23. Chapter 23

Chapter twenty-three

T he next two days went by rapidly. After a sleepless night plagued with thoughts of the mystery library man, Haven had woken to a small group of older fae women outside her door carrying the wardrobe they made for her. The women must have stayed up all night and all day since Haven arrived to have that many pieces done. She couldn't thank them enough, although she did try. All six of the women waved her off and told her they couldn't wait to see Haven wearing the clothes around the castle.

All of the clothes were spectacular. Ranging from vibrant dresses to thick leather pants the women told her would be for training, whatever that meant, they had thought of everything.

Eventually Rea showed up and explained that no matter what kingdom she was from, what powers she held or where she would be in line for a throne, Haven would take training classes here at the castle. She would be taught things like swordplay and hand to hand combat to politics and fae customs and everything in between. She would also be taught how to use her magic. That was what Haven was most excited for, although learning to use various weapons also sounded like something she would enjoy.

After Rea finished explaining about the training she would receive, Haven asked her about getting the letter to her mom. Before she left, Rea told her she would try to come up with a way to get it sent to her but she made no promises.

Now, Roman was due to show up at her door at any moment. The two of them were going to a dinner being hosted by the crown regent. It was an early celebration for what would be happening tomorrow. Sometime after dark tomorrow night, the two of them would be taking their bloodline and magics test. There was a celebration planned throughout the day for the general population but this dinner was supposed to be just for the two of them, the crown regent, his family and some sort of council they had yet to be introduced to.

Haven was dressed in one of her favorite dresses in her wardrobe, it was a glossy black V-neck with a high slit going up the left leg. The sleeves were nothing more than thin straps and the back dipped low. The dress definitely wasn't the most scandalous thing in the closet but it wasn't the most conservative either.

It was a nice middle, Haven had decided. Especially when paired with a black shawl. Overall, the deep black made her skin seem to glow and her hair extra fiery. It showed off her midsize breasts well and made her feel genuinely confident .

Rea had done Haven's hair and makeup. Loose curls cascaded down her back and a small tiara with glittering black stones sat atop her head. Smokey black eyeshadow and deep red lipstick completed the look.

She felt regal, dangerous even. Haven imagined queens probably felt like this a lot. It bummed her out to consider that she might never be a queen, just a princess somewhere in line for a throne as Binah had initially said. Tomorrow would likely prove that so she was soaking up every little thing she could. No matter what happened, Haven knew that no one could take tonight and the way she felt wearing the tiara and dress, away from her.

A knock at the door pulled Haven from her thoughts. Opening it, she found a smiling Roman on the other side, dressed in all sorts of finery. Whoever made his wardrobe had done an excellent job.

A velvet black suit accompanied a deep red tie that matched the color of Havens lipstick, causing her to briefly wonder if that had somehow been planned. Roman had a glittering silver earring in one ear and she spied a big silver and red ring on one of his fingers.

"You look amazing" She smiled

"As do you" He bowed slightly. Haven giggled at the formal gesture and bowed back at him. Her giggle caused Roman to laugh and within seconds the slight tension Haven barely noticed in the air was gone. Roman offered his arm out for her to take,

"Your highness," He joked.

Haven chuckled and took his arm, locking the door behind them. Haven took a deep breath and mentally began preparing herself to deal with the crown regent. She hadn't seen him since their first meeting, all contact had gone through Astrea, but the thought of him still made her tense more than it probably should.

"That's a nice necklace" Roman commented as they walked through the corridors.

Haven touched the necklace Binah had given her, smiling slightly as she thanked him. She had thought about leaving it behind since the cut of the dress did nothing to hide it and in Binahs letter she had said to keep it hidden but it was just a necklace. She couldn't see a good enough reason to leave it behind. It's not like it could hurt anybody. Besides, Haven had grown quite attached to it.

"Where did you get it?" Roman asked. Haven turned her head briefly to look at him and noticed how tense he seemed. His jaw was tight and the arm he had around her seemed as stiff as a board.

"Oh, it was just in with the jewelry brought with my clothes," She lied.

Somehow, Haven could sense that admitting Binah had given it to her and that it appeared to be special somehow would not be a good thing. Even if she was only telling her friend.

Roman didn't respond, instead he just nodded and continued walking. Even though it seemed like he had dropped the subject, the tightness in his arm and slightly pissed off look on his face did not abate. Haven tried not to think about it, absently wondering if she should take the necklace off since it seemed to bother Roman. Before she could make that decision, they were outside of the dining room where the dinner was set to take place.

There was a guard on either side of the door. Roman removed his arm from hers and nodded to the guard on the left. Haven tried to calm her breathing as the door was opened. Taking one last big deep breath and hoping her nerves weren't showing too badly, she followed Roman through the doorway and into the room .

Immediately Haven noticed the shining chandelier hanging above the long wooden dinner table. It sparkled with some sort of engraved stone and must have held at least twenty lit candles. She was so busy looking at the chandelier that she barely noticed the two men walking towards her. One was the crown regent and the other startled Haven enough that she needed to grab onto Romans arm for balance.

Walking a step behind the crown regent was the man from the library. Now that he was in brighter light, his features were all the more stunning. Those sharp cheekbones, dark bourbon colored eyes, everything about him seemed more handsome now that she could see him properly rather than in the dim library light. In addition to the light making his features more alluring, Haven also noticed a small scar that went through his right eyebrow.

"Hello Haven it's lovely to see you" The crown regent spoke.

"And you yourself" She replied.

"Might I say, you look stunning" The crown regent looked her over, pausing on her necklace and leaving a sick feeling behind when he met her eyes again.

"Thank you" Haven smiled as brightly as she could despite the feeling of the crown regents eyes had left on her.

"Haven, Roman, might I introduce you to my son, Nikolaus. He will be joining us tonight."

Haven tried her best to school in her shock, hoping it wasn't written across her face. The two of them looked nothing alike. His son? She definitely had not seen that coming.

Nikolaus reached out and shook hands with Roman, offering him a smile.

"Please, call me Nik. Most fae do" Just his voice sent shivers down Haven's spine.

Suddenly she was reminded of her dream about him, and what she had done as a result of that dream. Since that night, thoughts of him hadn't bothered her except for a stray reminder when she visited the library to continue looking for the diary. Now she just hoped her face wasn't too flushed.

Nik reached his hand out to shake hers. As he did, his eyes dropped down to the swell of her breasts where the necklace was resting. They only stayed on the necklace for a few seconds before returning to look her in the eye. As he looked back up, a mask of distaste came over his face. Haven couldn't figure out what she had done to already have earned such strong dislike.

The touch of Niks skin as she slid her hand into his set Haven on fire. It warmed her entire body from the inside out. She held onto his hand for longer than was probably appropriate before they broke apart. At least he hadn't yanked his hand away and said another mean thing.

"Where is the council? I was told they'd be here?" Roman asked

"Ah yes, they should all be here soon" The crown regent announced. He clapped his hands together and gestured towards the table. As soon as he did, servants entered from a side door and began placing covered trays along the table before lining up against the far wall. They appeared to be awaiting another order.

Haven stepped up to the table with the others and sat down in the seat marked with a place card that had her name on it. Pulling her shawl tighter against herself, she picked up her water and took a sip to wet her now very dry throat. Somehow Haven already knew, this was going to be a long night.