Royalty

10| Groom

Chapter 10: Groom (Nicholas' POV)

"The wedding is in a week, Nicholas! Why don't you understand that once she comes into this family-"

"Once she comes into this family, you won't be able to pressurize me into having her child because it's her will. If she wants a child, when she wants a child, we shall have a child!" I groaned. 

"You cannot give her all the control, Nicholas. She will always seek better for her own kingdom. For Velaris more than Meralith," my father reasoned. 

"How can you assume that? How can you even imply that? That is far from the truth, but even if it is that way, then I am here for the people of Meralith. Ella and I having a child brings no benefits to Meralith near the immediate future." 

"I agree, but what about the long-term future? What about years down the line when-" 

"We will have a child by then, father! I am simply refusing to have a child within the first at least three years of our marriage unless it is by our own will. Regardless, it is my life. It focuses on my wife and me. I do not need to seek your permission for this," I huffed. 

"How dare you talk back to me in this manner? You are not marrying Princess Ella for love, let's make that clear. You are marrying her for this kingdom!" 

"And how dare you tell him what relations he keeps with his wife?" We both turned to the staircase where my mother stood. She came downstairs, standing between my father and me. "Benjamin, times have changed. Arranged marriages mustn't always be a compromise. He is marrying Ella with the desire to do so. Let them live their lives the way they want. I agree, he holds responsibility for our kingdom once he is crowned king, but that does not mean the kingdom is any more of a priority than his love," she said sternly. 

"How can you believe that? If they don't have a child-" 

"They will have a child!" she yelled, seeming more frustrated than I was with this situation. "Just not according to your convenience. They will not hold and live in the kind of marriage we did. Having a child in the first year of marriage is preposterous! What time does that give them to know each other? When they want a child, they shall have a child. Case closed." 

She turned to me while taking a breath. "You are the groom of a beautiful wedding to come. Do not let anything ruin this." 

My father then stormed off and we both let out a sigh. "Walk with me," she demanded. 

I walked by her side as we stepped out into the backyard, walking under the sun when she dismissed the two butlers that held umbrellas over our heads. 

"I don't love your father, you know this," she groaned. 

I nodded. It's sad but it's the truth nobody can turn a blind eye to. 

"Many kings and queens don't love each other, Nicholas. It's common. But I don't want that for you, understand?" 

"Yes, mother." 

"I don't trust you father." I looked at her quizzically. "I think he seeks for your marriage with Princess Ella as an alliance but merely for his benefit." 

"How do you mean?" I questioned. 

"Nicholas." She stopped walking abruptly. "If I had control of this, Ella would never be coming here after your marriage." 

"I don't understand." 

"I believe the reason your father is so insistent on you two having a child is because he only cares for our throne. If you and Ella have a child and then something were to happen to her, God forbid. Then both kingdoms come under the Williams family. They come under our rule. Do you understand?"