“A pleasure to meet you Lord Dunharein.” Deah Rose took several abrupt steps back, practically dancing away from her tall, newly-acquired fiance, and swept a low curtsy. She was still a little flustered to discover that the man she had run into in the hallway was also the man her father had arranged for her to marry.
“Ah, my lady.” Lord Dunharein nodded, followed by a surprisingly low bow. “And we are to be formal now that we are alone?”
Deah sighed, trying to smile prettily. “You make a fair point. Though I must warn you, we will only have a few moments to ourselves before my father will surely come and demand to introduce his future son to everyone he knows, individually.” She felt a blush beginning to rise. “Given such time constraints, forgive my bluntness. What induced you to accept marriage to a stranger, my Lord? To me? I would feel better knowing if our marriage is nothing more than a mere business arrangement with my father.”
“I prefer Alarik. Especially from you, my future wife. How do you prefer to be called?”
Deah glanced over to find her new fiance smiling over at her. She slumped against the wall and faced him. “I suppose my question was not the best first question in order to become better acquainted with what little time we have. My mother always called me Deah Rose and though I prefer it, my father insists on calling me Deah. Everyone else follows suit. You may get odd looks if you call me Deah Rose.”
Alarik regarded her closely for a moment before approaching her and bending down to kneel before her. “I hope I am not too forward in my proposal to you, Deah Rose. However, I feel that a marriage proposal, no matter its origins, should have much more personal sentiment and feeling behind it than what has happened thus far in our relationship.” He gazed up at her, steadily holding her attention. A smile quirked just a tiny bit in the corner of his mouth. “Our long and lengthy courtship. And so I make you these promises now, at the beginning of our courtship, our relationship, and the rest of our lives.”
“Promises?” Deah breathlessly interrupted. “You make promises now? Should they not wait for our wedding day?”
Alarik stood, taking both of her hands in his own. “I will take our marriage vows on our wedding day and hold true to them forever. The promises I make today are my assurances in my character and hopefully allow you a glimpse into how our marriage can be.”
Deah nodded. “Oh.”
His smile broadened. “Does this mean I have your permission to be so bold as to make promises to you now, though we have just met?”
“I believe the promises you make will give us a wonderful foundation with which to build upon. And how well you uphold and stay true to those promises will bespeak of your honesty, integrity, and commitment. So by all means, I am most curious to hear your proposal.”
“Deah Rose, these promises I make to you on this day, when we have met and become engaged so quickly. I promise to hold your thoughts and opinions in the highest regard, never pushing them aside, though I do not promise we will always agree. I promise to listen. I promise that you will come first. I promise to endeavor to always provide a feeling of safety and security in my home and in my arms. And I promise to respect you, even when you say no. Especially when you say no.”
Deah shook her head slightly. “Where did my father find you? I have never heard a man speak any such promises to a woman, even on their wedding day.”
Alarik rose to his feet and took both her hands in his, gently drawing her to him. “He did not. It is I who found him.”
Tilting her head to the side she gazed up at him with curiosity. “Why would you seek my father out? He has no great reputation that would travel a far distance to tempt a man such as you.”
He chuckled. “You speak as though you know me and my motivations for seeking him out.”
She shook her head. “No, not you in particular. I do know a great many of the men that do business with my father and know of their many different motivations for trade here. And though I have heard awed whispers of your name, none of what I have heard would bring you here. Which brings me back to my first question, why accept marriage to a stranger?”
“You accepted.”
“No. I was told. There was nothing to accept.” Deah sighed. “My father is desperate to make sure that I am protected. There have been rumors that the nearby warlords are beginning to steal women in the night again. My engagement to you is the result. I knew it was coming, though I did not know it would be you who I would be marrying.”
“You wish to say no?” He bowed, stepping back. Formality stiffened his frame.
Deah took a step toward him. “That is not what I am saying. Indeed I am honored. I merely wish to know what induced you into this arrangement.”
His shoulders relaxed. “Your reputation brought me here.”
“My what?”
“Surely you know that you are beautiful. And men love to remark on beauty.”
She was shaking her head as he spoke. “I know that men love to exaggerate but I do not know why they would talk of me in particular. And at such great distances.” Deah’s hands flew to her chest. “People talk of me?”
“This troubles you?”
A gasp shook through her. “How far away?”
“What?”
“How far away do they speak such fantasies about me?” She’d grown quite pale.
“I do not know. Though I travelled over a week to arrive here, I do not know how much farther it has spread. You and your beauty are common knowledge there, almost as if you are a myth.”
“You came for me?” Deah gazed incredulously up at him.
As she sank onto a nearby bench, Alarik once again found himself on his knees at her feet. “If it is any consolation, the tales told of your beauty do not lie.”
He did not have a chance to say more as the door leading back out to the great hall burst open, as Deah’s father rushed in. “Ah, Carrington. Come meet some of my friends. They are all anxious to meet you.”
