Betrothed to Trouble

Chapter 7 - I Will Never Let You Go

Princess Giselle:

            Father never came down to dinner and I spent the whole dinner simply stirring my soup. I was so worried and nervous to feel hungry. I never made it to the main course, sitting alone in the spacious, high-ceilinged dining room just made me painfully lonely and depressed, not to mention claustrophobic. My mind was whirring like clockwork and my nerves were frayed. Dozens of unanswered questions buzzed through my head, all clamoring for my attention. What would Father do this time? Is he going to send me back to France? And poor Louis! I dragged him into this mess again. He can’t lose his job because of this! Since his father died when he was 14, Louis has been supporting his family with his earnings as a groom for the Royal Stables. And God forbid the scandal!

            When the scandal blew up two years ago, Father had Louis arrested and imprisoned in the dungeons for two weeks and ordered him to be given 10 lashes of the whip. His crime? Seducing the Princess. Nobody bought it of course. It takes two willing parties to start an affair doesn’t it? But Father reasoned that someone had to be the guilty party in the scandal, and it absolutely could not be me in any circumstances. So he and the court fabricated a lie to protect my name. I hated it; all the lies and of course, the injustice of it all. It was revolting how the court portrayed Louis. They framed him as the uncouth youth who seduced the innocent princess. They ruined his life and was about to kick him out of the palace, but I managed to beg, more like grovel for days, for Father to let him stay in the palace and keep his job. He agreed, but under one circumstance, I was banned from the Royal Stables from then on. Despite this cover up, whispers still followed me wherever I went; most of them questioning my virtue. At balls and luncheons, the women and the girls will send me disapproving looks. I didn’t cry, I would never grant them the satisfaction of seeing me crumble. What Louis went through was worse and I had no right to cry, just because people were sending me judgmental looks.

            A short rap on my window snapped me out of my painful recollection of the past. Louis! Is it possible to feel relief and dread at the same time, I wondered as I rushed over to the French windows to let him in. I ushered him into my room silently before he could utter a single word of greeting.

            “What’s wrong?” he immediately asked, noticing my tense expression and sullen lack of greeting.

            I bit my lip and averted my gaze as a wave of guilt washed over me at the sight of those innocently unsuspecting beautiful eyes.

            “Father knows,” I blurt out, cringing internally as I waited for his response.

            His jaw dropped open in an expression of horror as his amber eyes flashed dangerously. He immediately clenched his jaw shut and gritted his teeth as he paced around me in agitation.

            “How?” was his first question.

Seriously? Is that all he has to say? His life is in danger and he’s worried how?

            “Louis, why does it matter how?” I asked him in exasperation. His reaction was totally not what I had expected. “Father might punish you harsher this time! I’m worried for you! He was so furious earlier today, what if he fires you? You need your job, and – and – this is all my fault! I shouldn’t have gone to the stables today and then I wouldn’t have – ”

            “Shhh, shh,” he soothed, enveloping me into a hug, rubbing my back soothingly. “It isn’t your fault, alright Giselle? It’s mine,” he said firmly, resting his chin on the top of my head. “I was the one who kissed you first,”

            “But I didn’t stop you! And I went to the stables today! You know Father banned me from going!” I protested, scowling up at him.