Names

She walked down the grand staircase with an air of boredness, like she was entering one of her father’s board meetings. Every eye in that gigantic ballroom was staring at her, wanting her, wanting to be her. She was the picture of elegance. Her sleeveless dress wrapped around her torso and flowered out at her hips. Her copper hair fell in perfect curls and framed her face. The gold of her jewelry matched with the gold flecks in her hazel eyes.

She was picturesque, beautiful, but she was frightened. Thanks to her training, her face showed no sign of her troubles: it remained beautiful and undisturbed. One person, however, could tell. He knew the lovely girl so well that he could sense, rather than see, the girl’s tremors.

Someone signaled for the orchestra to begin a waltz, and people began pairing up. The young man that knew she was frightened; walked up to the girl and asked her for her hand in the dance. She accepted. He was secretly relieved. They floated onto the dance floor and began to dance.

The young man was handsome, but he wasn’t anything special. However, in the eyes of the girl, he was the most attractive man in the entire world. The deep green of his eyes and his dark brown, almost black, curly hair, in her eyes, were perfect.

As they danced, they stared into each other’s eyes, and they seemed to forget their surroundings, both of them thinking only of each other. The girl was grateful for him and his smiles. He was happy that she seemed more at ease now that he was with her.

He decided to break the silence, “I see that you have only grown more and more beautiful ever since I left, Your Highness.” He seemed to be teasing her with his bright eyes and brilliant smile.

She replied tensely, “I thought you had gone for good. I thought you had left me forever.” Her voice cracked, but her face remained calm.

“I figured out a way.”

She only stared at him in disbelief.

“I left, and I’m sorry, but it would have been too hard for me to be here without being able to marry you,” he said very quickly. “Your father confronted me and told me that for me to marry you, I need to have 50,000 pounds and a substantial amount of land.”

For the first time, her face looked shocked. “Why didn’t you ever tell me! I wouldn’t have thought… I could have helped you! Did you get all the money and the land?”

He grinned at her, “I did.”

“How?”

The waltz ended, and the strange couple bowed. The young man whispered, “Meet at midnight in your study room. I’ll explain everything there.” He started to leave.

“I love you, Ewen.”

He turned back, surprised, “I love you too, Prim.”