Topic: Confessions and Promises

Dru Granger

Date: 2014-05-25 10:02 EST
The arrival of the sunny spring-to-summer weather usually meant one ritual of the Granger estate being played through all over Maple Grove. From one gate to the other, in almost every house ....the pools were cleaned and refilled. For a few days, there was a distinct smell of chlorine hanging over the Grove, but that dissipated soon enough, leaving just the fresh glee of having somewhere to cool off not so far away.

With Tommy and Lena now living at King's Cove, Dru had Willow Manor all to herself, and had partaken on this particular chore with startling enthusiasm. Her reason for this had been rather difficult to get out of her until now, though. What it basically boiled down to was that she was feeling waves of pre-emptive shyness about spending time on the beach when the sea warmed enough to surf. Thus, she had formulated a plan to get some of that shyness out of the way.

Which was why Josh had been recruited to help her, and why he was currently talking to the back door of Willow Manor, through which Dru's voice floated. "You have to promise not to laugh," she informed him worriedly, despite the fact that he had already seen everything there was to see, even if he hadn't had full access yet.

"Why would I laugh' Have I ever laughed at you, Princess?" he called back from where he stood just outside the back door to Willow Manor. "Don't answer that!" he added quickly with a chuckle, though he couldn't really ever remember having laughed at her yet. With her, perhaps, but never at her. He was too much of a gentleman for that, in any case.

She peeped around the door, blinking in the sunshine that illuminated the hidden golden in her brown hair. "And there's really no one else out there?" she asked nervously. "Only you? Because I think I might die of embarrassment if anyone but you saw me just now." She bit her lip, looking every inch the young woman and not at all the self-assured princess - what he could see of her, anyway.

He chuckled again, wondering what it was that was making her so nervous. "Yes, Dru, it's just me!" He turned glanced over each shoulder, first left, then right, just to make sure. "No one's around. Not even your brother's dog! What's this all about anyway?"

"Well, I have to get used to this somehow, don't I?" she demanded, inching out into sight. Quite what "this" was wasn't on display; all he could see of her was loose long hair, her pink robe, and soft shoes on her bare feet. She paused before she reached him, blushing already. "You're supposed to be in the pool, Joshua," she told him, drawling his name with teasing affection to try and hide some of her nerves.

"If you're worried about what you look like under that robe, I've seen it all already. Most of it, anyway. And might I remind you that jumping into the pool isn't going to stop me from seeing you!" He wasn't sure what this was all about, but it certainly seemed important to her. "Look," he started, tugging his shirt off and tossing it onto a chair. "I'm getting into the water, okay?"

"There's a difference between, you know, what we do, and being virtually undressed on a public beach," Dru said with a shy shrug. She shook her head. "I know I'm making a fuss, I just need to get used to wearing this thing again. And I trust you to help me do that."

He chuckled again, a little amused by her shyness, especially around him when he'd already seen her naked more than once. "You were only half dressed in Joseph on stage for everyone to see and you're afraid of being seen on a public beach in a swimsuit?" He wasn't sure if that was the issue or not, but that seemed to be what she was alluding to. "Dru, everyone wears a swimsuit on the beach. You will only look weird if you're not wearing one!"

"Yes, but on stage, I'm not me," she attempted to defend her frankly ridiculous attack of shy nerves when it came to such a simple little thing. "On the beach, I'm just me, and here I'm not even the princess, I'm just Dru. And yes, I am a little bit scared of other people seeing me this exposed. So there." She stuck her tongue out at him, toeing out of her shoes as she approached the edge of the pool.

"What are you going to do if your sister decides she wants you to wear a swimsuit to her wedding?" Josh pointed out, referring to the upcoming nuptials between Tommy and Lena that were to take place on the beach at King's Cove in the not too distant future. It was unlikely to happen, but then, he wouldn't put it past Tommy and Lena. It was kind of a given that there would be some swimming and surfing going on at some point during the celebration.

"Take her drink away and wait for her to sober up before asking her again?" she suggested sweetly. There was a brief pause as she drew in a deep breath, and abruptly she was on the move, shucking out of her robe and diving into the pool as quickly as she possibly could. It was ludicrous to be embarrassed of this around Josh, but incredibly, she was.

He laughed again, both at her remark and at the dive she took into the pool, especially since he was still standing on the deck, but only for a moment. He dove in after her, making a splash, as comfortable in the water as he was on land.

Bobbing up to the surface, Dru swept her hair back out of her face, watching Josh scoot through the water as she backtracked until her feet touched the bottom. As soon as her feet did touch the bottom, however, her arms went around herself shyly. "For goodness' sake, Drusilla, it is just a bikini," she berated herself audibly. "Your own uncle has seen you in one, this is nothing."

Had Josh been one of those boys who liked to torment girls, he might have teased her relentlessly or even tried to untie her bikini top or steal her bottoms, but Josh was not nor had ever been that kind of boy. He'd been raised a duke's son, and though a streak of mischief might make itself known now and then, for the most part, he was a perfect gentlemen, especially when it came to Dru. He surfaced a short distance away from her and pushed his hair back from his face, smiling reassuringly at her. "You don't have to be so shy of me, Dru. I don't bite."

Dru Granger

Date: 2014-05-25 10:03 EST
Amazingly, that was precisely the right thing for him to have said. She laughed aloud at his reassuring comment, one arm uncurling from about herself to flick a little water in his direction. "Yes, you do," she reminded him. "Lena nearly teased me to tears when she spotted your calling card last month."

"That's not what I meant!" he said, with another laugh. He seemed in good spirits for some reason, and why not' For the first time in his life, he was in love, and not just with anyone, but the Princess Royale, no less. "Would you like to return the favor?" he asked, eyes sparkling with mischief, as he moved slowly closer. "A couple of girls at school have been hitting on me. Do you want to claim your stake and mark me as yours?"

She blushed, that charming innocence still not entirely worn away by their ongoing experiments with one another, but still raising a smile that was almost as mischievous as his. "Are you asking me to give you a hickey, Lord Joshua?" she asked him teasingly, holding her ground as he came closer, despite her shyness. She had no reason to fear him, after all. The worst he would do was dunk her.

"Only if you want to, Princess Drusilla," he replied as he came closer and closer still, until she was practically cornered. "Unless you want someone else competing for my favor," he teased further. They both knew she had no competition. Other girls had tried to get his attention and had failed, but it was still fun to tease her about it.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked up at him, but there was no anger or coolness in her expression. He was doing a masterful job of distracting her from what she was - or wasn't - wearing. "I could be persuaded," she mused, seeming not to mind that he had cut off all escape routes but the one that went through him. "What do I get, for making it perfectly clear that you're mine?"

"You get me, of course!" he replied with an impish grin, but before she could answer or try to get away even do what it was he was asking her to do, he was dunking her under the water, just long enough to get her wet.

She came back up spluttering and laughing, flailing to get her hands onto the top of his head and dunk him in return for that unexpected soaking. "You cheated!" she accused him fondly when he came back up, pinching his nose playfully just because she could. In the water, at least, they were as equal physically as they were ever going to get.

He was laughing again - not at her, but with her - glad she was laughing with him and seemed to have forgotten, at least temporarily, her own insecurities and self-consciousness. He batted at her nose, smirking back at her. "I didn't know there were rules, Princess!"

"I'm a woman, I reserve the right to change the rules at a moment's notice," she informed him cheekily, sweeping in close to nip the end of his nose with a grin before ducking under the water to swim by him, deliberately pinching his rear end while she was down there. Josh always brought out her lighter side, the part of her that truly didn't care so long as she was happy.

If she was hoping to distract him, she succeeded. He was expecting a kiss, not a nip at his nose followed by a pinch of his rear and it showed from the look on his face, but she had already disappeared under the water to make her escape. He turned, diving in after her to follow her through the water, playfully tickling one of her feet.

His usually quiet and reserved princess let out a loud shriek of laughter at the tickling, breaking the surface of the water as she turned to try and fend him off. It was one of her better kept secrets, how very ticklish she was, but Josh had got it out of her within days of their first meeting. "Don't do that!" she squealed, laughing.

"Oh, I see how it is. You can pinch my *ss, but I can't tickle your foot!" he accused, surfacing beside her and rewarding her for her squeal with a splash of water.

"I don't use your weaknesses against you," she protested, but she was laughing even at herself as they played in the water. Perhaps this hadn't been the whole idea of getting in the pool to begin with, but at least she seemed to have forgotten her embarrassment. "Besides, you have a wonderful rear end. Why shouldn't I mark it as mine now and then?"

"That's because I don't have any weaknesses," he replied with a smug grin. Of course, that wasn't true at all, and they both knew it, but teasing her was too much fun, and he was glad she was laughing again. "You want to give me a hickey on my *ss?" he asked with a smirk, knowing that wasn't what she'd meant, but unable to resist teasing her about it.

"Only if you promise only I will ever get to see it there," Dru told him, grinning as she slid her arms about his neck, nose to nose with Josh in the lapping water. "Tell me more about these weaknesses that you don't have. I am intrigued."

"There's not much point to having a hickey where no one can see it, is there" How am I supposed to prove that I'm taken" I can't exactly go around flashing my *ss at people." He seemed to mellow a little as her arms found their way around his neck and his went around her waist. "How can I tell you about them if I don't have any?" he pointed out, forehead to forehead and nose to nose with her in the water.

She giggled softly, the wrap of his arms about her bare waist still enough to send a gentle flush over her skin as she smiled at him, stroking her fingertips up and down between his shoulder-blades. "If you tried to flash your *ss at people, I would have to have you fitted for a very special kind of chastity belt, I think," she threatened him teasingly.

"Do you doubt my heart belongs to you?" he asked, turning serious, despite her teasing. It wasn't official yet. He hadn't been officially added to the list of men who could court her, but it didn't matter. He was confident that all that would come in time. For now, he was happy just to be with her and to enjoy every moment they had together. "I love you, Dru, and I don't care who knows it," he told her quietly, almost as if he was afraid to say it.

Dru Granger

Date: 2014-05-25 10:03 EST
Gentle fingers teased in and out of his wet hair as they lingered together in the water, her mischief falling away in the face of that very serious declaration. Dru didn't know how she had managed to be so lucky as to fall for a boy who loved her, much less that he was of the proper rank and origin to be suitable for her future. She only knew that she would be inconsolable without Josh now. "I love you, too," she promised him. "And I have no doubts, no regrets. For as long as you want me, I'm yours."

"I'm yours, too. Let's just hope Parliament and your uncle agrees." A small frown crossed his face at the mention of that, but it faded quickly. He didn't want to linger on that particular worry very long. He was a duke's son, in his own right. There was no reason to believe his name wouldn't be on the list. "There's something I've been meaning to give you," he said, almost shyly.

Dru had every reason to believe that her uncle would never dare to say no, especially now he knew there was love on both sides. Parliament might rage a little if Josh's name wasn't on their list, but they could not stop her from marrying him. She smiled at his sudden shyness, brushing the tip of her nose to his. "Whatever it is, I hope you haven't been carrying it in your swimming trunks all this time."

"No, there's only one thing in my swim trunks, and I think you've seen that already," he remarked with a smile, though he was still looking just a little shy and nervous, which was very unlike him. "You don't have to worry about how you look in a swimsuit, Dru. You look..." He wasn't sure what word he was looking for. Awesome" Amazing" Pretty' Beautiful" She was all of those things and more. She was everything he had ever wanted.

"That doesn't mean I wouldn't be happy to see it again," she pointed out with a soft smile, reluctant to move away from him even as he looked her over, searching for the word he wanted to use. She blushed again, the water suddenly feeling cool against her skin. "I don't care how I look, so long as you like what you see. I'm just trying to be confident."

"You have nothing to be afraid or ashamed of, Dru. You look wonderful!" There. Wonderful. It might not be the best word to describe her, but he didn't think he was very good at giving people compliments. He realized this must be a very different way of life for her from what she was used to back home, being constantly in the public eye, everything she said and did scrutinized not only by those in power, but also by the press and the public, always having to live up to certain expectations and ideals. He was a little more fortunate in that he was a second son, but he knew that as soon as his name was publicly linked to hers, all that would change.

She smiled, touched by his compliment, his confidence in her, wondering if she would ever be able to tell him how much his confidence bolstered her own. She never seemed to be able to find the right words when she tried. Drawing close, she kissed him, lips moving softly over his before she drew back, an impish smirk playing on her face. "Are you sure you're not hiding something down there?" As if to check, one hand descended beneath the level of the water and into his swim trunks as she giggled.

He returned her kiss, just as softly and gently as hers, before she drew back, smirking in amusement when he felt her hand fumbling around in his trunks. "Careful or you might start something you can't finish, Princess," he warned, eyes dancing playfully.

"That isn't an answer," she laughed, quite deliberately feeling around rather thoroughly in the confines of his trunks before withdrawing her hand with a wicked little glint in her eye. Just three months ago, she would not have dreamed of even making sustained eye contact with him. He was definitely a good influence on her.

"You already know what I'm hiding in there, and that isn't what I meant!" he replied back with a chuckle of his own. She was getting bolder with him lately, but he thought that was a good thing. She had nothing to fear from him, and he wanted her to just be herself with him. Just three months ago, he would not have dreamed of any of this, and yet here he was, falling in love with the Princess of Tirisano.

Still with that decidedly wicked giggle on her lips, she pushed away from him, flipping over in the water to stretch her limbs in a leisurely stroke toward the far side of the pool, finally comfortable enough to test the swimsuit's ability to stay in place.

Josh grumbled a little to himself as she swam away from him, having to adjust his trunks, as well as what was hidden beneath them, due to her feeling around in there. His trunks didn't do much to hide his body's reaction to her fumbling around, which only frustrated him further, but thankfully he was well over his waist in water.

Finding the shallow end, Dru chose to sit comfortably on one of the shallow steps that led down into the water, grinning at him across the surface of the pool. "Have I somehow adversely affected your hydro-dynamics, my lord?" she asked wickedly, daring him to do something about her bold teasing.

"My what?" he asked, pushing off the side of the pool and gliding through the water toward her. He was tempted to return the favor, but it had been hard enough to get her out her in a swimsuit to begin with. He didn't think she was quite ready for skinny dipping just yet. "Why are you so worried about what people are going to think about you in swimsuit anyway?"

Her smile faded, seeing another bad explanation from her point of view looming in her immediate future. Fidgeting, she sat on her hands, watching him coming closer as she tried to put together an explanation that wouldn't sound ridiculous. "It isn't really about what people think," she ventured. "It's about what I tell myself people are thinking. It's more about ....I'm so used to people looking at me and criticizing, always finding something to poke fun at or insult or belittle, that I do all that myself now. I look at my reflection, and I tell myself that I look ridiculous, or that I look like a slut, or that I'm trying too hard, or not trying hard enough. I've heard it all, and now it is in my head. So I suppose you could say this is about inner demons."

Dru Granger

Date: 2014-05-25 10:04 EST
He furrowed his brows at her as he trod water, keeping his head above water, not far from where she sat at the edge of the pool. He hadn't expected that explanation from her. He wasn't surprised that she'd been scrutinized all her life, but he hadn't heard the part about her being criticized or even insulted, and yet, he knew that living under a microscope all the time might make her feel that way. Not for the first time, he found himself realizing how lucky he was, not to mention how his life might change - would change - once his name was linked with his. "You can't listen to what people say, Dru. They don't matter. They don't really know you, and they're just jealous."

"Well, the rational side of my brain knows that," she shrugged, feeling sorry she'd been so honest. He had to be rethinking the possibility of spending his life with her now she'd shared how far into her head every gossip column in Tirisano had gotten. "It can get a little overwhelmed by the irrational side, though."

On the contrary, it would take a lot more than that to push him away from her. In fact, her admission only made him want to be with her all the more, not only so that he could protect her, but also so that he could give her help her to be more self-confident. He swam toward her, emerging from the water to sit down beside her on the pool steps and reach for her hand. "There are always going to be people who are going to criticize you, Dru. That's what happens when you're in the public eye. You have to believe in yourself enough not to doubt yourself or let them think they're right." He rubbed a thumb against the back of her hand, a thought coming to mind, though he wasn't sure how helpful it might be. "Have you talked to Jon about any of this?" He thought if anyone in her family might understand it would be someone else who lived their life in the public eye, like she did.

Her fingers curled to his, comforted by the fact that her confession had brought him toward her, not running for the nearest exit. She knew he was still struggling with the ramifications of his decision, hoping every day that he wasn't going to wake up and decide she was more trouble than she was worth. His question caught her a little off-guard. Jon was the logical person to talk to, but it had never occurred to her. She shook her head with a rueful smile. "No," she admitted. "I've never talked to anyone about it. My mom always said it was just a part of being who we are, and I had to find my own way to deal with it. So I fake it. I don't let anyone see that it hurts. I thought it was working."

He gently turned her face toward him so that he could meet her gaze and know she was listening to him. "You can't let what other people say bother you, Dru, especially when you know in your heart that they're wrong. Whatever they say, whatever they're going to say, doesn't matter. All that matters is what you feel in your heart, and if you let them get to you, you'll always doubt yourself. You'll always worry you're doing the wrong thing, even when you know it's the right thing. You have to ignore them somehow and listen to those who you know won't steer you wrong. People like your uncle. People who care about you and know who you really are. Do you understand what I mean?"

"People like you." Yes, she understood, though it truly was a case of easier said than done. But she felt better, having shared a little of why she could seem so confident and yet need a dress rehearsal for wearing a bikini in public. She leaned into his side, brushing her lips against his shoulder. "You really don't deserve to be saddled with an insecure freak like me. But I'm glad you're here. I don't know where I'd be without you now."

"You're not a freak," Josh disagreed with a small frown, looking over at her as she leaned against his shoulder. "You've been through a lot, Dru. More than most people endure in a lifetime." He brushed a kiss against her forehead, adoring and protective. "Wait here," he instructed as he untangled his fingers from hers and moved to his feet.

She blinked as he slipped away from her, looking up as he pulled himself soggily to his feet. "All right," she agreed, a little nervous of being left on her own out here, undressed as she was, but trusting him not to leave her there too long. "Don't take too long, or I'll start dunking your clothes."

"I'm not going anywhere, Dru!" he replied with a light chuckle, as he moved out of the water and over to where they'd left their towels and t-shirts and sunscreen piled on a table, only a few feet away. Apparently, he had snuck something outside with him, but whatever it was, he hadn't been hiding it in his trunks.

She echoed his chuckle, twisting to watch him as he moved away to rummage through the pile of bits and pieces they'd left on the table. Her feet swished through the water, enjoying the juxtaposition of the warm sun on her back and the cool water between her toes. "You're being very mysterious again," she accused him affectionately.

"Just the way you like me," he countered from the table as he rummaged around, a flash of panic a moment, before he finally found what it was he was looking for. His back to her, she couldn't quite see what it was he was doing, and when he turned back to join her, it was unclear what he'd been doing there. The only hint was the fact that one fist was closed, as if his fingers were wrapped around something small.

"Maybe I should order you to explain," Dru mused, though they both knew she would never dream of pulling rank on anyone. She looked down at her feet in the pool, sweeping her toes back and forth with childlike enthusiasm for the simple distraction. "But I'll be good and patient, instead."

Only a few minutes passed before he returned to her side, retaking his place on the pool stairs beside her. "Dru," he started, that curled up fist held behind his back. "I've been thinking about doing this for a while." He appeared thoughtful or perhaps a little worried, his own insecurities showing through.

The solemnity on his face and in his bearing brought a shade of tension into her body, proving what he already knew about her - that his little princess always braced for the very worst that could possibly happen, no matter how happy or trusting she was. "Thinking about what?" she asked, somehow managing to keep that tension out of her voice as her eyes leveled themselves to his, hoping he wasn't going to drag this out too long.

He wasn't breaking up with her, if that was what she was worried about - just the opposite, in fact. He was hoping to make a deeper commitment to her and show her just how serious he was about their relationship, even if Parliament hadn't approved of their courtship, as yet. "About us," he replied. "I think I can give you something more meaningful than a hickey to show we belong together."

Dru Granger

Date: 2014-05-25 10:05 EST
That tension drained away, a softer look covering her face as she relaxed from her automatic defense. "I think they might notice if I get pregnant," she commented with a half-smile, wanting him to relax as well.

Josh chuckled, wondering where that had come from. There was only one answer. "I think you've been spending too much time with your sister-in-law," he told her with a smirk. Or her sister, though Lena wasn't quite as cheeky as Vicki. He reached for her left hand suddenly, opening his closed fist to slide what felt like a circle of something metallic onto her ring finger. "It isn't much, but maybe this will prove to you how serious I am about being with you."

"Josh, I don't need you to prove -" She cut herself off, startled to feel a ring being gently settled onto her finger. Her eyes dropped to her hand, to find a beautifully crafted heart set with a single tiny diamond nestled by her knuckle. It wasn't an engagement ring, but it was a very clear, definite sign that a promise had been made and accepted. "Josh, this is beautiful," she heard herself murmur. "But I haven't got anything for you. I will, I'll find you something."

The butterflies in his stomach calmed a little when she looked at the ring and seemed to like it. He though he knew her well enough to know she wouldn't have rejected it outright, but he wasn't sure if she'd like it either or want to accept it before his got the seal of approval from her uncle and Parliament. It didn't hurt his case that her uncle and his father were friends, though his elder brother would have been the more logical choice for a possible consort. "I don't need anything, Princess, so long as I have you," he said, leaning close to touch a soft kiss to her lips.

She smiled, curling her hand to his cheek as she answered his kiss with her own, diamond glinting in the sunlight from her finger. "I love you, Josh," she whispered, for his ears only despite how private they already were. "I truly honestly love you more than I love anyone."

"I love you, too, Dru," he replied, just as quietly, as if it was a secret that only the two of them shared. He touched another kiss to her lips, his thumb gently rubbing the back of her hand as he held it in hers. The ring wasn't very fancy or expensive, but he thought it fit her in its simplicity and beauty and in symbolizing his love and devotion. Though he might be young, he knew in his heart that there was no one else for him and there never would be.

As they kissed, she drew herself over until she straddled his thighs, more than happy to kiss him until the end of time, but for a little imp of mischief cackling a cheeky idea into her mind's ear. She was smiling as she drew back just a little, the only warning Josh got at all before Dru tightened her grip and threw herself backwards into the water, dragging him with her.

Dragged along with her, he drew a quick breath, his lips still locked to hers as they tumbled back into the water together. There was no one around to watch them, but even if there was, all they would have seen was a young couple in the first throes of love, sharing a few kisses and whispered words of love.

And that was all they were, at this moment in time. Just Josh and Dru, young lovers, still easing their way through those first months of discovery with the first person to really touch them in their lives. The time would come sooner than they thought for Lord Joshua and Princess Drusilla, but for now, they could just be themselves. Young and in love, and learning each other inside and out, so that when that day finally came, no one would be able to tear them apart.

((These two are so sweet together. It's always fun playing them! Many thanks to Josh's player for being awesome!))