Seducing a Queen
By: Itachi Black
Chapter 4
ELSA almost laughed, though more with hysteria than with amusement.
What on earth had he said?
And what had she answered?
Gracious heaven, he was a complete stranger, though familiar, and not a very reputable-looking one at that. Was anyone observing them? Whatever would they think?
His rough hands had loosened their hold on her arms though they still remained there. She could have broken away quite easily at this point and hurried on her way out of the ballroom immediately. Instead she looked up at him and waited to see what he would say next. It was presumable to state that she was intrigued by the outrageous man.
He had pursed his lips and his very cold eyes- surely they could not be literally frozen?- gazed steadily and boldly back at her.
He also appeared to be quite alone. Some instinct told Queen Elsa that he was not the sort of man whom she ought to be talking, despite of his formal and elegant garments, without a proper Introduction. But here she was standing so very close to him, her hands splayed on his broad chest, his clasping the bare flesh of her upper arms between her sleeves and her gloves. And they had been standing thus for more seconds than any ordinary collision ought to have occasioned. They ought to have sprung apart quickly, both modestly embarrassed and both apologizing profusely.
Oh goodness.
She lightly pushed on his chest again and when he still did not release his hold on her arms, she dropped her own to her sides. Her back prickled. Half the ton was somewhere behind her. Including her close friends. And including Prince Hans of the Southern Isles and Prince Christian of Denmark. All staring, presumably.
"I am afraid it does," the stranger said at last in an answer to her question. "If I dash off immediately in pursuit of a special license, you see, and then someone to perform the sacred ceremony, this particular set will surely be over by the time I return. And someone else will have discovered you and eloped to Scotland with you and left me clutching a useless piece of document. If we are to both dance and marry, it must be done in that particular order, I am afraid- much as I am flattered by your eagerness to proceed to the nuptials without further delay."
How very outrageous he was indeed, whoever he might be. Elsa ought not to have laughed- she ought to have been offended by the levity of his words, absurd and quick-witted though they were.
But she laughed.
He did not. He gazed intently at her and dropped his hands to his sides at last.
"Dance with me now," he said, "and tomorrow morning I will procure that special license. It is a promise that I shall keep."
This was a strange joke- a bizarre one. Yet he showed no sign of finding it amusing. Elsa found herself shivering slightly despite the fact that the smile lingered on her face.
She really ought to run from him as fast as her feet would carry her and keep the whole width and length of the ballroom between them for the rest of the evening. Her own words had been very indiscreet to her own surprise. Does it have to be in that order? Had she really spoken them aloud? But his answer, alas, proved that she had.
Who on good earth was he? She had never set eyes on him before tonight. She was certain of that.
And she did not run.
"Thank you, sir," she said instead. "I will dance with you."
It would be better to do that than run away simply because the Crown Prince of Denmark, whose hand she had refused three separate times, had chosen to betroth himself to someone else. And because Prince Hans was at the ball and she had foolishly told him she was betrothed.
The man inclined his head and offered his arm to lead her out to join the other dancers. It surprised Elsa to discover that the dancing had still not begun. That collision and the unexpected exchange of words that had followed it must all have happened within a minute or two at the longest.
The arm beneath her hand was very sold indeed, she noticed. She also noticed as she walked beside Him that her initial impression of his physique had not been mistaken. His black evening coat molded a powerful frame like a second skin. His long and sturdy legs looked equally well muscled. He was taller than she by several inches, though she was a tall woman. And then there was that dark-hued, harsh, almost ugly face.
It struck her that he might be a frightening adversary.
"It occurs to me," he remarked, "that if I am to be granted a special license tomorrow, I ought to know the name of my future bride. And her place of residence. It would be mildly irritating to pry myself away from my bed at some ungodly hour of the morning only to have my application denied on account of my inability to name my bride or explain where she lives."
Oh, the absurd man. He was going to continue with the ridiculous joke, though his grim face had not relaxed into even the suggestion of a smile. But she would amuse herself a little bit longer by indulging his silliness.
"I suppose it would," she replied.
Then the orchestra struck up with a lively country dance tune at that moment and after a short spell of dancing together they moved away from each other in order to perform a series of steps with the couple adjacent to them. When they came together, it was with the same couple and there was no chance for private conversation, absurd or otherwise.
This was really very improper, Elsa thought. As he had just reminded her, he did not know her and she did not know him. Yet they were dancing with each other. How on earth would she explain the lapse to Vanessa and Rachel? Or to His Majesty King Conner? She had always been a stickler for the social niceties.
But tonight she discovered that she did not much care. She was almost enjoying herself. Prince Christian's sudden announcement- and his assumption that she already knew- had in fact seriously discomposed her. So had the appearance of Hans. Yet here she was dancing gracefully and smiling anyway. And there was something definitely amusing about the joke the stranger had set in motion.
How many ladies- rich or poor- could boast of meeting a presumable wealthy man who was a total stranger and being asked to dance with him and marry him- all in one breath?
Her smile widened. It was most definitely entertaining.
"Might I be permitted," the stranger asked her when they were dancing exclusively with each other again, "to know the name of my prospective bride?"
She was tempted to withhold it. But that would be pointless. He could quite easily discover it for himself after they had finished the dance, considering she was fairly well-known as a queen.
"I am Queen Elsa Magnus of Norway," she informed him, "sister of the Princess of Arendelle."
She had expected him to be surprised or some sort reaction, however, the man simply said, "Ah, excellent. It is important to marry someone of impeccable lineage- important to one's family anyway."
"Absolutely, sir," she agreed. "And you are…?"
But she had to wait for another couple of minutes while the pattern of the dance drew other couples within earshot again.
"Jack Frost Overland, Crown Prince of Switzerland," he said without preamble when they were alone once more. "The title, I must warn you before you get too excited about marrying it, is a courtesy one and currently have of no value whatsoever except that it sounds good to the ears- and except that it is an indicator that a more real and illustrious title is to follow if and when the incumbent should predecease me. The current king, King Richard the Third, my aging grandfather, may well not do so even though he is eighty- or will be in two weeks' time- and fifty years my senior."
He had offered a great deal more than she had asked for. But it was a huge surprise to learn of his secret identity and another surprise she had not met him before. And yet… Crown Prince of Switzerland. Something tugged at the corners of her memory, but she could not pull it into focus. Although she had the impression that it was something not too pleasant. Something scandalous.
"And where," he asked, "may I come to claim you tomorrow, dear Queen Elsa, marriage license in hand?"
She hesitated again. But it would again take him only a moment after he had left her to discover it for himself.
"At Weselton House on Berkeley Square," she said.
But the joke had continued long enough. As soon as the set was at an end, she decided, she must put as much distance between herself and this prince as she possibly could. She did not want to or had the intention of encouraging him to continue to be as bold and familiar with her as he had been thus far.
She must make some discreet inquiries about him. There was something there in her memory.
Hans, she could see¸ was conversing with Vanessa and Edmond. It still seemed unreal, seeing him like this after so many unhappy years. She had not expected ever to see him again after his sudden marriage. What did she expect? She had expected him, she supposed, to settle in Spain permanently with his wife after the wars were over. Or back in his native land.
"Queen Elsa," Prince Jack asked her, bringing her attention back to him, "why were you fleeing the ballroom in panic earlier?"
It was a thoroughly impertinent question. Did he know nothing of good manners, despite of his royal status?
"I was not fleeing," she argued back. "And I was not in a panic."
"Two bouncers in a single sentence," he stated.
She looked at him with all the hauteur she could muster. "You are very impertinent, my lord," she remarked.
"Oh, always," he fully agreed. "Why waste time on tedious courtesies? Was he worth the panic?"
She opened her mouth to deliver a sharp retort. But then she closed it and simply shook her head instead.
"Was that a sign of a firm no," he asked her, "Or a you-are-impossible gesture?"
"The latter," she said curtly before they were separated again.
A short while later the orchestra paused before beginning another tune in the same set. But the Prince of Switzerland appeared to have had enough. He took Elsa's hand from her side without a by-your-leave, set it on his sleeve, and led her off the floor and into a small, semicircular alcove close to the doors, where only the light melodic music could be heard and there rested a comfortable-looking sofa was temporarily unoccupied.
"It is impossible," he said as Elsa seated herself hesitantly and he took the vacant seat beside her, "to hold a sustained conversation while dancing. Dancing has to be the most ridiculous and pointless social activity ever invented."
"It is something I particularly enjoy," she said. "And one is not expected to hold a lengthy conversation while dancing. There is a time and place for that."
"What did he do," he demanded her, "to throw you into such a panic?"
"I have not admitted," she responded, "that there even is such any gentleman or that there was any such incident." She picked up her silk fan from her wrist, flicked it open, and plied it to her overheated face.
He watched her movements. He was seated slightly sideways, his elbow resting on top of the sofa not far from her shoulder. She could feel the heat from his arm against the side of her neck.
"Of course there were both," he interjected. "If the cause had been a burst seam, it would have revealed itself rather shockingly when you collided with me."
She ought to just get up from the spot and walk away, Elsa thought. There was nothing to stop her, was there? But his persistent questions had revived the unwanted memory of her misery and panic, and some of the former returned. She had really had no chance to digest the sad fact that she would never be married to the Crown Prince of Denmark. And Crown Prince Jack was a stranger. Sometimes it was much easier to talk to strangers than to loved ones. She doubted she would ever pour out her heart even to her sister, Anna or her husband, Kristoff back at home. It had never been her way to burden them with her childlike woes. Instead, she had always bottled up her emotions deep inside- at least all the negative ones like her father had once taught her as a young child. She had always been the eldest sister, the substitute parent. She had always had to be the strong one, the one upon whom Anna could always depend.
Talking to strangers was definitely dangerous. But there was something quite unreal and bizarre, almost like a fairy-tale story, about this whole evening so far. Elsa's normal caution and reticence had deserted her.
"I told a gentleman of my acquaintance yesterday," she confessed, "that I was betrothed. I expected that it would be true by tonight. But this very evening I have discovered that the gentleman concerned is betrothed to someone else, and the first gentleman is here and will be expecting to meet my fiancé. Oh, dear, this all makes no sense whatsoever, does it?"
"Strangely it does," he said. "The gentleman to whom you made this claim once hurt you?"
She looked at him, rather startled by his assumption. How could he possibly have discerned that?
"What gives you that idea?" she asked him out of curiosity.
His clear blue eyes bored into hers as if they could lay bare all of her hidden secrets.
"Why else would you be rash enough to tell him such a thing so prematurely?" he replied with a small shrug. "It was a mere boast. Why boast to him if you did not wish to thumb your nose at him? And why wish to thumb your pretty nose at him if he had not wounded you at some time in the past? So tell me, what did he do to you?"
"He went away to war," she said, "while I stayed at home to raise my younger sister after our parents had died. We had an understanding before he left, though, and that sustained me through years that were often difficult, even bleak. And then word came through a letter to his mother that he had married in Spain."
"Ah," he said calmly. "This paragon of devotion is one of the scarlet-clad officers who are dazzling all the ladies, is he?"
"Yes and no. He also happens to be a prince," she said.
"And the man to whom you expected to be betrothed?" he then asked. "He also has behaved toward you in a dastardly manner?"
"I cannot in all conscience accuse him of that," she spoke honestly. "He offered for me three times over the past five years. I refused all three times, though we were still close friends and told each other at the end of last Season in my kingdom that we looked forward to meeting again this year. I had been occupied with the duties for my country and when I had arrived here recently, I had not saw an announcement of his engagement nor heard of it. And I came here this evening, expecting… Well, never mind."
She was beginning to feel very uneasy, not to mention very foolish. What she had intended to be a very vague explanation of her earlier panic had turned into a rather detailed and humiliating confession.
"You have waited far too long in both instances," he said. "With both gentleman. Let it be a wise lesson to you."
She fanned her flaming cheeks more vigorously. She deserved that harsh and unsympathetic judgment. Though it was very typical of a man to take the part of other men. It must be her fault that she had lost both chances with Prince Hans and Prince Christian.
But he was perfectly right to think so, of course. She need not too feel so indignant or so abject. She had not been abandoned by either man. She had made them wait too long for her reply.
It was humbling and new to see oneself through the eyes of a man.
"And does the dashing, faithless prince know the identity of the gentleman to whom you expected to be betrothed this evening?" Prince Jack coolly asked.
"Oh, no," she quickly replied. "I was not that indiscreet. Thank heaven."
One must be grateful for small mercies, she thought. How truly dreadful it would have been if…
"Then there is a very simple solution to all of your woes," the prince said. "You may introduce me to your other prince as your betrothed and at the same time demonstrate to the other man that you were not waiting for him to offer for you yet again."
Oh, he really was quite outrageous. Yet there was still no glimmer of humour in his eyes, as she saw when she turned her head sharply to look into them.
"And what would you do tomorrow," she asked, "when you discover that my friends, my sister, my brother-in-law, and a king, who is like a father to me, on your doorstep, demanding to know your true intentions? And what would I do when I come face-to-face with Hans tomorrow or the day after? Tell him that I had a sudden change of heart?"
He shrugged.
"I would inform your fierce relatives and friends and that king of yours that my intentions are entirely honorable," he said. "And you could continue to thumb your nose at the faithless prince."
"I do thank you for your gallant offer, sir," she said, laughing and wondering how he would react if she chose to take him seriously, poor man. "And I thank you for your company this set. It had been wondrous and amusing. But I must go now and-"
She was given no opportunity to finish. The hand belonging to the arm that was propped against the back of the sofa moved to rest firmly on her shoulder and his face dipped a little closer to hers.
"One of the scarlet uniforms is approaching," he whispered, "draped about the person of a large red-haired man. Doubtless your erstwhile lover."
She dared not to turn her head to look. She closed her eyes briefly instead.
"You had better do as I have suggested," Prince Jack remarked, "and present me as your betrothed. It will be far more satisfying for you than admitting the abject truth would be."
"But you are not-" she protested.
"I can be," he said, interrupting her, "if you wish and if you are prepared to marry me within the next fourteen days. But we can easily discuss the details at our leisure later."
Was he truly serious? It was not possible. This was all quite astonishing. But there was no chance to question him. There was no such time to think or consider. There was no time at all. His eyes had moved beyond her and he was raising his eyebrows and looking like a man who was none too delighted at having his tête-à-tête disrupted. It was a haughty, cold look.
Elsa turned her head.
"Hans," she said.
"Elsa." He made her a polite bow. "I trust I am not interrupting anything important?"
"Not at all." Her heart was thumping so hard in her chest that it deafened her despite the loudness of the music and of the voices now raised to converse above it. "My lord, do you have an acquaintance with Prince Hans of the Southern Isles? May I present His Highness Crown Prince Jack Overland of this beautiful country we are in, Hans?"
Prince Hans bowed again, more stiffly this time, and Prince Jack regarded him with a raised eyebrows.
"And this is the same Prince Hans," he said, "with whom you once had an acquaintance, Ellie?"
Ellie?
Oh, goodness! Someone help her! Elsa's vision was beginning to darken about the edges. At the other extreme, she felt a quite inappropriate urge to burst into ceaseless laughter. She must be on the verge of hysteria again.
"We were childhood friends," she calmly replied. "We grew up together as our parents were good friends."
"Ah, yes," Prince Jack said. "That was it. I knew I heard that name before. A pleasure, Prince Hans. I can only hope you have not come to solicit Ellie's hand for the next dance, though. I am not finished with that hand myself yet, and the present set, you will observe, is not quite over."
"Elsa?" Hans called, virtually ignoring the prince apart from the fact that his nostrils flared slightly. "Are you ready to be escorted back to your awaiting friends? I shall certainly claim a dance later in the evening if I may."
There were certain moments upon which the whole of the future course of one's life might turn. And almost inevitably they popped out at one without any warning at all, leaving one with no time to consider or engage in a reasoned debate with oneself. One had to make a split-second decision and much depended upon it. Perhaps everything.
This was such a moment and Elsa knew it with agonized clarity as she closed her fan. She could get to her feet now and go with Hans, or she could stay and tell him the truth, or she could stay and do what the fair prince had suggested- and deal with the consequences tomorrow.
Elsa was never rash, even when forced to act upon the spur of the moment. But this was a different type of moment altogether.
"Thank you, Hans," she said. "I will be delighted to dance with you later. For now, though, I will remain with Prince Jack. Prince Christian will be along soon, I daresay, to claim me for the next set." And then a deep breath was taken and the rest of the decision was made. "Prince Jack Overland is my betrothed."
The ballroom suddenly seemed unnaturally hot and airless. But she doubted she had enough control over her hands to open her favourite fan again.
Prince Hans, clearly stunned, looked from her to the Crown Prince of Switzerland, poker-faced, and it seemed to Elsa that he knew the man or at least knew of him, and did not like what he knew. He had offered to escort her back to her friends, with great emphasis upon the one word.
"Your betrothed, Elsa?" he repeated. "But Vanessa and Duke Edmond do not know anything of it."
He had just been talking with them. They had all seen her with the Crown Prince Jack of Switzerland. Perhaps Hans had volunteered to come and wrest her away from him and escort her to safety. What did they all know of this prince that she did not? It must be something quite unsavory, she guessed.
"I told you yesterday, Hans, that the betrothal has not yet been made public," she reminded him.
"It will be very soon, however," Prince Jack said, squeezing her shoulder gently. "We have decided to wed within the next fortnight. When one has discovered the partner with whom one wishes to spend the rest of one's life why wait, after all? Many a prospective match comes to grief because the couple- or one member of it- waits too long."
It dawned to Elsa that he really might be serious. But how could he possibly be? They had just met. He could surely not intend to marry her within two weeks.
She did not even know who Prince Jack Frost Overland was. Apart from being the heir to King Richard the Third, that was.
She felt one of the prince's knuckles brushing against her rosy cheek and turned her hand to look at him. His eyes, she could see now, were gorgeously bright and clear like polished sapphires. Was it the color, changing from brightest of blue to the darkest hue of murky blue like magic, which gave the extraordinary impression that he could take a look inside her and see her very soul?
"I must offer my felicitations, then" Hans said, executing another bow. "I will seek you out for a dance later, Elsa."
"I shall look forward to it," she said.
He quickly turned without another glance at the prince and strode away with stiff military bearing.
"He is certainly not pleased," the prince commented. "Is the Spanish wife still alive?"
"No," Elsa said. "He is a widower."
"He was hoping, then," he said, "to rekindle an old flame with you. You have had a fortunate escape, however. He looks very handsome in his uniform, I daresay, but he has a weak chin."
"He does not!" Elsa argued.
"He does," Jack insisted. "If you are still in love with him, Ellie, you had better be careful not to allow yourself to be lured back to a man like him. You would be wasting your sensibilities upon a weak man."
"I do not love him," she said firmly. "His actions persuaded me long ago of the weakness of his character. And I do not recall granting you permission to use my given name, my lord. Especially a shortened form that no one has ever used before."
"A new name for a new life," he smirked. "To me you will always be Ellie. Who is the man to whom you expected to be betrothed tonight?"
"The Crown Prince of Denmark, Prince Christian," she said and frowned.
That information, at least, she might have withheld.
"Christian?" He raised his brows. "Your next dancing partner? That is interesting. But you have had another fortunate escape. If he is as I remember him, he is a dull dog."
"He is not," she protested. "He is charming and amiable and a polished conversationalist."
"My point exactly," he said. "A dull dog. You will be far better off with me."
She looked steadily at him and he looked as steadily back.
Oh, dear God, she thought, he really was serious.
The edges of her vision was darkening again. But this was not the moment to faint. She picked up her fan and somehow found her hand steady enough to open it and waft it before her face once more. She drew in lungfuls of warm, heavily fragrant air.
"Why?" she asked him. "Even if you meet a complete stranger and be convinced after one glance that she is the one lady above all others whom you wish to marry, why must you marry her within two weeks?"
For the first time there was a slight curve to his lips that might almost be described as a decent smile.
"If I am not wed within the next fourteen days," he told her, "I am going to be utterly penniless until my grandfather shuffles off this mortal coil, which may well not be for another twenty or thirty years. Apart from some rheumatism, he appears to be in excellent health for his age. He will be eighty in two weeks' time and yesterday he summoned me into his presence and issued an ultimatum- marry before his birthday or be cut off from the rents and profits of the home where I grew up and from which the heirs traditionally draw their income. And I was also threatened to lose my birthright to become the next king. I was raised as a royal gentleman with expectations of wealth and therefore never expected to have to seek employment. I do believe I would make an abysmally inept coal minder even if I felt inclined to try my hand at it. I must marry, you see. And in almost indecent haste. My grandfather, I feel compelled to add, believes it will be impossible. He plans to turn Willock Castle over to my cousin, his next heir after me, on his birthday unless I am respectably married before then."
Elsa stared at him, speechless. It was now without a doubt that the man was serious.
"What have you done," she asked him, "to incur such wrath? The punishment seems unusually cruel if it is just that you have procrastinated in choosing a suitable bride."
"I chose a bride five years ago," he told her. "I was, in fact, very content with my choice. I was head over ears in love with her. But the night before our wedding I had eloped with her brother's wife and lived in sin with her- since the husband would not divorce her- until her death four months ago."
Elsa gawked at him, transfixed. Yes. Oh, yes, that was it. Five years ago. It had happened a year before she was coronated as the next Queen of Norway and it was settled that she would govern the land in the capital city, Arendelle. At that time, she was full of woes and fear, hiding behind the strong walls of the palace which she grew up in with Anna. But even then, she had heard of the scandal that was particularly heavily talked of. She had thought that the Prince of Switzerland must be the devil himself.
This was him?
His eyes were fixed on hers. His darkening, angular face was filled with mockery.
"My grandfather doubtless wishes," he continued, "that he could simply make my cousin his heir and cut me out of everything that is his. It cannot be done, of course due to my direct lineage, but he can certainly make me very uncomfortable and very miserable indeed for the rest of his long life."
"Are you not ashamed?" she asked him and then felt the color flood her face. It was an impertinent question. What had happened was none of her business. Except that he wanted her to marry him in fourteen days or fewer so that he could keep the income and the throne.
"Not at all," he said. "Thing happen, Ellie. One must adjust to one's life accordingly."
She gulped as she could not think of nothing to say in response. She could ask a thousand question, but she had no wish whatsoever to hear or listen to the answers. But why had he done it? How on earth could this man not be ashamed for his reckless action?
She was saved from the necessity of saying anything at all.
"Your newly betrothed swain is approaching to claim his dance," Jack said, looking beyond her again. "It is as well, Ellie, is it not? I have shocked you to the core. I shall take the liberty of calling upon you tomorrow and hope I will not find the door barred coldly against me. I have so very little time in which to find someone else, you see."
She had not even noticed the one set of dances ending and the next one beginning to form. But when she turned her head, she could see that indeed the Danish Prince was approaching at a steady pace towards them.
"This is my set, I believe, Queen Elsa," he said, smiling genially at her and acknowledging the Crown Prince of Switzerland with the merest nod of his head.
"Oh, yes, indeed."
Prince Jack stood up when she did. He took her right hand in his as her previously assumed betrothed was extending one arm and raised it firefly to his soft lips.
"I shall see you tomorrow, then, my love," he murmured before nodding to the other prince and walking away- and out through the ballroom doors.
My love?
Prince Christian raised his eyebrows as she set her hand on his sleeve. Elsa smiled at him innocently. There was no point in trying to explain, was there? She owed him no explanation, anyway.
But really…
My love.
He had eloped with a married lady the night before his planned wedding to her sister-in-law.
Could any gentleman be further beyond the pale of respectability?
And he wanted her to marry him.
He would indeed find the door barred coldly against him if he should have the effrontery to come calling tomorrow. Could any day- any evening- be stranger than this one? Even as Elsa walked to line up next to the other noble women, she could feel the scorching reminder of Prince Jack's hot lips.
Thank you again for reading the new update! I am loving in the rising number of readers, comments, and favourite! (A huge honour for any writer.) I am always eager to read your reviews so please leave one below! I would truly appreciate it as a token of your thanks. Cheers!
