Page 4 of Accidentally Ever After
“Oh,” I said, feeling slightly chastened but still thoroughly freaked out. “Well… still. I didn’t consent to any of this.”
His wings folded back, and he seemed to compose himself. “You are right. For that reason, I will not rush you. You will be given time to adjust to your new circumstances.” He stood, moving toward a door I hadn’t noticed. “Your chambers are connected to mine, but you need not share my bed until you are willing.”
The phrasing made something flutter in my stomach that I absolutely refused to acknowledge.
“I’ve arranged for a guide to show you the palace and help you select appropriate attire,” he continued. “I have councilmeetings until this evening, but I would be honored if you would join me for dinner.”
“Do I have a choice?” I asked.
His lips curved in that not-quite-smile. “In this, yes. You may dine privately if you prefer.”
I sighed. “No, dinner’s fine. Maybe you can explain more about what exactly a ‘consort’ does around here.”
Something flickered in his eyes that made my heart rate spike. “Indeed. Until this evening, then.”
After he left, I explored the room—rooms, actually. I had a suite that included the bedroom, a bathing chamber with a pool-sized tub, a dressing room, and a sitting room with bookshelves filled with volumes in languages I couldn’t read. Everything was beautiful in that alien fairy way—materials that shouldn’t exist in those colors, furniture that seemed to have grown rather than been built, light that came from nowhere and everywhere.
A knock at the door revealed a fairy woman with butterfly wings in shades of turquoise and gold.
“Consort Morgan,” she said, bowing deeply. “I am Melronna, assigned to assist with your transition to court life.”
“Just Blake is fine,” I said, uncomfortable with the formality.
“That would be improper,” she said, looking scandalized. “You are the prince’s chosen one.”
“Yeah, about that—”
“Shall we begin with attire?” she interrupted, sweeping past me into the dressing room. “His Highness has commissioned an entire wardrobe for you, but adjustments will be needed.”
The “wardrobe” turned out to be what could only be described as sexy fairy lingerie. Gossamer shirts that were practically transparent, pants that clung like second skin, and robes that seemed designed specifically to fall open at the slightest movement.
“These are… clothes?” I asked, holding up what appeared to be a shirt made of silver spider webs.
“The finest silks from the moonworm colonies,” Melronna said proudly. “This one would complement your coloring beautifully.”
I tried on a few items, each more revealing than the last. The fabrics felt amazing against my skin—cool and warm simultaneously, like being touched by a summer breeze—but I felt ridiculous.
“Don’t you have anything more… substantial?” I asked, tugging at a shirt that kept slipping off one shoulder.
Melronna looked puzzled. “Do humans typically conceal their physical forms?”
“Generally, yeah. Especially when we first meet people.”
“But the prince has already claimed you. Why would you hide your form from him?”
I sighed. “It’s complicated. Human modesty or whatever.”
She nodded sagely. “Ah, a courtship ritual. You wish Prince Caelen to work for the privilege of seeing your form fully. How delightfully primitive.”
“That’s not exactly—”
“I shall find garments with more coverage,” she declared, disappearing into what seemed to be an endless closet. She returned with outfits that, while still more revealing than anything I’d wear on Earth, at least covered the essential bits.
After I was dressed in midnight blue pants that hugged every curve and a silver tunic that laced up the front (Melronna had insisted on leaving the top three laces undone to “honor tradition”), she led me on a tour of the palace.
To call it overwhelming would be like calling the ocean “a bit wet.” The palace seemed to be partially grown, partially built, with living trees forming columns and crystal spires catching thelight from the ever-changing sky. Everywhere we went, fairies stopped to stare at me, whispering behind delicate hands.
“Why is everyone looking at me like I’m an exhibit at the zoo?” I whispered to Melronna.
