The Princess Bride

Chapter 1

"Aren't you going to tell me that I need to pay attention to some of the other girls?" Alex teased.

I never thought my life would be like this.

Since I was small, I'd known that I would have to marry, but never once before my engagement to Alex, did I even guess I'd be happy about it. I'd been so sure for so long that my marriage would be the end of my freedom and any happiness I could possibly have. It was still a little shocking to know that wasn't the case. I almost couldn't believe that I was actually excited about my upcoming wedding. Or that I didn't dread, with every fiber of my being, the fact that I would be marrying into the royal family.

I smiled at the reminder of my many attempts to get Alex to notice absolutely any other girl, when I'd still been hesitant to make a commitment to him.

"I know that the people and their concerns will always be a large part of your responsibilities," I said. "But I'll be quite content if you never happen to notice that any of them are female ever again."

Alex grinned. "I barely notice as it is."

"I'm sure that's not true," I said with an eye roll. Girls had almost literally been throwing themselves at Alex for years. Especially over the last few, before our engagement had been announced and he was still considered fair game. He had always been quick to tell me that I was beautiful, but I had a hard time believing that he didn't notice that other girls were just as pretty, if not more so. And some of them were much more willing than I was, to flaunt those things that men couldn't help but notice. At times I wondered how some of their dresses even managed to stay up, considering the minuscule amount of fabric above the level of the incredibly low necklines.

Alex had undoubtedly noticed other girls. He did have eyes, after all. His words were sweet though.

Noting my tone, he smirked and I frowned. After trying to convince me for so long that ours would be a good marriage, and that we'd be happy, even after we'd gotten engaged, his amusement at my recently developed jealousy was understandable, but I didn't appreciate it.

I should be flattered. Alex could have picked any girl in the kingdom to be his bride, and he'd picked me. But I still hated that he couldn't go anywhere without being ogled and flirted with by nearly every available female under the age of thirty. As well as some that were not-so-available.

After all, many wealthy men took mistresses, and it was basically expected for Alex to do the same. There were even official positions for mistresses to the king and the prince. Supposedly, it was quite an honor too. It wasn't considered polite to discuss, so people were very discrete about it, but I was almost certain that the king did have a mistress. I'd always been too embarrassed to ask about it, so I wasn't sure who it was or even if she was here at the castle all the time, but I was pretty sure there was such a person.

Alex had never had an official mistress, I knew...but I wondered if there had ever been an unofficial one. Or more than one. He was twenty-one, so it's not as if he was too young. And, as I was constantly reminded, he certainly had the opportunity. Since I'd always been far too embarrassed to even bring the topic up, I had no way of knowing for sure one way or another. Mostly, I counted on his feelings for me, which had been substantial for quite some time, to keep him away from anything resembling a mistress. But strong as they were, his feelings were no guarantee. Especially considering how acceptable the idea was to nearly everyone else, including his father.

Sometimes I wondered if Alex's feelings might actually push him to it out of frustration since the most intimate contact that we ever shared was only kisses. He never pushed for more than that, but I didn't know if it was because he was simply considerate of my feelings and knew I wasn't ready for more, or if it was due to the fact that it wasn't allowed. Even if I'd wanted to be intimate with Alex in every possible way, we couldn't move forward in that manner or else we wouldn't be able to marry at all. If I wasn't completely and unquestionably chaste before our wedding, it would never be allowed to take place. There could be absolutely no question of legitimacy regarding the heir to the throne.