Chapter Five

"Crown Prince Vincent's aide, Morgan, has shared a provisional list of social engagements planned for after the wedding, sir." John placed the list on Orion's desk. It was the morning of the wedding and Orion was rushing through a huge to-do list, trying to ensure that all the hard work he'd put in for months, especially in relation to the mine project, would not go to waste.

"Where is it being held?" Orion finished off his last set of instructions for Ryan at the mine and sealed them in an envelope ready for the messenger. He was already dressed in his pants and fine undershirt. He just needed to slip on his robe and boots.

"Which engagement are you referring to, sir?" John huffed. "The crown prince is apparently planning to travel overland through Carntan, and then onto Monce, and Scythe, before ending up in Faast. There are parties planned at each of the castles, some of them expected to continue over two to three days."

Orion wrinkled his nose. "That sounds exhausting. Still, at least there'll be some breaks if we're traveling by horse. Not even my talented fiancé can move from one country to the next in one day. It'll be nice to stop in at Carntan. I can visit with my sister, so that's something to look forward to."

"I'm worried about your wardrobe, sir." Orion looked up to see John chewing his bottom lip. "I'm not sure you have enough robes or finery to attend so many social occasions without access to a laundry, and it's too late to get anything from the tailor now."

Orion smiled. John was an older man who had been serving Orion for ten years. While he often bemoaned the state of Orion's wardrobe and the fact Orion barely socialized, he was genuinely concerned about Orion's image. "I'm sorry I haven't been helpful on personal matters these past two days. This business with the mines…"

"No. No, sir. You should never apologize to me. I know how much this wedding business has caused so many problems with everything else." John shook his head. "I just feel it would be wise to spend a bit of time thinking about clothes over the next week or so, at least until we get to Faast and can find another tailor."

"One will hope, once people realize how boring I am, that my need to attend social events will die down. But that doesn't solve our immediate problem." Orion thought for a moment. "I don't suppose any of the gifts from my fiancé included clothes?" He hadn't even had time to look at them, although John had opened them for him.

"Yes, sir. There are three rather beautifully done waistcoats," John said. "I recognize the work. Martha, who has a stall at the local markets, makes them. I believe they'll fit you very nicely. She has used gems, jeweled threads, and panels of colorful material."

"Ah, yes, I remember seeing her work when I've been in town, and many social climbing young men seem to like them. Not something I usually wear." Orion grinned. "But I do remember her style as being unique and thereby socially acceptable, shall we say? How about, as the new crown prince consort, we start a new clothing trend? If we pair those waistcoats, which I would obviously want to wear as a tribute to my new husband's thoughtfulness, with black pants and black or white shirts…"

"Which you wear all the time anyway." John was nodding, looking a lot happier. "Sir, if I could be so bold, would you allow me to send a message to Martha, or even pop down and see her if you can spare me, and ask her if she has another three in different colors she can send directly? I'm sure she would likely have them, and she'd be thrilled if she knew you were wearing them on your travels."

"That's a great idea." Orion nodded. "Obviously, don't pressure her if she doesn't have any readymade, but that would save having to borrow clothes from my brother that just won't fit. The waistcoats are unique, and best of all, I can just wear black or white everything else. Clothing issue solved."

"Temporarily," John warned. "Sir, the servants have said Crown Prince Vincent does nothing but socialize. Sooner or later you're going to need some new clothes."

"We'll see how things go first, shall we." Orion wasn't going to commit to any expenditure he didn't have to. If he had his way, he'd be wearing his work gear before too long. "Did you mention my fiancé wants to travel to Monce?"

John nodded. "Yes sir. He plans to stay there for three days and two nights so the royal family there can meet his new husband."

"Hmm. I wonder if I can convince the crown prince to make a short detour between Monce and Scythe." Orion pulled his large map of the Northern Quadrants out from under some other papers. "Monce and Scythe are along Tyrion's back borders. It's only a day's ride out of our way to call on the mines, if my fiancé was amenable. Or I could suggest he go on without me from Monce and wait for me in Scythe. I can't see why he'd object to me doing that."

"I think it might be prudent for you to explain to the crown prince what you're doing first, don't you, sir? Who knows. He might be interested."

Orion met John's eyes squarely. "Do you really think he will be, after what you've heard about him among the staff since he arrived?"

John dithered for so long, Orion wasn't sure he was going to answer, but then he said, "He might change once he's married."

"And pigs might develop wings and fly one day, but we won't hold our breath waiting for that to happen." There was a sharp knock at the door and Orion nodded toward it. "That will be Onyx. Go and let him in, then make a quick trip to the markets for those waistcoats. By the time you're done, I'll be a married man, and well…we'll see what happens after that."

"Yes, sir." John bowed and hurried to the door, letting Onyx in and slipping out into the hallway closing the door behind him.

"You're looking smart." Onyx was wearing the dark blue robes favored by the royal family. Orion's were the same color. The king had decided that it was too tedious to walk his son down the aisle, so he and the queen would be waiting on a special stage set up for them, giving them a good view of the ceremony. Onyx would stand with him.

"You're looking busy." Onyx indicated the mess on Orion's desk. "Is there anything I can do?"

Shaking his head, Orion gathered the papers, including the map, putting them into a leather travel case. "I've left instructions for Ryan," he patted the envelope on the desk. "I've told him to send a message to me directly if there are any issues. John tells me my fiancé is planning to show me off at Carntan, Monce, and Scythe before we get to Faast. I'm hopeful I can get a chance to call into the mine somewhere along the way, but if not, I'll have to arrange for a trip after we've settled in Faast. Maybe. Who knows. In case you haven't guessed, I'm winging things here."

"I wish you didn't have to go through any of this at all." Onyx shook his head. "I sat next to your intended at dinner last night, and honestly all the man talked about was himself. There was no mention of you, or any questions about you… You'd think he'd show some interest in the man he decided he was going to marry."

"What can you do? What can either one of us do for that matter?" Coming out from behind his desk, Orion hugged his brother hard. "It might not be a bad thing, Vincent being self-absorbed, I mean. He might not even notice if I'm not there, and that could be handy if I'm needed at the mine."

"Don't count on it," Onyx warned hugging him back. "That man loves an audience. He's going to expect his husband to be the most attentive of all."

"Then maybe he should've discussed things with me before he decided to win me in a card game." Inhaling sharply, Orion let out his breath slowly as he heard the bells chime. "Let's get this done. I promise I won't bring disrepute to you or Tyrion. All you have to do is make sure Father doesn't do that all by himself."

"That's a full-time job in itself." Onyx sighed. "Get your robe and boots on. The last thing we want is to be late."