Wedding Preparation

The wedding preparations happened so fast my head almost spun. I had barely finished swallowing my breakfast when half a dozen royal servants swarmed into my quarters like a flock of nervous birds.

They carried heavy wooden armoires, silk dresses, silver jewelry, and enough perfume to choke a dragon.

One of the older maids placed a white lace gown onto my bed, while two younger ones began fussing over my hair with hot combs and ribbons.

I looked at the mountain of lace and silk before letting out a loud sigh. "Do I really have to wear all of this heavy garbage?"

The head maid bowed her head, giving me a tight, practiced smile. "It is traditional for royal brides of Averaine, My Lady. His Highness expects everything to be proper."

"I know that," I muttered, leaning back against the wooden chair. "I was right there yesterday when I agreed to marry the man."

She quickly lowered her eyes, trying to hide her shock at my bluntness. I stood up, walked over to the bed, and ran my fingers over the expensive embroidery. The dress was undeniably stunning, but I wasn't exactly jumping for joy about the ceremony itself.

It wasn't even because of Rowan. Well… maybe a little bit because of him. That man's ridiculous answer from yesterday was still driving me crazy. When I had leaned down and asked him right in front of his court if he could fuck me, I had expected him to blush, stutter, or order his guards to drag me away. Instead, he had just looked back at me like I was a minor inconvenience, telling me I would have plenty of time to find out once we were married.

That was definitely not how a weak, helpless human prince was supposed to react to a dark vampire noblewoman.

I tossed the veil back onto the mattress and looked around the room. "Why does everyone in this castle look so damn miserable today?"

The maids instantly froze. The two girls holding my hair combs exchanged terrified glances, holding their breath as if I might turn into a bat and bite their throats out.

I crossed my arms over my chest, narrowing my eyes. "Did somebody die while I was sleeping?"

"N-No, My Lady," the head maid stuttered out quickly.

"Then why do you all look like you're attending an execution instead of a royal wedding?"

One of the younger maids holding a box of silver pins finally opened her big mouth.

"Everyone is just... very nervous about the marriage, My Lady."

"Nervous?" I scoffed. "It's just a wedding, not a bloody siege."

She looked away instantly, her hands trembling so hard the pins rattled in the box. That reaction made my instincts prickle with suspicion. Something was definitely off here.

I leaned right into her face, dropping my arms. "You can tell me, girl. I won't bite."

The poor girl flinched hard, nearly dropping the box onto the floorboards. I grinned, letting my sharp fangs peek past my lips. "Fine. I might bite a little bit, but only if you really start annoying me."

The head maid quickly stepped between us, shielding the trembling girl. "My Lady, please. We must hurry. The court is already gathering in the great hall."

I rolled my eyes at her protective mother-hen act, but I sat back down and allowed them to tighten my laces and pin up my dark hair. But as they worked, the tense silence in the room only grew heavier. Nobody said a word to my face, but I could feel their resentment. They didn't want me here.

And I finally figured out why when the little maid accidentally let her tongue slip while adjusting my pearl necklace.

"We had already tailored all these size measurements for Lady Calista originally…" She froze mid-sentence, her breath catching loudly in her throat.

I slowly turned my head around in the chair, my dark eyes locking straight onto her pale face. "What did you just say?"