Charmed By The Mountain Prince(10)
“Get your hands off my dress.” She pushes my hand away and forces me to drop the hem of her skirt to the ground. It falls into the mud. “Oh,” she sighs, “Dahlia and I worked so hard on this, too.”
“You made your dress?” I come level with her, turning to face my bride. Now that we’ve traipsed through the square and are headed toward the road that leads to my cabin, I need to make some sort of amends before I carry her over the threshold.
“Yes, my sister and I made it, with our own two hands. I may be a princess, but I do know how to make do with what I have. Although, I was hoping I would be….” She doesn’t finish her sentence.
“Oh,” I grin. “You thought you were marrying up?”
Her eyes widen, and she shakes her head in obvious disappointment. “Of course not. I married you—the reclusive jerk of a prince my sister warned me about,” she says through clenched teeth. “I don’t think I’m marrying up; I think I’m a fool.”
I don’t know how to play this. On one hand, this is a terrible idea. I’m dragging the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life through the muddy streets, toward a cabin I know she’s going to hate.
On the other hand, another part of me finds it thrilling to get her all riled up.
Still, I can’t deny the reality of the situation. I want to consummate this marriage, and pissing her off before we even get to bed is a terrible plan.
“You’re not a fool,” I tell her roughly. I want to put a sheen on this conversation but I’m not quite sure how to gloss it up.
“I am a fool,” she continues. “Do you have any idea how much I want to go to a party?” She presses a hand to my chest, forcing me to look at her. “Garrick,” she says. “I’ve wanted to go to a royal party my entire life. I’ve never been to a ball or a gala or a coming out party. I’ve never attended a royal court. My father would never have been able to afford any of that. My family is poor—so, sure, you know what? I did think I was marrying up. I thought I was marrying into a family that could take care of me, because my own father couldn’t. Yes, I wanted to dance on the day of my wedding. So sue me.”
“Calm down, woman. People will hear you.”
“I don’t care if they hear me,” Iris says. “I’m stuck in this country with a man who doesn’t care about me being here. And you know what the really sad thing is? I actually wanted to come here to marry you. Badly.”
“You wanted to do this?” I narrow my eyes, trying to get a better read on this woman. So far, I feel way over my head with her. She’s gorgeous, complicated, loud, and pissed. This is a terrible combination for my wedding night.
“I wanted to go anywhere that wasn’t Elexia. I wanted adventure, a challenge. I wanted a chance to live. I was dying in Elexia. There was nothing for me there, but ... apparently there’s nothing for me here either, is there, Garrick? Because the reception that’s being thrown for us isn’t even one we’ll attend. I came all this way for nothing.”
“You came for a dowry. A double dowry, if I’m not mistaken. So you do have a vested interest in this marriage, whether you like it or not.”
“Wow, way to sweet talk your woman. God, Garrick, do you think I really care about a dowry?”
“Oh, so you don’t give a shit about where you come from and don’t give a shit about being here? What do you care about?”
Iris steps away from me, crossing her arms. “Why are you being so mean?”
“It’s not personal.” I shrug. “What you see is what you get with me. I’m not playing games; I’m not going to pretend I wanted a wife. I’m not going to pretend that I want to go to some party at my parents’ place. I don’t do that shit.”
“Well, I’m not going to pretend either.”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?” I don’t like her tone, but damn, when she gets all fired up, the way her chest rises and falls, the way her eyes burn with intensity, the way her cheeks flush—all I want to do is to make them flush a little bit more.
“I’m not going to pretend I want you to take me to bed tonight,” she says. “In fact, I won’t let you take me at all.”
“You’re playing hardball, Princess.” I take a step toward her, realizing I may be pushing her a little farther than she deserves.
“I’m not playing anything. I came here to be your wife, Garrick. I came here of my own free will, which apparently eight other princesses were not willing to do.”