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Alessandra
AS I WALKED PAST THE room I had locked Vernelle into, I thought about peeking in on him one last time before the wedding. I knew I’d left him with enough blood to hold him over for at least three days—maybe even four—but I just wanted to see him again.
After having an inner debate with myself for a few moments, I decided Vernelle could wait until the next day. As it was, I was already going to be about ten minutes late for the wedding ceremony. Not that I minded.
Late was exactly what I’d been aiming for.
I wanted Sebastian to be nervous I might not show up. I wanted him to worry I might bail on him, to fear the possibility I could have been backing out of this whole thing.
I wanted to make him realize, once and for all, just how much he needed me.
I had just reached the ground floor of the palace when a wave of short blonde hair came into view. She was wearing a tea-length cobalt blue dress. There was something very familiar about her frame and the way she carried herself.
I realized who it was almost at the same moment that she turned to face me.
The feelings that I felt were reflected behind her blue eyes. There were years of memories behind her stare... years of built-up hatred.
She was the first one to speak. “Princess Alessandra.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “What are you doing here, Princess Celia?”
“I’m about to attend your wedding,” she replied simply.
“I didn’t invite you.”
“No, you’re right. Sebastian is the one who invited me.” She smiled. “I live here now, as a part of the Stark Coven. Hasn’t he told you yet?”
“No, he failed to divulge that tiny detail,” I replied quietly.
A smile touched her lips. “That’s a little unusual, don’t you think? I would imagine that’s something that someone would share with the person they’re about to marry.”
“We’ve had more important things going on in our life right now.”
“That’s funny. I would have thought that living in the same kingdom as someone who you have publicly sworn as your enemy would be a bit of a big deal.” She shrugged. “Unless, of course, it was because Sebastian didn’t think you could handle this information.” She paused. “Or maybe it’s because he didn’t want you to go against his decision. Perhaps he doesn’t trust you. Not that I’d blame him for that. There are some people who simply can’t be trusted.”
“I see that you haven’t changed one bit,” I murmured.
She shrugged her small shoulders. “I’m just stating the obvious. What would make you want to marry someone who keeps secrets from you?”
“I love him. But I suppose that’s something you know nothing about. After all, most of the Allegro kingdom suspected that you killed my brother.”
Judging from the pain that filled her eyes, I could tell I had hit her right where it hurt. Mission accomplished.
“I did not kill Angelo,” Celia replied firmly.
“I’ll bet. Move out of my way. I’m about to get married.”
She stood her ground. “And I’m about to watch my cousin make the biggest mistake of his life.”
As the anger ran through my veins, I lunged myself at her.
Just as the idea of knocking her head off her neck crossed my mind, I felt a pair of strong hands wrapping around my waist and pulling me away from her.
“Ladies, ladies... I know the two of you hate each other, but why don’t we try to maintain a sense of civility? We wouldn’t want to ruin anything for Sebastian on his special day, now would we?”
I turned to find Emerson Stark standing behind me, a cocky smile on his face.
Of all the Stark princes, he was perhaps the least clean-cut in terms of appearance, and yet, there was something that was still wildly attractive about him.
His reddish-brown hair fell into his face in bangs. Thick, dark eyebrows rested above his bright, cat green eyes, drawing some of the attention away from his unkempt facial hair.
“Emerson. How surprising it is to see you here. I thought you were off doing... whatever it is that you were doing,” I said.
“Well, I have returned. I wouldn’t have wanted to miss the big day. I hear you’re about to become a Stark,” Emerson said. “Congratulations on being the first vampire who somehow managed to bribe my brother into marrying her.”
“I did not bribe him,” I replied defensively.
“Mmhmm.” Emerson didn’t look convinced in the least. “No matter what your reasons are for getting married, why don’t we try not to kill anyone before this wedding, huh?”
I shot a glare in Celia’s direction before nodding my agreement. “I wouldn’t want to look like I’ve just killed someone just moments before my wedding. I’ll have plenty of time to kill her afterwards.”
“You will not kill her,” Emerson said, stepping in between us to shield her from me. “If you do, you will have me to contend with.”
“Since when are you so defensive of her?” I raised my eyebrows at him. “The last thing I heard, she was a traitor to your coven.”
“She is half Stark. You may be a Stark in a matter of minutes, but you will never really be a true Stark.” His green eyes locked on mine. “Blood relations will always come first in my mind.”
“How differently you and I think,” I murmured.
“So it would seem,” he agreed.
I thought about dropping the bombshell—that Sebastian and I planned to abolish the Stark Coven once we were married. But this didn’t seem like the right moment to break the news to him.
I wanted the news to completely devastate him; I needed for it to rock his world like an earthquake that threatened to destroy everything.
But I also needed to be able to marry Sebastian first. The last thing I wanted was for Emerson—or anyone else, for that matter—to prevent this wedding from happening.
My eyes moved from him to Celia and back to him. “I highly suggest that the two of you go on ahead. I’ll wait here for a few moments. I like to be fashionably late, and I don’t tolerate rudeness well. I will have the heads of anyone who interrupts my wedding.”
Emerson stared at me for a few moments. It looked like he wanted to say something, but instead, he nodded. “Very well. Let’s go. You can tell me what you’re doing here while we walk,” he said, glancing over at Celia.
As the two of them continued their way down the hallway, toward the side door, I took in a deep breath.
Kade thought I was just trying to prove a point by marrying Sebastian. Celia was certain that our relationship was built on secrets and that Sebastian didn’t trust me. Emerson believed I had actually bribed his brother into marrying me.
What did the rest of the vampire world believe I was trying to accomplish by marrying the Stark prince?
I thought about it for a moment, but then I decided it didn’t matter.
Regardless of what anyone thought, the show would go on.