LOGINChapter Sixty-Seven~Ariee~For a second, everything inside me went quiet.Then it shattered.I stood there, staring at the closed door like if I looked hard enough, reality would rearrange itself into something less ugly. My chest felt strange— tight and empty at the same time. The laughter inside continued, soft and playful, and every sound felt like someone pressing bruises I didn’t know I still had. My fingers curled against my dress. I had spent the entire walk imagining stupid things. Imagining him looking at me and smiling. Imagining him saying I looked beautiful. Imagining him taking one look at me and asking me on a date. God. I felt ridiculous. I remembered standing in another room, another time, dressed up and hopeful, only to watch someone I loved choose another woman right in front of me. Back then, I told myself I would never let myself become that girl again. Yet here I was. Again. Waiting outside a man's door while another woman laughed inside.My throat burned. I
Chapter Sixty-Six~Ariee~“Is there a particular reason you are insisting I see the king tonight?” I asked Leah. The three of us—me, Leah and Lady Seraphine—had just returned fromm shopping. Despite my protests, Leah got me some of the most expensive wears. Even the casual ones she said I was supposed to wear around the palace didn’t seem so casual. If Fiona saw me in them, she would choke me with questions until I eventually spilled the beans and when I do, I would certainly get an earful. “Have you see yourself?” Leah exclaimed, pushing me infornt of the mirror like I was just plain stupid. “Look at you!”My eyes darted to the mirror like I didn’t already know what I looked like. I had lost a little weight from running around for Fiona all the time but my curves were still glaring. I was in a single strap pink dress to match the colourful makeup on my face. It looked so good that even if this was the umpteenth time of seeing myself in the mirror, I was still amazed. “If the ki
Chapter Sixty-Five~Ariee~Several minutes later, my heart was still pounding. Several questions ran through my mind but I couldn't produce a single answer for any of them. Most importantly, I desperately wanted to know how the hell she knew I was into the king. “What do you mean?” I asked and she chuckled. “Come on, there's no need to be shy. It's okay to a little greedy once in a while,” she winked. There was nothing funny about that. This woman was either stalking me or she had eyes everywhere in the palace. I made the mistake of underestimating her. “So tell me Ariee. What will it be?” She asked again. I couldn't answer. I knew having the king was a pipe dream so picking Fiona shouldn't be hard. Yet, the what ifs kept me silent. My mind was racing with possibilities I have never even considered before. “Don't be in such a rush, Leah. Give her some time to think,” Lady Seraphine came to my rescue. I gaped at her makeup. It was blue themed to match her hair and outfit. I was
Chapter Sixty-Four~Ariee~Inhale. Exhale.I got ready to knock when the door opened on it's own. Lady Seraphina stood before and I staggered back in shock, taking in her appearance. Her hair… was blue!I pinched myself, refusing to believe my eyes for a second but all I felt was pain and the hair was still the same. Straightened. Light blue. And pretty much the same colour as her dress. “What is it? You look like you've seen a ghost,” she snickered, making way for me to come in. “Leah is inside. Fix that face, okay?”I nodded quickly. Inside her room was what I would describe as every girl’s dream room. Fiona hadn’t done anything to her space, so I didn’t even realize redecorating the room was an option for the candidates. Soft curtains draped over the windows, allowing golden sunlight to spill into the room. Fresh flowers sat in crystal vases. Plush rugs covered the floor, and the walls were decorated with paintings of oceans and skies. Everything felt warm. Lived in.It felt
Chapter Sixty-three ~Fiona~ “We need to do something about that woman, Alpha. She knows we are sleeping together and is threatening to expose me,” I said impatiently. Alpha Damon didn’t look even remotely worried. “Would you like some lemon tea?” He asked instead, like he hadn’t heard a word of everything I just said. He didn’t wait for my response and ordered his servants to pour me tea. I waited for a full minute, just to see if he would say anything but he just picked up his mug to sip his tea. My foot was practically tapping impatiently under the table. “Won’t you say anything?” I asked. His eyes flickered to me. “And what are you hoping to hear?” “That you will do something about her, ofcourse! We made a deal that you will help me attend the position of Queen. If she gets me disqualified, this will all be for nothing,” I stated. He took another sip of his tea and my blood boiled. Is he trying to get on my nerves? Because it’s working. I had everything to loose and he
Chapter Sixty-two ~Ariee~“My lady?” I knocked on the door. “It’s time for breakfast.”There was no response from inside. I gave her a few seconds before knocking again. “My lady?” I called again, growing anxious. She was in pain last night and 8 just disappeared on her. What if things got worse in my absence? What if she was calling for me while I was busy confessing my love to a prince who was way out of my league?The conversation from last night replayed in my head. I wasn't expecting him to accept my complicated feelings, but I also didn't expect the response he gave me last night. My heart squeezed tightly at the thought of it. “It might be a little selfish of me,” I started, maintaining eye contact with him. “But I think I like you just as much as I like the King.” Eldren didn't say anything at first. He simply looked at me like he was trying to decipher if I was joking or not. “I know it sounds crazy but…” I was saying when he cut in.“Give it up.”“What?” “Give up on t
Chapter Thirty-Three ~Ariee~ “Congratulations on moving to the next stage of the competition, candidates,” the words blast through the speakers. Thirty-five. That was the number of the women in the room now. I wasn't sure what the judgement for the last set was based on but a lot of women w
Chapter Thirty-Two~Ariee~Bodies. Bodies. Bodies. They were everywhere. Dancing. Colliding. Sweating. They wrapped around the poles at every corner of the room, sliding down and twisting with snake-like movements that completely entrapped me. Most of the candidates were concentrated metres aw
Chapter Thirty-One~Ariee~My face stained red. I momentarily forgot all about the alcohol burning my throat, all I wanted to do was get away from this horny animal. But right as I stood up, he sensed my plan and thick arms locked around my waist, pulling me straight into his arms. My face flame
Chapter Thirty ~Ariee~The party came sooner than I expected. Surprisingly, we weren’t the only candidates present. They invited everyone. At least all the people I knew of. The party itself was every inch as crazy as Eldren described it. At first, I thought he was listing off random things to pi







