The Princess Choice

Chapter 16

Richard walked into the entrance of his castle expecting to see his queen there, but they motioned towards her bedroom wing with sad eyes. He turned and ran towards her room and walked in and found her crying on the floor crying cradling her swollen abdomen. "What is it my queen..." he dropped down on his knees to the floor with her immediately pulling her into his arms after holding her cheeks for a little second while he try to wipe the tears from her face.

"You are kicking me out... you are disgusted by me and do not want me by your side..." she hiccupped, crying inconsolably.

"Annalise..." he whispered feeling raw at watching her heartbreak and regretting his decision to leave her side at all. 

"No! I get it because you think... but I love you, Richard. I know now, like... I know that I need to... please do not make us leave please!" she cried sobs that shook her whole body and she could not finish her sentences that she was so desperate to express.

"Annalise... calm down my queen... come stand and follow me please. This is bad for you, you have not recovered and it is bad for the baby as well." Richard stood and picked her up gently wiped her tears that would not stop and pulled her out into the hall and without another word led her into the only room she had never walked into... his room she had walked by a few times and saw how dark and how everything in it was black but she had never walked into it because she did not belong there or so she had believed for so long.

She walked in and her breath caught instead of all the black she had seen she saw a big white bed with matching furniture the comforter was light pink flowers mixed in with blue and gold lined the sides. The whole bed was covered in pillows that were so fluffy and she smiled because she knew he did not like a bed with a lot of pillows. There were roses on almost every surface and with the closet open the way it was she could see all her gowns, shoes and other clothes sitting in there on one side and his on the other.

"But..." she looked at him confused her heart beating almost out of her chest.

"Wait my queen there is more." She looked up and saw the double door that lead in to her living quarter where her room was once meant to be, but she was not comfortable with and as he led her to it, he stepped out of the way so she could open the doors herself.

She looked up at him confused and cried out as she opened the door because inside the bedroom which was ones supposed to be hers there was a crib aligned with furniture and decorated in white and pastels pinks and blue.

"We do not know if it will be a prince or a princess, so I did not add to many blues and pinks... we can add all that once the baby gets here... then we can decorate this room to our hearts content..."

"What does all this..." she looked confused at him.

"It means I am here if you need to talk with me about what happened but it will change nothing  you are still the most beautiful, pure and loving person I know and..." he placed his hand on her swollen stomach "This is my heir and the one who will sit on the throne after us be it a male or a female heir." She cried out and pinned herself to his body inhaling him like her life depended on it.

"So, you are not kicking me out... you do not hate me..." she hiccupped controlling her cries.

"No, my queen I had to leave to surprise you... I had to prepare everything because I do not want you to doubt all the love that I have for you and our child... you are where my life starts and ends and so will this little one be. in hindsight I should have expressed at least something so you would not let that sweet brain of yours run wild and for that I am sorry." He wiped tears from her eyes as she reached to wipe his.

She smiled threw the tears. "Our child Richard..." she held her hand over his on her stomach.

He looked at her shocked "You mean..."

"I was never touched... it was Francis who did this... and he tried but I told him I was already yours body and soul and he tried to hurt me but he could not force me he did not want it that way so he said he would break me and would not let me out until I pleaded for him to take me. Within a few weeks I felt the symptoms and I knew that I was with child and that enraged him so he said he would let us starve but every few days a maid would come in with food. This is your child, our heir I have been no one but yours and I will never be anyone's but yours." She smiled at him thru the tears.

He smiled wide and pulled her back into their bedroom "and as soon as you are ready, I would like to claim that tile over and over again." she smiled pulling him towards the bed where she began to kiss him missing him with all her heart.