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Just a few miles down the road, they stopped.  Neither of them could see where they were.  Suddenly, rough hands grabbed them.  Moonflower had reached for Yoongi’s hand as they rode along in silence nearly an hour before.  He clung to that hand now.  But the jostling of those stronger hands tore her from his grasp.  

“Moonflower!” he gasped.  He couldn’t even reach for her; he was still bound.

“I’m here.  I’m fine.”  Then she grunted as her captor dragged her along.  “Please.  Please let me stay with him,” she begged the cruel man.

His harsh laughter bit into her a moment later.  “Don’t worry, we won’t separate you from him.  In fact, we’ve come here for a ceremony of sorts.”

Ceremony?  What was the man talking about?  Was he drunk?

The other man shoved Yoongi forward.  “Some king,” he sneered.  “It was so easy to overpower you.  To kidnap you.  Your guard must be as weak as a kitten.”

Yoongi had done this.  He had weakened his kingdom by falling in love with a woman and trying to hide her.  He had dismissed all his guards but Taehyung.  What a fool he had been!  Of course, they could easily overpower one guard!

A moment later, his feet hit a step.  The man grabbed ahold of his arm and hauled him upwards.  He climbed up several steps, then the man shoved him from behind, sending him flying to his knees.  His elbows hit the floor, and he winced.

“Must you shove me about while I’m tied up?  I’m hardly any threat to you.  I can’t exactly run you through with a sword when I’m blindfolded and bound.”

“You should be gagged too,” muttered the cretin.

“No.  He needs to be able to speak his vows,” came a third voice.

Yoongi glanced up towards the sound of that voice.  “Vows?  What are you talking about?”

Just then, Moonflower was led over to him.  

“Kneel, girl,” her handler spoke roughly as he encouraged her to fall to her knees before Yoongi.

She gave in gracefully.  “Yoongi?”  

She reached out and touched his chest.  She sighed with relief when she heard his voice.

“I’m here.  Are you all right?”

“Yes.”  

Her fingers crept up his chest to his neck before finally stopping on his face.  She could feel the blindfold tied around his head.  Her fingers messed with the knot.

“Don’t,” came a rough voice behind her.  “We don’t want to hurt you, but if either of you sees us, we’ll have to.”

Her fingers stilled.  She pulled them away from the back of his head and rested them lightly on his chest.

“You love him, don’t you, girl?” came the third man’s voice.  He sneered as he read her expression.

“Please.  Do whatever you want with me.  Just don’t hurt him,” she bravely begged the man.  

She knew her face must reflect her adoration of Yoongi.  There was no use in hiding her feelings.

The man’s eyes raked her.  “Tempting as that offer is, we are here for a different purpose today.  My employer would be quite displeased if I didn’t carry out his instructions faithfully.”  He cleared his throat.  “Welcome, dear king and his beloved, to your wedding.”

She gasped.  Yoongi’s head snapped up.

“What?” he demanded.

“Oh?  They didn’t tell you?  You, King Yoongi, are marrying Moonflower tonight.  We know it’s your deepest desire, so we are helping you to make it happen.”

“You cannot force this girl to marry me.”

“Can’t we now?”  He eyed them both.  “Perhaps you’re right.  We’ll just kill you then,” he responded callously.

In her mind, Moonflower had labeled him the fat one.  It was because of the way his voice echoed in his chest.  Now, in great alarm, she pivoted her head towards him.  Even as she threw herself at Yoongi’s chest.  She wrapped her arms around his shoulders. 

“No!” she shouted, aggrieved.  “Don’t kill him!  I will marry him.  Just please…don’t hurt him!”

The three miscreants grinned at each other.

Yoongi turned his face towards her.  “Moonflower, are you sure?”

“Yes, my love!  Of course, I’m sure,” she sobbed.  “I would never let them hurt you if I had the power to stop it.”

“But they’re forcing you to marry me.”

“They needn’t force me, Yoongi.”  Her voice was a caress.

He stared unseeing at her.  

This blasted blindfold!  

He wanted it off.

“What are you saying, Moonflower?”

“Yoongi, I want you.  I’ve wanted you since the first night we met.  I just couldn’t do that to you.  Saddle you with a blind bride.”

“Moonflower,” his low rumble caressed her ears.  But there was a warning tone to it.  “Don’t.  Don’t you dare put yourself down.  You are worth ten of every other woman I know.  I want to marry you.  I just knew you wouldn’t have me.”

“But not because I don’t want you!” she exclaimed.  “You’ll be ridiculed for marrying me.”

“I don’t care!”

“I’ll weaken your position.  I’ll weaken your influence.  They’ll pity you.”

“Stop arguing.  It doesn’t matter.  You two are getting married.  Whether or not you want to,” the fat one informed them.

“Yes, and we’ve created the perfect bridal suite for you to enjoy tonight.  You won’t be able to escape.  And we won’t let you go home until you’ve consummated your marriage, so don’t think you can fool us.  We all know how to tell when the deed’s been done,” the tall, thin one declared.

His voice sounded like wind passing through a long reed, so Moonflower had pictured him as a tall stick.

Horrified, she cried out, “You’re going to watch us?”

He shook his head, but then he realized that neither of them could see him.  

“No, but we will check for signs.  If we find any indication that you’re lying to us, we won’t hesitate to dispatch both of you into eternity.”

Yoongi felt Moonflower shaking.  She was still embracing him.  He bent to whisper into her ear.

“It’s all right.  Don’t be afraid.  I’m here.”  His deep purr poured into her ears and ran along every nerve in her body.  Suddenly, she couldn’t wait to be alone in that room with him.

“Let’s do it!” she suddenly exclaimed.  “Let’s start the wedding!”

She desperately wanted to get away from these men.  And to be alone with Yoongi.

The three masked men grinned.  “We’ve brought a couple women from the village to witness your wedding.  And the priest,” the tall one announced.

A moment later, Yoongi and Moonflower could hear them ushering the witnesses into the chamber.

“Is this the couple I’m marrying?” asked the priest.  “Goodness!  Why is he tied up?  And blindfolded?  What is this?” he tried to act defiantly, but as he stared into three pairs of cold, hard eyes hidden behind fierce masks, he felt his bravado fading.

“If you value your life, priest, you’ll shut your mouth and perform the ceremony.  Here’s the scroll.  Sign it.  You too.”  He glanced at the washerwomen.

All three signed it without further argument.  Then the priest performed the ceremony.  As he rambled on, Moonflower slid her fingers down Yoongi’s torso until she found his hands.  Still bound.  She clasped them and then drew them towards her face.  She kissed his knuckles gently.  

She was terribly nervous.  In a few minutes, she would be alone in a bedchamber with her heart’s desire.  She was sure Yoongi would be gentle.  Still.  She was anxious.  It was supposed to hurt the first time.  

Then her mind switched gears.  What if they created a baby together tonight?  She wanted to weep with the joy such a thought brought to her heart.  Her reverie was broken by the fat man’s voice again.

“Girl!  Say your vows.”

She began to pronounce them solemnly as she repeated the priest’s words.  She gazed at Yoongi the whole time.  Unseeing.  How strange that Yoongi was blind for their wedding too.  She leaned towards him and poured her heart out before him in her words.  

Then his turn came.  The sweet rumble of his voice filled her ears and her heart as he swore his undying devotion to her.  She felt her eyes filling with tears.  One dropped onto his hand.  He glanced down and then his face lifted towards hers again.