I don't love her

What if an opportunity comes to you for which you've waited for twenty years? Will you kick it away or accept it? 

Sullivan Blackwood, the illegitimate Prince of Ryuxan Kingdom, similarly longed for a chance to alter his destiny. Being the son of a courtesan he was always questioned about his identity. He wished to be treated as equal to others, but the people never recognized him. Even the King hated him. 

Sullivan had never imagined that a duke's daughter would ever ask to marry her and claimed to be in love with her.

As the bigger opportunity presented itself, with Dahlia Ermacora proposing marriage and professing her love for him in front of all, Sullivan couldn't help but wonder about the hidden motives behind her actions. Why would the daughter of a Duke choose him over the Crown Prince?

Duke Preston came to his daughter, reprimanding her for losing her mind. He told Dahlia to apologize to the King and the Crown Prince. 

"Dad…" Dahlia paused as she felt her accent was wrong. "Father, I don't wish to be a wife to the Crown Prince. Also, Prince Sullivan has always been my choice," she stated. 

"If I marry the Crown Prince today, I'll never be able to live in peace and happiness. Forgive me." She lowered her eyes, gulping if she would be given a death sentence for creating such a ruckus. 

The Queen got angry to witness that sight. "Does Dahlia Ermacora know what she is doing? She left the Crown Prince's hand to marry this trash of the kingdom," said Queen Verlina with a frown. "Did Duke Preston and his daughter think low of us?" 

"I apologize on behalf of my daughter, Your Majesty. I have no idea what Dahlia is saying," Preston said as he confusedly glanced at his daughter.

'If I don't do anything, then this mad Queen will punish me,' Dahlia thought in her mind and gazed at the King. She had read in the novel that King Iramo Blackwood would get weak in front of someone's true love. 

Dahlia headed to the King and got on her knees in front of him. "Your Majesty, I apologize for not gathering my courage and telling earlier how much I love Prince Sullivan. I see him as my husband already. It will be against the wish of God if I marry the Crown Prince today," Dahlia humbly said while admitting her mistake of refusing to marry Daedric in front of so many people. 

She recalled the lines of the courtesan, which impressed the King many years ago, for whom he decided to give Sullivan a prince's rank, but with no value. 

"Her Majesty the Queen questioned me why I love Prince Sullivan, who isn't even considered a respectable person in the kingdom. A long time ago, I heard this from someone. Love doesn't need a definition. You can feel it, but you cannot explain it. You know your heart won't beat without the person you love. You'll become a body without a soul and a heart if you are separated from your lover." 

King Iramo's eyes turned big as he heard the exact same words that his late beloved woman told him. He couldn't help but melt at those words. 

"How dare you speak of love to His Majesty? The King must not only punish this insolent woman and her family but also Prince Sullivan, who orchestrated such humiliation for our son," Queen Verlina demanded of the King.

As gossip swirled among the guests, Dahlia pondered if her life would fade away without ever having done anything for Sullivan.

"Let Dahlia wed Sullivan," King Iramo declared, stunning everyone present. They had never imagined the King would so readily agree to a marriage between the daughter of the kingdom's highest-ranking official and the illegitimate Prince.

"Do you also love her?" King Iramo gazed at Sullivan. 

Dahlia looked at Sullivan and quickly wore a smile on her lips. 

"I don't love her," Sullivan said with a plain expression on his face. 

Dahlia's jaw dropped down as she didn't anticipate this kind of response from him. She felt the gazes of all the people on her. She also knew some were laughing at her.

"However, I will marry Miss Dahlia. She proposed to me and I cannot let her go unmarried from here," Sullivan stated while looking at Dahlia. He approached her and extended his hand at her. 

Dahlia grabbed his hand and she was pulled up. He smiled and walked to the wedding altar with Dahlia.

Preston tried stopping his daughter, but she didn't listen to him. The King asked everyone to take their seats and witness Sullivan and Dahlia's marriage. 

Crown Prince Daedric observed Dahlia intently as Sullivan instructed him to step down from the altar. Respecting the King's decree for the marriage, Daedric complied silently.

"Begin!" Sullivan instructed the priest to commence the wedding rites. The wedding rings were brought forth, and as they reached for them, Sullivan placed the ring on Dahlia's finger first, followed by Dahlia returning the gesture.

The claps resounded in the hall, which definitely sounded half-hearted. 

"I, Sullivan Blackwood, take you, Dahlia Ermacora, to be my wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life." Sullivan repeated the vow after the priest while peering into Dahlia's eyes. 

The priest turned to Dahlia and asked her to repeat behind him. 

"I, Dahlia Ermacora, take you, Prince Sullivan Blackwood, to be my husband. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life until death do us apart." Dahlia smiled at him as she repeated the vow on her behalf. 

"I pronounce you both as husband and wife. The groom may kiss his bride," the priest said with a tiny smile on his lips. 

'A kiss? I never had my first kiss. But I'm happy that Sullivan will be my first kiss,' thought Dahlia while shying. 

He cupped her cheeks, bringing her out of her thoughts. Leaning close to her ear, "You made a mistake, Dahlia. You will die in the end because I have my selfish motives." Sullivan whispered in her ear. 

She narrowly gazed at him when he kissed her cheek. She pulled Sullivan by his collar and kissed him right on the lips, causing him to widen his eyes. 

Sullivan was puzzled thinking since when Dahlia became such a bold person. In his eyes, she was graceful and shy. But the woman in front of her wasn't the same Dahlia he had observed for so many years.