Chapter 169: Chapter 169 

~ NYSSA

Just like the night before, I woke up to an empty bed but when I went down to the dining room, Rowan wasn’t there; just Aria.

“He got called out on some important work,” she explained as soon as she saw me looking around with furrowed brows. “I don’t think he’ll be back until evening.”

“Oh!” I exclaimed, lowering myself into one of the empty chairs. “I think you should know that we found a venue yesterday.”

The fork in her hand clattered into the plate and she turned to me in shock, eyes wide as saucers. “Really? Where?”

“The house. I think it’s perfect for us.”

Her brows rose in surprise. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of that but I think you’re right, it is fucking perfect. This is so exciting, we can go over the rest of the decorations now; the flowers and the—”

The more she spoke, the more panicked I got and the greater feeling of nervousness that fluttered in my lower belly. My skin itched with unease as she rattled off the things that I had to do.

“I’m going to stop you there,” I cut her off. “I love your enthusiasm, but you’re stressing me out… terribly. I don’t want a dramatic event, I want something natural and beautiful and… me. I don’t need huge flower decor or a massive arch made of marble, or even a dramatic white dress.”

She pursed her lips tightly as she leaned back in the chair, her hands folded neatly in front of her.

I wanted to honor tradition— truly, I did, but not at the cost of a mating ceremony I would come to hate.

“Okay,” she said with a sig. “I’ll call Jean Luc, maybe he has something that’s more… subtle, and while we’re there, I can go over the decorations again and take away anything too dramatic.”

A wave of relief so fierce washed over me. My shoulders sagged and a small smile tugged at the corners of my lips. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, we still have a full day ahead of us.”

************************

I knew today was going to be different, even before we got to Jean Luc’s place.

There was something in the air, perhaps it was the fact that I finally felt at ease about the whole thing, but even when he pulled out a row of dresses, I did not feel that daunting weight as I did yesterday.

We went through four of them before he frowned, hands on his hips. “I have something, it’s not… ideal, but it might work.”

I shrugged. “There’s no harm in trying.”

He left the room and returned a few minutes later with a dress on a hanger. As soon as I saw it, I knew how perfect it was. It was a simple dress in a soft shade of ivory. It had spaghetti straps and a sweetheart neckline and a corset like top with an A-line silhouette that fell right below my calf.

As soon as I put it on, I smiled at myself in the mirror.

“This is perfect,” I whispered.

My smile did not fade as I stepped out of the dressing room and when I saw Eric and Aria’s wide eyes, I knew I’d made the right choice.

The dress was paid for and Jean Luc promised to send it over a day before the ceremony.

“I think we’ve done a good job today, don’t you?” I asked, unable to hide my excitement as we made our way towards the car. “I think lunch would be a good idea, I’m starving.”

Aria rolled her eyes playfully. “You’re always starving, Nyssa.”

I merely shrugged in response. “So… lunch?”

We stopped at a pasta place in the middle of town and I devoured the whole plate in a few minutes.

“The last person I saw eat like that was my friends mate when she was pregnant,” Eric noted and I shot him a hard glare.

“I am not pregnant.”

His brows rose in amusemnt. “Are you sure about that?”

Before I could respond, Aria cut in. “I would like to eat my food without think about her and my brother together, thank you very much.”

Her words dripped with sarcasm and disgust, er nose crinkling as a shiver ran through her.

“Fucking disgusting,” she muttered. “You better not be pregnant, I, not ready to be an aunt.”

I rolled my eyes t her nd flipped her off, but even then, I couldn’t help but mentally count back my cycle. Rowan and I hadn’t been very… careful, but I couldn’t be pregnant… could I?

If my calculations were correct then my cycle was to start today or tomorrow. Hopefully, it did, then I’d have a talk with Rowan about actually using a condom.

“Okay, we have—”

Ari didn’t get to finish what she was saying because a sharp scream cut through the air. I turned towards the sound and found a woman running in the center of the street, her hands stained with blood.

I was on my feet before I even knew what was happening and instantly made my way over to her.

“Nyssa!” Eric hissed but I ignored him, heading straight for the woman.

“Are you alright?” I asked, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

She collapsed into the ground, her knees slamming hard gainst the compete as she stared down at her hands. “He’s… there’s a… oh fuck.”

I crouched lower until we were at eye level. “Tell me what happened.”

“There’s a body,” she managed out. “In the woods.”

Firm hands gripped my arms, pulling me to my feet.

I tried to protest but Eric cut me off. “You and Aria need to head back to the palace, I’ll figure things out from here.”

“But—”

“My job is to keep you safe, Nyssa,” he cut me off. “I can’t do that if I’m going towards a dead body with you. I want to keep my head, so please… just do as you’re told.”

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