Royal 3 (Book three in my Selection Series)

Chapter 56

That evening I walk up to North's room. I was still in my pajamas when I knocked quietly on his door. He comes to the door and opens it quietly, seeming confused when he sees me.

"Is everything alright?" He asks, opening the door wider for me.

"Yeah." He leads me in by my waist and kisses me softly on my head. I wrap my arms around his neck and smile, leaning closer to him.

"I can't wait to be married to you." North smiles and embraces me. "Let's go out on the balcony."

I walk out with him and sit on the comfortable furniture beside of him.

"Are you sure everything is alright?" He asks me quietly and holds his hand at my chin so I look up at him.

"I don't—" I stutter, unsure if I should tell him.

"What is it, love?" North says again quietly. I look out at the garden down below us. I look at the city that was slowly turning off its lights in the distance and remember how lucky I was in this moment. I couldn't help but want more.

"I don't have anybody to walk me down the aisle." I look away from him. "I don't have family that I've talked to since prison and I spent days thinking about my wedding day while I was in solitary confinement. I never solved the puzzle of anyone who would care about me enough to walk me down the aisle."

North stays quiet for a moment and then holds both of my hands in his.

"I will figure something out, alright?" North says quietly. "Everything is going to be perfect, just trust me. Don't worry about it and just enjoy the night."

I close my eyes and lean into his chest as he moves his arms around my back and holds me close to him.

"I love you." I say quietly and hold onto the fabric of his shirt as if it could keep him with me forever.

"I love you more." North says and kisses me softly. I pull away, smiling, and run my thumb along his jaw line. "Stay with me tonight." He says our of no where.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"Stay with me. It's getting late and your eyes are dropping. Spend the night with me tonight and I'll get the word to Emily so she doesn't worry."

I was still worried and anxious about the wedding, so I just lay my head on his chest and nod.

North picks me up with one arm tucked under my knees and the other under my head. He lays me in his bed and kisses me on my head.

"I'll be back in a moment." He tells me and walks away. I pull the covers up over me and close my eyes.

Moments later he crawls into the bed behind me and I turn around to face him, pulling myself closer.

"Stop worrying." North tells me gently and brushes my hair away from my face. "Goodnight, Love."

"Goodnight." I whisper and close my eyes, falling asleep contently in his arms. I felt safe and happy and for once I wasn't thinking about everything that could be wrong and all I could think of was the warmth his arms provided me.

•••

"Come in." Emily says groggily when I knock on our door the next morning. I push the door open and smile at her slightly before sitting on the bed. "So what all happened last night?" She asks me and sits up.

"Not anything your thinking of." I say laughing and sit beside of her. "I just wanted to talk to him and he asked me to stay with him."

"He's sweet." Emily says then rolls her eyes. "I'm still pissed at him, but I'll get over it."

"I know." I laugh slightly. "Let's go down and get breakfast."

My maids do our makeup and fix our hair and get us ready for breakfast. We walk out together and go into the dining hall.

"Good morning, Love." North stands when I enter and kisses my cheek softly.

"Good morning." I respond with a smile and sit beside of him. The king and queen hadn't came in yet, but a few of his siblings sat around the long table.

"Have you decided on colors for the wedding yet?" Lily sits up in her chair and smiles.

I glance at North and he just offers a clueless shrug.

"No, not yet. I'm not great at the whole planning thing, so that's part of the reason Emily is here." I laugh uncomfortably. "We will figure it out."

"Our wedding planner will be here this evening and we can figure something out." North says calmly and grabs onto my hand under the table. I smile in agreement and zone out of most of the conversation that morning.

•••

Later that day, after we talked to the wedding planner, I sit on North's bed while he changes in the bathroom. I'd changed into a shirt and shorts that I liked to sleep in.

"Do you want me to keep the wedding planner or should we do it ourselves?" He asks me, laying on the bed beside of me.

"I like the planner. She seems really interested in what we really want and she at least knows what she's doing, unlike me." I say, laughing slightly.

"I'm fine with that." North tells me with a short smile. We sit there for a moment in silence, his hand finding mine. "I can't wait to call you my wife."

"Me neither." I look over at him and smile. He leans across me and pulls me closer to him by my waist. "I never thought I'd be here."

"Why not?" North asks, sitting us both up against the pillows.

"There's just so many people who don't think I deserve to be here, or even out of prison. The other prisoners, the girls at the orphanage, and most of the world never thought I could do it." I say quietly.

"Well you proved them wrong, didn't you?" North says with a smile.

"A part of me still doesn't feel like I'm worth it." I murmur quietly. I lean my head against his shoulder and look down at our hands, entertained.

"I've never thought you weren't worth it. In fact, I've doubted my own worth before." North laughs and puts a hand on my chin, pulling my chin up so our eyes met. "You are the love of my life, and you're worth it. You deserve the world, more than I can give you, but I'll never stop trying to give you everything."

"I've never felt so lucky." I say with a smile and sit up to kiss him. He smiles and puts a hand on the back of my neck and holds me in his arms for a moment.

"We need to get some sleep. We have a lot of stuff to work out tomorrow." He tells me quietly.

"I know." I sigh and kiss him once before before sliding out of his bed. "I think if I ditch on Emily again she might come drag me out of here herself."

"I believe that." North laughs and stands to walk me out. "Goodnight, Love. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight." I say quietly and leave to walk the quiet hallways that night. The hallways that had once seemed so haunting, now seemed like home.