Ever After (Unfinished Fairy Tales #3)(16)
“Because… it is time for you to be awake, and the maids are either afraid or unwilling to wake you,” she says in a small voice. Thankfully, she is fully dressed. “As… as your wife, I had to come.”
Since I grew taller than Father and female servants started blushing when I was around, Mother had cautioned me of consequences, should I show favor to any maid. I had issued a strict order that they could only enter my bedroom when I was away.
I cross my arms, but not before snatching up a robe and wrapping it around me. “Next time, ask Bertram to knock on my door. Never come into my room again.”
She looks up at me, and there is hurt in her eyes. I realize I have been sharp with her, but I cannot spare her any sympathy. “I apologize for the improper way I behaved. That was ungentlemanly, and I am sorry for the discomfort it must have caused you.”
“No.” She has a finger on her lips. “No, Edward. I was shocked, but it does not mean what you did was unpleasant. I’m your wife, after all, and this is to be expected. Just give me some time, and I could move in…”
“Never.” I point at the door. “Perhaps I should take this chance to be blunt with you, Katriona Bradshaw. It is only by extraordinary circumstances that I allowed you in my suite. However, it is time for a separation. I plan to abdicate. Your marriage to me is not as attractive as you might think. My heart belongs to no one but Kat.”
“It doesn’t matter. If only you had known, what life was for me before…”
“However pitiful your life was before, it does not entitle you to the role of my wife. Please, I ask you to be reasonable. I have no desire to be married to you, nor will I seek another woman. You will be better off released from this prison. Find another man whose heart is unattached.”
She doesn’t seem to hear me. She hugs her shoulders, her spine bent, and when she speaks her voice is unsteady. “When my sister told me she would be queen one day, I had pictured a future as your sister-in-law, because I know that is the most I could hope for. But now, I have achieved the pinnacle of my dreams.” She takes a step towards me, and I narrow my eyes. “Take pity on me. You don’t know how much I suffered when I came back from Moryn. Consider it my reward for surviving. I have admired you since I was a child, and you don’t understand how much it means to me to become princess. You, who has every privilege that a man could dream of, can you not understand what it means for an unwanted girl like me to suddenly gain everything she wants?”
I am done trying to argue with her. All I know is that I must seek a better way to get rid of her. Maybe introduce a few more rules in the divorce law—there has to be more than just adultery for the grounds for divorce. More than ever, I wish that Kat was by my side.
“Get out.” I squeeze the words through my teeth. “We have wasted too much time here. My parents will be wondering why I am not down for breakfast.”
She looks frightened, but when she goes to the door, she pauses. “I’m sorry, but I cannot do what you ask. I will never agree to a divorce.”
* * *
I am in a terrible mood for the rest of the day. Katriona’s reluctance for a divorce is to be expected, but she is more unwilling than I thought. It is going to take time and effort to convince her to leave me alone. I wonder if it’s possible to take her to some parties and balls, introduce her to some dashing young men, and maybe find someone willing to take her as a wife. There are some impoverished young lords looking for an heiress to replenish their fortunes. If one of them can seduce Katriona Bradshaw, kiss her in public or something, then I would have the grounds for divorce.
I am not the perfect prince that many people think I am. If that is what it takes to get rid of Katriona, I would do it. Even though it is unethical, undesirable, and underhanded. The people won’t approve of a divorce, but my private life ought not be of their concern. Once the fairies figure out how to bring Kat back to me, then nothing else will matter.
If they find a way. But I won’t allow myself to lose hope.
As I prepare to return to my room, my father calls me. “Edward. A word, if you please.”
I follow him to his receiving chamber, along with Mother. Katriona Bradshaw hovers by the door, but my father holds up his hand. “You may return to your room.”
I experience a tiny bit of pleasure that she is excluded from our conversation. Good. I hope that Father has a valuable suggestion. He knows Katriona Bradshaw is not Kat. Maybe he has found a way to let me divorce her.
Mother casts me a look of sympathy as we sit down. My heart sinks.
“Son.” Father settles in his favorite armchair. “Dare I hope that the relationship between you two has improved?”
So he remains hopeful that I will settle for a lifetime with Katriona. The thought makes my heart harden, and my words blunt. “I told her this morning I wanted a divorce.”
Father steeples his fingers together and looks at me sternly. “Do be reasonable, Edward. Even the most profligate of our ancestors had not dared to ask for a divorce, much less this early into marriage.”
“I cannot comprehend what can be more reasonable than a divorce.”
Father hands me an elaborately printed card. It is from Augustin, the Moryn Emperor. He and Simone will be wedded next month.
“We have been invited to attend their wedding. However, it is my wish that you and the princess attend. I am almost sixty, Edward, and you know how I abhor traveling by water. It is time you take over for me. Therefore, I ask that you heed your duties, and forget this nonsense about divorce.”