The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

"W-What... do you... think you are doing?" Alicia asked in a shaky voice as she tried to act tough, even though she was anything but that right now, and they both knew it.

How long had he been in the room waiting? Was he that petty that he had left her in the garden only to come to wait for her in her chamber? What should she do? Perhaps she should scream for help so that Tyra, who was waiting outside, would come in to save her? Who knows what Harold would do to her if she screamed? She wouldn't put it past him to snap her neck, and she doubted that Tyra would be able to save her from this mean man.

"What does it look like I'm doing, Milady?" He asked in a mocking tone, but his cold eyes didn't look amused.

"You... are hurting me.." She winced as she looked at the arm he was gripping tightly. Her palm looked very pale and drained of blood.

"Are you okay?" Princess Tyra asked from outside the door, much to Alicia's relief.

"NO!" Alicia cried, happy to finally have a savior, but the happiness didn't last too long when she heard Harold's next words.

"Leave. You didn't hear anything!" Harold said, in a commanding voice, when Tyra tried to speak.

"Uh... o-kay?"

"No! Don't leave, please! Call for help? Report to the King..." Alicia pleaded, but she could tell that Tyra was no longer there.

She looked at Harold, frightened. Seeing that she was left alone at his mercy now, Alicia raised her other hand to touch her arm, which was hurting terribly from his tight grip, but only succeeded in spilling the snacks she was hiding in the sleeve of her dress.

Harold raised an eyebrow when different snacks fell to the ground.

"So you steal now?" He asked.

"Do I look like a thief to you?" She snapped at him, but her face colored in embarrassment as she looked down at the snacks she had picked for Paulina. Although she was angry that they were ruined now, and Paulina wouldn't be able to taste them, she still felt the need to explain herself, so she cleared her throat, "It's not what you think," she said defensively, without meeting his gaze.

"And what do I think?" Harold asked as he looked at her, but his hold on her arm weakened.

Alicia cleared her throat once again, "They're for Paulina. I didn't steal them. They are just leftovers," Alicia said without meeting his gaze, grateful that he was no longer holding on to her arm so tightly.

"How nice of you," he murmured as he abruptly let her go. Immediately he let her go, she moved away from him too quickly and almost fell, but this time instead of watching her fall, he grabbed her waist like it usually happened in the movies and pulled her to himself so that she had to place her hand on his chest to balance herself.

Alicia blinked in surprise as she looked up at him, wide-eyed. She had thought he was going to let her fall, as he had done the last time. She was glad that he caught her. As she looked into his face, it suddenly occurred to her that this was the first time she had looked at his face this closely. He actually looked very handsome, and his lashes were so long and beautiful. She also noticed that his eyes didn't look so angry anymore either. He would have made a good... younger brother.

Harold's gaze lingered on her face for a moment. She was just a mere human. Someone he could crush without any effort. Why was she always so stubborn? Why would she never listen to him? Why did she keep making him angry all the time? If she was someone else, he probably would have forgotten about the person's existence by now because she would have already ceased to exist a long time ago. He believed that the reason he was still tolerating her was because she had helped him in the mountains, even after his wolf scared and hurt her. And maybe another reason was because she had been living in exile. He knew what it felt like to be treated differently from your other siblings.

'DO NOT PITY HER!' His wolf yelled. But when had the two ever agreed on anything?

Different thoughts ran through Alicia's mind as she looked at him. What is going to happen now? Was he going to try to kiss her like it happened in the movies? She almost rolled her eyes at the thought. She was going to slap him hard if he so much as tried it.

Harold couldn't help wondering what was going on in her head when he noticed how her gaze shifted to his lips. Was she planning to...

'EWW!' His wolf exclaimed.

Now he wasn't sure who annoyed him more. His bride or his wolf.

He quickly let go of her and put some distance between them by walking over to her bedroom window, where he stood and looked outside.

Alicia stared at his back with a scowl and briefly contemplated running out of the room, but she wasn't sure if it was necessary anymore. He didn't seem like he was going to hurt her. If he wanted to, he would have done that by now. Instead of running away, she quietly unlocked the door but remained where she stood beside it just in case he changed his mind once again and she needed to run away.

"If you love your life, do not compare me with the king ever again." He warned in a quiet voice, without looking at her.

If he didn't sound so serious, she would probably have told him that if he was half the man the king was, she wouldn't need to compare him to the king in the first place, but she kept her mouth shut and just kept staring at his back. She didn't need anyone to tell her that he was holding back from dealing with her, and the last thing she wanted right now was to give him reason to pounce on her.

Looking at him, she could sense that there was a lot he was not saying, and she didn't need anyone to tell her that something was off about his relationship with the king, especially after observing their interaction earlier. What could the nice king have done to him?

"And do not ever speak to me in that manner again," Harold warned, this time, he turned around to look at her.

About that, she knew that he was right. She shouldn't have spoken to him in that manner, especially in the presence of others. He had his ego to protect. However, it didn't sit well with her that she was 25 years old and this young boy was messing with her. But then, she wasn't in 2020, and this guy was a prince here. A cursed prince, for that matter. She was his bride, and there was a big chance that he could kill her and no one would say a word about it. She needed to be more careful with her words around him.

When he just kept staring at her, she raised a brow and gave him a wary look while rubbing her wrist.

His eyes moved to her wrist. When he noticed the obvious red mark on her wrist and was a little surprised that he had caused it. His eyes lingered on her wrist before he looked up at her face.

Alicia noticed this and drew the sleeve of her dress down to hide the mark. She didn't want him to think that she was weak and easily hurt. Perhaps when he was in a better mood, she would give him a piece of her mind on how he was supposed to treat women with respect... Or maybe not. It seemed like she always seemed to piss him off every time she opened her mouth, and whenever that happened, she would have to hide from him, and she wasn't much interested in the cat and mouse game. Not when she had a more pressing issue to focus on.

He looked at her wrist that was now covered again and began to ask, "Does... it—" He suddenly stopped, frowned, and shook his head.

She gave him a suspicious look. Was that a flash of guilt she saw on his face? Was he going to ask about her wrist? She doubted that. He seemed like the type to not care about anyone, talk more about her... or maybe not? He had cared enough to send someone to give Paulina a healing balm for her neck. That wasn't something that a person who didn't care would do. What did she really know about this man? She believed that she was a good judge of character, but when it came to him, she really couldn't decide whether he was a good or bad person.

"Let's go." He said, making her raise a questioning brow at him.

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" She shook her head. She didn't want to know where he was taking her to, she didn't trust him and was not going to leave here with him. Who knew if he was planning to take her to someplace quiet where he could murder and bury her easily?

"I was not asking." He frowned deeply. This lady was too stubborn and annoying for his liking. In fact, she was everything he didn't like in a lady, not that he liked ladies that much anyway. He wasn't sure he was going to be able to refrain himself for much longer from hurting her.

"Me neither," Alicia insisted stubbornly.

Harold let out a weary sigh as he approached her. Seeing this, Alicia opened the door, ready to bolt, but Harold raised a brow as he approached her, daring her to run.