Taylor finally convinced herself to put away her defense, a purple quilted duvet with gold and wine trimmings. She had to face the night sooner or later. She needed a game plan. She couldn't, mustn't be distracted by her foolish feelings.
"I see you finally left your fort" Anghel drawled from his position at the doorway.
Don't blush. Don't blush. Taylor commanded herself.
She sat on the edge of the bed, her legs trying to swing casually as she held on the bed wooden edges as if her life depended on it.
Anghel strolled in and sat beside her, too close for comfort. Taylor shifted, he just smiled at her antics.
"Am not ready" Taylor blurted out. She winced, she had prepared a speech in her head but it obviously wasn't a stellar plan.
Anghel raised an impeccable eyebrow
"You're not ready for?"
Taylor made a gesture pointing towards the both of them
"Us, intimacy. Am not ready"
Anghel fell quiet for a tense moment.
"Alright" He said finally
Taylor's head shot up in surprise to look at him.
"Really?" She didn't know if she should be relieved or offended. She had anticipated a kind of outburst at least, not this easy acceptance.
"For how long do I have to wait?"
"Give me nine days. Nine days to prepare myself to be your mate" or more like disappear.
"You do know that you are not allowed to have another chamber apart from this one, and I can't leave this room either?"
"I guess so " Taylor acknowledged reluctantly.
"These nine days you ask, I am not to touch you but we will have to look to the outside world that we are intimate....can you do that at least?"
Taylor nodded readily, if he was being so agreeable and patient then why couldn't she?
"Well, nine days is a long time to be immune to me" Anghel responded with his lip half upturned. "Especially after..." He let his words trail away as his gaze fell to her lips for a smouldering moment.
Taylor covered her mouth with a mortified gasp and fast walked out of the room with twin red spots on her cheeks.
While Anghel's grin couldn't get any brighter.
Taylor found the naked woman fountain. She traced the graceful figure with her eyes. Her marble eyes were downcast in a come hither look, her breasts were pert and round, her tiny waist flared to a well rounded hips and long tapered legs. She was simply a masterpiece.
Taylor stretched her hands into the cascading water and let the cool rushing water sift through her fingers. She sighed as she reminisced her vision some hours ago.
What was it?
Why did the name mirea keep coming up both in her dreams and reality?
Why was she so restless!
"Your highness"
Taylor jumped from the sudden interruption. She turned to see a trail of five girls in servant dress bowed in a courtsey.
"Ehm, who are you?" Asked a puzzled Taylor.
The first girl, of Asian descent who was vaguely familiar stepped forward
"We are your hand maidens mistress. Always at your service" She curtsied again and the rest of the girls promptly followed her lead.
"Where is Olivia?" She asked when she didn't find her friend's face in the group.
The girls looked at each other and then looked at her, their expression as confused as hers.
"Well?"
Taylor prompted impatiently.
"She is not among your hand maidens my lady. She has been moved to scullery duties."
Kia quickly answered with head bowed.
Taylor remembered where she saw her, she was one of the girls who had attended to her on her mating rites day. One of Emese's girls
"Scu....who passed this judgement?"
"His royal highness ma'm. He is in charge of your ..."
Taylor hadn't waited to let her finish, she had turned, gathered her skirts and ran in the direction she had come from.
The girls looked scandalized for a moment but quickly gathered their wits, and ran after her.
Taylor barged into the room, adrenaline flying and temper on the rise.
"Anghel, how could you...."
Taylor's hot words dried up in her throat as her eyes widened in shock. Anghel stood in the middle of the room half naked with only a slip of a towel wrapped around his hips.
Her eyes traced his figure involuntarily, his damp hair fell almost to his shoulder, his chest was chiseled and powerfully built. She caught a glimpse of a whitened scar a finger long some inches away from his left nipple. The towel hung low on his hips to show off suggestively, a v line.
He cleared his throat and her head shut up from her line of glorious vision to meet his raised eyebrows.
The only reason she didn't run
was because she still wanted to grill him....and also because of the group of five girls giggling behind the half opened door.
She closed the door fully and covered her burning face with her hands.
"Am so sorry" came a mortified and muffled apology.
"Its okay. It's not like I mind anyway"
Taylor could actually hear the smug smile in his words.
"You can turn now, although I can't imagine you turning every time I have to undress"
Taylor cautiously turned and breathed better when she saw he was now on jeans and black turtle neck shirt. The casual look was made for him and for the umpteenth time that day, Taylor found herself loosing her train of thought.
"Am sure staring at me wasn't the reason you barged in"
Taylor gave him the stink eye, he was enjoying her embarrassment a little too much.
"Why did you take Olivia away and drop a couple of strangers at my service"
"Olivia was a stranger" he pointed out nonchalantly. He walked to the adjoining door that led to a parlor of some kind. It looked like a standard setting off of a Victorian era novel.
She followed him
"You knew how much I liked her, yet you demoted her to dish washing?!"
He was browsing through a table sized bookshelf full of what looked like encyclopedias.
"Serving in Adelean castle is an honorable work most Ardeleanian vampires would kill for....literally. And scullery duty is no less"
"Anghel! She is like a sister to me. Since I arrived here, she has been a wonderful companion, someone I could trust and now you want to take her away, why?!" She wasn't giving up so easy.
Anghel dropped the book he was holding in a huff and turned to look at her,
"I don't trust her, ok? Until I dont find a reason not to, she will continue as a scullery maid"
"But..but she didn't do anything to you!" Taylor stammered indignantly
"Exactly. But it's what she can do to you. It's a dangerous world out here, especially in this castle. It's my duty to protect you and keep you away from danger, whatever or whoever it might be"
"Why do you hate Olivia? What did she ever do to you. I want her as my hand maiden, only her or no one else" Taylor folded her arms, ready to argue it down till her last strength.
"I do not hate that girl. Don't you get it? Vampire servants aren't supposed to be too close to their masters. Dangerous people could use her to get to you, and then automatically to me also"
"What?" Taylor found his fuss ludicrous. This wasn't a soap opera!
"The cream. I had it investigated. I did send a cream but it was switched at one point to one that could harm you. Olivia is the main suspect and until that issue is cleared, she is not to be seen a foot near you"
"Olivia would never hurt me....she has no reason to'" Taylor felt herself begin to panic. Olivia was in trouble and she had to do something about it!
"There is not always a reason behind wickedness, the sooner you learn that, the better."
"This doesn't make any sense. I trust Olivia, I can vouch for her, she is not shady"
"That remains to be proved. Your servants have been thoroughly hand picked by I and Emese. They are completely trustworthy and safe, they will serve you better than anyone"
"But..."
"I'll hear no more of this matter" His voice hardened and he walked out of the room. Taylor fell on a nearby sofa with a heavy heart and a throbbing head.
"Mistress?" A timid voice called from behind the door.
"What?" She snapped. Then immediately felt ashamed.
"What do you want?" Taylor tried again, forcing her frustrations at bay
Kia walked in and curtsied
"I have arranged your dinner and also seen to your bath. Is there anything you would like my lady?"
"I'll ask you one thing. Just between the both of us"
Kia looked up and nodded. She turned and closed the door firmly then returned.
"Whatever you tell me or ask of me in secrecy will remain a secret till I turn to dust my lady"
Kia announced solemnly with a rather severe look.
Taylor cracked a small smile,
"Its nothing too dramatic Kia. Just tell me, how is Olivia?" It had been almost two days she had seen her friend last
Kia faltered, it was obvious she was expecting anything but that question.
"Uh, she is well my lady. I heard Prince Anghel specifically ordered she be treated well. There is nothing to worry about from her end"
"After dinner, you will....must take me to her"
Kia blanched and took a step back
"I..i...i can't. Please your highness, I am under strict orders to keep you from Olivia. I'll be staked in public if I am found to fail in my duties" She sounded genuinely terrified that Taylor pitied her.
"You can go" Taylor dismissed. It was obvious if she wanted to do anything about Olivia, she would be doing it alone and in secret.
"Thank you your highness. I'll be outside if you need me" She curtsied and high tailed it out of the room like a frightened cat.
Anghel didn't join her for dinner. In a large, candle lit dinning room that could seat a dozen people, Taylor eat alone, with five girls at her beck and call, utterly miserable.
By the time she had her bath, she was physically and emotionally drained. She had to chase the girls away when she realised they fully intended to bathe her!
Kia insisted to stay in the room to see to at least one of her needs. She seemed to be the leader of the four hand maidens Taylor hadn't gotten to know yet.
"Where did Anghel go?" Taylor asked out of the blue, making Kia stop in mid action of lathering her hair. Taylor was lying in a bathtub filled with nice smelling soap suds. They had shared the "bathing duty" by Taylor scrubbing herself and Kia washing her hair slash massaging her scalp. It was very relaxing.
"To the feeding grounds. It's been quite a long time but I understand Damphirs can go a long time without drying up like the rest of us"
Kia answered conversationally, pressing her fingers at just the right spot on her scalp to relieve the stress headaches.
"Feeding grounds uhn?" Taylor had a flashback of watching Anghel feed on the Fae woman at the border.
"Tell me about this feeding grounds" Taylor suddenly found herself curious.
"Oh, it's not something you'd like to know my lady. It might seem too...vulgar to you"
"I insist"
"Well...it's a place to fulfill all kinds of hunger. That's as much as I can say without getting into trouble"
Taylor had a feeling Kia played the "I'll-die-if-I-do-it-and-it-will-be- your-fault" card very often and like a pro.
Then the girl's words played in her head. All kinds of hunger? Did that include...? Taylor gasped and shot out of the water.
"Mistress!" Kia called out in shock as water splashed everywhere from the sudden movement.
"Bathing duty is over. Am going to bed" Taylor answered in a sour tone, wrapped herself in a towel and stalked out of the room.
Taylor laid awake on the oversized bed, her eyes monitoring how long the candle on the bedside table burned. It was more than half burned and yet no sign of Anghel!
Taylor twisted and turned on the bed, uneasy with an unfamiliar sensation burning deep in her bowels.
She was frustrated with her hyperactive imaginations. What if he was currently in the arms of another woman satisfying all kinds of hunger?!
Another voice in her head asked why she was so bothered. She would be leaving him soon won't she?
But he is still my husband!
So? You tricked him into marrying you in the first place.
What about the kiss?
He is a man, aren't they all womanizers, you have been played.
I think i like him
Well, you're a big fool.
Oh God! How could she get her mind to stop fighting her?!
Then her body went rigid when she finally heard the door open. She pretended to be asleep while all her body sreamed in awareness.
After what seemed like tortured years, she felt the bed dip and a warm body slide behind hers.
She wanted to seat up and demand where he had been but couldn't bring herself to do it. She would look like a jealous wife...which she wasnt.
No, not at all.
Then why couldn't she sleep?!