My heart skipped a beat again and I cursed myself silently in my head. He was quite stubborn, that was for sure. I nodded in resignation as I watched him sweep up the fallen leaves. I did my part in picking up some random leaves that had just fallen. It didn’t take long for him to finish sweeping up the leaves into neat piles while I admired his efficient movements. The leaves really just kept falling. I turned around and walked over to another that had just fallen before bending down to pick it up. “Thank…you…” I turned to thank him for his hard work before my words ended in a whisper. He was…gone. When did he leave? I looked around but couldn’t see him anywhere around anymore. Just as suddenly as he had appeared, the man seemed to have disappeared into thin air. “There you are…” a woman’s voice rang out loud and clear.I heard the sounds of soft footsteps approaching me and I turned around to see Lady Regina and Sophie walking towards me. They were probably here to see if I hav
“You are always so kind towards the working staff. I guess there’s still many things that I can learn from you,” Regina replied before laughing sweetly. “Darius told me that you were waiting for me at the afternoon tea party that was held recently. I didn’t feel well so I didn’t attend. Anyways, I’m here to officially and unofficially welcome you to the palace. I hope you enjoy your time here, Regina,” Leonard said with a slight nod of his head. “Thank you so much, Your Highness,” Regina said with unveiled pleasure. “Great. I won’t take up more of your time,” Leonard said as he got up from his seat. The smile on Regina’s face froze in place when she realized that he already intended on leaving. The visit was much shorter than she had ever imagined. It wasn’t like she could think up of a valid reason or excuse to stop him; however, there was one thing that she wanted to inquire about. “Prince Leonard…the night of the full moon is fast approaching…” Regina drawled suggestively. “Y
In stark contrast to the loud crashing sound just now, everything was silent and peaceful. I tiptoed towards the door as I debated with myself whether I should open it. However, before I could make up my mind, the door swung opened with a loud slam. “Oh, it’s you…” The man from yesterday stood in front of me in the exact same look that he wore yesterday. White shirt, jeans, and sunglasses. He smiled sweetly at me as he cocked his head slightly to the side. “Hi…” I managed to say after snapping out of my state of shock. Why is he here? “Why are you here?” he asked in wonder. I was about to ask him the same thing. “I was tasked to help clean up the stables. What about you? Do you work here?” I asked. “You’re right. I do,” he replied as he strode past me and towards the horses. I turned as my eyes followed him. The horses reacted to his presence, and they suddenly appeared friendlier than before. The man reached out his hand and petted the neck of one of the horses as he smiled.
“Umm…” I murmured when I felt the heat of his body against my back.I bit my tongue before I said any unnecessary things. That was close, I almost told me that we were so close to each other. “Don’t panic. You’re doing very well,” he whispered close to my ear from behind encouragingly. I could feel his warm breath tickling my ear as I felt the heat of his body press up against my entire back. His strong arm looped itself around my waist and pulled me even closer to him. With his urging, the horse began walking forward. The feel of the beast moving beneath me felt new and exciting. “Wow…” I murmured in awe. “Enjoying yourself already?” he asked before he laughed softly close to my ear. My body stiffened a little when I remembered how close our bodies were. His arm remained around my waist and whenever he spoke to me, he leaned his face very close to mine and my shoulder. I could smell the faint scent of roses from his body whenever I took in a deep breath. He smells so dreamy…“S
“You’ve gotten a lot better at riding. You’re a fast learning, little girl,” he complimented me openly. I walked by his side as I noticed that the sun was about to set. It was unfortunate that another day was coming to an end. We both knew that I had to leave to return to the maids’ quarters before sunset. That was the rule. “It’s all thanks to you,” I thanked him with a smile. He didn’t say anything, and I couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking about. I smiled to myself again as I looked up at the sky as it was turning orange from the setting sun. It was a very beautiful color and suddenly I felt like my life had some hope in it. Before I knew it, I had started looking forward to spending even more time with him. Everything would have been quite fine if those strange dreams that I had at night didn’t persist. The dreams plagued me endlessly and it seemed to be getting worst. I have never discussed this with anyone before because I didn’t know who to talk to about this. “W
“Of course. I don’t involve myself in picking and choosing the women that I mate with. I leave it up to the council to decide or the chamber manager to choose. If possible, I also try to avoid spending more than one night with the same woman,” Darius replied emotionlessly. “You’re pretty amazing…” Leonard said with an appreciative nod of his head. “If you’re lonely you can go back to dating those superstars from faraway lands, you know…” Darius suggested. “I’ll keep that in mind…” Leonard mumbled. “I didn’t want to say this, but you haven’t forgotten why the council and the prime minister moved Regina to live here, right?” Darius asked before he sighed. He knew well what everyone wanted, and it just seemed like the perfect plan; however, Darius also knew that things wouldn’t go so smoothly as far as Leonard was concerned.“I’m not interested in fucking her,” Leonard stated without bothering to mince his words. “That’s what I thought. Who knows? Things might change when the moon
“The king will be making his appearance with the Duchess Isabella so I thought that it would be best to present them with a gift that they would both admire. Someone close to Duchess Isabella gave me a valuable clue that the Duchess is very fond of a particular flower. Please have a look at this,” Lady Regina said as she held a small piece of paper towards me. I slowly approached her and while keeping my eyes down, I carefully took the paper from her hand. The moment that my eyes lowered to take a look at the paper, I found out that it was actually a photograph of a flower. It’s mix of red and purple color along with the shape made it look unique. I had never seen a flower shaped like this before and perhaps that was why the Duchess was attracted to its exotic beauty. “The flower is called Hermiosa and it can only be found in the wild. This special flower cannot be cultivated and must be picked from up in the mountain only. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time left because my meeti
“I better find that flower soon so that I can head back…” I muttered. The driver mentioned that he would be back for me around sunset, so I had to find the flower before that no matter what. Sundown would mark the extent of my search because I doubt that I would be able to see anything after the sun had set. It didn’t take me long to realize that I was extremely poorly equipped for my journey through the forest. I wasn’t wearing suitable shoes for a trek in the forest, and I didn’t have a flashlight to use if it got dark. “Let’s do this…” I mumbled to myself before taking in a deep breath.After steeling my nerves and pumping myself with adrenaline, I marched right into the forest on my search for the flower that the Duchess Isabella was so in love with. The forest seemed less dense when I walked inside and it didn’t feel as scary as when I was staring at if from the outside, thankfully. I breathed a sigh of relief; however, my initial feeling of relief did not last long. I remembe
“Congratulations to us, you’re pregnant, Mila!” Prince Leonard announced excitedly.“I’m pregnant?” I asked more out of curiosity than out of surprise. Although I knew that the prince would never joke about something like this, I still found it hard to believe that I was suddenly pregnant.“That’s right, you’re pregnant, and that means we’re about to have another baby,” Prince Leonard said before breaking into another wide smile.“I’m…really pregnant?” I whispered as I struggled to wrap my head around the prince’s sudden announcement.“The doctor said that you might have been feeling tired because you’re in the early stages of pregnancy. I’m sorry that I hadn’t realized this sooner; otherwise, I would have kept all the ceremonies short so that you didn’t have to go through all of that when you’re feeling so tired,” the prince said apologetically as he took my hands into his. I kept staring at the prince as he buried the side of his face against the palm of my hand.“We’re about to hav
“Have you eaten anything? Actually, that’s a very stupid question. I know that you haven’t really eaten anything because you haven’t had the time, right?” the Duchess asked knowingly.Although I didn’t want to admit it because I didn’t want to be an inconvenience to anyone, the Duchess was spot on correct that I hadn’t had the time or the opportunity to eat anything. The day had been so busy from early in the morning up until the evening, and everything seemed more important than filling my own stomach.“It’s fine, I’ll make sure to eat something when this reception is over,” I told her reassuringly before offering her a smile. Duchess Flavia only gave me a disapproving glare before shaking her head from side to side.“You look like you’re about to faint. It’s like I can see your face go pale even with all the makeup,” she said as she brought her face closer to mine to get a closer look at me.“I’m feeling fine,” I told her while I tried to convince myself that I wasn’t feeling light-
"Your daughter looks like you," Prince Leonard commented."And I think that your son looks like you, and I'm sure that he will grow up into a great king," Regina said, and I could hear the confidence in her voice."Let me know if you ever need anything," the prince told her with a warm smile."You're always too kind. Please take good care of yourself and of Mila. Mila, please take care of our King," Regina said, turning to address me."I will," I replied shortly before finding myself smiling at her.Regina truly did look happier than the time when she lived in the palace. It felt like the shadow that had always been following her around and haunting her was no longer there. I could tell that she was no longer living under pressure, and it made her shine with happiness and freedom. It seemed that I didn't have to worry about her anymore.After some parting words, Regina led her daughter away from us so that we could converse with other guests. I had no idea how many conversations we ha
Prince Leonard probably had no idea that it was the way his beautiful eyes looked at me and the way his alluring lips curved up into a smile that was responsible for making everything else fade away from my field of vision so that all I could do was focus on him."Thank you for making me your queen," I whispered softly and sweetly.The prince only nodded his head once before carefully placing the crown on the top of my head. When I was aware of the world surrounding us again, all I could hear was the thundering sound of applause that echoed in the royal hall...."Hang in there for just a little longer, Mila," the prince said before flashing me a teasing smile."I guess we're done with two out of the three parts of what we have planned for today," I mumbled before stifling a yawn. I had no idea why I felt so lethargic and sleepy, although it was only just early in the evening. So far, the prince and I operated as the perfect team to pull off two of our most important events of the day
His words touched me like never before, and I could feel it in my heart and soul that I reciprocated his feelings and thoughts. I had never understood the concept of fated mates until I experienced it myself along with the prince. Our bond felt stronger and firmer than any endearing words of promise."I love you. I’ll love you forever," I said the words that came naturally to my mind.**Back to the present**When it came my turn to say ‘I do’, I found myself managing to say it without any difficulty. It must have been partly because I truly meant it when I vowed to be with the prince in sickness and in health, through thick and thin; however, I was certain that everything felt easier because I knew that we had a bond that even the heavens could never break."I do," I said firmly when it was my turn.When we shared the kiss to seal our wedding vows, I knew that what we had was something that was going to last forever until the end of our lifetimes....Our wedding ceremony in the churc
I gave Logan's hand a slight squeeze before taking my first step forward into the church. I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I reminded myself to keep my head held high, curving my lips into one of my most beautiful smiles. Without any hesitation, I made my way forward down the aisle. The fact that each step forward brought me closer to the man waiting for me at the end of the aisle gave me the comfort and courage to continue on. I didn't even bother trying to identify faces that I might recognize in the crowd of guests present on both sides of me.It felt as if all my nervousness melted away completely when my eyes met Prince Leonard's. I’d always thought he looked amazingly attractive, but seeing the prince wearing an all-white tuxedo standing in front of the altar with such a loving smile on his face as he waited for me was out of this world. I felt my heart skip a beat in my chest, and it wasn't at all because of my nervousness. Everything and everyone around me slowly faded aw
It was clear that everything was too extravagant for my own taste to the point where it must have been pretty obvious to Prince Leonard that I had no hand in the selection and design of the proposed decorations. "I'm actually fine with anything. I think everything they've chosen is very beautiful, and their work is a lot more professional than anything I could have done by myself," I admitted to the prince honestly."If that's the case, then fine, but if there's anything that you don't like, just tell them to take it out," the prince said firmly."I just think it's easier to let them sort everything out. It's enough for me that we'll be getting married and that Logan will be there to witness our union," I said while trying to keep my tone cheerful. I was certain that if I picked out anything by myself or intervened with the guest list, I would be bringing unwarranted complications and troubles that I didn't want to deal with."If that's what you say," the prince said after finally gi
I should have known that the prince would never want to become the next king for his own personal gain. I found myself nodding my head naturally in agreement with his plan when I realized that I also had to play my part in contributing to the happiness of our son in the future.“I agree that that seems to be the easiest way. I guess if you become king, you can change the rules in whatever way you want,” I said while seeing more than a glimpse of hope.“It’s not going to be that easy. Many people on the committee are going to be against it, but this is our best shot. No matter what, we’re going to make this successful and change the rules of this country for the better,” the prince said, so motivatingly that I found myself feeling slightly excited.“I guess bringing change, especially big changes, isn’t going to be easy,” I said, but by then I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. In my mind, I had already envisioned such a bright future, and it gave me the greatest honor to be able to co
“What is it?” I asked, feeling a sense of worry stir in the pit of my stomach.“I’m concerned about Logan,” the prince confessed in a whisper.“Concerned? What is there for you to be concerned about? Is something wrong?” I bombarded him with questions, thinking there might be a threat to Logan’s safety. I had no idea why I felt that way, but I just had a very bad feeling.“Remember when you asked me why I changed my mind about taking over the throne? I’m sorry, but I haven’t been entirely honest with you,” the prince said with a regretful look on his face.“It’s fine. It must have been hard for you,” I said understandingly while wondering what had the prince feeling so concerned. “What is it about Logan?” I asked as I started to frown with worry.“Logan is getting a lot better at controlling his transformations now, but he’s still too young for us to be sure about what will happen in his future,” Prince Leonard said.It was true that our son had improved tremendously at controlling hi