Not All Families Begin the Same Way

Love is boundary-less. ~Angel Haze

PRIDE and AUDACITY - He's an audacious Middle Eastern Prince. She's a prideful Wall Street Princess. These two warring hearts burn a trail from the skyscrapers of New York City to the scorching sands of Ahalamin.

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Excerpt #1

An intense, itchy sensation skimmed along the surface of her arms. Icy fingers of intuition crawled down her spine. Something dangerous lurked behind her. "Ridiculous," she whispered, then turned to prove her assertion.

An icon of masculinity leaned against the marble column framing her father's office door. At first impression, he appeared as hard as the stone he complimented. Dressed completely in black, his suit, shirt, tie, and shoes cast him as an illusion of darkness silhouetted against the cold, white marble supporting him. Only the nut-brown color of his skin and the whites of his eyes softened the vignette.

He was definitely the source of energy abrading her nerves. His self-assured pose indicated she'd intruded on his domain instead of the opposite. The tingling sensation moved from her arms to her neck as he took an overlong length of time scrutinizing her. That he found her lacking in some way was obvious from the angle of his condescending brow. Any other man, having garnered her attention, would have the good manners to introduce himself - not this one.

Excerpt #2

Her father's horrified expression did not at all fit the occasion.

"Victoria, you misunderstood. Read the entire document." With those words, he nudged the papers back toward her.

Confused, she scanned the document again. At last, the mystery problem revealed itself. This was a marriage certificate all right, just not a normal one. Now she was thoroughly perplexed. What was he doing? Why was he marrying someone by proxy?

She continued to read. Not believing her eyes, she pulled the document closer. The wording didn't change on closer inspection. In front of her, in bold clear print, was her name. Her name did present a problem, but the name joined to hers' was more so.

'BE THIS KNOWN: Victoria Chantal Ballard and Prince Alif Benhamin Rashid Davar consent to become Husband and Wife'…

Victoria locked her eyes on the purple flush streaking up her father's neck. She recognized the stubborn tightening of his jaw and her mind thrashed about looking for clarification to this bizarre situation. The marriage certificate slid from her hand and landed at her feet.

She sprang from her chair and leaned across her father's desk. "What is this? How did this happen?" With hindsight, she knew exactly when her father had rushed her into signing those pages that included the marriage proxy she'd just dropped.

He rose from his chair and skirted the edge of the desk. Approaching her, he slipped his hand under her right elbow. She jerked away from his touch and stepped back.

"Victoria, please sit down and I'll explain everything," said Jacob, his tone entreating.

"Sit down! Sit down! You want me to sit down," she said waving her arms at him. "You tricked me into signing those papers. Why? Never mind. Whatever you've done, you can undo. I will never, ever, allow this to stand," she said, dropping her arms and pressing them tightly against her side. Her mind un-spooled, twisted and jammed in disbelief. She shook with denial.

"Victoria, please listen." Jacob implored.

"Listen!" She shrieked, tossing her head higher. "You listen to me, Father. You have gone too far! I do not have a clue why you would manipulate my life in this insane way. However, if, and I do mean, if, I wanted to get married, Mr. Davar would be my last choice on this planet for a husband. He's an arrogant fool and you are his equal!"

"Enough!" a voice commanded from behind her.

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Begin the Adventure Soon With Pride and Audacity Part 1

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Originally published here