Moonflower

Chapter 22: We Did What???

Tae awoke to so much pain that he wished someone would knock him out again. He was lying on his stomach. Which hurt. But not as badly as his back did. Or his head. His eyes slid upward. He stared at the ceiling. This room was unfamiliar. His gaze traveled around the room.

No, it wasn't. This was where all the trouble had started. This was her room. Mari. The girl who smelled like his grandpa's apple orchard.

His fiancé.

He must have gone temporarily insane today. Was it still today? To have claimed as his fiancé a girl he didn't even know. And then to have endured an endless beating for her. One hundred lashes. Except...he hadn't received more than twenty-two.

Suddenly, he remembered her lying on his back. He hadn't been sure he could endure any more when suddenly a heavy weight had descended upon him shielding him from the next blow. It might not have hit his body, but he had felt it strike his heart when she had screamed. She was so tiny. And she had thrown her little body across his back to spare him from the next blow.

He felt a tear sliding down his cheek as he recalled her brave action.

Her scream resounded in his ear again, and he felt that odd yet burning desire to cover her return to him. What was it about his apple girl that made him want to draw her into his heart and close its doors forever? Just to spare her any further pain.

He moved his head to look at the other side of the bed. A groan escaped him. But all the breath left his body in the next instant when he saw her. She was lying next to him in the bed. Her bed. Again. Her long, raven hair had spilled out in a curtain around her.

He felt anger rising within him. Why were they in the same compromising position that had cost them both so dearly just a few hours ago? But his ire died a quick death as she suddenly moaned in her sleep and rolled towards him. His eyes traced the beautiful outline of her lovely face. She was breathtaking.

In the next moment, though, a spasm of pain crossed her countenance, and he felt that odd desire spark in his heart again. To defend her. At all costs. To wipe the pain from her face. And the agony from her muscles.

He knew, better than anyone else, how much she must be hurting right now. He wanted to draw her close and cradle her against his chest. Except that he was in so much pain himself right now. Everything ached. Or throbbed.

Suddenly, as his eyes were sliding over her captivating countenance, her own opened to collide with his. For a few breathless moments, they simply stared at each other. Then a shy smile lifted her face, and a few stunning words escaped her lips.

"Good morning, husband."

Husband?!!!

He sat straight up as his arms caused him to practically fly off the bed.

"What?!"

A spasm of anxiety rippled across her countenance as pain ripped through his entire abdomen all the way through to his back.

In a tiny whisper, she responded, "We married yesterday. You woke up briefly. The king had a priest waiting. We spoke our vows. It was a very quick ceremony. Then you lost consciousness again."

She looked very nervous.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry I landed you in this trouble. I'm sorry I stole your choice from you."

Horrified, he watched as a tear slid down her cheek.

"But the king insisted we marry," she finished in a tiny voice.