Marriage Of Convenience: part 12

Kirby smiled and placed a hand gently on her shoulder. "For now we have to... There's something important I want to discuss with you Lina" He said to her as they say down in one of the village's beautiful gardens.

"Sure, anything," she replied.

Kirby took a deep breath before continuing "I don't know where to start...how should I even begin..." he hesitated before sighing heavily. "Look, I was betrothed to princess Lisa and we are set to marry," he said slowly and calmly, trying to control his nerves.

"Is that all?" Lina asked with confusion apparent on her face.

"No! It's much more than that!" he exclaimed angrily. "We are supposed to start planning our wedding immediately after we arrive home from the festival, but I don't want to marry her, I don't love her. You are the one I love and the only one I want to marry " he explained."I know that there is no other choice but for us to live happily together in secret and try to escape this arranged marriage as soon as possible. I know that if we get married quickly it will be hard for you to stay here. But Lina…what if we could be together forever?" He pleaded.

She stared at him. “Forever?! You want to get married forever?” she asked incredulously. How could he want to marry someone else? Did he love another girl too?

His eyes darkened as he watched the tears gathering in Lina’s blue eyes. Why did she think so little of him? He had been thinking of her nonstop during his journey and every time he got a glimpse of her, he wanted to be with her more. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. That’s why. That’s why he hadn’t said anything to her until yesterday. He was so afraid of what she would say if she found out about their arranged marriage. Now it was finally over and he didn't regret his decision to run away. He regretted everything that had led up to this moment.

He stared at her with tears brimming in his own blue eyes. Suddenly, he felt her warm hands cupping his cheeks and she bent forward and kissed him tenderly.

“Thank you,” she whispered softly between kisses. “Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for coming all this way just for me.”

She lifted her head and continued to kiss him passionately while his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. A few seconds later her lips broke apart and she leaned against his chest. Their chests pressed together causing a pleasant tingle to travel through their entire bodies. They remained like that for several moments before he pulled her close and placed his lips upon hers. A smile crept across her face as she returned his kiss. After several moments longer, they reluctantly broke away, still breathing heavily. Lina rested her forehead against Kirby’s. “So…we’re engaged,” she whispered excitedly.

A large smile spread across Kirby’s face. “We’re engaged,” he breathed. “And we will be getting married soon enough.”

Lina nodded. “Yes, indeed. Soon enough…” she said dreamily as the corners of her lips curled upwards. She reached into the pockets of her dress and extracted a small velvet box Kirby had given her. “Kirby...do you mind opening this for me?” she asked as she offered the box to him.

“Of course.” He took the box from her fingers and held it with both of his hands and removed the lid carefully, revealing a simple diamond ring sitting inside. He looked at her for a couple of seconds before asking her if she would wear it. She nodded silently and took the ring out of the box and put it onto her left middle finger. After adjusting it to sit properly, she gazed up at him lovingly.

“How did you know that I’d wear a ring?” she asked quietly.

Kirby smiled. “There were some jewellers in town who gave me a pair of earrings and a bracelet. I thought it would suit you well.” He took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her left ring finger.

“I love it!” she exclaimed happily as he kissed her once more, savouring the taste of her lips.

They stood there hugging each other, basking in the warmth of each other’s embrace.

~*~

To be continued…