It was King Shawn, the drop-dead handsome king of Australia. The King was renowned for his wealth, power, and influence, making him one of the most eligible bachelors in the world. Her heart fluttered as she watched him speak with eloquence and grace and somehow, she forgot all about Tristan. She couldn't help but be drawn in by his charisma and commanding presence.
”He's truly mesmerizing." Catherine thought to herself.
She found herself admiring King Shawn's chiseled features, his piercing blue eyes, and the air of authority that surrounded him. She envisioned a world where she could stand by King Shawn's side, a queen who would be cherished and adored. It was a fantasy that momentarily allowed her to escape the harsh reality of her own heartbreak.
“If only... If only life were like a fairytale." Catherine said smiling wistfully.
She knew deep down that finding love with a powerful king was nothing more than a distant dream. But for a brief moment, Catherine indulged in the fantasy, finding solace in the idea before quickly snapping out of her thoughts. “That is an impossible dream.”
She turned her attention to Zowie, her 4-year-old orange tabby cat, who had now fallen asleep beside her. Catherine gently stroked the fur on the back of her cat, feeling comforted by the rhythmic rise and fall of her breathing. Four years ago, she’d found this little fluffy cat crying helplessly for its momma at the park. Catherine decided to take it home and the rest was history.
She remembered when her old childhood dog, also named Zowie, was poisoned to death by non-other than Evelyn and her other step sisters. Catherine had gotten into a fistfight with the girls afterward but she was eventually outnumbered and severely beaten.
When the elders of their family summoned the girls to explain the situation, they accused her poor dog of destroying the girls' room cabinet. Meanwhile, the real culprit was Evelyn. It was all a setup by her to get rid of the one thing that was precious to Catherine after her mum died. She was only 11 years old back then and her mum had gifted her the dog on her birthday, barely a month before she passed away in a terrible Thanksgiving day accident.
Every time she was bullied by her wicked step-siblings or cousins, Catherine always found comfort with her little puppy but then she eventually lost it as well. From their childhood to this moment Evelyn has never stopped tormenting her.
Amidst the hurt and betrayal she was presently facing, memories of her painful childhood kept crawling back, further adding to her misery. She felt like she was never meant to be happy in this life.
Her family, the Jones Clan, was ranked 16th in the hierarchy of the wealthiest and most powerful Kindred families in Australia. All her grandparents, great-grandparents, uncles, aunties, cousins, nieces, nephews, and parents all leave in the same huge villa. It was all so suffocating for Catherine and she always felt like everyone was out to get her, especially since her mother passed away.
And that’s why at the age of 16, she decided to study abroad in America as an excuse to only come back home whenever she wanted. It wasn’t that hard for her to achieve a scholarship to study in the US due to her intelligence.
However, her problems were far from over. Even though she already bagged the scholarship, there were still tons of things she needed to pay for on her own as well as her feeding expenses. Back then, when she first arrived to start school at NYU, she struggled to eat even 2 square meals a day despite being from a rich family.
It was all thanks to her own Father, Magnus Jones who convinced the elders of the Jones Family not to give her a dime because she refused to study in Australia like his other children and even ran off on her own to the USA. Of course, that happened because he was manipulated by her stepmother, Elissa who hated the fact that Catherine was going away and her daughters would no longer have someone to bully each day.
Despite her two best friends, Vanessa and Steven trying their best to support her, she still encountered difficulties. If it wasn’t for her father’s younger cousin, Desmond who started secretly sending her some money, Catherine would have dropped out at the beginning.
She hated living in the Jones villa as she felt as if everyone was always out to get her, especially since her mum was gone and no longer there to protect and defend her and Austin, her little brother. After all, people will always want to pick on the weak ones who were defenseless to feed their egos.
She felt bitter about how she was treated back home especially when she was younger and that was one of the reasons she kept thriving to be a strong independent woman. The truth is, she'd been so hopeful Tristan would propose to her soon and she wouldn't have to go back there after getting married. But right now, that seemed like an impossible dream. Catherine took a deep breath, trying to shake off the hurtful memories of her past as she stared blankly at the wall.
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The next few months flew by in a whirlwind of hurt and depression for Catherine. Evelyn kept tormenting her by sending her pictures of herself with Tristan through anonymous texts. Catherine couldn’t believe her petty her evil stepsister was. The betrayal was a struggle to forget but she knew she had to move on from those two devils, who were now engaged.
Just as she kept thinking about it, the song ‘Traitor’ by Olivia Rodrigo came on from her speakers as if trying to elevate her pain. She always felt teary whenever she listens to this song which always reminds her of the past, and NO, she didn’t feel like shedding a single tear over that jerk again.
She couldn't believe that they had the audacity to get engaged after what they did to her. And Evelyn never missed an opportunity to flaunt her engagement ring in front of her. The engagement ring that was supposed to be hers.
What hurt Catherine more was the whole family never cared about her feelings, instead, they were all rooting for them to get married. It was as if she didn't matter to anyone.
Suddenly, the buzzing sound of her phone jolted her from her deep thoughts.
It was Steven, her queer bestie since childhood who called. At this moment, she just wanted to be alone and think about her miserable life but she just couldn't ignore the call. "Hi Steve, what’s up?" “You won’t believe what I just heard on the news.” “What?” Catherine asked, her interest piqued. “All single ladies aged 20-28 from prominent families were asked to upload their data and basic information on the royal screening website. King Shawn is about to choose a queen.” Steven said unleashing a screech filled with excitement. ”Really?” Catherine replied flatly. “Yes really. And why is your voice so down? Aren't you excited?” Steven asked curiously. The whole world was excited about this. King Shawn, every woman's dream man, and the world's most powerful king would be choosing a bride. He had finally given in to the people’s demands to have a queen. “I'm fine, Steve. I just caught a really bad cold,” Catherine lied through her teeth. Steven knew her so well and could sense th
It’s been seven long and hectic years since Shawn Ivan Larson ascended the throne of Australia at the age of twenty-one following the untimely death of his father, the former king Larson, in a plane crash. Although he admits internally that he was a proud and arrogant man, who looked down on almost everyone he met, that still doesn’t justify the hate he was receiving as the king in Australia. As if it wasn’t already bad enough, he was now being thrown in the same sentence with the likes of war-hungry leaders such as Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-Un as tyrants of the present generation. Running both the country’s internal and external affairs has not been an easy task for him to handle alone at all. He was always moody and had a terrible frown on his face almost every second of the day, due to the extreme stress that comes with being the supreme ruler of one of the most successful and famous nations on the planet. He had a lot on his plate and his days were filled with back-to-back mee
He still remembered the last words Rory had said to him before running straight into the arms of Arthur for hugs right in front of him. “I’m sorry Shawnie, I do love you but I have to think of my future and my family’s future first. Being with Arthur means I’ll become the crowned princess soon enough and help my family achieve greater heights in the empire. Please don’t take it to heart”. Shawn couldn't help but feel betrayed by Rory's decision. He had always thought that their love was strong enough to overcome any obstacle, but it seemed that the lure of power and prestige had been too much for her to resist. Despite the pain he felt, Shawn tried to understand Rory's position and the difficult choices she had to make. However, he couldn't help but wonder if she would have made the same decision if she truly loved him. To him, true love was nonexistent in this world. He hated hearing the word “LOVE”. Over the years, Shawn has tried his possible best to move on, but the pain and bet
He had never heard of her before but he knew about the Jones family of Melbourne. Although their family’s wealth, fame, and influence had been dwindling over the years, they were still current among the top 20 kindred clans in Australia, which was good enough, to begin with. Besides, he didn’t ask them to screen the candidates base on who has the best family background but on the caliber of the lady. He didn't want to choose a queen due to her family's wealth or status, but rather on her character and suitability for the role. “Bring me her profile information,” he commanded in his usual authoritative manner. One of the officials quickly scrambled forward and politely handed him a document containing her profile and a picture. Firstly, he took a quick glance at her photo and was stunned. “......”. ‘Not bad,’ he thought inwardly while his face remained grim and expressionless. The woman can be said to be strikingly gorgeous at first glimpse. She had a pair of pretty and bright brown
As the days went by, the people of Australia and worldwide observers waited with bated breath for the announcement of the chosen bride. The highborn young ladies who had applied were all anxious and nervous, hoping that they had what it takes to win the heart of the king and become the queen. Things were getting heated on the internet as the D-Day for the announcement of the chosen queen, February 21st drew closer.As Catherine scrolled through her social media feed, she noticed something peculiar. A lot of young ladies, who had applied to be the queen, were posting their profiles and pictures from the Royal Seal website for all to see on their social media accounts. Obviously, they were trying to get the attention of the king and the people. This caused a frenzy online and people started comparing who had the best background, beauty, education, character, and so on.Catherine couldn't help but feel a little disgusted by the way some of them were flaunting themselves. It seemed as th
It was a cool Saturday morning, Catherine woke up early as usual, feeling refreshed and ready to start her day. She got out of bed and stretched, letting out a long yawn as she walked over to her balcony. The sun was just starting to rise, casting a beautiful orange glow over the city of New York. She couldn't help but feel a sense of peace and contentment as she gazed out and admired the amazing view.She quickly started her usual weekend cleanup and made sure her whole place was extremely neat and cozy. She then made sandwiches for a quick breakfast and fed her pet some canned sardines before heading to the bathroom for a soak in her bathtub.Afterward, she proceeded to her closet to select her outfit for the day. She was going to stay indoors and rest so she opted for simple house wear. Catherine loved white headbands so much that she had about thirteen of them. She put on a sexy sleeveless white top to match her white headband and white flip-flop slippers. And then a tight blue Je
Catherine shifted her gaze back to the man standing tall at about 6ft3 meters in front of her. Only after hearing the voice of Sir Bradley did she realize this wasn’t an illusion at all, the man even knew her last name. She quickly fell to her knees and bowed her head towards the king’s feet in a state of panic.“Greetings to the Great King of the golden lands, master of the endless skies and boundless seas. Blessed with the strength of the sun and Southern Cross, ruler of the vast and bountiful lands of Australia, beloved by all who dwell beneath your banner, I am your loyal subject”, Catherine said in one breath as her head remained bowed. She heaved a small sign of relief thanking God she still remembered the “King’s Official Salutations” which was taught in middle school.“Rise”, she finally heard his deep and authoritative voice. She raised her head to look at him while still kneeling as if pinned to the ground. She could not find the strength to stand back up as he had commanded
"Are you always this nervous around royalty?" he asked with a hint of amusement in his voice. Catherine's heart skipped a beat at the question and bit her lower lip feeling embarrassed. She felt her cheeks heat up as she fumbled for a response."N-no, your grace. I'm just..... really surprised by your visit," she managed to say, trying to keep her voice steady.The king chuckled. "I know. You look like you've seen a ghost. But you look quite adorable when you're flustered", he said, making Catherine look up at him in surprise and her cheeks blushed even more. She couldn't believe that the king was actually flirting with her. ‘I thought they said he was a cold and unexpressive person with lifeless eyes’, she thought, yet he seemed to be the total opposite of that right now. She had never felt so tense and yet so exhilarated at the same time.She tried to steady her raging thoughts and asked, "Ehmm, your majesty, may I know the reason for your visit?"The king's expression finally turne