Sorry it's been a while since I last updated! Hope you enjoy this chapter.
Olivia was awoken by the sunlight glistening through her curtain. A smile immediately grew onto her face, ever since last night she had been so overly joyful it was difficult to sleep. It took her around an hour to fully fall asleep, and due to this, she woke up much later than usual.
Most mornings she would lie in the white silk sheets not wanting to get up, but today she immediately got up after waking. The girl strolled towards her dresser and changed into a plain purple dress that fell just below her knees.
On top of her dresser was the necklace Nathaniel gave her, she had taken it off before sleeping. She gazed at the glimmering pendant before picking it up and wrapping it around her neck.
It still didn't feel right that she was now the owner of such a beautiful necklace, but she couldn't deny she did look amazing wearing it. She would have to remind herself to thank Nathaniel again today, making sure he knew how much she appreciated the gift.
Once she felt ready, Olivia opened her bedroom door and began walking through the dimly lit hallways. Just as she was about to head down the stairs, Olivia heard a high-pitched voice coming from somewhere.
She turned her head in the direction of the voice, only realising that it was coming from a familiar room.
It was coming from The Lord's bedroom.
Learning from her past mistakes, she made sure to be extra quiet as she walked towards the sound. She slowly placed her ear on the carved mahogany door and listened. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she could easily tell it was Lord Nathaniel and another woman conversing. Olivia slowly stepped away from the door. She felt a strong and confusing mix of hurt and envy. Why was there a woman in his bedroom?
Her eyes widened when she heard footsteps from the door becoming louder and louder. The girl wasted no time and dashed away from the door as she stood behind a wall.
Hearing the door clicking open, she slowly peeked only to see Lord Nathaniel and Lady Sophia standing together outside of his door. She frowned seeing the two together, of course, it was Lady Sophia.
Why did Nathaniel even like her? He was always kind and polite, and she was the exact opposite.
Once Nathaniel closed his door, they began walking together in another direction. Once they were completely gone Olivia let out a deep sigh.
She returned to her room quickly just in case they decided to come back.
As she entered, she stood in front of her vanity again. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, her eyes were glued onto the necklace around her neck. Perhaps it was best if she didn't wear it, it didn't exactly match with her dress. She told herself it was because of that reason and nothing else.
She quickly took the necklace off and instead wore the dark blue one that belonged to her late mother.
She felt slightly guilty for not wearing the necklace he gave to her, but she doubted it would bother him that much.
Olivia was now sat in the kitchen, deep in thought as she patiently waited for her breakfast.
Why did it bother her so much that Lady Sophia was with The Lord?
Now that she thought about it, why wouldn't he spend time with her? Lady Sophia being beautiful was an understatement, although her personality was far from pretty.
Olivia didn't think too much about how she looked, but she had to admit she did feel slightly insecure as she compared herself to Lady Sophia.
She thanked a young maid who placed her breakfast on the kitchen table, a plate of eggs and bacon. Olivia began cutting the cooked meat, and as the maid left another person entered.
"You look grumpy today, everything alright?" Louis casually asked as he strolled in.
He sat down next to the girl, and as he did another maid swiftly placed a glass of blood in front of him.
"I'm fine." She answered quietly before placing a piece of bacon into her mouth.
Louis crossed his arms, even a human could tell she was lying. Something was obviously bothering her, but he came to an understanding that it was simply easier to try to cheer her up instead of asking her what the problem was.
"How about another snowball fight to cheer you up?" He grinned cheekily, hoping to get a reaction.
As expected, Olivia's eyes lit up at his words. The idea was very tempting. Perhaps it would get her mind off The Lord?
***
After breakfast, Olivia had spent the entire morning outside with Louis; It was even colder today and the snow was much thicker.
For a while, she did forget about The Lord as they bantered in the snow, but it didn't exactly last for very long. It was now almost lunch, and the girl had become quite exhausted from playing in the snow. She excused herself to go get some water from the kitchen to quench her thirst.
After finishing her cup, she placed it in the empty sink and began making her way back outside in the snowy gardens.
As she passed through the castle foyer she noticed an open door, it was the one that lead to the main dining room.
She thought the dining room was only used for special occasions, and she hadn't heard any news of there being one. Slowly making her way towards the door, she peeped and saw that a few people were sitting all dressed in formal attire.
She first recognised Nathaniel who sat in the same seat as always, he wore a dark suit and his jet-black hair was slicked back with only a few dark strands left hanging over his face. He always looked handsome, and although she thought it was impossible he only looked more attractive sitting in that dining room.
His muscular arm was placed around Lady Sophia's who sat next to him, both of them looked content and comfortable sitting close together.
Olivia felt as if a knife had been stabbed in her heart. She glanced away from the painful image, instead focusing on the other guests.
She noticed other vampires sitting around, they all looked to be much older than The Lord but they were easily in the upper class with their opulent clothing.
Olivia quickly stood back before anyone noticed her, if she had stared for any longer she would've definitely been caught.
Perhaps this was why Lady Sophia was at the castle. If this was such an important event why wasn't Louis there with The Lord?
The whole situation seemed peculiar.
She left wanting to forget what she saw but as she turned a corner she bumped into something hard. It was more of a someone than a something, and that someone was the last person she expected to be here.
"S-Sebastian?" She widened her eyes.
His eyes widened as well upon seeing her, but his face then relaxed as he raised an eyebrow.
"Olivia?"
She stood frozen in place, still shocked to see him here.
"I knew Nathan was lying." He crossed his arms as he smirked. "Of course he would never get rid of you."
The girl furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, not understanding what he meant by "get rid"?
Olivia now remembered what Nathaniel told her about Sebastian's past, specifically her promising him to never speak to him again.
Nathaniel didn't exactly seem like the type to be so forgiving of a broken promise.
She awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck, wanting to get as far away from him as possible. If only she never wandered in the first place.
Her sudden fear of him certainly did not go unnoticed by Sebastian. It was the same discomfort and anxiousness servants would have every time he visited his cousin's castle.
He knew there was only one possible reason for why she now seemed afraid of him.
"I'm guessing Nathaniel told you about my past." He said calmly and with no emotion.
Olivia remained silent, slowly bringing her eyes up to meet his dark red ones. Although he seemed emotionless, she could sense the sadness in him.
"D-did you really kill her?" She spoke timidly as she glanced away.
There was strong tension as they stood in silence, but to her surprise, Sebastian spoke shortly after she spoke.
"Of course I didn't." He replied bitterly, slightly scaring her as he raised his voice. "I would have never hurt her."
His voice became quieter near the end, perhaps she should have never brought this topic up. His face softened as he tried to calm himself down, never wanting to lash out at her in the first place.
"Then I believe you."
Her words shocked both of them, apparently, that was enough to convince her. She didn't care if Nathaniel thought she was naive, she was her own person therefore she could make her own judgements of people
"Thank you, Olivia... I appreciate that." He smiled sadly, although the smile did not last for long.
Sebastian straightened himself as he cleared his throat, realising they had been talking for much too long.
"Don't worry I won't tell anyone about our little encounter, and I hope you'll do the same as well." He spoke smoothly, Olivia giving a quick nod. "Until next time, Olivia."
Sebastian strolled past her and entered the dining room, closing the door behind him.
Olivia had no idea The Lord's family would be visiting today. Perhaps that explained why Louis was so keen to keep her outside so that they wouldn't find out about her living in the castle. Perhaps he was ashamed of her.
Or maybe The Lord was afraid Sebastian would hurt her after what he did to his mate, Amelia, although she was sure he would never do such a thing.
Olivia stopped her thinking when she remembered Louis was in the garden waiting for her, she had been gone for a while and didn't want him to become suspicious of anything.
As she stepped outside, she spotted Louis sitting on one of the stone benches nonchalantly. When he saw her standing on the steps his face morphed into a frown.
"Why were you gone for so long?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, I was uhh-I got l-lost along the way." She stuttered as she thought of an excuse on the spot.
He narrowed his eyes and observed her. She didn't want to tell Louis about Sebastian, he would probably tell Nathaniel and things would only get worse from there.
"I think I'm going to go to my room to take a nap now." She bit her lip eagerly hoping he would let her leave.
"Alright then, just remember don't wander anywhere else."
Olivia immediately left, not wanting to make herself even more suspicious. Once she arrived to her room, she fell onto her bed and closed her eyes. She really was tired so she might as well fall asleep and forget about all that happened today.
***
The girl groaned lazily as she opened her eyes, she turned to her right to see Norma holding a plate of food.
Olivia curiously sat up.
"Sorry for waking you up Olivia," Norma spoke softly as she placed the tray on her bedside.
She was getting ready to leave but sopped when Olivia held out a hand.
"Wait." She called.
Norma was one of the head maids, surely she would know why Nathaniel's family was here today. Norma turned around and smiled waiting for an order.
"Do you know why The Lord's family visited today?"
The maid's face became pale upon hearing her words.
"You weren't supposed to know about that Olivia, who told you?" She asked nervously.
"I won't tell anyone about it, I'm simply just curious."
Norma hesitated at first, but then she spoke. "The Lord's uncle and cousin came to visit, everyone was given strict orders not to tell you."
"Why was I not allowed to know?"
"My apologies I do not know, I was simply given the order and that was it."
"Why was Lady Sophia there?"
"I'm not so sure myself."
Olivia thought Norma was trying to hide something, but the sincerity in her voice told her that she truly did not know why. She was grateful for the truth, although it wasn't as useful as she expected. After all, not everything Nathaniel did was easily explainable, he just always had to be mysterious.
"If you don't need anything, I shall go now."
Olivia nodded, Norma bowed and then left the room shutting the door behind her. Olivia glanced at the tray of food, she was not in the mood to eat. She stood up and walked to the doorway to leave.
She was surprised to see a figure in the hallway as she opened the door.
"Oh good, I was just going to speak to you." Nathaniel spoke smoothly, his deep voice causing her heart to flutter.
Olivia softly gasped, not expecting to see him outside of her room. His hair was still slicked back from the last time she saw him, but now that he was even closer she seemed even more nervous around him.
His dark eyes narrowed as he looked at her neckline.
"Did you not like the necklace I gave you?"
Olivia's blue eyes widened, she completely forgot she had taken it off. She mentally cursed herself for her foolishness, why must she always act from her emotions?
"Of course not!" She said frantically. "I love it, I just wanted to wear my mother's necklace for today."
Her reply was partially true, she did feel guilty about not wearing her late mother's necklace but at the same time, she didn't want to wear The Lord's necklace after seeing him with Lady Sophia. It just didn't seem right, perhaps he should've given the necklace to her instead.
"Oh." That was all he muttered.
They continued to stand in silence as they looked at each other. She could feel his eyes on her, and it only made her even more uncomfortable.
She should've worn something else before leaving her room. A thin chemise wasn't exactly the most comfortable thing to be in when it came to being around other people.
"I'm going out for dinner tonight, would you like to accompany me?" He spoke as they now locked eyes.
"Dinner outside the castle? I thought I wasn't allowed?"
"Well you'll be safe with me, so I'll allow it." He smiled confidently at her.
Olivia's eyes lit up hearing his reply. She hadn't left the castle since the night she lost her aunt, she truly missed her hometown as well as the comfort of other humans like her.
Although the dinner would most likely be in a more elite town than where she grew up, she was still content about the idea of leaving the castle for once.
He took her excited reaction as a confirmation.
"I'll call a maid to help you prepare in a few hours."
He left once the girl nodded, leaving her to prepare.
As soon as it became dusk, Norma came into Olivia's room to help her. She helped her change into a lengthy red dress with a scooped neck bodice. The dress was tight and helped compliment her voluptuous figure.
Before she left she decided to wear the pendant Nathaniel had given her. Hopefully, it would bring him joy seeing her wear it, after all, it did go well with her dress.
As she stepped outside, she was met with a harsh and cold breeze that brushed against her bare shoulders leaving lingering goosebumps. She saw The Lord standing below the steps with a carriage behind him.
He gave a charming smile as he watched her walk down the marble stairs.
His hair was slightly tousled, and for some reason, she preferred it that way. His featured were well defined under the moonlight, and once she made eye contact with his mesmerising crimson eyes he flashed a toothy smile.
"You look enchanting." He spoke smoothly as he tucked a loose curl behind her ear.
Olivia gushed at his words, feeling tingles as his knuckles grazed over her cheeks as he tidied her hair.
The Lord noticed the shivering of her soft arms, he quickly took off his dark coat and wrapped it around her small frame. She thanked him quietly as they walked to the carriage.
Nathaniel held open the door as she walked inside and sat down on the soft leather couch. The Lord closed the door as he followed, and the carriage began to move with the whip of a horse.
His gaze lowered down to her neckline, he smiled noticing she was wearing his necklace but didn't say anything.
"So where are we going?" Olivia asked as she gazed out the carriage window.
"It's a nice restaurant not far from here, I'm sure you'll enjoy it."
"Will there be a lot of vampires there?" She asked before biting on her bottom lip.
"Yes, but don't worry nobody will bother us." He spoke as he wrapped his arm around her pulling her close.
She looked away hoping he wouldn't see her extremely red face. She thought back to seeing him with Lady Sophia, and suddenly the redness of her face quickly faded.
She wasn't sure why she felt slightly angry at him, she felt like he was toying with her. Olivia didn't say anything, afraid she would ruin this special night.
As she sat in the carriage, she looked through the window to see the town she had missed so much. As expected, the streets were mostly empty, only vampires would roam the streets at this time. After a short while of silence, the carriage came to a halt.
"We're here."
The Lord opened the carriage door, holding his hand out to help her step out. Once they entered the restaurant, Olivia gawked in amazement at what she saw.
The restaurant was packed full of vampires, who she could only assume were of the upper class. Classical music played as guests laughed and drank at their tables. The atmosphere felt romantic, and she noticed that almost every table had a couple.
Olivia crinkled her nose in confusion, why would Nathaniel take her to a romantic restaurant for a friendly dinner?
As they stood on the white marble floor, one of the waiters came up to Nathaniel, greeting him formally. She didn't hear what they were talking about but she continued following him as they walked up a spiralled staircase.
The second floor of the restaurant was much quieter and slightly darker with only a few candles placed on the tables emitting light.
They stopped in front of a small round table, in the middle were blood roses placed in a glass vase. An elegant chandelier hung above them and through a window, she could see the breathtaking view of the town at midnight.
They both sat down, sitting opposite each other.
"Great..." Olivia muttered to herself, now she couldn't even hide from his gaze if she tried.
There was nowhere to hide.
The waiter placed down a menu in front of her and returned back downstairs.
"Order anything you like." He smiled leaning back in his chair.
Olivia scanned through the menu, everything was so expensive so she chose the cheapest thing on the menu.
"May I have the fish and chips?" She asked politely, placing the menu down and looking up at him.
"Of course you can."
The waiter came back within seconds and wrote their orders. Once they left it was just her and The Lord, alone. She didn't know what to say, she could feel his gaze on her so she decided to look around at all the beautiful decorations to distract herself.
"How have you been doing?"
"Oh, I've been doing well." She replied awkwardly.
"How about you?" She asked after realising it would be rude not to.
"Fine, better now that we're here."
She wanted to ask him why his cousin was here today and why he was with Lady Sophia, however, she knew it would upset the mood so she stayed silent. To her surprise, the food was already cooked and now arrived on a silver platter. Her stomach grumbled as she smelled the cooked fish. She wasted no time and immediately began to cut the food into pieces, blowing onto it before eating. The Lord watched with an amused smile on his face.
"You seem extra hungry today?" He raised an eyebrow before sipping from his glass.
"I haven't eaten since breakfast." She shamefully admitted.
He narrowed his eyes at her words, placing his glass onto the table
"You need to eat Olivia, don't skip meals ever again."
A part of her was annoyed that he spoke to her like a child, but she knew he was simply looking out for her which puzzled her. A different waitress arrived carrying a wine bottle and a glass. She poured the alcoholic drink mixed with blood into the glass and placed it in front of The Lord.
The sight of blood disgusted Olivia, she tried her best not to look at it so that she wouldn't lose her appetite. Another waitress came with a normal wine glass and poured it into Olivia's cup.
When they left she looked at the drink curiously.
"Have you ever had wine before?" The Lord asked noticing she had been staring at the drink for quite a while now.
Olivia shook her head in response. She held the glass in her hands and took a slight sip of the liquid. It had a sweet fruity flavour, she definitely preferred it more than beer.
She sipped more of it, and more until eventually, she finished the glass.
Noticing the empty glass, the same waitress returned to refill.
"Enjoying yourself?" He asked in an alluring tone as he rested his chin on his hand.
Olivia nodded. "I'm really happy to be out of the castle, I miss the town."
The girl froze, worried she had offended The Lord. She was grateful for everything he did for her but she couldn't help feeling like a prisoner sometimes.
She watched him to see if he looked mad, he was drinking from his glass and once it was empty he placed it back on the table.
"Well, I'll make sure to take you out more often."
"I would like that."