Filed to story: The Vampire Prince’s Bride
Laila was in a stunning red gown-she would take the spotlight tonight, as I’m sure she intended. My brothers and their wives all were in their formal gear as well. Together, we looked like quite the royal family. Except that one person was still missing…
“I take it that Stephenie isn’t going to bother to attend?” I asked with nonchalance. Her skipping this event was an insult to me as a prince of the Vale, but it wasn’t as if I cared about all of that royal protocol. Especially because this family wasn’t my own. They never would be or could be. Still, I had to pretend like I cared somewhat, thus why I’d pointed it out immediately.
“Your sister was last seen partying with the vampires of the Tower at Christmas,” Laila said with a frown. “I suspect she jetted off to some exotic location to celebrate theNewYear.”
“Not much time has passed since then,” I pointed out.
“She should be here,” Laila said. “When the time is right, I’ll ask the princesses of the Tower if they know anything about her whereabouts. But her not being here is an insult-not just to you, but to the crown. When she gets back…” Laila didn’t continue, but I could tell from the anger in her eyes that Stephenie was going to be in for quite the verbal lashing when she returned, along with who knew what else.
“She’s gone missing for far longer in the past,” Scott chimed in. “Remember when she went to Ibiza and we didn’t hear from her all summer? I’m sure she’s fine.”
“Oh, I’m also sure she’s fine,” Laila said. “Stephenie has never had any problems with taking care of herself. The girl is too independent for her own good. But when she returns, her punishment will be severe.”
Both Lauren and Deidre had their heads bowed during this entire exchange. Like most-well, all-vampires of the Vale, they were scared ofLaila.
Laila knew it, and I could tell by the way her lips turned up when she looked at both of them that she liked it.
“I got a look at two of the princesses on my way here.” Alexander smirked and gave me a friendly pat on the back. “Brother, you’re in for a treat.”
His wife, Deidre, glared at him but said nothing. Both of my brothers had chosen such submissive wives. If I’d had it my way and had ended up with Scarlett, her fire would have put them to shame.
There I went again, thinking about Scarlett. Could my thoughts of her never stop? My own mind was torturing itself, and every time I tried not to think of her, it only made me think of her more.
Perhaps meeting the princesses would help.
I doubted it, but I had to try.
“I’m impatient to meet them,” I said, meeting Alexander’s smirk with one of my own. If I was going to play this part, I was going to do it well. “So what are we waiting for? Let’s get this show on the road.”
Without waiting for a response, I turned around and led the way to the throne room.
Sean
I entered the throne room and looked around, stunned by my surroundings.
Despite having been in the Vale for slightly over a year, I never failed to be amazed by the opulence of the palace… and the throne room took opulence to an entirely new level. The ceilings were high with ornate gold finishing and multiple crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The floor was covered in a massive Turkish rug, and red curtains adorned the floor to ceiling windows that looked out to the town.
Laila sat on the tallest throne, and I took the smaller one by her side-the one intended for her future husband, if she ever chose to marry. She, of course, wore her crown. My siblings stood by our sides.
The room was filled with vampire nobles and soldiers gathered to watch the introductions of the princesses. There was even a camera on sight, filming the entire ordeal. The humans in the village didn’t have access to televisions, but to make the event extra special (and to boost morale), Laila had instructed public viewings of the important parts of my selection in the village squares.
Everyone was watching me today. No matter what, I had to appear cool and confident. I had to radiate the aura of a powerful vampire prince.
Two of my best soldiers-Daniel and Harry-stood in front of the closed double-door entrance, and they waited for my cue.
“Send them in,” I ordered, my voice filling the cavernous room.
The soldiers nodded and opened the doors.
“First, we present Princess Darra and Princess Tari of the Ward,” Daniel said, and the twins entered.
They were beautiful, with ebony skin, high cheekbones, and fierce gazes. They wore tight white dresses embroidered with yellow tribal patterns, thick beaded necklaces across their chests, and held their heads high to balance their ornate golden headpieces. They appeared young-I imagined they hadn’t been older than sixteen when they’d been turned. Given the Ward’s obsession with children, I shouldn’t have been surprised.
They both carried tall, thick tribal sticks, and seemed ready to knock out anyone who looked at them in the wrong way. Yet, despite their sophisticated outfits, they walked slowly, as if uncomfortable in such constrictive material. Which made sense, given what Laila had told me about the Ward-how they were all trained warriors. Despite being princesses, I had no doubt that these two women were also impressive fighters.
If they were behind me on my plan to rebel against the Vale, I had no doubts that we would win.
It would certainly be interesting to get to know each of them better and get a grasp on where their allegiances lie.
I nodded at them, as instructed, and glanced at the soldiers to let in the next two princesses. That was one of the rules I’d learned before going into this-show no emotion while being introduced to the princesses. Now was not a time to demonstrate favor one way or the other. For now, they all must have an equal chance at winning my hand-or at least, they must believe they have an equal chance.
The guard cleared his throat. “Princess Eve and Princess Margaret, of Utopia,” he said.
Two extremely different looking women entered the room-one with tanned skin, a petite frame, and upturned eyes who appeared to have been from the Pacific islands. The other was pale (even for a vampire), with white-blonde hair that fell in waves to her waist.
I knew from the order they were introduced that the islander was Eve, and the pale one was Margaret. They wore simple, patterned dresses-Eve in yellow, and Margaret in blue. Margaret stared at me as if she wanted to eat me alive, but it was Eve who had captured my gaze. The woman was breathtakingly beautiful. And the way she watched me, her eyes innocent, yet aware… if she had invited me to her bedroom in that moment, saying no would have been damn near impossible.
However, we were in public, and I moved my gaze away from hers, not wanting to be obvious about the lust raging through my body at the sight of her. I also reminded myself that Laila had told me of Utopia-it was the kingdom that disliked men and killed all male vampires who set foot on their island. She’d warned me not to trust them. I had to take that into consideration. If Laila didn’t feel like they could be trusted in an alliance with the Vale, surely I also shouldn’t trust them to back the rebellion. I could do what I wanted with Eve while she was here-I certainly intended on inviting her to my quarters and, if she was willing, satisfying my craving for her-but I needed to be wary of choosing her as my future bride.
And so, I swallowed down my longing and looked to the guards to continue on to the next two princesses.
“Princess Daniela and Princess Isabella, of the Tower,” the guard announced.
Two women tall enough to be supermodels strutted into the throne room. They wore short, skin-tight dresses, leaving no curve of their bodies to the imagination. Daniela’s dress had horizontal slits all the way up to her waist, and Isabella’s dropped so low that I was surprised her navel wasn’t visible. They both had long, dark hair that had been curled for the occasion.
There was no denying that they were beautiful-I suspected that most men would have thought they were the most beautiful women in the room. But to me, neither of them compared to the innocent beauty ofEve.
I nearly glanced at Eve at the thought of her, but stopped myself at the last moment. I needed to remain impartial. Instead, I turned my gaze back to the guard and nodded for him to continue.
“Princess Karina and Princess Bianca, of the Carpathian Kingdom,” he announced.
I turned my gaze to watch the princesses enter, nearly startling at the sight of Karina. Because with her small frame, pale skin, and dark hair, she looked strikingly similar to Laila. Except for her eyes-Karina’s eyes were a pale blue. Dramatically different from Laila’s chocolate brown. But Karina’s gaze was just as confident as Laila’s, perhaps even more so.
She lowered herself into a curtsy, a small smile on her face, her eyes not leaving mine the entire time. There was something entrancing about her.