In a Heartbeat

“Thank the wonderful Lord I found you!” Zachary sighed before shoving me back around the corner.

“I thought you were a guard!” I hissed, so relieved. Zachary simply ignored me and continued to push me in the opposite direction. What was he doing?

“I told everyone you had left early to visit your very sick grandmother and would be a bit late for work. No one will report you to the King. However, you must go home now and come back in an hour or so,” he instructed as he kicked me out of the castle. I was completely shocked and gestured towards Eva, preparing myself to counter what he had said. Zachary spoke before me. “You were also about to lead the Princess past where the guards are eating, which would have been dreadful. I will lead her back to her room through a longer route, but it will be much safer.”

“Zachary, I cannot thank you enough,” I finally managed to blurt. He shook his head disgracefully at me before rushing Evangeline inside. Zachary was a true friend. I hurried back to my home, this time using the streets instead of hiding around the edges of the town. As I travelled, I noticed how almost the whole town was now awake in the dim morning sun, and I became even more annoyed at how careless I had been. I should have been more aware of the time. We could have both been dead.

I returned to the castle after a quick house visit and made my way nervously up to Evangeline’s sleeping chambers. Would she be there? Did my recklessness cause her to become angry towards me? So many terrifying thoughts and questions raced through my head, and when I finally reached her door, I no longer wanted to knock and enter. However, I mustered up the courage to and tapped gently on the wood.

“Enter,” Eva’s soft voice called out, so I pushed the door open. As I walked in, my eyes briefly went straight to the beautiful maiden holding onto a wedding dress. Then they fell on the person I despised seeing; Prince Matthew. What was he doing here?

“Brian, I am sorry to hear about your grandmother’s condition,” Evangeline said kindly as I froze. I tried to move my mouth to reply, but I could not. Matthew was here? If almost dying did not kill the romance from the special night, then he surely was going to. I forced myself to speak.

“Thank you, my Princess,” I said quietly before looking at Matthew. He stood so tall and proud. His confidence made me queasy, especially since I knew it partly came from the fact he was so close to marrying Evangeline. “I was not aware that you were to have company this morning.” Matthew smirked and opened his mouth to no doubt snarl at me. Luckily, Eva bet him.

“Neither did I, but the Prince was organising trades with the Miraz Kingdom, he stayed last night there, and decided to visit me this morning since the ride would only take an extra hour,” Eva explained. “We are only talking about the wedding, so you can still work.” I nodded.

“I cannot believe that you did not give the fire enough wood last night. That is pathetic! How can you not know by now? Poor Evangeline woke up cold this morning because of you! I do not approve whatsoever of your inadequate serving of the royal family,” Matthew growled at me, taking a step forward as if he was guarding the Princess. His large posture was intimidating and I felt myself shrinking against the door.

“I- I-” Words just could not form.

“You are very lucky that Evangeline told me this had never happened before and that she praises you so highly. If you were a feeble slave I would be sure to have you out of here by tonight!” I gulped at his threatening tone.

“Matthew… That is unnecessary…” Evangeline coaxed him in her sweet voice, taking a hold of his right arm and pulling him towards her. He put his hands on her waist and smiled kindly down at her, a completely new person. I clenched my fists, wanting him to not touch her. They whispered some words to each other as I stood awkwardly by the door, wishing that I had been caught this morning so I was dead and not watching this awful sight. Matthew suddenly turned around to face me.

“Slave! Tend the fire I made before it stops burning,” he ordered.

“Right away, sir,” I replied respectfully so he would approve more of me. If he was to marry Evangeline, I would have to continue to be her servant so I could still be with her, and that meant Matthew liking me. I scurried off to the fireplace and did what he had demanded, taking care to make as little noise as possible so I could hear what the fiend was saying to my woman.

“You are going to look so beautiful in that dress,” Matthew oozed with lust. I shivered at the thought of him essentially defiling Evangeline on the night of their wedding. She was in love with me, and would not want to do anything with Matthew. I really hoped I could save her from him.

“I too am very happy with what my dressmaker has created,” Eva replied simply.

“You will be the envy of every woman present, as well as every other Princess alive.” I hated that man. He could not flatter her at all, and could only show his thirst for her in his bed.

“Have you had your suit made?” she asked, clearly not wanting to continue talking about herself.

“Yes. It is quite exceptional,” Matthew answered, the smile evident in his voice. “I still believe that all eyes will be on you, though.” I gritted my teeth, desperately wishing I could speak up. A piece of wood slipped from my hand and crashed loudly on the floor. I spun around, fearful of the angry Prince who was glaring at me over his shoulder.

“I- I am sorry! It just slipped!” I stuttered, seeing Evangeline’s arms hold Matthew back from me. How did he treat his own personal servant? I could not imagine how horrible he would be…

“Matthew! Leave him!” Eva called out as I hastily picked up the piece of wood and put it in the fire that was now burning very strongly. I heard footsteps approaching me and I turned around, expecting them to have been Matthew as he prepared to beat me. My face broke into a relaxed smile as I saw it was Eva. “I think you should leave now, Brian. I will call upon you when I need you.” She then mouthed ‘I am sorry’ before she turned back to the Prince. He was smirking so evilly at me as I left. I forced myself to be strong and not worry about the situation too much as I headed downstairs to find some food. After all, I was starving after the adventure we had gone on last night. Fortunately, I found Zachary eating too, so I was able to chat to him. He comforted me and gave me strength to continue to fight for my true love. We spent the rest of the day cleaning the servant’s dining room while talking about other topics. During that time, everything seemed normal. It was simply another day in my life before I had started my affair with the Princess. Everything was so easy then. Now, it was far too complicated. But almost a year had passed, and everything was leading up to the wedding day. There, Evangeline would choose one man, and her Kingdom would accept one man as well. I thought the pressure I was feeling was great, but Eva’s must be so much larger.

I was informed not long after dinner that the Princess was taking a bath and wished for me to prepare her room for sleep, so I rushed away to do what she had asked. I lit candles, kept the fire going because she would actually be present tonight, and tidied the blankets on her bed a bit. Evangeline was smart enough to have ruffled them up a bit so her bed looked slept in, and I was grateful for her doing so. No one suspected anything when it came to me; I was just an insignificant slave who had a family member dying. As far as I knew, Eva was not suspected of anything about last night either. Once I had finished the small chores, I walked over to her dressing area and stared at the white dress that was hung against the divider once again. It was so stunning… The sequins were sewn into patterns so perfect, and the bottom flowed down endlessly and magnificently. I dared myself to reach out and touch the masterpiece that the dressmaker had slaved over for infinite hours in a row. The material was so soft, yet rough at the same time. I ran a finger across a small sequin design, enjoying all the unfamiliar sensations. If only Evangeline was completely my bride…

“Brian, I am glad you are here,” Eva’s voice called out from behind me. I whipped around and smiled at her good looks as she closed the door. “I have something to say.” She sat on the edge of her bed.

“What is it?” I asked. Eva gestured for me to sit next to her, so I did. She took my hand and breathed in deeply.

“I have decided that I will not take any more risks. No longer will I sneak out with you at night, or do other crazy acts,” Eva explained and I felt my heart sinking into my stomach. Was she leaving me? “I do not wish to endanger either of us. I propose one special night right now, and that is all until the wedding. I do not know if it will go as planned, and if we die, I wish to die happy, knowing that I shared a wonderful first time with you.”

“F- First?” Did she mean what I thought she did?

“Make love to me, Brian. Let us do it tonight, so we are one before the wedding, so it does not matter what happens then… I love you…” Evangeline pleaded. My saddened heart turned into a very nervous one, since I did not know what I was doing.

“I love you too,” I told my lover before she leaned forward and kissed me.