Stand By Me Darling
Chapter 184: Stingy or Thoughtful?

Chapter 184: Stingy or Thoughtful?

Talia held his hand. She knew he considered Jordan his friend and he wouldn’t want to lose him because of a woman.

" You all with your money and power think you can do anything? You heartless monsters!" Jordan turned to leave and Talia gasped hearing the loud bang of the door.

Talia tried to go after Jordan, but Arthur stopped her.

"Let him be..."

---

"This jewel looks old..."

Arthur’s magnetic voice beside her ear made Talia come out her deep thoughts.

"These laurel leaves seems new and made with latest techniques, but this one seems... Antique," he added and Talia turned to look at the rose shaped jewel that seemed more like a brooch or a locket than a hair accessory.

"How do you know about antique jewellery designing techniques anyways?" Talia placed that jewel on her palm and looked at Arthur.

"Umm..." Arthur smacked his lips in deep thought.

"You bought me an antique ring to propose?" her eyes widened. "Or did you buy a gift for that woman?" her nose scrunched and Arthur flicked her forehead.

"Why would I bother to buy gifts for that woman?"

"Then are you buying me an antique ring?" she tickled his chest with a cute smile and he took a step back.

"Not telling you," he showed her his back. He’s not going to reveal his proposal ring to her now. She needs to be surprised!

"Fred... Fred... Tell me... Do you have the ring with you now?... Show me a picture... Just a glance for a second and then you can hide it..." she pressed against his back and rubbed his chest with her palm trying to make him agree.

"No!" he caught her hand wandering around his chest.

Does she even realise where she is touching and what it does to me?

He looked pathetically at his crotch that was stiff already. Previously when she lied on the bed, she looked so alluring and he almost jumped on her removing the one piece of cloth he is wearing. But then she got up and talked to him about that clingy glue and he lost his mood entirely.

But now...

"Do you even want an antique ring?" he asked. He looked around for antique rings, but then he thought she is not someone who’d wear a ring someone else wore. It would be different if it belonged to her mother or relative, not if it was worn by some unknown person.

And so he designed a ring for her, himself. When he was searching around for the stone for her, he got it in a predestined way. He made a visit to a village in a country which was supported by Jerome Brunton. And just that day, they unearthed a beautiful diamond m. That rough diamond was appraised and said to be worth millions and so he bought it without any regret. After cutting the diamond it was fifteen carats and was faultless in fancy vivid blue colour. It never was in the market as he purchased it directly and for someone like her, whose ring would be watched by the entire world, would there be anything more fitting?

Blue diamonds are exceptionally rare, comprising only around 0.0001% of the world’s diamonds. Of this tiny fraction, only about 1% are classified as Fancy Vivid. And for him to get that stone for his ’Blue’ that day... What are the odds of that? If it is not ’predestined’ means what else is?

She is his Queen and she deserves the best.

Talia frowned seeing Arthur determined not to tell her. " Now I know... You liar Fred! You didn’t get me any ring! That’s why you’re not showing me!" she tried to change her tactics.

"Ha... Ha... Nice try... I won’t fall for it, dear Iris!" he pinched her cheek and she pushed him away stopping him from stealing a kiss.

Stingy Fred!

"Ah! I forgot about you..." she looked at the jewel in her hand and tried to figure out if it really is some antique. "Could this part of the set that belonged to Queen Mary of Saville?" her eyes widened.

She picked up her phone and switched it on and there were almost a hundred missed calls and messages and she ignored it all and looked at the articles released in Rosandale. Of course the media would have reported about everything she wore.

And she was not disappointed.

"It does belong to Queen Mary! Fred! Whoa!"

Talia was too stunned to speak and Arthur just rolled his eyes. Sure the jewel is valuable, but it’s not like she hasn’t seen valuables before. What’s with this expression?

"I’m going to return it to Mr. Ed. I cannot have it lying around...My goodness! " Talia walked towards the door and Arthur was flabbergasted.

Here he is, making plans for the night and here she is running away with a little jewel.

"Wait! They gave it to you and..."

"Fred, how could they give something like this to me? Are they even sure if I’m from the Royal family? They couldn’t have decided just because of the colour on my eyes, could they?"

Arthur was stunned and knew this one has lost her mind out of surprise and running around like a headless chicken again. He decided to use her absent-mindedness for his benefit.

" Of course they would have done DNA testing. Why are you doubting your ancestry now?" he spoke casually and held her shoulders and stopped her.

"What’s so special about this anyway?" he asked and his hands were already looking for the zipper in her dress.

"This belonged to Queen Mary, Fred... The Queen Mary! She was the first one who ascended the throne after The Stonewell Charter was signed..."

"Stonewell Charter? What’s that?" Arthur asked after he found the zipper buried in the dress.

"How can you not know that?" Talia turned to look at Fred and he gave an awkward smile. Of course he knew. Everyone knows what the Stonewell Charter means.

"I... forgot..." he grinned ear to ear and turned her and hugged her from the back. "Tell me about it," he missed her cheek and looked at the Jewel in her hand she was holding like a hot potato.

"It enabled the firstborn of the Rosandale Royal take the throne, regardless of gender. It also changed the laws that denied females inheritance from their father and gave equal rights in inheritance. King James II signed the Charter since his only male heir was very hedonistic and he determined him unfit for the Thorne. But the court insisted on giving the title of ’Crown Prince’ to him regardless since he is the male heir and it is the tradition. And so King James II signed this charter and made his firstborn daughter the ’Crown Princess’ .Princess Mary was then married to a rich merchant who was not a noble.... "

Talia was seriously explaining and Arthur successfully unzipped her without making her suspicious and the thousand hooks that were attached.

Whey is there layers of clothes in a single dress? The outer layer is made of some material closed with a zipper and a hook and there is an inner layer made of silk that has like a thousand hooks. No wonder it takes hours for her to get dressed.

"... was a wedding gift from her husband Lord Albert..."

He turned her back and Talia was still seriously explaining.

Arthur nodded his head as if he was listening. But in his mind, he was thinking, ’All I have to do is pull the sleeves down and the dress will drop to the floor!’

Looking at her eyes that looked mesmerising as they were glistening with excitement, he bent and kissed her.

"Keep that on the table," he grabbed the jewel from her hand and placed it on the coffee table. Making sure the door is locked and the curtains closed, he picked her up and walked to the bathroom.

"Let go, Fred. Let me hand it over to my stylist who gave it to me..." she struggled to get out of his grip and so he let her down.

"Plop !" he said and used his fingers to push the sleeves away from her shoulder and that lace dress plopped to the floor.

Talia gasped and covered her chest with both of her hands. She really didn’t know how her dress fell like that. It took her a moment for her to realise what Arthur has done.

"You nasty-" she was about to raise her hand to hit him, but realised that she is undressed and stopped herself. Her entire face, ears and even neck turned red and gritting her teeth, she glared at Arthur who was having a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

He looked like a hunter eyeing his prey.

"You’re not wearing a bra," he said as he walked around her. His gait was so leisurely as if he was not worried that his prey would escape. "That’s pretty scandalous, isn’t it?"

"Why is it scandalous?" Talia tried to bend down and pull the dress up, but was stopped by Arthur.

He was holding one of her hand tightly and Talia was covering her shame with her one hand. Arthur’s burning gaze was fixed on her making her warm and shudder at the same time. The

Her heart was beating out of her chest. The entire room was filled with warm lighting. This is the first time, she’d be naked in front of Fred with this bright lighting.

"The dress has boning and.... I don’t have big boobs anyway," she tried to compose herself and spoke and facing his burning gaze, she felt her voice getting lower and lower and she ended up speaking like a mosquito.

"You don’t? Let me see."

He tried to hold her other hand and Talia knew she can’t hold him back.

"What do you want Fred?" she asked, trying to be commanding but she was ashamed as her voice became a shrill squeak as she spoke.

"I want you to do what you said you were doing." his lips curled to a playful smirk and the corners of his eyes twinkled with excitement.

"What I said..."

Talia had to think hard to realise what he meant.

Ah! The phone call?

Her entire face turned red as of blood would seep out any moment from the pores and she bit her lips not knowing how she should answer him.