Poppy's POV:

I felt numb. All the words that was coming from the family table sounded blurry. I, Petunia Ashland was going to get married to some prince I didn't even know. This was how it was in this world, women were nothing but possessions or property, while men were considered smart and resourceful. I was no ordinary woman though, both figuratively and literally. Figuratively, I was the only daughter of the most wealthy, resourceful and most importantly, the most respected family in London, England. Literally speaking, I was a smart girl, I was innovative and always considered a great mind for business among women. Yes that's right, among women. I was smart enough to join the business world, but a as woman, my chances were low. Like I said, women were only treated like possessions. Like an object that was put away only to be used, or a chess piece that was played in this game of politics and war. I wasn't weak or meek. I was humble, self-esteemed, self-confident and self-conscious. Furthermore, I didn't stand for foolishness, nor did I wish to played like chess piece. But as a woman, I didn't have a voice or say in anything. I was raised to be quiet, silent and obedient. I was to obey everything men demanded of me. My brothers, Peter, Patrick and Paul were treated the opposite way. They had everything they ever needed or wanted, while I only got what I needed. There were four of us as the intermediate children of the Ashland family. Peter was the oldest (28), Patrick was the second oldest (26), Paul was the third oldest(25) and I, Petunia was the youngest (21). My brothers were smart, but not smart enough, at least that's I thought. My mother, Paula Ashland was the lady of the house. She was the kindest and most loving woman you could ever meet. My father, Washington Ashland was calculative and cunning. He didn't care about his children or should I say child. He adored my brothers but disliked me because I was a woman. He only saw me as a tool he could use to gain more power. I was used to it, my father would never see me as anything but a chess piece. Anyway, it was Monday night, and and we were having a family dinner like usual. My parents and brothers were discussing my marriage and how it would bring more benefits to our family and the company. My mother was concerned for me, mainly because she knew what it felt like to married to somebody you didn't love or even know. She and my father were married due to an alliance being formed. I didn't like this arrangement at all, but I had no say in the matter. Usually I would argue, but my father shut me down on this one. So here I was, going to get married to someone I didn't even know. It was the Crown Prince of England, but that didn't make me excited. Instead, it made me feel anxious, the more powerful a man was, the more arrogant he turned out to be. I was wondering about all this when a voice shook me out of my trance.

" Petunia, are you alright?"

It was my mother.

" Petunia, are you alright?" my mother asked, snapping me out of my wondering. I looked at her and smiled faintly.

" I'm alright Mother." I replied.

" Are you sure?".

"Yes Mother."

My mother looked at me with concern. I could tell she was worried about me, she probably knew what was going on in my mind. I didn't blame her though, if I was her, I would probably be worried about my daughter too. Suddenly I heard the annoying voices of my brothers.

" Maybe she's daydreaming about her husband to be." my brother Patrick said with a chuckle.

" Yeah, she probably can't wait to see her hubby." my other brother Paul teased.

I hated when they teased me.

" Enough." My oldest brother Peter suddenly said.

He scolded my brothers for teasing me and smiled at me. My brothers threw him a dirty look, but he didn't pay any attention to them. I was grateful to him and smiled back. Out of all the men in my family, my older brother Peter was the only one who truly cared and doted on me. He didn't tease me, nor did he think or treated me like I was worthless. He treated me like I was a princess and was very fond of me. Not only that, but he also treated our mother well, or to be more correct, my mother. My mother wasn't Peter's mother. My brothers Patrick and Paul were the only biological sons of my mother, and I was the only daughter. I didn't know much about Peter's mother, except that my father ended their relationship when he got engaged to my mother. You would've thought that was only fair, but that wasn't the case. Knowing my father, he probably dumped the poor woman after realizing that my mother could bring a lot more benefit to their marriage. I really didn't know how Peter got to be born when his mother and my father got engaged. But I'm glad I got to know and be around him, if I didn't, I would have suffered a great deal. My brother Peter sliced a big piece of browned stewed chicken and put it on my plate.

"You need to eat more, so you can impress your soon-to-be-husband." He said.

I sighed. I took the meat and chewed it. That's right, even Peter couldn't help me. He was firmly against this arranged marriage and even told my father that I was not some object that could be used at anytime. But my father couldn't say no to power. He would sell his own daughter for his own political affairs and not have a single care in the world. His greedy desire had no end. I had begged Peter to convince my father to cancel this arranged marriage as Peter was the most favored son of all my brothers. But in the end, he failed and he could only comfort me. Not that I mind, I knew my brother could only do that much. Besides, he had other things to think about, like becoming the CEO of Ashland Reality Company Limited ( ARCL for short). It was one of the biggest and most advanced company in the world. My father was currently the CEO,, but it was only a matter of time before he passed down the company to Peter. Anyway, I did what Peter said and ate more meat. If I couldn't stop this marriage, the least I could do was prep myself for it both physically and mentally. After a while, we all got up and I kissed my mother and Peter goodnight. I headed to my room because I just needed to be alone.

Peter's POV:

I sighed. Well to be more accurate, I sighed in frustration. I was angry, angry at my father. I couldn't believe he would just sell his own daughter for his own selfish and greedy desires. Furthermore, I could tell my little sister was scared. She had asked me to convince our father to cancel the arranged marriage, but I had failed. Not that it was my fault though, my father was a cunning fox. If he saw an opportunity to gain more power, he would definitely jump at it. My father's lust for power had always disgusted me. I remember when I was just five years old, I heard my mother screaming. I ran to their room and saw my mother crying, tears pouring down her face like rain on very rainy day. She yelled at my father.

"You! ,How could you leave me for another woman!! And what about our son!!?".

She cried hysterically, and my father just stood there, looking at her coldly. He looked annoyed and there was not a trace of guilt on his face. I ran back to my room and cried. Several minutes later, I heard my mother leaving. She opened my door and hugged me.

" Peter, I will be back soon. I will come back and take you with me. Don't worry, I will never forget you."

Those words were uttered by my mother. She hugged and kissed me, then she left. I knew my mother wanted to take me, but I couldn't go with her of course, I was a boy after all, an heir. A few weeks after that, my father got married to Paula Couture, my stepmother. She was kind to me and didn't treat me like I was a pest. Likewise, I treated her with respect and love as if she were my own mother. We had gone through some amazing milestones such as when Petunia was born. I didn't hate my stepmother, because later on, I found out that she didn't exactly want to be married to my father. She was forced to and had to be in a marriage she didn't want. I sighed again and looked out at the starry sky. I was on the balcony and I leaned against the railing. I looked down and saw the city bustling with life. I decided that I would talk to this prince and let him know that I would break his head if he dared to treat my sister badly.

Adrian's POV:

I was absolutely livid. I couldn't believe I was getting married to some rich spoiled brat I didn't even know. I just came back from a war that broke out in a small part of London and when I decided that all I would do when I came back was sleep and focus on becoming King, I heard that I would marry the only daughter of the most wealthy and respected family in England. I went to my father immediately and requested that he cancel the marriage, but he wouldn't budge. Normally, my father and I got along quite well, but this was becoming a conflict between us. I didn't want to be married to someone I didn't love but I had no choice. The King's words were law. I thought about my soon-to-be-wife. She was probably excited about this marriage, not that I could blame her. Who wouldn't want to be married to a prince? And not just any prince, but the Crown Prince who would soon be the King of England. I sighed.

"Well, at least now you will experience what sex is like."

I chuckled when I remembered the conversation between my father and I. I sighed again.

" Well, at least now I will know what sex truly feels like."