The Arranged Marriage

Chapter 25

I can't believe he saw the scar, and I was trying really hard to hide it. I don't want him to worry, I just wish he would've said something. I also can't believe I forgot about my wings. I haven't used them in the longest time and I don't plan on using them any time soon. They always make me think like I'm my father, and I am not him in anyway. So I decided not to use them when I lost respect for him. I have been sitting in the car for about four minutes now and he hasn't shown up yet. I am about to leave when he steps outside the front door and gets into the car. Without a word I turn on the car and drive off in the direction of the castle.

"Hey, can we talk?" I hear him say beside me.

I scoff, "Why so you can tell me how much of a monster," I say anger laced with my voice.

"Why are you being like this, I never even said that about you," he says raising his eyebrow. I just stay silent and focus on the road.

We arrive at the castle in minutes and I park at the front door. The guards at the door come over and open the doors for us.

"My queen," the man says as I step out of the car.

"Good evening," I reply. I walk to the door and they are opened for us. I am greeted with the Victorian home I am used to. I turn to Xavier, he is looking up at the ceiling in aw and I find myself smiling at his expression.

"This place is, beautiful," he says and looks to me.

"I know," I say and walk off to my office with Xavier hot on my heels. I open the mahogany door and am met with a surprise.

"Vlad!" I gasp but I comes out as a question.

"Hello darling," he says as he stands from behind the desk.

"What are you still doing here?" I ask pulling him into a hug.

"Well I can't miss your birthday," he says pulling away from the hug and I mentally curse, I hate birthday's. "And who is this?" He asks looking behind me.

"Oh, Vlad this is Xavier, my mate. Xavier this is Vlad Dracula, my great grandfather, and the creator of my kin," I introduce them. Vlad walks over to Xavier with his hand stretched out. Xavier does the same and they shake hands roughly to show power.

"I like him," Vlad says with a smile. He then turns to me. "So, I have a party planned for you in the ballroom tonight. I expect you both to be there?" He says more of a question.

"We wouldn't miss it," I say with a fake smile.

"Good," he says and walks away. I sigh and walk into the office sitting behind the desk, and taking out a few papers.

"So, when were you going to tell me about your birthday?" Xavier asks with a frown upon his face.

"Never," I say simply signing a pact in the process.

"Why not?" He asks obviously wanting to know the reason.

I sigh. "Just the whole thought of it is annoying enough. Being happy as you celebrate getting old? It's completely absurd. Having people practically stalk you as they sing to you, as they watch you open a present hoping you'll like it. Ugh, Just thinking about it makes my skin crawl," I explain to him.

"Well those are negative thoughts about growing up," he says taking a seat in one of the chairs across from me.

"Yeah, well I'm a negative person I guess," I say.

He hums and I take it that he's thinking about what I said. "By the way, a ballroom? What's with that?" He asks.

"What do you mean? Don't you have one at your house?" I ask surprised.

He chuckles, "No, we don't have one," he explains.

"It's almost like a custom to dance with vampires. We see it as a way to bond and learn," I say. Almost every castle I have visited has had a ballroom for dancing. I sign a few papers with the silence that over comes us, until Xavier decides to break it.

"Do you think, that maybe...you could teach me how to dance? You know, so I won't look like a goof when I try," he says. I look up at him surprised.

"Like I said, it's a way to learn," I smile with a slight giggle. I put the paperwork away and stand from the desk walking over to Xavier. "Come on, I'll teach you," I say holding out my hand. He gladly takes it and I lead him out of the office in the direction of the ballroom. We pass rooms with different interiors and finally arrive to the double doors and I release my hand from his to open them. I pull open the heavy doors and step to the side allowing Xavier to enter the room. His eyes widen in amazement and his mouth opens. He slowly walks in and I follow closing the doors so there are no interruptions.

I walk towards him slowly, watching his every move. He eyes are plastered on the ceiling where a beautiful mural lays consisting of angels and clouds. It's as if all of our problems from before just fade away.

"Wow," he breathes out after a few minutes. "This is amazing, I'm gonna have to get myself one of these," he says and I let out a small laugh.

"Well if you do we'll have a use for it after this lesson," I reply and take his hand, moving us to the center of the ballroom. "Alright, dancing is really simple. All you really do is walk with a few turns. You put your arm on my waist and the other in my hand," I direct, moving his hands to where they need to be. I place my left hand on his forearm and explain the steps. "So the dance is really simple, we are going to take a big step to your left and to two steps in place," he does as he's told and I follow his lead stepping to my right.

After about 30 minutes of teaching Xavier, he finally got the dance down, without stepping on my toes. "There, I knew you could do it," I say with a smile on my face.

He smiles in return, "Thanks, I don't know what I'd do without you," he says. I laugh, he leans in for a kiss and I do the same but the doors open stopping us.

"My queen?! I'm so sorry to intrude," The woman says turning to leave with her hands full of decorations. She must be here to set up for the party tonight.

"It's alright, we were just leaving," I assure her walking towards the door dragging Xavier behind me. We leave the room and I direct us towards my room to change into more suitable clothes for the party.

"Where are we going?" I hear Xavier ask behind me.

"To my room, we are going to have to change for the party," I say as we arrive to the double doors. I release my hand from his and push them open.

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