The Tyrant's Wife

While he would have loved to bribe her into staying indoors the whole day, he knew how much she had missed her childhood home. She would want to explore, and check out what had changed and what had stayed the same.

Her excitement was contagious. When she grabbed his hand and dragged him out the door, he could only smile and follow suit.

"I can't believe we are here. Do you know who lives in our old house?" She asked, then immediately realized it was a silly question. Desmond had merely scouted the place for their first honeymoon destination.

"I would ask to see all the places you frequented as a child but you were too young to remember much." He remarked, sliding his fingers through hers to interlock them.

She blinked. "I remember some places. Those that I went to on many occasions. Come on, I'll show you to the antique market."

"Antique market?" He wondered whether it was a market where one could find antiques.

"It's not a market where antiques are sold." She chuckled as if reading his mind. "On the contrary, everything there is modern. Used to be, at least. I have no idea how it got its name."

It didn't matter what was sold there, he just wanted to see more of that joyous smile. The market was not far from the bed and breakfast but it took a few twists, mostly because there were buildings where there weren't any years ago, and the streets had changed quite a bit.

When she finally found the right way, she pointed to the market. "There!"

They walked in through the humongous rusty gates and he was awed. While she had claimed it was not a market selling antiques, the first thing he caught sight of was a grandfather clock that looked to be at least a hundred years old. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I guess they sell antiques now." She laughed dryly. "There should be stalls selling street food somewhere. Right there." She pointed when she finally saw one. He held back a laugh, finally understanding why she was so interested in the market. It was about the street food she had missed so much.

She bought hot dogs and gave him one, which he stared at with no intention of eating. She snorted at his reaction. "Come on, try it. I promise, these are the best hot dogs you will ever have anywhere."

He doubted that. It was an open-air food stall, after all. Was she certain…

As if reading his mind, she glared at him. "Don't you dare tell me I can't eat it."

"But you're…"

"Pregnant. I know. Are you going to eat that hotdog or should I grab it for myself?" She threatened, but he was certain she wanted more. He had never seen her eat anything so happily. Eventually, he took a bite and had to admit it was different.

When he asked what made the taste so different, she joked about it being the allure of the street and dragged him to buy something else.

She halted at a stall selling a hundred different types of cookies. "Ms. Crane?"

He glanced at her with a questioning raise of his brow. "Who is that?"

At the same time, the middle-aged woman packing cookies into a box looked over at her. "You know me?"

It was probably not shocking for repeat customers to know her name but she looked as confused as he was by Zaria's tone.

Zaria broke into a smile. "It really is you. It's me, Zaria."

The woman's eyes shifted as she tried to remember her. In the end, she shook her head. "I don't know any Zaria."

"Really, Ms. Crane? Does it only take a few years to forget all about your best friend? You loved me so much you would sneak cookies into my backpack when my dad wasn't looking."

"Little Princess?" The woman's mouth fell in revelation. She shuffled over to their side and pulled Zaria into her arms when the latter nodded. She pulled back, her eyes wide in shock. "You have grown up! Wait. You're even…" she glanced at Zaria's hand and gasped at the rings. "Married! And expecting a baby? Weren't you a little girl just yesterday?"

Zaria laughed at her exaggeration. "That was two decades ago."

Ms. Crane waved a boy over and stuffed the box she had just packed into his hands. "These are for your mother. Which means, they should not end up in your mouth." She chided just as the boy tried to open the box. Sending him off, she grabbed Zaria's hands in disbelief. "It's been so many years. I guess you ended up loving Imperium after all."

She then patted Desmond on the shoulder. "Little Princess didn't want to leave Luxenville all those years ago. Where did you find this handsome fellow, anyway?"

Desmond smiled at her enthusiasm. "She shattered my windscreen with a rock and stole my heart while at it."

"Des!" She blushed at his words while Ms. Crane laughed heartily.

"That sounds a lot like Little Princess. I knew she would grow up to be a firecracker."

"Oh yeah? Tell me all about her as a child." Desmond asked. He had already heard all about embarrassing events from Zaria's childhood from Theodore and Lucy but hearing them from someone else had to be different. And he was right.

"The first time we met, she stole a cookie because her mom wouldn't let her have any. That's why I loved her so much." She paused as if remembering something and smiled awkwardly.

Realizing what she was brushing off, Zaria reassured her. "Don't worry. We found her. They are back together now."

"They are? I knew they would reconcile. Those two were like Romeo and Julliet—except the part where they both die for love."

When she learned that they were newlyweds, Ms. Crane insisted on stuffing them with gifts ranging from couple lockets to an assortment of cookies they could never dream of finishing any time soon. It was a good thing they had a little cookie lover back at home who would be happy to polish everything off.

"You probably have a lot of exploring to do. Check out the old theater on 12th Street. You two will love it." She winked and disappeared behind her stall to tend to a new customer, but not before slipping an address card into Zaria's hands and threatening to kick her ass if Zaria didn't keep in touch.

Since they had the whole day to themselves, they spent it shopping for souvenirs in the market and eventually found an old diner to have their lunch. It was unbelievable but Zaria knew it from her childhood as well. 𝘣𝘦𝘥𝑛𝘰𝘷𝘦𝑙．𝘯𝘦𝘵

It turned out, Luxenville didn't change as fast as Imperium. Most people were satisfied with the lives they were living and did their best to maintain it as it was, so it wasn't shocking when Zaria found certain people familiar.

They even bumped into a boy she could swear went to her school, moments before they saw his dad and she realized it was the dad who had been her classmate.

"Do you want to come back here?" He asked after placing their order. He had seen her expression every time she saw something that had stayed the same for all these years.

She tore her gaze from the dessert menu she was checking out and looked around. She shook her head. "Luxenville might be where I was born but I belong in Imperium. That's where my loved ones are." That, and she loved a little change once in a while.

"If I wanted to come back here and settle down forever, what would your reaction be?" She asked out of curiosity since he had brought it up.

"We would have moved."

He didn't think about it and didn't flinch. She smiled through her sigh. "Oh Des, what did I ever do to deserve you?"

"Whatever I did to deserve you." He pulled her over to gain leverage to kiss her belly. "Both of you, and Rosaly."

______

AN

Loving the honeymoon? Hold tight for another thrilling ride in Volume 2: The Tyrant's Wife. I thought volume 1 would be finished by now but there are still a few chapters left.

While at it, check out my newest book, Falling for the Wicked Boss. But be careful, hold on to your heart or Tristan will steal it with his charm.