Page 2 of The Most Unsuitable Prince (Another Arranged Marriage #8)
“All right then, my lovely people. What have we got? Can we work this marriage business to our advantage, or do I need to pull in a favor at the World Council and get this debacle stopped for reasons of national security or something similar?”
Closing the sitting room door behind him, then rubbing his hands, Prince Winter of Martingale went over to the fire, warming his fingers. It was just before lunch, the day after the coronation in Monce, and Winter had been up and about since dawn.
The coronation of King Serron and his consorts, King Consort Jaq and King Consort Patin, had been a perfect opportunity to network, gather gossip, and meet a few people in what most would perceive as a casual social situation. Very few people knew that nothing Winter did was casual.
Although the three people gathered around the table did. His hands feeling a little less chilled, Winter went over to the chair left for him. “Who wants to go first?” he said as he took a seat and accepted the coffee slid in front of him. “Thank you. Pippin?”
“Crown Prince Rupert and his companion Lord Tristan of Middlethorp left the castle shortly after breakfast,” Pippin said quickly, peering at Winter from under his curly bangs. “I didn’t hear much more than what I heard last night…”
Winter grinned. Pippin, being under Rupert’s table at the time the man was discussing his marriage issues, had been a stroke of luck rather than good management, but Winter would take all he could get. “You did good last night,” he prompted gently. “What happened at the stables?”
“Lord Tristan was trying to explain the importance of the marriage contract details to Crown Prince Rupert, but the crown prince wasn’t listening.
At least that’s what I thought,” Pippin added quickly.
“The crown prince seemed very abrupt, talking about trying to get back to Simigile so that he could attend a hunt that starts in three days. From what I can tell, he wants to attend that one, and one more before the wedding, and there was mention of a ball…?”
“That will be the Fall Festival Ball, held at the Pinkle’s estate just outside of the Simigile central city.
” August, Winter’s brother, looked up from a pile of papers.
“We were invited, but under the circumstances, Father felt it was best you didn’t attend.
You’d left before he could discuss this marriage contract with you this morning. ”
“I had those two jobs to attend to this morning. Both successful,” Winters said, nodding. “I thought I’d told Father, but things have been hectic lately. What else did Father say? I take it, he’s headed home?” The king of Martingale took the running of his kingdom very seriously and rarely left.
August nodded. “Joseph is with him. They made their departure not long after Crown Prince Rupert did.”
Winter had expected that. Joseph, the crown prince of Martingale, traveled with their father on those rare occasions he attended any function outside of their own country.
“All right, then. What is included in the marriage contract? Did Father sign it on my behalf?” He looked over to Sigmund, who worked as his adviser.
“No, sir.” Sigmund pulled out a short scroll. “The king was happy to abide by your decision in this. It was drafted by Lord Middlethorp and appears to be a direct copy of a template the World Council uses for such occasions.”
“A template contract? That could be fun.” Winter chuckled. “What conditions is the crown prince determined to inflict on my person?”
“I doubt the crown prince bothered to even read it, and Lord Middlethorp appears to have done the bare minimum.” Sigmund sniffed, indicating his disapproval.
“With our king making ready to head home, I attempted to go through the clauses with Lord Middlethorp, but he seemed very impatient with me. Crown Prince Rupert’s signature was already on the bottom of the document. ”
Sigmund tapped the inky flourish. “Far too many curly cues for my liking, but regardless, Lord Middlethorp simply insisted that if there were any conditions you’d like included, then to fill them in and file the paperwork.
‘Immediately’ was the word he used.” Another sniff let Winter know what Sigmund felt about being ordered to do anything, especially from a person none of the family had a high opinion of.
“That’s not surprising. Thanks to Pippin, we already know the crown prince can’t go back to Simigile until this contract is lodged with the World Council.” Winter tapped his chin. “What’s Joseph’s take on this, August?”
August let out a long huff. “You know what Joseph is like, Winter. He thinks the marriage would be a good idea for the family business. We don’t actually have a contact anywhere near Simigile, so it could be useful to operate out of there.
It would allow us to expand our reach. But Joseph doesn’t have a high opinion of your intended spouse, and he worries about you because marriage is a serious commitment.
He wants you to be happy, so he’s not pushing you on this either way. ”
“No, Joseph would never do that.” Winter knew he was lucky. He came from an extremely supportive family. He had eight brothers and three sisters, and after their mother’s untimely and unexpected death two years before, the family had pulled closer together than ever to support the devastated king.
“It’s only four days ride from Simigile to Martingale on a fast horse. I’ll still want to visit Father at least once a month.”
“From what I heard, sire, the crown prince in Simigile is barely going to be at the castle, so is not likely to notice if you’re not there,” Pippin pointed out.
“That would make the business side of things easier as well,” August added.
“True. True.” Winter looked at Sigmund. “How likely is it that my intended fiancé will want to stay married? I’m not moving the base of my operation to the Simigile castle, only to be kicked out under the piss-off clause three months later.”
Sigmund tapped the desk with his ornate pen.
“I’m more concerned about what you’ll do if you want out of the marriage, sir,” he said, frowning.
“Lord Middlethorp put a line through the exceptional clause section. If I could offer an opinion, I believe that was done because either the crown prince or Lord Middlethorp, worried you wouldn’t want to stay married to your husband once you got to know him. ”
“Hmm, that changes things.” Winter was thinking fast. “What about the clause relating to infidelity? Does my fiancé intend to remain faithful to his husband?”
“Neither option has been ticked, struck out, or anything else,” Sigmund said, checking the scroll.
“Which would suggest that my intended hasn’t considered that I might have an opinion about his behavior, both with me and when he’s with others.
How extremely lax of him.” Winter waggled his eyebrows, causing his team to laugh, before turning to Pippin.
“What do we know about the crown prince’s dating habits? The man is in his thirties, isn’t he?”
“Thirty-five, sire,” Pippin said. “I did reach out to our friend Lady Julia at the World Council at first light for any information she might have, and she sent a reply via crystal radio.”
“Good thinking.” Winter nodded. Lady Julia was a long time friend who knew everything worth knowing about any royal family in the known world. “Did she feel our match might be a good one?”
Pippin wrinkled his nose. “I’m not sure, sire. She said to wish you luck.”
“That’s not ominous at all.” August chuckled.
Lady Julia was an excellent judge of character, so her good luck wishes, likely made in jest, did make Winter pause. “What did she say about his dating habits?” he asked again. “Crown Prince Rupert has to have had some liaisons in the last fifteen years or so.”
“He’s had some unlucky courtships,” Pippin said slowly.
“His infatuation with King Consort Jaq was just his latest attempt at securing a marriage with someone small, compliant, and someone who wasn’t keen on being seen in many social situations.
He had shown previous interest in Prince Remy and Prince Syrius, although Lady Julia said she wasn’t sure if he’d actually met those two princes before losing interest.”
“That’s a shame. I would’ve loved to have heard how well my intended got on with Prince Remy’s lizard.
Both of those princes are now married to other people, so clearly whatever he did didn’t work there.
” Winter put the new puzzle pieces into the mental picture he was forming of the man who’d decided to marry him. “Women?”
“Numerous acquaintances, nothing serious,” Pippin said.
“According to Lady Julia, Crown Prince Rupert has many, many friends who enjoy similar interests to his own. He’s also been known to enjoy female company at the end of a social engagement, discreetly, of course.
Lady Julia mentioned that he’s never allowed anyone to get too close, because he never intended to marry. ”
“Hmm.” Winter leaned back in his chair. “We already know the only reason he’s offering to marry me is so he can go home to Simigile. I think we can safely assume he’s not going to want to have much to do with the Prince Winter he saw at last night’s function, which is why he chose me specifically.
“It’s my opinion that Crown Prince Rupert wants to continue living his life the way he always has.
He clearly believes that by marrying someone he perceives as inferior to his ideal of a manly man, he can keep me in my place or ignore me completely.
It’s not ideal, but it could be a workable situation for us and what we do. ”
“Sire, if I can voice one issue you appear to have overlooked,” Sigmund said.
“Marriage to anyone is a very serious matter. This contract is as binding on you as it will be on the crown prince. Marrying him will prevent you from ever marrying someone more suited to the person we all know you to be. Is this really a good idea?”
Winter smiled at his adviser. Sigmund had often been the voice of reason Winter needed at times, especially when he thought a harebrained scheme was a good idea. “That contract will raise my status to crown prince consort of Simigile?”
Sigmund nodded. “That is applicable from the moment you sign.”
“All right. So I’d get an increase in status, our family would get a wider reach geographically than we’ve had before…
” Winter tapped on the table. “Combine that with a husband who will barely stomach being in the presence of the peacock of a man he believes me to be. My friends, we could do a lot worse. Royal marriages have been formed on a lot less.”
“At least the crown prince hasn’t insisted on an infidelity clause,” August added. “You could still find affection outside of the marriage, provided you’re discreet about it.”
But Winter shook his head. “No. I wouldn’t do that.
Not because of Rupert – I don’t even know the man – but because I would never be so callous about another person’s affection.
That’s not right. Besides, the fact that Rupert didn’t choose an option means I get to make the first decision in our married life.
I imagine he’s left that part blank, perhaps knowing I would refuse the offer, or that my father would, if he refused to be faithful to me, so we might as well use that to our advantage. ”
Winter wasn’t sure where the flutter of butterflies came from as he said, “Sigmund, pass the contract over. When you file the paper with the World Council, can you ask them to ensure my fiancé is notified that all the clauses in the contract apply from that moment forward? They may have to send him a copy to refresh his memory of what he’s signed up for. ”
“As long as you’re sure, sire.” Sigmund slid the paper across the table, along with a pen.
Winter glanced at his brother, who was watching him closely. “Will you be coming along for the ride?”
August shrugged. “I’m expected in Southland in about six weeks, so I can come with you until you’re safely married.
I’ll let Joseph know I’ll stand with you at the wedding as our family representative.
We’ll have a lot to organize, and I’m not sure what resources the Simigile castle might already have, or what we have to bring in.
You can leave all that to me while you’re prepping for the wedding. ”
“Hmm, that’s a thought.” Winter flicked his hair over his back as he bent over the contract, skimming the contents. “Shall I wear the white and gold colors of Martingale for the wedding? Or should I go with something exceptionally gaudy and colorful? What do you think?”
At least the darn man will be pleasant enough to look at if I am ever seated across a table from him, Winter thought as he quickly scribbled his signature at the bottom of the contract.