Emma pov
"How about this color ma'am," Helen, the head of staff in the castle bombards me with another swatch of fabric. I sit in the drawing room and hold my head in my hands, trying to ward off my worsening headache caused by the chaos around me.
"For the last time Helen, I'm not pregnant, there's absolutely no reason for me to be picking out fabrics for drapes in a baby nursery," I snap, massaging my temples as a seamstress attempts to fit me for maternity dresses and a cook tries to feed me 'special fertility soup.'
"But a royal nursery takes many months to prepare! We're already behind schedule," she frets, pushing me past my breaking point. I'm about to dismiss everyone from the room, but a familiar face comes in the room and does it for me.
"Alright everyone, give the princess some space. Especially you," he says, giving Helen a pointed look. The staff quickly files out of the room.
"Ashton, you're back!" I grin, running to give him a hug. He wraps me into a tight embrace, swaying us back and forth a bit.
"So how was Spain?" I ask, noticing his unruly curls had gotten longer and he had a nicely filled in beard now.
"Spain is beautiful this time of year, perfect for a wedding ceremony," he turns around to take the hand of a girl I just now notice standing behind him.
"Em, this is my wife, Bryana," Ashton introduces me to the girl, his eyes full of love when he looks at her. Bryana smiles and timidly bows, her long blonde hair falling in front of her face.
"It's an honor to meet you Your Majesty," she says politely.
"Please, anyone who can make Ashton want to settle down should not bow before me, nor any other," I say, pulling her to her feet, "call me Emma."
We talk for a bit and I'm truly amazed at how kind and down to Earth she is. And Ashton can't take his eyes off her for a second.
"Hey Em?" I hear Luke walk into the room.
"Yes?" He wraps his arms around my waist from behind. I turn around in his arms and brush away a few curls of hair that had fallen in front of his eyes.
"So I was pulled out of a meeting today by the castle medic..."
"-You really need a haircut Lucas," I interrupt him, still focused on fixing his unruly hair.
"I'll get one in a few days, but, is there a reason the medic requested 'samples of my reproductive fluid' to ensure I'm able to 'assist in conception' for tonight?" He says quietly in my ear so Ashton and Bryana can't hear. My eyes widen and I groan at how invasive everyone is with our life.
Luke and I both agreed that we were ready to have sex for the first time and tonight was supposed to be the big night.
"Well... I might have told a maid this morning the news and within an hour the whole castle knew and now I'm being pestered left and right about a baby" I explained, fiddling with my fingers instead of looking him in the eye.
"Don't worry about it, I'll tell them to back off,"
"But now tonight's practically ruined now that the entire castle knows," I sigh.
"No love, everything will be perfect," he grins widely. The particular glint in his eye makes me blush because I know what he's thinking about. I remember that Ashton and Bryana are still in the room with us. Luke seems to become aware of it too because he turns back to them and politely excuses us. He grabs my hand, our fingers tangling together, and leads me through the corridors towards where our quarters are.
"Now's the only time we have to ourselves," he closes the door behind us and swiftly locks it.
"And we won't be interrupted. It'll be just us, like it should be," he leans down and kisses me fervently, but breaking away after a minute.
"God Luke you're such a tease," I complain as I try to pull his smirking face back to mine.
"What do you want, love?" he simpers.
"Just fuck me already," I demand and without hesitation he backs me onto the bed, initiating one of the best nights of my life.
...
That morning I woke to calloused fingers running through my hair gently and soft kisses being placed on my bare skin. My sleep-clouded mind was confused for a moment, but once I realized it was Luke I relaxed into his touch. Part of me wanted to crawl further into his arms as the blankets had shifted away from my body in the night and the drafty room left goose bumps on my arms; but the other part reminds me that I haven't had nearly enough sleep to even consider moving. The sound Luke's steady breathing lulls me into a half-asleep state and I just faintly recognize the sound of brisk knocking on our door.
"Dammit," I hear Luke say under his breath.
"Helen could you please delay both of our schedules for today by an hour or two," Luke calls out, probably assuming the knocker is Helen, trying to pry us out of bed so we can both start our busy days.
"Actually, it's Ash," I hear from the other side of the door, "I have urgent news, can I come in?"
"Uhh, yeah just a minute," Luke tugs the fallen bedsheets up to my chin, completely covering my previously exposed body so it's okay for Ashton to come in.
I hear a frantic shuffling noise, probably Luke trying to pull pants on, and finally the sound of the door opening. I squint one eye open and
thankfully the curtains have been drawn so it's not too bright in the room.
"Hey," Ashton starts, his voice shaking nervously, "so how did you sleep?"
"C'mon mate, you know I've had a long night, spit it out," Luke groans rubbing his eyes tiredly. Ashton's expression is grave, his usually cheerful grin wiped from his face completely. They stand on the other side of the room, talking quietly. Luke has only a pair of pants on and they sit lowly on his hips. From where I am, I can just barely make out the love bites littering his chest, but the scratch marks on his bare back are prominent. His hair is sticking up in all directions but it suits him. If the situation didn't seem so serious right now, I'd get up and pull him back to bed for a part two of last night.
But my wanton thoughts are wiped away as their conversation seems to get more intense, Ashton's eyebrows pulling together with concern and Luke looking back at the bed as if to make sure I'm still okay. His face held layers of fear, something I've never seen before. He turns back to Ashton, and stands there with his arms crossed against his broad chest, contemplating something. Once he speaks again, Ashton nods and rushes out the door. I quickly shut my eyes again as Luke starts to walk back to the bed, assuming this news isn't something he'll want me to have heard.
I hear him sigh and pull back the covers and he places a light peck on my forehead. I groan and stretch like I usually do when I wake up.
"Morning love," Luke smiles, but it doesn't reach his eyes.
"Mmhm," I mumbled, scooting closer to him and wrapping my arms around his torso.
"Did you sleep well?" He whispers, pressing another kiss to the top of my head.
"Like the dead," I respond and his eyes widen and worry lines form on his forehead.
"What's wrong?" I ask.
"Nothing," he says simply, obviously lying.
"C'mon Luke, we both know you're an awful liar. What did Ashton tell you?" I persist.
"You were awake for that?" He stalls, running his fingers through my tangled hair distractedly.
"I woke up when you left. The sheets were too cold," I explain.
"I'll tell you later Em, right now I really have to go. I'm missing a meeting with the head of guard," Luke says as he peels off the covers to get out of bed.
"What are you doing today?" He asks as he pulls on a shirt and jacket.
"I don't know, probably tea with some pretentious duchess of some sort," I pout watching him getting ready to leave. With how busy both of us are, I probably won't see him again till tonight at dinner.
"So you'll be in the castle?" He questions. I nod.
"Good, I'll see you later," he pulls me into a passionate kiss and hurries out the door.
I huff and flop back down on the pillows, a little put out that my morning with Luke was so short lived. My ladies in waiting come in about a half hour later to help me get dressed. They remind me that today is the day scheduled for leftover food from the castle is to be brought to orphanages around the city and I am to make a public appearance at a few of them today. This will be my first public appearance since my wedding day, so I'm slightly nervous.
"Don't worry miss, the people adore you, especially the orphans," Sally, one of my ladies, says to me as she searches through my wardrobe to find a suitable dress. Another maid laces up my corset, pulling it especially tight.
"I can't put you in what we were planning on you wearing because it'll show all of these marks," she says, gesturing to the numerous love bites spread across my collar bones. I blush as I remember last night and how gentle, yet passionate he was. Not at all like the sex crazed animal I've heard the maids describe. The gossip depicted things like marks on the wall from the headboard being slammed against it and screams loud enough for the whole west wing of the castle to hear. And of course the woman involved was sent away from his chambers almost immediately afterwards. And although the maids' stories are probably over-exaggerated, it could also be due to a drastic change of character in Luke. The cold boy I met at the altar is definitely not the same boy who takes me outside early in the morning to watch the sunrise before it's covered with clouds. Or the boy who whispers in my ear late at night what he hopes our future will be like.
"Miss? We're ready to leave," Sally says, ruffling my skirt a little. I nod and we head down to the castle exit where I can already see baskets full of food being brought into wagons outside. But as my ladies and I attempt to exit through the doors, a guard stops us.
"You're not permitted to leave m'lady," he says.
"Since when? I'm set to make a public appearance today," I argue.
"An hour ago I was told to ensure the Princess Emmaline doesn't exit the castle unless accompanied by the Prince.
"That's nonsense, who told you this?" I ask angrily.
"It was Sir Calum Hood, m'lady, but I believe he served as a messenger for Prince Lucas himself," the guard says, only infuriating me more. Why would Luke try to prevent me from leaving the castle?
"Well can't I just override it? I'm the goddamn princess of France, I will leave when I please," I ask, extremely irritated at this point.
"No, my orders are to keep you in the castle," he says stubbornly, making me huff.
"Alright, I'm going to go sort this out. I will be back," I warn the guard, enjoying the nervous look that settles on his face.
I storm through the hallways towards the conference rooms, where I know Luke will be. My ladies follow behind me, struggling to keep up with my pace.
"Miss, you can't go in there," one of them says once I reach the door.
"The hell I can't," I mutter as I fling open the door.
Inside the room is a long table with lots of important people around it. Maps of London are scattered across the surface with marks all over them. And at the head of the table is Luke, looking angrier than I've ever seen him. His face is flushed with a concentrated rage as he yells at the people seated around him.
"Explain to me how one of the best militaries in the world can't locate one civilian? This man is dangerous, and he should be in prison for the crimes he's committed! He knows key details about our defense system, he can blackmail us into doing whatever he desires! How did you let it get this far? I want him found immediately! " Luke's tone is enough to have almost every man in the room shaking in fear. I stand in the doorway with my arms crossed, tapping my foot against the floor impatiently, and waiting for him to realize I'm here. After a few minutes of angry screaming that I can't make sense of, I clear my throat loudly. Luke looks up instantly and his face pales.
"Can I speak with you?" I say sharply, "privately,"
"Emma I really don't have time for this," he says, although all of the harshness from before is gone from his voice. I raise an eyebrow, letting him know he doesn't have a choice. He follows me out into the hallway.
"Why have you decided I shouldn't be able to leave the castle to bring food to orphans?" I ask keeping my voice calm but firm.
"Fuck was that today?" His shoulders slump as if they just can't carry the weight of his stress. The worry lines make him look years older and very tired.
"Yes it's today! You have no right to dictate the terms of my freedom. We are supposed to be equals, which means you should not be acting as my keeper. Why did you even want me to stay in the castle anyway?" I rave.
"Em, baby, I swear I wasn't trying to keep held here against your will. Something really bad has happened and I just went into panic mode. I didn't want there to be any possible way for him to take you out of the castle and harm you. As soon as I get this fixed you can visit as many orphans as you want. It's just not safe right now," his eyes plead with me not to argue the matter any further and I get the sense that something is very wrong.
"Luke you need to tell me what happened right now," I demand.
"If I tell you, you'll drive yourself mad with worry," he shakes his head stubbornly.
"But if my well being is in danger, I deserve to know," I stomp my foot, asserting my own stubbornness. He rubs his unshaven face and groans.
"Alright, I'll tell you. But I want you to sit down first," he complies finally and guides me to a nearby lounge.
"It really started a few months ago, when that vile guard tried to have his way with you. I knew you didn't want the incident to become public, but he still had to go to jail for what he'd done. Attempting to rape a monarch isn't exactly a light offense. So we tracked him for a while, waiting for the right time to arrest him. A few weeks ago, reports started popping up about numerous murders in Edinburgh, all of the victims were women and were raped before they were killed," he pauses for a moment to gauge my reaction to what he's been saying. I feel nauseous and lightheaded, but it must not show too much on my face because he continues.
"We didn't connect your rapist and the Edinburgh rapist until this morning. He-he sent us a note. He's threatening to destroy London if we don't give you to him. Obviously, that's not an option, but he says he knows a way into the castle and will take you by force. Normally we wouldn't be phased by his threat, but he was a high ranking castle guard. He has extensive knowledge of how we function," he catches a look of my panicked expression and immediately stops talking.
"He won't touch you though. I'll make sure he doesn't get within 100 miles of the castle. Tomorrow I'm going into London with the guards and we're going to find him," his speech probably was meant to soothe me, but it only sent me further into a state of terror.
"You're leaving?" My bottom lip quivers and I can feel an emotional breakdown coming on.
"It's only for a day. I want to be here with you, but I also want to be doing everything I can to make you safe again," he says, watching helplessly as tears slide down my cheeks.
The next hour is a blur. I remember Luke instructing my ladies in waiting to prepare me some tea. He took me back to our chambers when I expressed that I couldn't breathe and helped me unlace my corset. And just as I predicted, I had a full on panic-induced breakdown. Luke sat through all of my tears and incoherent blabbering, rubbing my back and and humming a soft tune in an effort to calm me.
Eventually I did calm down and now I'm lying on with my head on his tear stained shirt, the silence in the room is almost unsettling compared to the alarms going off in my head. I know Luke needs to get back to his meeting, but he's too kind to leave me in such a bad state and I'm too selfish to let him go.
This morning I never imagined this is what we'd be doing with our afternoon. I was so indescribably happy when I woke up and now all I can feel is the guard's grimy fingers groping my body. The memories from that night had stopped plaguing me months ago, Luke serving as a more than helpful distraction, but now even as I cling to his shirt I can sense my own impending doom.
"You'll be fine, love. Ashton is staying here with you and Michael's ship just got in. You'll be safer with them here than you would be if it were just me," he whispers soothingly.
"And what about you? You're going out to arrest a mass murderer, do you really think he'll go down easy?" I sniffle.
"Calum is going with me as well as the entire castle guard. Don't worry about me, Em, I can take care of myself," he turns his body slightly to look at the window and frowns as he sees how low the sun is on the horizon.
"It's getting late, baby. I have to go back to my meeting. Get some sleep," he says, rising from the bed, despite my protest.
"Will you be back before you leave?" I cringe at the sound of desperation in my voice as I look up at his tall figure.
"Of course. I'll wake you in the morning to say goodbye," he lovingly kisses me on the forehead and rushes out of the room for the second time today; except this time, I know this might be one of the last times I see him.
