Mistress? Everyone was talking at once, and my mother laid a thick bunch of papers on the dresser for me. Wait, what?
"MISTRESS?!" I finally realized what happened.
So that was when I tried to poison Ian; when he went to tell his brother to buzz off. I needed to see Ian right away. I would have lost him forever today because of my foolishness.
Even after tossing the apples away with no harm done, I still couldn't feel better about how disastrous things could have turned. Nothing mattered, as long as Ian was safe.
"Will you all come back later? Please?"
I needed to look better for Ian. My makeup wasn't up to the mark, and I should probably do my hair differently too.
"Oh, this is not the time for alone time and pondering. Here, I have read these documents already, and Ian has signed them. You sign them now too so that these lovely ladies can pack your stuff and move you to your own private chamber."
I looked toward the door
I looked out the large palace window at the massive fountain surrounded by colorful tropical water lilies and pink lotuses. Part of me wished to go horseback riding to a natural pool that was close by.I definitely needed a break and some time with nature. That contract kept me awake all night. Was Ian some kind of sadist? I always wondered what he did with Lydia and Julia, but they used to brush it off with 'just some kinky stuff.'They are twisted and enjoy whatever he did to them. No touching, no talking, and all those double standard rules in the contract — unacceptable! It said he was free to pursue sexual activities with others during this one year while I was not. What made him think I would be okay with that?Everything in the document was about owning me like I was an object. And the word 'non-negotiable' was scary. Was he the same sweet Ian who couldn't refuse to kiss me when I just looked at him wanting one? I didn't imagine him to be the type h
One of the perks of being a mistress of a royal family member was that I was considered partially royal as well. I now got the 'Lady' tag added to my name, which the 'commoners' did not get. It also allowed me to be part of the Royal Court and watch the King make history.Mistresses weren't allowed to express their views and opinions when the court was making important political decisions, however, we could bring the attention of the King to any pressing matters, even when it meant personal gain. I could influence how much workers like my grandfather made on a weekly basis and suggest ways to improve their quality of life.I was excited about going to the courtroom today but was nervous in equal measure about my appearance."Here, doesn't this look gorgeous?!" My mother asked in an eager voice.She paid a hefty amount of money to a royal seamstress to finish working on my dress in two days. I guess she was well prepared, just waiting for me to sign the co
Why does my life have to be so fueled by drama? I just had a couple of hours of bliss with Ian last night and was hoping to ease into this whole mistress and contract thing slowly, but I am thrown in at the deep end with Bella's appearance out of the blue. To make matters worse, I felt like I was under attack by random women.I got up to walk out of the courtroom with a heavy heart once the session ended. Ian's attention was taken over by Bella and her father."Nadia!" Madelyn stopped me when I was about to leave. I thought Gia wanted to talk to me."How are you cutie pie? Need more--""Why didn't you tell me you weren't Bella?" Madelyn interrupted me."I am quite flattered you thought I look like a Princess even in my bedhead hair."I left the room before she could say more because I had a bigger problem to worry about. What the hell was her problem, anyway? She should bother Ian if she wanted to know why he wouldn't fuck her more than once
When I woke up this morning, little did I know it was going to be the day I was going to lose my treasured virginity. Neither did I expect the pain or the savageness that accompanied it.It had been four long days since I saw Ian. Once he left my room with Bella, she apparently kept him quite busy. I would have probably acted pissed and barged in on one of their private moments if he was with her somewhere on the palace grounds.Those love birds were touring the kingdom and out of reach. I harassed the guards at his room the first day by asking them too many times if he had returned.I gave up asking after that. Her wit and charm probably enamored him so much that he forgot about my existence and didn't care to drop by even at late night. I stayed up two nights in a row, hoping he would pay me a visit, even if it was only to kiss me goodnight.Reality hit me quite hard then. This was how it was going to be. Stephen's mistress was on the side while h
"Oh, my god! She's alive!" I heard Lydia and Julia's voices before they shook me completely out of my sweet slumber.Every inch of my body was on fire the minute I opened my eyes."Sleepyhead, it's three o'clock in the afternoon. We were wondering if you went into a coma or something." Lydia giggled, settling heavily on my bed."It hurts everywhere!" I mumbled inaudible words in despair, disappointed to not see Ian next to me."Did you forget Lydia is leaving today?" Julia asked."Oh yeah, sorry. Give me two minutes.""Two minutes? Take your time to get ready. We will have a fancy tea like how those fancy ladies do, and then you can kiss me goodbye. Get up now!" Lydia smacked me on the butt from over the sheets."Ahh! Please. Give me some time. I will be right there." I was too embarrassed to reveal my skin under the sheets. It was probably bruised everywhere."Fine." To my relief, they both left me alone finally.
Ian pulled me back into a comforting embrace. I wiped my tears against his shoulder and realized that he was still dressed. He told me once he didn't like sleeping with his shirt on. Not wanting him to leave me, I started unbuttoning his shirt.He caught my wrists and cupped my face. Was he laughing at me?"What are you doing, Nadia? Who undresses someone while crying like that?"My stupid tears won't stop even when he was mocking me. I rubbed my face against his neck, not able to bear the distance between us."I want you to sleep here, please. Take your shirt off!"He pulled my face away from his neck and kissed me until I was out of breath. Sudden arousal rippled through my body, bringing back memories of our last time together."I also want to sleep here. But you have to behave," He said, squeezing my nose between his fingertips.Behave? Why would I want to behave now of all the times?"Why?""You still
The much awaited day was here. I woke up bright and early and ate breakfast with my folks as I would not see them for almost a week.Lydia came to visit as well prior to leaving for wedding shopping. She was bubbling with happiness, explaining the quiet engagement ceremony. Everything seemed a little too good to be true.As we were lazing in the sun sipping tea and watching the hummingbirds near the beautiful petunias and hydrangea blooms, a servant came looking for me."The King wants to see you as soon as possible.""Me?" I looked at my mother anxiously."Where is the Prince? Let him know first. You never know what threats and warnings the King wants to give you.""He went to the town square with Mason but should be back anytime now," Lydia replied."Well, I think it's a bad idea to keep the King waiting. I will update Ian about it later."Both my mother and aunt called my name in a shrill voice as I was leaving."Be c
It was a glorious morning in the company of an even more glorious man. Ian was anything but boring. I had all my worries about not being compatible or have nothing to talk about types of worries cleared away during the train ride itself when I lost track of time in his company.My only complaint was about time, which was rushing like crazy while we are making precious memories.We stopped for breakfast by a mountain town with a funny name, Fludir. Nestled amid snow-capped mountains, pine trees, and serene natural beauty, it was a dream of a town.Once we stepped out of the warm indoors, Ian rubbed my shoulders as we crossed the street to the wagon stop."You seem to handle this weather okay so far.""It's freezing, but I love this town. You just have to hug me every other minute so I keep warm." I put my hands in the pockets of his winter jacket and pulled him toward me."Is that so? Someone told me yesterday that my smiles and words w
Nine months later (Mountbatten, September 30, 1836) ~Nadia~ "Sorry, I can't help being rough with you today," he said, gripping my hips tighter. "Me neither!" I bit into the skin near his collarbone and sucked on the side of his neck. We were dying to be alone and as loud as we wanted for almost a week now. He pushed me up against the wall, capturing my lips in a passionate kiss and moving his hands under my blouse. A sharp, angry cry resonated throughout the entire home. "Oh, that little brat!!" Ian made a sulky face as he went to check on Leo, and I followed him laughing. Leo stopped crying as soon as I rubbed his chin with my finger. Just like Ian, he wanted me to brush his hair with my fingers. Ian admired his sleeping little daughter. Oh yes, we had twins, Mabel and Leo. "Look at my angel, sleeping so peacefully, allowing us some quality time. Such a sweet darling." He moved the tiny r
~Nadia~"Do you have any idea the kind of hell you put Seb through?"What was she talking about? She had a wedding ring on and a baby bump, probably in her second trimester."You can write such articulate letters to strangers with pen names but don't have the guts to confront the father of your child? So what if he rejects you? At least you would have tried. You deprived him of seeing the baby grow inside you and the satisfaction of being there for you. You made all decisions for the three of you.""I saw him with you at the ball. You were all over him as always." I couldn't remove the bitterness out of my voice."I love him, and there was no sign of you anywhere for months. You can't expect me to be a saint and sacrifice him for you. You should have confronted him, fought with him, and claimed him back if you really wanted him that bad. You ran like a little kid, making him dig into the entire Prussian spy network and operations."I w
~Ian~I reached Ivaris Central in no time, and the first thing I noticed was a large group of people surrounding something and a lot of commotion. I pushed my way through to find that Andrew was beaten to a pulp and my men were in a heated argument with a handful of commoners."What's going on here?" I helped Andrew off the floor and asked him."That woman in the barracks, she's Noah's accomplice.""Which woman?""She's pregnant now. She ran after him while we were chasing him. I tried to stop her, but she concocted some cock and bull story and got me beaten.""Where is she now? Did you hurt her?""She ran after him, that way." He pointed to the tracks."I saw her get into the train that left just twenty minutes back." Another one of my men told me.I went to the ticket counter to ask which train she might have taken. Only two trains left in the last thirty minutes, one going to Arcadia and the other to Krems
~Nadia~I needed to go as far away from Ian as possible. I feel disgusted by him to the core. Once a playboy, always a playboy. Such a fool I was to wait for him, hoping he would come one day.Where was the map that grandpa uses? I needed to get out of Ivaris and go somewhere up north. I changed into more comfortable clothes and packed some food and clothes as quickly as possible.Poor Andreas, I wrote an apology note for him as well and another note for grandparents and Giselle. I left part of my earnings along with the letter, hoping that Andreas continues to send them my allowance, at least for Giselle's sake.I ripped the letter meant for Ian into a thousand pieces and left home. The train station was in Ivaris Central, which was only a mile away by the shortcut grandpa showed me. There was a long line of people at the ticket station because of the rush hour.As I stood in the line and marveled at the granite facades lit with giant lanter
~Ian~"Seb, did you like it?"I forgot what Caty wanted me to try. She put her hand on my back."It's good," I lied."I knew it!"Every time she laid even a finger on me, I could hear Nadia yelling at me. I can't forget that night she got drunk and ran onto the street because I hurt her. Even though she left me, I still felt loyal to her.I gently slid Caty's hand off of me, but she wrapped her other arm around me."Won't you dance with me?" She whispered in my ear."Maybe after we eat dinner. I'm not in the mood right now."I turned around to eat one more of what Nadia loved. I would give everything I had to get that night back when she was in my room, talking about baking and why she loved plum jam turnovers so much.Those large brown eyes staring into mine every time she lifted her head up after burying her face into my chest. Knowing enough about her now, I know why she did that back then. She was feelin
~Nadia~Putting Giselle to sleep was a daunting task today. Her snuffles didn't stop long after she closed her eyes. I pushed all thoughts of Noah away until she was off to bed, but now that I was the only one awake in the house, I went into Noah's room and burned those two letters addressed to Johann Barnekow.Was that really Noah under the streetlight today? Did he escape from the prison and come to see Giselle? Why would he not come home unless he was a fugitive on the run?I don't want to side with a spy, no matter how good he is to me. Do I want to deprive Giselle of her papa though? Certainly not. I have to do my part so he's able to come back to Giselle one day, sooner than later.I guess he would have talked to me and his daughter today if Andreas wasn't with us. He was always there when I was low. Why couldn't he be the simple, honest man I thought he was?What if Ian never came for me because of Noah? If he was in the prison as some Barne
~Nadia~"Oh, wow! What kind of sorcery is this?" I was staring at the model of an automobile with my mouth wide open. Andreas told me it was an electric carriage made by someone from Scotland.Giselle wanted to sit inside the model because it looked like a perfect toy on wheels.Ivaris was holding a three-day fair as part of the first harvest festival of the year. Arcadia fairs never had all these engineered models on display. Here, people could watch science in progress, touch prototypes of future inventions, and even volunteer to take part in some of these ventures where developers were conducting surveys and handing us forms to fill."Do you like it?" Andreas asked Giselle as if he was gifting her one. He was really excited about these model designs and talked about random facts nonstop."Inventors are trying to make one powered by an internal combustion engine. So we can go to the beaches in Colchis, take a trip to the Macaby caves and sp
~Ian~After visiting Ivaris for a second time, I met their Crown Prince and went hunting with him. Ivaris was one of the best hunting places I have known with lots of freshwater, feeding spots, and some kind of game breeding throughout the year. The last time I was with Andreas was in February when I couldn't stop thinking about Nadia. It was the first time I thought about someone who was not Caty.On one such day eight years ago, Andreas and I met Caty when we were up north in his kingdom, hunting for some Alpine Ibex. Visiting Ivaris always brought back memories of her, and the good times we spent together. Just a few kisses from Nadia made me forget Caty, who was on my mind for many years. I wanted to stay mad at Nadia for pushing me away for some nonexistent future husband. I left without telling her because it really hurt my ego. Little did I know it was Noah she wanted to save herself for. Months later, I still can't stop thinking about
~Nadia~ As I entered the second trimester of my pregnancy, mood swings became extreme and so did my food cravings. I hardly ate two meals a day ever since I left the palace. Until recently, despite trying my best to take care of myself, my appetite refused to return to how it used to be. But now, I had the opposite problem. I felt hungry all the time. After eating an early dinner, I got hungry within an hour and wanted more. Snacking on cheese and crackers had become a routine habit at midnight. Noah's grandparents were at times afraid to talk to me because of how badly I snapped at them. Only Giselle could handle my tantrums, despite being so little. The coffee shop was overly busy because the Prince sent everyone this way. It exhausted me to death by the end of the day, but the pay before leaving kept increasing day by day, and it was the end of the second week already. Today was a good day for a change because I got done early with work and