“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
“Was that your first kiss?” A voice of a man that I’ve never heard before. Did he just kiss me? There is a strange lingering feeling on my lips. My lips tingled and it ached slightly from his kiss. It felt like there was something that I wanted to say to him but my lips wouldn’t move, and my chest felt tight as my heart beat wildly in my chest. ‘Yes, it was my first kiss,’ I replied to him silently in my mind. “Relax. Your body is all stiff and your cheeks are bright red. Are you shy or embarrassed? Or perhaps…both?” the voice asked teasingly. I’ve never heard this voice before, and I had no idea who the man was. Everything around me was shrouded in darkness like there was a heavy smoke clouding my vision. He was near but I couldn’t see him or his face clearly. It was like he was here and yet he wasn’t. “Did you enjoy your first kiss? Should we give it another try? Maybe your second kiss will feel so good that it’ll make you forget all about your first…” the man suggested seduct
“Wow! This is a new record since these auctions have been up and running! Never has anything or anyone sold for this much before. Everyone, take a look! This girl is the most expensive slave. More expensive than any artwork or rare gem that has ever been auctioned here before!” a man’s voice announced loudly through the microphone.The crowd’s cheer was deafeningly loud, and the auditorium echoed with the sound of their voices and their clapping. The man grabbed the large chain connected to my wrists and yanked hard on it. I felt my body being pulled as I staggered towards him. I would have fallen over face first from the forceful way that he handled me had he not caught my arm in his large hand and pulled me up. “Come here, girl. Your new master is waiting for you. You have no idea how lucky you are to be sold to a prince. You’ll get to live in a castle from now on. How wonderful is that?” he hissed tauntingly close to my ear. I could smell the reek of cigarettes from the man’s br
My eyes widened half in shock and in panic as his gracefully long fingers approached my face. His aura, his presence, and everything about him told me that we were worlds apart and I was dumbstruck and intimidated at his presence and how close he was to me. When his fingers almost touched my face, I flinched back and closed my eyes reflexively. Suddenly, I felt the sensation of the tape on my mouth being gently pulled until it was completely removed from my lips. My eyes opened at the same time that my mouth gasped for air. I must have breathed in too fast at the relief of having my mouth freed once again that I started coughing. “Your name…?” the prince inquired once more.I was scared but I found myself staring up easily into his mesmerizing blue eyes. It could have been my imagination, or the light, or my hopefulness playing tricks on me, but for a moment, I was sure that his eyes were gentle and kind. However…“People should never be bought and sold! Slavery is wrong!” I spat.
“You seem distracted and moody. Still having problem sleeping?” Darius asked with concern. “Yeah…sort of…” Leonard mumbled in reply. He had been taking pills to help him go to sleep at night, although it didn’t seem to help much. He glanced over at Darius’s worried face and decided that his brother didn’t need to know that. “Back to the topic. We can’t send Florian. The reason is simple, he turns up to that event often enough of his own will that it doesn’t make sense to make him represent the nation,” Darius explained smoothly. “Well…fuck…” Leonard cursed under his breath. Suddenly, a few knocks sounded from the other side of the door to the room. The two men heard it at the same time. Prince Leonard rolled his eyes before throwing his head back and closing his eyes. If he could choose, he would choose to disappear into thin air without a second thought. Darius shook his head slightly before he got up from his seat and approached the door. “It’s me. The King’s senior advisor, C
His eyes wandered to the paper that he realized he was clutching tightly in his hand subconsciously. The paper had crumbled more than slightly where his fingers were. With feelings that he could not quite comprehend, his eyes refused to look away from the last item that he was supposed to purchase at tomorrow’s action. A virgin woman…For the countless time since he was born, Leonard wondered why he couldn’t have simply been born a human. …**Back to the Present**“Your skin is so fine…” The man’s gracefully long fingers traced the skin of my upper arm in slow tantalizing motions. His magnificent blue eyes stared at my face intently, taking in my every reaction. The lack of light obscured his features and all I could make out were his intense blue eyes. The warmth of his fingers against my skin gave me goosebumps, and suddenly, my body felt sensitive all over. His hands moved to caress my bare shoulders before proceeding to caress my collarbone and then dipping lower towards my ch
In the end, I didn’t even get to see his face. He was wearing a black mask and just when he was about to take it off, I woke up. Those blue eyes, those graceful fingers, and the black mask. A sharp pain shot through my brain and then my head started to ache like never before. I quickly closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing deeply as I waited for the pain to subside. When I opened my eyes again, a plain white ceiling greeted me. Where am I? Why does my body feel so heavy like this? Am I sick?Memories from before flooded into my mind in unstoppable waves. I saw everything replay itself in front of my eyes again. It all happened so fast like my mind was forcing me to remember all the events from before. That’s right. I was sold at an underground auction and that man in the black mask bought me. They called him a prince and then someone injected something in my arm. I fell asleep and then, I woke up here. Where is this place?Suddenly, I started to panic about my unfamiliar s
**A Few Days Ago **“Sally, it’s time to wake up now. Why are you up so late today? Are you sick or something? You’re usually never this late to breakfast…” I cried out quite loudly as I banged my fist against her door. It was a normal day with pleasantly sunny weather at the orphanage. Just like any other day, I woke up before the break of dawn to prepare breakfast for everyone along with the help of some other girls. By working together as a team, we managed to finished cooking breakfast to feed every girl in the home just in time for breakfast. The girl-only orphanage where I was placed in after my parents passed away was now home to around 50 girls from various ages. I’ve been here since I was around 8 years old and that was 12 years ago. This year, I am now 20 years old and apart from the supervisors managing and running this place, I was already the eldest amongst the girls. That meant that for a long time now, I had been responsible for taking care of the other younger girls i
“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