Majesty Castle

There were many empty seats around the dinner table tonight. Zacky and Fawn had opted to take dinner in their room again. That was pretty much their routine. Zacky didn’t want to expose his wife to the drama at the dinner table and cause any unnecessary stress for the baby. So each night, they ate in their room.

Johnny refused to come out of his bedroom. He was too ashamed of the way he acted towards Etta earlier and sat up in his room worried that he scared her off for good.

Nikki spent the night entertaining his “guest” in his bedroom and had dinner sent up as well. Brian sat at the table hoping to see Simone, but she didn’t come down. Before dinner was served, he excused himself and went to the kitchen.

James and Nina joined Peter at the end of the table. Zakk and Candace as well as Jon and Rosalie were in their usual chairs and that left Matthew waiting very impatiently for his wife. It was his fault she was late, he didn’t let her out of bed all afternoon.

“Well, look who decided to grace us with her presence.” Matthew rose from his chair and waited for his wife to sit down. “You’re late,” he snapped.

“I’m sorry,” was all she could manage. It was difficult to see Matthew like this. She was beginning to wonder if she would be able to pull off the ruse.

Matthew was cringing on the inside. The look on Allegra’s face made him want to change his mind.

Dinner was served and he hardly paid any attention to her at all. He did have an agenda though and planned to put part one of his plan into action at the dinner table tonight.

“Mother, I’ve given some thought to my future as King.”

Rosalie perked up in her seat. Matthew pretty much had the attention of everyone at the table now. “Really? What have you decided?” His mother asked.

Matthew set his napkin down on the table and leaned back in his chair. “I’ve decided that I want to make it official. I want to have a grand ball on the eve of my birthday. At the stroke of midnight, I will accept my rightful place as King.”

“You can’t be fucking serious.” All eyes went to Zakk and Matthew gave him a condescending look.

“I’m dead serious.”

Zakk and Peter exchanged serious glances both wondering what happened to make Matthew do a complete turn around.

“Mother, I want you to invite everyone of importance.”

“Of course I will.” Rosalie was thrilled, but Jon stayed silent as he always had. Rosalie ruled the roost and it seemed as if Matthew was about to give her the reins back again.

“I could plan the party for you if you like. Maybe Allegra could help me too. It would be fun,” Candace offered.

Matthew laughed right in her face. “My wife is not a party planner, Candace. She is to be Queen.”

“But I…” Allegra started to speak, but he quickly cut her off.

“Be quiet.”

“I was just...”

Matthew grabbed her chin and turned her face towards his. “Did you hear what I said?”

“Yes,” she whispered on the verge of tears.

“Good, then not another word unless you are spoken to.” He let go of her chin.

When Rosalie snickered, Matthew had to fight the urge to kick her under the table. “Mother, I trust you will take care of everything. Spare no expense. This will be a ball no one will ever forget.” He slipped his hand under the table and squeezed Allegra’s knee gently.

“Nothing would give me greater pleasure.” Other than killing his wife.

Everyone was silent for the remainder of dinner. Jon excused himself after he finished eating unable to bear his son’s behavior anymore. The worst was yet to come.

Dessert was being served and Pippa set a plate with a slice of apple pie on it in front of Allegra. Matthew picked up the plate and set it back on Pippa’s tray. “The only time my Queen will be allowed to be fat is when she is carrying my sons in her belly.”

Pippa didn’t say a word; she just took the tray and finished serving. Matthew turned to face his wife. “Go upstairs, your presence is no longer required.” Allegra didn’t have to be told twice, she got up and exited the dining room as fast as she could. He could only hope when he got upstairs she wasn’t mad.

When the dessert was cleared and the dining room empty, Matthew walked into the kitchen to get Allegra a slice of pie. Pippa walked right up to him and smacked him in the side of his head with a wooden spoon.

“Ouch!” He rubbed his head. “What the fuck?”

She smacked him in the head again with the spoon. “Don’t you use that language in my kitchen, boy. I’m fixin’ to make your mouth bleed as it is. How dare you be so cruel to that sweet girl!” Pippa was pointing her spoon at him as she spoke. “You know damn well how much she loves apples. Since when are you so damn high and mighty?”

“I was…Ouch!” She hit him with the spoon again. “What was that one for?”

“Because I felt like it!”

“Pippa, I was only….Ouch!” She hit him again and this time he yanked the spoon out of her hand and snapped it in half over his thigh. “Enough with the damn spoon already.”

“Oh, you want me to use my hand?” Before he could answer she smacked him upside the head.

“Will you knock it off! What you saw out there wasn’t real.” He tried speaking in a hushed tone so no one would hear him. “It was all for my mothers benefit. Allegra was playing along. I would never be that mean to her! I love her!”

Pippa stood there with her hands on her hips smirking at him.

“Oh…My….God,” was what came out of his mouth next.

Pippa walked over to the counter and picked up Allegra’s piece of pie. She walked back over and handed it to Matthew and then smacked him upside the head again. “What was that one for?”

“For telling me instead of telling your wife. Now get up there and give that girl some pie and some lovin’ before I see how many utensils I can snap over your backside.”

“Yes Ma’am,” he nodded and raced out of the kitchen.

When he returned to the bedroom, he found Allegra wiping her face free of tears. He walked over and set the pie down on the end table and pulled her into his arms. “I’m so sorry. I never meant any of that.”

“I know, but it was still hard to take.”

“I hate to say this to you, but it’s going to get a lot harder.”

Allegra hugged him close. “Would it matter if it was a girl?”

“What?”

“When you said what you did about me carrying your sons. Would it matter if we only had girls?”

He rubbed her back and smiled. “It wouldn’t matter to me if we had aliens for children.”

She laughed and looked up at him. “Is that pie for me?”

“Of course. You didn’t really think I wouldn’t let you have dessert, did you?”

She shrugged in his arms. “I don’t know. I mean you didn’t kiss me or anything like you promised you would when we got back to the room so I guess you are denying me dessert.”

“I’ve created a monster haven’t I?”

She laughed again and reached up on her tiptoes to kiss his lips. Matthew took her face in his hands and smiled. “I love you, rebel.”

“Do you mean that?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I mean it.”

Allegra jumped into his arms and hugged him. “Wait, why is there a bump on your head?”

“Pippa hit me with a wooden spoon.” He faked a pout for her, but she looked like she was about to laugh.

“What ever for?”

“For the way I spoke to you and for not letting you have dessert.”

“Poor Matthew.” She kissed his head and then went over to the table to get her pie.

She kicked off her shoes and sat down on the bed and started to eat her dessert while Matthew unbuttoned his shirt to take it off. Allegra looked at him as she pulled the fork from her mouth. “You know, you’re quite sexy when you’re being authoritative.”

He raised his eyebrow and smirked. “Oh really.”

“Really,” she nodded and continued eating her pie. Matthew slipped off his pants and walked towards the bathroom.

“You’d better be finished eating when I come back.”

She giggled and he closed the bathroom door behind him. “I mean it!” he said from the other side of the door.

**************
Earlier, when Brian had excused himself from the table before dinner was served, he’d gone to the kitchen to request that dinner for two be sent up to his room. Simone wasn’t eating and rather than go and see her after dinner as he promised, he decided he was going to see to it that she had at least one full meal.

He knocked on her door lightly before opening it and going inside. “Hey,” he said standing there with his hands in his pockets.

“Hi.” Simone set down the book that she was reading on the end table.

“I thought I sent someone up here to check your heater. It’s still cold.”

“I don’t have a heater, Brian. It’s always cold in here.”

“You can’t be serious.” He couldn’t believe her room had no heat. After he killed Rosalie, he was going to come back and kill her again.

“Dinner’s over already? I wasn’t expecting you until later.”

“No,” he shook his head. “It’s just being served now. Why don’t we go to my room where it’s warmer?”

She looked at him unsure of what to do.

“We’re only going to talk, I promise.”

Simone got up and took off her shawl. She laid it on the bed and followed Brian out of her room. The walked a few doors down the hall to his and went inside.

“What’s this?”

He pulled out a chair for her and she sat down. “I thought you might be hungry so I had dinner sent up.”

Simone looked at the plate in front of her and back up at him as he sat down. “You don’t have to eat it all, but it would make me happy if you at least try to eat something.”

She picked up her napkin and set it on her lap. Brian smiled to himself at the sight of her making the effort. The two of them ate together in an awkward silence.

Simone wiped her mouth with her napkin and set it on the table.

“Something wrong?” Brian asked.

“I think we are delaying the inevitable, but I don’t know where to start.”

Brian continued to eat out of nervousness. “I think it’s best if we just lay all the cards out on the table.”

Simone sipped her water and set the glass down on the table.

“Do you want something stronger than that? There’s wine, it might help to relax you a little bit.”

“Sure,” she nodded.

He poured her a glass of wine and refilled his own glass. It was obvious by the way his hands were shaking that he was really nervous. After setting the bottle down, Brian leaned back in his chair and picked at what was left on his plate. “You aren’t six years old anymore and I’m not seventeen.”

“That is true,” she agreed as reached for the wine glass.

“Yet we keep deliberately hurting each other like we are still that age.”

“Also true,” she nodded.

“It has to end tonight Simone, one way or the other. So, lets put it all out there now and deal with it. If the out come is bad, then we’ll know what to do afterwards and we’ll never bring it up again. If the outcome is good, then we’ll explore that.”

“Ok.” She pushed her plate aside and Brian got up from the table and removed it along with his. He replaced them with dessert, blueberry pie for her and apple for him.

They ate their pie and much to his surprise, Simone at the whole slice. When they were finished, he removed the plates and refilled their wine glasses. He lit a cigarette and blew out a stream of smoke. “Ok, let’s do this.”

“I should never have said what I said to you at the fort. I didn’t mean it. I would never turn my back on you no matter what. I was angry and my anger got the best of me. I’m sorry.”

“I appreciate that, Brian.”

“I mean it,” he said and took a drag from his cigarette.

“I guess it’s my turn.” Simone picked up her wine glass with shakey hands and took a sip. “You’re aggressive in your pursuit of me. I don’t know what to do with that.”

“That’s who I am, Simone. I see something I want and I go after it.”

Simone shook her head and picked up her wine glass and took a sip. “Did I say something to upset you?” he asked. “Get it all out now, Simone. I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings. We address everything tonight.”

“How can you not see what I see Brian?” Her voice was shakey as she spoke.

“I’m not sure I know what you mean,” he responded while putting out his cigarette.

“The first time you kissed me I was fifteen. It was my first real kiss and I like it, but I didn’t encourage you afterwards. When I came back from boarding school you kissed me again and I spurned your advances and I can’t help but wonder if that is why you are trying so hard to get at me. Because I said no to you and no one says no to you. In a lot of ways it makes me feel like I am just a conquest to you.”

“That wasn’t so hard was it?” Brian picked up his glass of wine and drained it while waiting for her response.

“It was harder than you think.”

He refilled his glass and set the bottle down. “I’ll say this in response to that. I don’t think you can deny that I’ve always been a big softy when it came to you. From the day you came into this house, I was complete mush. That night when you were fifteen was the first time I saw you as not being a baby anymore. That night you ignited a fire in me and I never wanted anyone as bad as you. Yes, when you spurned me, it did encourage me to try harder, but not to make you a conquest. Felicity is a conquest. Sabrina is a conquest, but never ever you.”

“What about Allegra? Is she a conquest? I know you lusted after her.”

Brian laughed heartily and poured her another glass of wine. “What’s so funny?”

“I never lusted after Allegra. All of my actions towards her were for the sole purpose of making Matt jealous so he would realize what he had in front of him. I never would have touched another man’s girl let alone Matt’s wife.”

Brian got up from the table and removed his jacket. He set it over the back of his chair and sat back down. “Ok. My turn. It is correct to say that I’ve been aggressive and there have been times when I have cornered you and stolen a few kisses. I do have to say though, you may not have encouraged me, but you did participate every time. To me, that in itself is encouragement.”

Simone’s face flushed pink with embarrassment. “Simone, yesterday you made me feel like the worst person in the world and I suppose that in some ways I did deserve it, but if you didn’t want me, you wouldn’t have kissed me back.”

“I only kissed you back because I liked the way it felt.”

His surprise didn’t show on his face, he didn’t want to appear conceited in front of her. “Well, if you liked the way it felt, why did you stop me from going further. How do you know you wouldn’t have liked it just as much?”

“The truth is, you’re a slut, Brian.”

He snickered a little and unbuttoned the collar of his shirt. The wine was starting to get to him. He lit another cigarette and looked right into her eyes. “I am a man with needs. I have a healthy sexual appetite, that’s no lie. It’s also no lie that I have had many partners in my bed, but only because there has yet to be one woman that could satisfy all of my needs and the one that I believe could, doesn’t want me.”

Simone blushed again knowing he was talking about her. They both knew that they were still skirting around the issue of how they both felt about each other, but they were also both to scared to be the first one to bring it up. He blew a stream of smoke out of his mouth and looked back at her. “Are there any other issues that you want to address?”

She had to think for a minute. This time she reached for the wine bottle herself and refilled her own glass. “I think between yesterday in the study and right here at dinner, I’ve pretty much told you everything about how I’ve felt and feel now. Lucky for you with all that’s been going on in my life lately, I’m probably the most vulnerable I’ve ever been otherwise I don’t think I would have been able to do this.”

“Understandable,” he nodded. “But is there anything else you want to put out there?”

“I can’t think of anything else. What about you?”

Brian looked down at the table and flicked his ashes in the ashtray. “I guess not. I guess we put it all out there. What now?”

“Could I have one of those?”

Brian took a cigarette from his pack and after she took it he reached across the table to light it for her. She took a drag of the cigarette and Brian could see her hands shaking. “Simone, it’s your call. What do we do now?”

“I’m scared to answer that question.”

“Why?” he asked putting out his cigarette. He emptied the remaining wine from the bottle in his glass and looked up at her waiting for her response.

“Because I don’t want to say something that I’m going to have to take back one day.”

“You can’t know that for sure.” Brian got up from the table and opened the window. When he sat back down she was putting out her cigarette. “Just tell me what it is.”

“I’m scared.”

“Of?”

She bit her bottom lip and looked over at him. “So many different reasons. When you’re with me, like you were last night, I feel comfortable. Safe even and I like that. When you kiss me, it stirs something in me and that takes away from the feeling of being safe. It’s getting harder and harder to say no to you and I’m terrified of that. Terrified that if I do say yes, I’m never going to be able to get back what I’ve lost to you when you move on to someone else.”

Brian shook his head and picked up his glass of wine. “We are one fucked up pair.”

Simone smiled and finished off her own glass of wine. When she set the glass down on the table, Brian crooked his finger at her. “Come here.”

She put out the cigarette and got up from her chair and walked around to the other side of the table. She stood there in front of him and he looked up at her with a straight face that she couldn’t read. He put his hands on her hips and pulled her into his lap. Brian held his arms around her and Simone rested her head on his shoulder. “Feeling the wine?”

“A little,” She admitted. She never had more than a sip of alcohol here and there.

He pressed his lips softly to the top of her head. “Ok, it’s my turn,” he spoke with his lips against her hair just breathing in the scent of her shampoo. “Know what I’m afraid of?”

“Nothing?”

He laughed and squeezed her in his arms. “I’m not afraid of anything with one exception. I’ve never given my heart to anyone and now I have this girl who I would rip my heart out of my chest and hand it to personally just to get my point across. I’m terrified of that. Terrified that if I do hand over my heart, that it’s going to be rejected.”

Simone didn’t say anything. She was too afraid of her own voice cracking.

“So, the way I see it, we have a problem. Two people who I think want the same thing, but neither one brave enough to be the first to admit it.”

“Yeah,” she whispered.

“So I tell you what. If it helps matters, I’ll be the one to risk it all and face the consequences.” He tipped her chin up with his fingers so that she was looking at him. “I’m crazy about you. It’s not just lust; I know that because my heart aches for you when I see you. It aches even more every time you walk away from me. So, I guess I’m trying to tell you that I love you.”

Simone lifted her head from his shoulder and put her arms around his neck. Her eyes were brimming with water. “Do you mean it?”

“I don’t lie. Not even to get a girl into bed.”

“Then there wont be anymore girls?”

“Only one if she’ll have me.”

Simone laughed lightly and put her hands on his cheeks. “Yes.” She kissed him hard on the lips and he wrapped his arms tightly around her deepening the kiss.

Brian finally broke the kiss and looked into her eyes. “You still have to say the one thing I’ve been trying to make you say for the last two years. I wont kiss you again until you say it.”

Simone laughed again and put her arms back around his neck. “I want you!”

“Yeah?” he asked raising his eyebrow.

“Yeah,” she nodded. “It feels so good to say that.”

“Could you say it again?” he asked wanting to be sure of what he heard her say.

“I” kiss “Want” kiss “You” kiss “I WANT YOU!!”

Brian laughed and this time he kissed her. Passionately, lovingly, he kissed her. After a lengthy make out session, Simone turned back around in his lap so that she was facing the table. She picked up Brian’s cigarettes and lit one and then put her feet up on the table. She was trying to do her best Brian impersonation. “So, are there any other issues you can think of that you want to put on the table? Now’s your chance to get it all out.”

Brian chuckled and rested his chin on her shoulder. “I think we pretty much got it all out.”

“Well, then I guess since we’ve said all we have to say to each other, I should probably go back to my room.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. You should probably go back to that cold, dark room all alone.”

“Ok.” She got up from his lap. “Guess I’ll see you around.”

Brian leaned forward and grabbed her around the waist. “ I don’t think so!” The two of them laughed when he pulled her back down.