Chapter Seven

Orion was troubled, but for once it wasn't about the state of Tyrion or the mine project. No. It was Crown Prince Vincent who had, in a few simple phrases and gestures, blown out a number of pre-conceptions Orion had harbored about the man. And he'd only been with him for five minutes.

It had to be said, because Orion was brutally honest with himself, that the man was devastatingly handsome – the type of man who automatically turned heads wherever he went. If someone imagined what the heir to a royal family would look like, it would be Vincent's picture under the description. Admittedly, Orion had not been a fan of the lavender ensemble the man was wearing, but the cut of his clothes was fine and apparently the man underneath was, too. So there was that. Having only ever seen the prince from a distance before, Orion could admit to being intrigued by the man close up.

But clothes did not make the man, at least in Orion's opinion. If he just had Vincent's good looks to contend with, Orion would suffer his way through the luncheon his mother had arranged as his wedding reception before making his excuses. It would've given him time to tick a few more things off his to-do list before Vincent was ready to leave.

But Vincent didn't just rattle off his vows and then start socializing with the numerous society members who were in attendance, as Orion had anticipated he would. No, the man held his hand. He made the crowd bow to Orion – bow to him! Orion had never commanded that type of respect, and even Onyx struggled to do so in social situations where his father was a dominating presence.

Onyx was already fuming at the way the king had behaved during the wedding ceremony. It was one thing to arrange Orion's marriage over a game of cards – a losing hand no less - but to basically hijack the ceremony and pay no attention to the seriousness of the vow exchange was intolerably bad behavior, unless it was being done by the King of Tyrion.

But now Orion was seated at the long family table, preparing to suffer through the luncheon, already wishing it was over. Vincent was seated on one side of him, his man Morgan next to Vincent on the other side. Onyx was on Orion's other side with his wife, Evangaline, beside him, something Orion was grateful for. His brother and sister-in-law provided a buffer between him and his parents.

His father immediately started dominating the discussion around the table in an overly loud voice suggesting he was already well past his liquor limit. Orion was toying with his food and almost missed it when Vincent leaned in and whispered, "I feel I owe you an apology."

Peering into eyes which were so blue it was as if they were enhanced, Orion frowned. "I'm sorry, sir. Are you regretting our marriage already? Why would you need to apologize to me for anything?"

"We're married now. I've already proclaimed to your whole court that you are now my equal in every way. Please call me Vincent, or Vince, or babe, or whatever other term of endearment you might prefer to use for a significant person in your life."

Vincent did have a devastating smile and very straight teeth. Orion's mouth tilted up at the edges in reply. "I don't have a history of significant others, Vincent , but I appreciate the sentiment. That doesn't explain why you feel the need to apologize."

Vincent glanced over his shoulder and then back at Orion. "Being brutally blunt, and you'll notice that's something I am as a rule, if I'd known your father was going to be so intolerably rude at what is supposed to be your big day, I would've suggested we held the wedding in Faast…and his invitation would've gotten lost in the mail."

"That's not something you need to apologize for. The king is best described as…a personality." Honestly, Orion couldn't think of an adequate word that would still allow him to be honest. "I'm surprised you never noticed in the numerous games of cards you played with him and his friends." Then he winced. The issue of card games was something he would likely struggle with for a while, given he was now married because of one game he hadn't even had a hand in.

What was surprising was that Vincent seemed to notice his discomfort. "Ah, yes. The card games. A different environment entirely, as I am sure you would agree. I promise we will discuss my behavior concerning that time when we can enjoy some privacy. You should know, this marriage wasn't a whim of mine decided over a glass of whiskey. However…"

Vincent was diverted as someone called his name and turned around in his seat. A couple had come around the table and were lingering by the prince's shoulder. Orion knew they were fairly high up among the social elite of Tyrion, although he'd never had any interactions with them. He fiddled with a bit of lettuce, and then pushed his plate aside, reaching for his wine glass. Orion wasn't the type to overdo his liquor intake – he only had to look at his father to swear off it for life – but he had learned a half a glass of wine made him look sociable and helped take the edge off his nerves.

"I honestly didn't know you were in the market for a spouse," the female side of the couple gushed, her fingers resting on Vincent's arm. "You're such a dark horse. There are going to be so many people devastated to hear you've tied yourself down with the one person."

The one insignificant prince who wouldn't know a good time if it bit him, you mean. Orion's slowly let out a long breath.

"I'm both honored and pleased my crown prince consort agreed to join his life with mine," Vincent said smoothly.

"The crown prince is not the type of man to let a little thing like a piece of paper and a few vows stop his numerous activities." The man was using that voice that suggested he and likely Vincent as well, were sharing an inside joke. "That's why wedding contracts are all signed well in advance of any ceremony. Isn't that right, sire? So that both people know what to expect from each other going forward. Personally, I'm more interested in what benefits you felt your relationship with Tyrion will mean to the society families here. The king hasn't been very forthcoming about that. Are you increasing trade? Or…?"

"Excuse me?" Vincent pushed back his chair and stood up. "Do you seriously expect me to continue a conversation with you, after you've basically just said that you expect me to be unfaithful to the man I married not half an hour ago?" Orion noticed Morgan had stood up, too. "I demand an apology."

"Of course, it's much too soon to discuss such matters, even in jest." The woman laughed nervously. "You have to excuse my husband. This wedding was such a surprise, and honestly there is no one here who could even work out why you were marrying at all. You've always enjoyed the company of so many close companions , so you can understand why we'd be curious."

"It wasn't idle curiosity. It was you being rude to the extreme." Orion really didn't need to listen to any more of the conversation, especially when his father hadn't even bothered to notice and was leaning his elbows on the table half asleep. He stood up, and moved to the other side of the couple.

"As a newly married man the last thing I needed to be reminded of was my husband's constant close companions , and yet you saw fit to not only remark on them and their apparent heartbreak, but to suggest that practice of keeping companions will continue. You could be right. I wouldn't know. I guess time will tell. But you wanted to know how my husband came to marry me, so I'll tell you. It was because your king had the losing hand in a card game. The marriage contract was part of the wager. Shocking, I know. Now, if you'll excuse me. This conversation has given me a headache."

Ignoring the king and queen completely – Orion really didn't want to think of them as his parents at that moment – he left the great hall, moving at pace to get back to his suite as quickly as possible. He sighed with relief seeing John wasn't there, although his bags were packed and were waiting with a large trunk by the door.

Moving through into his bedroom, Orion tugged off his robe. John had left a change of clothes on the bed for him. He immediately felt better in his more familiar garb of a dark shirt that went with the pants he was already wearing. Sinking down on the edge of the bed, Orion rubbed his face with his hands as his brain went on a merry dance without him, pinging from one point to another with no fixed purpose.

You knew Vincent was always paired with one person or another in the society gossip pages.

He's always had partners of all genders and never hidden that.

Society families in this country behave the way they do because of the example the king sets for them.

Did my father even notice my leaving? Orion shook his head at that one. The children of the Tyrion royal family learned to be self-sufficient from an early age as their parents spent far too much time coping with each other to ever worry about them.

He signed the marriage contract – he even wrote it. He being Vincent, because the king was not known for his policy decisions or his ability to read a contract. Or the pictures on a card face apparently.

The issue was that Orion really wasn't sure what he should do. He refused to go back to the farce of the wedding reception. At least having the first dance was off the table – Tyrion royal families didn't dance at lunch times. His father would likely drink until he came close to falling off his chair, which everyone would find ‘oh, so, amusing', and Onyx and Peter would come up with an "urgent matter" that required the king's attention so they could get him to bed for his afternoon nap.

My bags are packed. I should just head out to the mine, and my husband can continue his itinerary without me. Which would be a shame, in a way. Orion could admit that. From the small amount of time he'd spent with Vincent, the crown prince had proven he could be an interesting person to get to know. And I totally wrecked that possibility by bringing up the king's losing hand at cards. Oh well.

A loud banging on his door had him looking up as John came running into his bedroom, his face red and his hair askew. "Sir, thank goodness you're here and changed already. We have to go, now. The footmen are gathering your belongings and taking them downstairs."

"My goodness, man. Take a breath." Orion stood, looking at his valet in concern. "What's happened?"

"Your husband…" John rested his hands on his knees as he panted, before straightening again. "Your husband publicly called out the king on his rude behavior at the wedding and King Oscar has banned the man from his court. Your brother is working to get the king to his rooms, but in the meantime he asked if I could let you know as at least twenty people heard the king order Crown Prince Vincent to leave, so it might be an idea to do so for now."

"At the wedding reception? What on earth…? I should find Onyx…"

But John was shaking his head. "Your brother said he would be in touch later, but Crown Prince…Crown Prince Vincent sent word he would be eternally grateful if you could accompany him as his husband. Our crown prince supported his request."

Orion looked around his room. He could hear the men moving his bags and trunk in the outer area. "It looks like my immediate decisions have been made for me. Grab a drink, John, and take the time to wash your face and fix your hair. It sounds like we're traveling this afternoon."