Cinderella (but not to much)

Chapter 1

Commencer à écrire votre histoire

                  

In the great Wild West, where land is drier and drier than elsewhere, where the sun is hot and where bandits roam the roads, there is a small town, as there are many in the country; this village, Lead City, was built by Molly Brown; the intelligence of this woman lead her to equip her city with a train station, a saloon, an armory, and so many other things that made Lead City welcome many travelers often wealthy.

Molly Brown owed to her beauty of two husbands. With the first, she had two daughters, Jane and Rachel, and a huge inheritance; the second died a year after the marriage, so she had to adopt his daughter, but more importantly inherited the ownership of a workable gold mine. It was the only benefit she found in this second union, because she hated her stepdaughter, named Alex, as much as she loved the first two she called her "treasures".

Young Alex quickly became the all purpose servant of the family; to protect her she only had Isha, an old Indian friend of her late father. However, Isha was often powerless in front of the cruelties inflicted by Jane, Rachel and Molly. Alex's rebellious tomboy personality sometimes prevented people from noticing her beauty: of medium height, she had black shiny hair, always tied in a pony tail. The light of her huge jet-black eyes was often masked by the wide-brimmed hat which she wore. Her skin had the tanned color of those who spend their free time outdoors. She practiced in secret combat fighting, which gave her a perfect shaped body, with fine but effective muscle tone, highlighted by her tight pants, convenient to mount Isha's horse and a cowboy style shirt.

One day Molly got a letter announcing that a prince was traveling to Lead City. This intelligent woman saw an excellent opportunity to marry one of her two eldest daughters, respectively seventeen and sixteen years old. To carry out her project, Molly organized a grand ball at the saloon and at once ordered Alex to sew stoles, gloves and other accessories for her treasures.

Alex did not care about the arrival of the prince. For her, it only meant one more customer to serve and more boots to clean. Rachel and Jane, however, were excited and spent their time choosing their hats for the evening party, practiced dancing to impress the future guest and tormented Alex who did not sew fast enough.

Next day, late afternoon, the prince arrived by train. Molly, Rachel and Jane were waiting on the platform.  At Molly's order, Alex went to pick up the prince's luggage. Isha, never far from his protégée, was nonchalantly picking cactus flowers few meters away.

Seeing Alex struggling to lift the heavy trunks, the prince leaned toward her.

-You do not need to take my luggage, you know. I can do it alone.

-It's not my decision here, she replied icily.

Did this person believe he was irresistible by being falsely gallant?

-As you want. May I at least know your name?

Exasperated, Alex looked up with the intention to respond harshly, but when her eyes met the cerulean blue ones of the prince, her reproaches could not get out of her throat. She reviewed the muscular body of the newcomer, his slightly disheveled light brown hair, his smile digging a dimple in his right cheek.  She felt a strange turmoil creep within her, accompanied by an irritation she did not understand.

- I ... I ... actually...

- Her name is Alex, interfered Isha.

- Well, Alex, thank you for luggage but I can take care of myself.

He took his luggage and walked toward Molly and her daughters who were waiting a little further away.

When Molly saw the young man carrying his own luggage, she thought that Alex did not welcome him properly, as she sometimes did with customers she did not like. She came to meet the prince.

-Do not worry about it your Highness, Alex will do it.

- No thank you, I told her that I could carry my own bags, replied the prince, politely but firmly.

-Don't be silly, said Molly too abruptly. ALEX !! COME HERE !! She screamed.

Alex sighed and walked over to her step mother with obvious unwillingness.

-You're going to take the Prince's luggage - she gently took the bags from the Prince and violently put them in the arms of Alex - and you carry them to the saloon on foot while we go by carriage, UNDERSTOOD?

Instead of answering Alex set off to the saloon. Once at the saloon, the Prince was waiting for her at the bottom of the grand staircase.

He took her hands when she arrived.

- I'm really sorry for what just happened. Without wanting to bring forward my title in front, I think your mother behaves like that because there is a prince around.

Alex felt again that strange irritation with the newcomer. She replied sharply:

-First of all, she behaves like that all the time with me. Second, she is not my mother but my stepmother. Third, do not you think yourself as irresistible.

The prince seemed taken aback.

- I'm sorry, I...

-Don't bother to respond to that kind of comment, my advice.

Without another look at the prince and his ocean eyes, the girl went upstairs (through the service stairs since she was nothing more than a maid to be hidden from customers) and she entered the room prepared for him.

As usual when facing the reality of unknown wealth, the room took her breath away.  Molly had arranged so perfectly that a prince would feel at home: flowers, desk, huge bed, precious carpets and paintings on the walls. It was obvious she had staked everything hoping to conclude a few days later a happy marriage to Rachel or Jane.