Page 24 of Viktor at Sea

“So, you’re not denying it then?”

“I’ve never been one to lie.” I shrugged and grinned when his face turned a deep shade of red at the realisation that he was no longer the only man in Jorvik who intended to propose to Astrid. “So, I must confirm that yes, therumouryou’ve heard is correct. I do plan to propose to Astrid Skau.”

“Why?”

“Probably the same reason as you,” I snickered, taking great pleasure in the way I was able to get under his skin so easily.

“How do you know about that?”

“Daewon and Katarina told me.” My tone was nonchalant.

“You’re telling me that they randomly sought you out and told you that I asked for their blessing for Astrid’s hand in marriage?”

“It didn’t happen exactly like that. I went to ask for Katarina and Daewon’s blessing. They gave it to me, but they also mentioned that you had spoken to them about the same thing earlier that day.” A little while lie didn’t hurt anyone.

His lips curled into a smug smirk. “So, I got there before you did.”

“That doesn’t mean anything.”

“But I think it does,” he argued. “Since I asked for their blessing first, I should be allowed to propose to Astrid first. If she rejects my proposal, then you’re free to try, but not a moment before.”

“As if I’m going to go along with that,” I snorted. “I’ll propose to her when I want to propose to her, and there’s nothing you can say or do to stop me.”

“And there’s nothing you can do to stop me from proposing to her before you.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“I don’t understand why you want to propose to Astrid anyway,” Crosby groaned, resembling a petulant child. “Don’t the two of you hate each other?”

“Hate is a very strong word,” I grinned even though on the inside, I was fuming. “And you know what they say. There’s a very thin line before love and hate.”

“So, what? Now you love her?” He chuckled bitterly, clearly finding the notion to be absurd.

“Yes.” I nodded, my chest instinctively puffing out. “And I’ve loved her for a very long time now. Far longer than you have.”

“You can’t possibly know that,” Crosby denied, turning his nose up at me. “I’ve also loved her for a very long time.”

“Then what’s your excuse for not asking her parents for their blessing earlier?”

“What do you mean?” He asked, confused.

“I’ve been away for three months on a sea mission, working hard for the people of Jorvik. I couldn’t possibly have asked for their blessing or her hand in marriage while I was away at sea, so I have an excuse. But what’s your excuse?”

“It doesn’t matter when I asked for her parent’s permission,” he glared at me. “And for your information, I waited until I was ready to ask. I didn’t want to rush things.”

“Well, that’s just too bad then, isn’t it?”

“What’s your excuse? Why didn’t you ask for their permission before you left?”

“Because I didn’t want to propose to her and then disappear for several months,” I state the obvious.

His scowl deepened. “I bet you don’t really love her.”

“Your opinion doesn’t concern me. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ve got to get back to work.”

Crosby looked absolutely enraged with how I had dismissed him like that with so much nonchalance. His lips parted to reply, but when I made a shooing gesture with my hands, he ground his teeth and stormed off the ship like a petulant child who didn’t get their way.

Good riddance!

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