Page 70 of A Tale of Treachery

I wanted to argue with him, wanted to shout that he had no right to demand these things, that I wasn’t a willing participant anymore, but judging from the look on his face,nowasn’t an option.

He sighed in relief when my head dipped in acceptance and approached, slowly removing each finger that clutched the sheet to my body. My eyes widened with a plea, but he raised a threatening brow at the silent protest. My fingers opened, releasing the hold on the fabric that held my last shred of dignity.

“Good,” he grunted his approval, eyes raking along my skin and halting between my legs. “Clean yourself up.”

He strode to the door, then turned. “You can stay here tonight and wash that filth off you,” he said, “but I expect you in my room first thing tomorrow.”

The door slammed behind him, leaving me alone with my mouth agape.

Only then did I allow myself to break.

CHAPTER26

Bang!

I awoke with a start, cracking open eyes that were crusted and swollen from the previous night's events. My head was pounding like my brain was trying to rebel against its cage, and I peered around the room, desperate to determine what had caused the noise. My blurry vision cleared the harder I rubbed at my eyes. My sight narrowed on the source of chaos.

The lady’s maids Aiden had assigned were digging through my closet, pulling out all the gowns he’d gifted me, and tossing them on the ground. I snorted at the piles of crumpled material that trailed across the floor. Aiden must have thought that taking away his gifts would be a suitable punishment for my transgressions, but the joke was on him. I couldn’t care less. On the other hand, the noises the ladies were making were an extremely unwelcome form of retribution.

I rolled over in bed, groaning, and folded a pillow to cover my ears and block out the racket. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing myself to fall back asleep amid the jarring noise and chitchat.

Boom!

“Are you joking? Go away! Come back later!”

The sound of a throat clearing at the end of the bed had me rolling over to check what in the world was happening. When my bleary gaze focused, I hopped up. George was here.

“Hello. What are you doing here?” I asked, rolling from beneath the covers in my nightgown.

The look on his face didn’t contain his usual mischievous countenance. He looked upset, his gaze trailing along my nightgown, a harsh look of judgment flashing across his expression.

“What’s going on?” I asked warily.

George spoke, his voice hard. “I’ve been placed as your guard. Get dressed. Aiden is expecting you in his quarters first thing this morning.”

He retreated out the door, giving me his back.

So, George would be my guard. I could only assume that Aiden hadn’t placed Brandon on duty because he’d always had too much of a soft spot for me, but it was strange that he chose George, of all people, considering how we had kissed.

I weaved around the three ladies digging through my closet to search for my brown leather pants and a tunic, clothing that Aiden did not gift me and would not approve of. But there was little choice. Today, I would be joining Redmond on the excursion to the portal and needed to be able to move freely, hike through the forest, and bend to take samples. Active clothes were the only option, considering what lay ahead for the day…if Aiden approved of my plans.

My nose wrinkled as Aiden’s demands flashed in my mind. He wanted obedience, something I couldn’t give when all I wanted to do was rebel. I threw my clothes on and shot the ladies digging through my closet one last quizzical look, baffled by their actions.

I wrenched my bedroom door open and stepped out into the corridor, raising a brow at George. “Well, lead the way.”

Avoiding eye contact, he turned his back on me and marched toward Aiden’s quarters. I followed, praying to any higher power that would listen that Aiden had decided to cease this madness overnight. I’d never wanted to hurt him, but it was too late to take back the pain that I’d caused.

Under normal circumstances, I would be thrown into the dungeon or, at the very least, stripped of the title of mistress and kicked out of the kingdom. But these weren’t normal circumstances and Aiden wasn’t a normal person. He was a prince accustomed to getting what he wanted.

And I’d defied him.

George stopped at the door to his quarters. A small bit of softness finally cracked through his expression, quickly replaced with sternness. He was mad. He’d been rooting for Aiden and me, though why he cared so much was unknown.

“Behave and do as he says. He is not your friend anymore. He is your prince, and you will treat him with the respect he is due. Don’t test him, Dahlia. He’s not in the mood.”

The following knock echoed through the vast corridor, but George didn’t wait for a response before cracking open the door. I entered behind him, taking in the elegant sitting room between Aiden’s bedroom on the right and his private office on the left.

George moved left to the office and my eyes shot to the ceiling as I muttered, “Thank you,” under my breath and followed. Aiden was furious with me, and who knew what he would be capable of if we were left alone in his bedroom?

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