I Thought I Was Becoming a Maid; Not Your Wife

An hour later I was finishing up in Annalisa's bedroom, a million thoughts going through my head at once. When the door opened I turned around to fine Terrian standing in the doorway. He shook his head, trying to get the hair out of his eyes to look at me. "Hey," he said.

"Can I ask you something?" I bit my bottom lip.

He nodded and waved his hand, telling me to go on.

"Do I have a say in this marriage?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...Do I have to marry you right away?"

He looked taken aback by my question. "Well, no," he mumbled.

We were quiet and then he said, "What's your reason? My grandmother will ask for one."

"I'm not in love with you."

My back was turned to him as I finished putting Annalisa's clothes in the suitcase. I didn't even hear him, but when I turned around I bumped into his chest. I looked to find him smiling down at me.

"What?" I grumbled.

"The wedding could be in two weeks. You'll only need half that time to fall in love with me."

"Well, someone has quite the ego."

Then a thought struck me. "Where's Annalisa?" I asked, grabbing the suitcase and stepping around him.

"On the couch. She fell asleep on me."

"Wow, you must be boring."

"Hey!"

I smiled sweetly and left the room, going back to the living room. I noticed a guard was standing next to the grandfather clock. When did he get here? "Um...hello?" I said.

He turned to look at me, his brown eyes widening slightly. "Hello, Princess," he said in a deep voice. He had one of those voices that makes a girl swoon. A small smile tugged at the corner of my lips.

"Please, don't call me that. Call me Clarissa." he nodded and bowed. "Don't do that either."

He straightened up quickly, running a hand through his light brown hair. I studied him, taking in his every feature. He was tall and muscular. His facial features were perfectly sculpted and his lips were plump. He was pretty much like the Prince, perfect. I frowned slightly. This caused him to take a step forward. "Did I do something, Prin-Clarissa?" he asked.

"Oh, what? No!"

He smiled at me and then looked over my shoulder. I watched him bow, so I turned around to see Terrian, holding my suitcase from my bedroom. He put it down and told the guard to straighten up. "Are you ready, Clarissa?" Terrian's voice was one to swoon over too.

"Yes, let me get Annalisa." I moved to the couch and was just about to shake her when I felt Terrian grab my hand. "Don't wake her. I'll carry her," he said.

I blinked a few times and then nodded. He picked her up with one arm, keeping my hand in his. In her sleep, Annalisa wrapped her legs around his middle and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Lucas, get the bags, will you?" Terrian called back to the guard as he pulled me out of the living room.

"Yes, Sire."

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"How many flights of stairs before we get to the hall with our rooms?" I asked, tired.

We'd walked up four flights already. I looked at Terrian who was still holding onto my hand and Annalisa. Lucas, the guard, was walking behind us with our suitcases.

"Don't worry, love. This is our hall," Terrian said, smiling down at me.

"You smile too much," I mumbled as we began walking down the hallway.

He chuckled. "Sorry if I'm a happy person, dear."

I could get used to the pet names he kept calling me. I liked how they sounded coming from him; I liked how they were directed at me. We stopped at a wooden door and Terrian let go of my hand to open it. Inside was a small twin-sized bed with pink covers. The walls were painted a pale shade of pink and the carpet was hot pink. There was a dresser, closet, and an attached bathroom.

"This is Annalisa's room," Terrian said as he walked inside. He went straight to the bed, pulled back the covers, and tucked Annalisa in.

Lucas was standing beside me in the doorway now. He set Annalisa's small suitcase in the room and turned to look at Terrian. "A room for her, Sire, or is your room her room also?" he asked, nodding at me.

"My room, Lucas," Terrian said, striding over and taking my hand once more. He flipped the light switch and pulled me back into the hall, shutting the door behind him.

A few rooms down from Annalisa's was our room. I should have known that I'd be sharing a room with him. Lucas opened the door and pulled the suitcase inside with him. I stepped inside with Terrian, my jaw dropping. I closed it quickly and looked around.

The walls were painted a pale yellow. The carpet was a golden color, as were the covers on the king-sized bed and the curtains for the windows. There was an open doorway that I could see lead to a small sitting room it seemed. A door to my left was open, revealing a large bathroom. There were two other doors that I assumed were closets and there was a dresser. Also, a desk with a chair was in the corner.

"You like it?" Terrian asked, turning to me.

I only nodded. I was staring at the bed, wanting to go jump on it. It looked soft. I seemed to be in a trance, imagining myself jumping up and down on the bed.

"Thank you, Lucas. You may leave." Terrian's voice and the closing of the door brought me back to reality.

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Two hours later at nine o' clock, I was sitting at the dining table across from Laretta, Terrian's grandmother. It was just the two of us eating. Terrian was off doing something with Lucas, Annalisa was sleeping, and the King and Queen were in a meeting. I felt alone when Laretta said she must get to bed and left me.

I sat there, eating small bits of my food from time to time. I heard the dining room door open and looked up to see Lucas looking down at me. "Hello," I said with a smile.

He returned it and nodded to me, taking a seat where Laretta had just been. "How are you this evening, Clarissa?" he asked.

"I'm fine, thank you. Where's Terrian?"

"The Prince is upstairs in your bedroom."

"Could you maybe take me back there? I seemed to have forgotten my way."

"Of course."

I stood at the same time Lucas did and started to pick up my plate. He reached out and put a hand on mine, forcing me to put the plate back down on the table. "A maid will get it," he said.

His fingers intertwined with mine as he lead me from the dining room. I felt my cheeks begin to burn. We made small talk as he took me back to my room. I found out that he was twenty, his favorite color was blue, he had three younger sister, his full name was Lucas Aaron Jackson, and that he was pretty much a friend rather than a guard to Terrian.

After Lucas left me at the bedroom door, I went inside. "Hey, 'Rissa." I turned to see Terrian coming out of the bathroom with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist.

I swallowed, trying hard not to look at his perfectly sculpted chest or abs. He made it harder when he took long strides to get in front of me. He reached down and took my hand, pulling me closer to him. All that stood between us were my clothes and a towel. Oh, god...

"W-what are you doing?" I asked. His head was lowered and nestled in the crook of my neck.

"You smell really good, 'Rissa," he murmured.

I could feel his cool breath and his lips moving on my skin. My heartbeat quickened. He smiled; that's obviously what he wanted. To get to me; to tease me. He lifted his head and stared into my eyes. I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest.

His lips brushed against mine for a second, before he stepped away from me. "Falling in love with me already?" he asked, smiling.

"N-no. You're just really attractive."

He chuckled and walked towards a closet as I made my way to the dresser. I pulled out a pair of shorts and a red t-shirt. I carried them into the bathroom and changed. When I came back out, Terrian was laying on his stomach in the center of the bed in black plaid pajama pants. No shirt though.

"Do you mind moving so I can get under the covers?" I asked.

He opened one of his closed eyes and turned his head to look at me. "Yes, I do."

I pouted and he groaned, rolling over onto the left side of the large bed. "Thank you!" I said, climbing into the bed.

He turned out the lamp and we were in darkness. We were laying so that our backs were facing each other and so that we were as far away as possible. I couldn't help but feel extremely uncomfortable. I wasn't only laying in the same bed with pretty much a stranger, but the Prince too! I closed my eyes, drifting off to sleep minutes later.