name until she was seven.

"Nia, where are Genevieve and Josephine?" she asked, entering the room.

Nia looked up from a letter she was writing. "Genevieve went with Josephine back to that place that sold Josephine those earrings the other day. The clasp is loose, and they're hoping to get it fixed. Thomas is with them."

"I need an escort to the palace," Fiona said, cutting to the heart of the matter. "The king may have found an answer to our financial difficulties."

Nia nodded and straightened. "Is this dress alright?"

Fiona shrugged and couldn't resist rolling her eyes. "It's only lunch. There is no need for full eveningwear. I'm just wearing this."

"Okay then," Nia said, following Fiona out the door, closing it behind her.

"Lady Fiona, Lady Nia," Jarrod greeted them as he and his brother met them at the door.

"Hello, your majesty," they said bowing.

"Your other sisters could not make it?"

Fiona shook her head. "Unfortunately not. They were engaged in other things. Your cousin?"

"Warren has business in the city that he needed to take care of. He apologises for not being able to be here."

Tyrell rolled his eyes. "Now that we've established where everyone is, can we go eat?"

Jarrod shot his brother an exasperated glance. "Very well, let us proceed."

They shared lunch in a smaller, sunnier room. The table was laden with fresh fruits. The soup was utterly delicious, and Fiona had taken a third helping before she even noticed. She finally pushed back her bowl.

"Thank you very much," she said, "and I do not wish to seem impatient, but shouldn't we get onto matters?"

Jarrod nodded. "Yes. If you will accompany me to the common room again?"

Nia and Tyrell stood up. They seemed to be quite engaged in a deep discussion.

"They are talking about horses," Jarrod explained to Fiona. She gave a slight blush at being caught eavesdropping. Why did he have such a better sense of hearing than she did? "He's a horse fanatic sometimes."

"He will have met his match in Nia, then," Fiona replied. "She is probably the most knowledgeable horsewoman I know."

"Fiona, his highness has asked if I may want to see the stables," Nia said. "He claims his stalls are twice the size of ours. I simply must see this to believe it."

Fiona looked Jarrod and he raised his eyebrows at her as if to say, It's your decision.

"Alright," Fiona said to her. "I'll find you there when I am done?"

Nia nodded. Fiona knew that she could spend a whole day away in the stables, admiring the horses.

Jarrod led Fiona to the common room they had been in the night before. He rather liked the room. It was comfortable and masculine without being stifling, and he often found himself conducting business in it. He purposely left the door wide open.

"Now," he said, motioning for her to sit. She chose a wooden chair by the desk. He leaned a hip against the glossy edge. "As I said, I have poured through the law concerning the loans all this morning and I may have found a way for this to work."

"You'll let us have the loan?" Fiona asked, trying not to sound to hopeful.

Jarrod shook his head. "It's not that simple," he said. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his left hand, his eyes closed. "I cannot give you a loan. There are stricter laws against that then for murder. But I have found a way to give your family money."

Fiona looked at him curiously. "And what would that be?"

"A dowry."

"A… a…?" Fiona's lips couldn't seem to function properly, probably because her jaw was hanging open.

Jarrod opened his eyes and looked at her, his hand dropping to his side. "Yes. If you marry me, I will be able to cover all your family's debts."

Fiona finally got her mouth working. "Are you mad?" she asked, standing up from her chair.

"What choice do you have?" he asked sternly. "To let your family fall into ruin? Let your sisters fall from their stations; to have your castle taken from you?"

Fiona realised with sinking finality that he was right. He was her last hope, and if she was to save her family, she would have to marry him.

"Fiona," Jarrod began, straightening, "this wasn't exactly how I wanted things…"

For some reason, this didn't make Fiona feel a whole lot better. In fact, it probably made her feel even worse. It ranked right up there with his apology for kissing her.

"…but I like you, and respect you," he finished. Fiona raised an eyebrow. She hoped that he didn't want a response because she wasn't really in the complimentary mood. "And I won't deny that I find you attractive. And I don't think I'm mistaken when I say you find me attractive as well."

Fiona wanted to deny it; she wanted to tell him where he could shove his arrogant assumptions, but she couldn't, mostly because they were true.

His lips curved up into the broken smile that had become almost dear to her. "I know I'm not exactly what you'd probably hoped for in a husband-"

At this, Fiona let out a very unladylike snort. He really was mad if he thought that he wasn't what any woman would want in a husband.

"But I hope you'll accept me anyway. I really want to help you and your family."

"In return for what?" Fiona asked, softly, but firmly. She wasn't naïve. She knew that things like what he was offering came with a price. She wanted to know what that price was. "Although I believe you're kind, this exceeds any sort of normal generosity. What do you want out of this marriage?"

Jarrod looked taken aback by the question, and his brown eyes were fathomless. He considered her question carefully.

"I want what most men want," he replied finally. "If I am to enter this marriage, and spend the rest of my life with you, I want it to be a real marriage."

Fiona's mouth went dry. "You want an heir."

"I want more than one."

Fiona felt her face grow impossibly hot. He wanted to… wanted to… wanted to. With her. The thought both scared her and shot a thrill of desire through her nerves. An instinctively curious part of her in the back of her mind wanted to follow his kisses into their logical conclusion.

Jarrod quirked his little half smile. "As my assailant is eager to remind me, I am not immortal. I would like someone to carry on my line."

"I'm not sure if I can do that," Fiona blurted out, her fear getting the best of her. "At least, not yet," she amended.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"If I do marry you," Fiona explained quickly, "I want time to adjust to being both a wife and a queen first before I have to, um… er, engage in intimate relations. Plus, we only met three weeks ago! We're practically strangers, and I would like to get to know you better before… anything happens."

"May I add some conditions on to your conditions?" Jarrod asked. Fiona could not read his expression, but nodded.

"First, I must ask, this condition will not be permanent, will it?" he levelled his gaze at Fiona. She dropped her eyes to the floor.

"No," she said. "I merely want time to adjust to… everything."

"Good. I would also like to point out that I hope this adjustment takes place within the next twenty years. I would like to see my children grow up."

Fiona didn't say anything, but she nodded her head.

"Secondly, I would ask that you do not hold out on me to gain influence over me."

Angry blue-green eyes shot up to his. "I would never do that."

Jarrod cocked his head in her direction. "I thought as much, but I wanted to hear you say it."

"So you agree to my terms?" Fiona asked with a little bit of a shake to her voice.

"Fiona," Jarrod said, walking up to her and placing his warm hands on her shoulders. "I'll be honest with you. I do want you in my bed. But I want you there willing and wanting me as well. Until then, you can rest assured that I will not ask anything of you that you are not prepared to give."

Fiona gulped and pushed all her worries and doubts down. "Then yes, I will marry you."

Jarrod let out a breath he hadn't even been aware he had been holding. He dropped his hands from her shoulders and turned to the desk to apparently write some sort of note. "I will set the date of the ceremony in three days. That should give you sufficient time to contact all your family and have them arrive."

"Three days?" Fiona asked, shocked. "Isn't that a little quick?"

"You only have a few days left to pay off your debts and it may take a few days to transfer that amount of funds."

Fiona nodded, although it felt like her feet had stopped touching the ground. Her life was being swept along, and she, caught like a leaf in the current, had no choice but go with it.

"Here," Jarrod said, his voice suddenly tender. He took a gold ring with an intricate sign of a butterfly in a crown off his pinkie and slid it onto the fourth finger of her left hand.

"It's the Royal Seal," he said. "I'll replace it with something a little more delicate later, but for right now, I want you to use it to buy yourself and your sisters whatever you want, including, but not limited to, a wedding dress." His mouth stretched into a half-grin. "I quite liked that dress you wore to supper last night. I wouldn't mind if your gown was a similar style to that one."

Fiona nodded dumbly. She seemed to be doing a lot of that.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, one of his hands moving to cup her chin so he could look in her eyes.

"Everything is just moving so… fast," she confessed. "I'm sure it'll turn out okay," to both of them, the words sounded uncertain, "but right now I feel as though I'm in a little over my head."

Jarrod nodded in understanding. "Let's go find your sister. I'm sure you'd like some time to prepare."

"Alright," Fiona agreed.

Jarrod took Fiona by surprise and captured her lips in a quick kiss. He was gone before she could even react.

"Shall we?" he asked, offering her his arm. She nodded, still recovering from the memory of his lips on hers. They walked through the grand halls of Castle Fer Drewery.

This is going to be my home, she thought.

Jarrod didn't say anything to her, giving her a chance to think through everything in her mind.

They found Nia and Tyrell having a daring jumping contest in the training field behind the stables.

Tyrell spotted them first and reigned his horse in before trotting over to where Jarrod and Fiona stood. Jarrod stood slightly in front of Fiona as the horse loomed nearer to her.

Fiona felt she should have been angry with him for imposing himself in front of her in such a way, but instead she felt relieved that the horse would have to go through him before it bit her.

Tyrell dismounted and turned to help Nia off her horse.

"That was an exhilarating ride, your highness," Nia said as her feet hit the ground. "Thank you very much."

"The pleasure was all mine," he said, bowing.

The carriage arrived for the two girls a few minutes later.

"That was a very pleasant visit," Nia said to Fiona. "What did the King have to say to you?"

"I'll tell everyone all together, so I don't have to tell the same story three times," Fiona said. She returned her gaze out the window and rubbed the ring absently.