Alpha's Impostor Bride

13

Leanna Avery

He studies me for a few seconds, and for a moment I think I see a flicker of amusement in his eyes. But it’s gone after I blink, and I’m sure I just imagined it.

“Very well. What do you want to do with them?”

“The maids will wear the dresses. And I don’t want them to serve me anymore. I don’t need any maids. I don’t trust the staff in this castle to serve me. Harriet is enough for me. As for the designer, I won’t be getting clothes made by her again. Harriet will find me another designer. And this one will not receive any business from the castle ever again.”

At most, it’s going to hurt her cash flow, but at least she’ll be alive.

“Fine.” Cedric shrugs. “Do as you please. But you will have an attendant at all times.”

Because he doesn’t trust me, I muse to myself, my heart tightening in my chest.

“I won’t have my queen doing her own tasks. If the servants in the castle are not to your satisfaction, I’ll dismiss them all and bring in others.”

I’m stunned. Is this the same man who told me I should know my place and not make a fuss?

Harriet looks relieved. “I’ll demote the maids, Your Majesty.”

White-faced, the maids are led away by Harriet, and the designer follows after them. The only people left in the room are Cedric, Bella, and me. Feeling uncomfortable, I glance at her. She’s staring at Cedric. Maybe she wants to vent to him for not taking her side.

Cedric looks at me. “You’re not pleased?”

His words take me aback. “You did this to please me?”

He shrugs, carefully watching my expression. “They try to humiliate you, I make them pay for it.”

“They were just lackeys,” I murmur—mostly to myself, but he catches it.

“You want me to punish Bella?”

His arm is sprawled across the back of the couch as he studies me. I stare back at him, trying to figure out what his game is. He just went from paying no attention to me at all to suddenly defending me in front of the people who have been bullying me. I’m not naïve enough to believe that he has had a change of heart. He’s up to something. I’ve had enough of these games played with me to know that one wrong move can be catastrophic. I clench my fingers in the fabric of my dress, trying to push aside a wave of nausea.

Punish his lover? Does he really think I’m going to be stupid enough to say yes to that?

I straighten up, ignoring the spasm of pain in my back. “I leave that to your discretion, Your Majesty.”

Let him make of that statement what he will. He’s not going to do anything to Bella. I can understand why he was angry over her prank, though. After all, I am the queen now. If I were to wear those clothes, even within the castle walls, it would reflect poorly on him. He’s probably mad about that indirect impact on himself. That makes sense.

However, if I thought he would leave things at that, I’m sorely mistaken. As I turn to leave, he demands, “And where do you think you’re going?”

I face him again, blinking slowly. “My room?”

“I’m still sitting here,” he points out.

Confused, I look at him. “Do you need something from me?”

His jaw tightens, and he crosses his arms over his chest. Is it just me or does his face look slightly red?

“I don’t always need something from you. There’s another designer waiting outside. This time, I’m going to make sure you get appropriate dresses, even if I have to supervise everything myself.”

That throws me off. “I can do it myself.”

“I don’t remember asking you.” This is a man who doesn’t like being told no, and I’m starting to notice that his behavior is unpredictable, as well. Yet, his harsh words seem more familiar than anything else.

I glance toward Bella, who is still standing stiffly near the couch. This whole situation is far too uncomfortable for me, but do I have a choice?

There’s a knock on the door, and Harriet enters. “Should I bring in Melody?”

Cedric nods his head, and Harriet opens the door wider, allowing a young girl to walk through. She looks to be in her late teens. “Your Majesty.”

She seems far too young to be a designer, but as soon as she gets to work, I realize she’s incredibly talented. She opens the bag that she’s carrying, retrieves a large book, and brings it to me. “These are all my latest creations. Please tell me which ones you like. The swatches for the fabrics are next to each dress. If you want something different, I can have more fabrics brought to the castle, and you can choose.”

I want to get this over with as soon as possible. I sit at the table and flip through the designs, my trained eye picking up on the ones that appear simple yet elegant. I point out a few, and that is when Cedric gets to his feet and approaches me. His large body looms over mine, his familiar scent tickling my nose and rousing my wolf. “Let me see.”

I go still, wishing my heart didn’t beat so fast at his proximity, but he doesn’t seem to notice as he hovers over my shoulder.

Finally, he nods. “These are acceptable.”

I feel a surge of unbidden irritation. I may not be an actual princess, but I told him that I was raised alongside Vivian. I was taught how to dress and how to behave. Did he really think I would choose something that wasn’t worthy of a queen?

He must have seen the flash of anger on my face because he gives me a long look. “Do you have something to say to me?”

I’ve always managed to keep my emotions in check, no matter how Vivian treated me. But at the end of the day, I was still a person, and nobody can bear to be humiliated to such an extent. I knew, though, that if I ever let her see how I truly felt, she would use it against me. So, I kept my mouth shut and my head low. No matter what she said or did to me, I never let her see my feelings.

However, the more time Cedric spends around me, the harder I find it to maintain that same façade. Is it because he’s my fated mate? Or is it because my soul feels so weary now? But I have to try. I have to keep protecting myself the only way I know how.

I turn my gaze away from him. “No.”

“Do you have these dresses ready?” He looks at the designer, who nods.

“I created samples, which I brought along. Miss Harriet, if you will?”

Harriet opens the door of the sitting room, and several maids I have never met begin to bring in the dresses. Melody picks out the ones I chose from the book. “You can try them on, Your Majesty. They will be a close fit for you.”

I glance nervously at Harriet, who gives me a small nod. “Let me assist you.”

We retreat to my bedchamber. She remains silent as she helps me into the first dress. When she zips me up, she meets my gaze in the mirror, her voice grateful. “Thank you.”

I glance at her, confused. “For what?”

“The king was angry. I know those girls crossed the line, but they’re young and foolish, easily led astray by others. I wanted to thank you for your kindness in sparing them. You didn’t have to do it, Your Majesty. After what they did, nobody else would’ve forgiven them.”

“I didn’t forgive them,” I remind her. “They will still be punished. I just didn’t want them and their families to die.”

“And they will remember that,” Harriet says quietly. “They understand the gravity of what they did, as does everybody else in the castle. Today, the entire staff has seen that you are not to be slighted, that King Cedric will protect you. And they will remember that you let those girls off with an easy punishment and stood up for them in front of him.”

I feel uncomfortable. “I didn’t do it so they would feel grateful toward me.”

A smile blooms on the older woman’s lips, and she says nothing further. I see her glance over her shoulder momentarily, and then she turns her attention back to me. “Green is really your color. If you have a favorite, though, I can ask the designer to make a dress in that color.”

I stare at my image, remembering. “Princess Vivian liked the color purple.”

Harriet’s expression changes. “I’m not asking about the Princess, Miss Leanna. I want to know what you like.”

I meet her gaze in the mirror. “I’m supposed to like what the princess likes.”

I see the strain in her eyes, and I expect her to give up the topic, but she presses. “There must be some color that you have a preference for.”

I feel a strange emptiness inside me, and my voice becomes quiet. “I don’t know what I like. Nobody’s ever asked me before.”

Harriet sighs, putting her hands on my shoulders. “Then maybe you should try to figure that out.”

When I turn around to go show Melody the dress, I see Cedric leaning against the doorframe. Startled, I immediately step backward, right into my maid. “When did you come in?”

He doesn’t answer my question. “Let’s go,” he say shortly.