"I've accepted the proposal, and I'll marry Princess Addison next Saturday," Holland said, as the whole table became silent, with the only sound coming from cutleries falling in shock. It came from me.
"Are you sure you want to go ahead with it this soon?" The Queen asked as he nodded his head and acted like he was totally unbothered while eating his beef.
Everyone else had dropped their cutlery on their plates as they watched Holland in confusion while their eyes shifted from his face to mine. I tried to hide my shock and unhappiness, but I couldn't hide my pain. I tried to smile instead, but my lips wouldn't move as nothing seemed to be working because I was truly shocked and unhappy.
I had never expected this to come from him this soon, considering how much he hates me. My heart couldn't stop racing fast, and I could tell that everyone else on this table could hear my heart beat as the queen looked at me with pity and concern on her face.
"Don't you want to give Addison some time to think it through?" The queen asked again as Holland angrily slammed his fork on the plate, breaking it into pieces.
"She will deal with it." He answered through clenched teeth, his eyes on me, and I could feel the anger and grudge that he held against me.
"Don't talk to a woman that way; learn your manners," the king growled at him, his voice loud and threatening.
"Forgive me," Holland replied, while his jaws clenched.
"Very well then, but why the sudden change of mind?" The King asked as Holland growled but wouldn't dare to let out his anger on the king as the night was still blessed with a full moon.
"I have decided to be that son you want, and I will marry her to fulfil my duties, or isn't that what you want?" He asked as the king hummed in response. Does this mean that the king has given him approval and I will be married to this idiot in three days' time?
I couldn't let that happen, but I was trapped in between my thoughts. I had no plan for this and didn’t know how to escape. I knew I would one day be asked to marry the prince, but I had not expected it to be this soon. There were still a lot of rituals that needed to be performed before the marriage, and I had thought it would buy me time, but I was wrong. I had no backup plan. I was doomed.
We were in a full moon season, hence nothing would be able to stop the marriage from taking place, but I can't afford to be marked while being pregnant; it'll kill both me and my child. Hell, I can't even comprehend the thought of being marked by anyone else but Alaric, let alone this arrogant bastard of a son. I can't afford to let this wedding take place!
My thoughts started to cloud my mind as it became harder for me to breathe and my heart wouldn't stop rising and falling in milliseconds. I had no clue when my body took control over me and I found myself walking slowly out of the dining room with different eyes fixed on me. I was sure I must have happened to break a rule, but that didn't scare me. The thought of not knowing what to do scared me most.
"Addison, please wait." I could hear Skye calling my name, and as much as I wanted to wait, I couldn't bring my body to do so as I walked away. She had told me earlier in the garden that her brother wouldn't make any irrational decisions, but that was a lie. This was a very bad decision.
"It must be hard for her to digest the information. Let her be for now," the Queen said to Skye.
"You're such a brat and this is all your fault, you useless cunt." She cursed Holland and a memory flashed through my mind as it felt like I had seen this happen before, but it didn't. It was just the memory of Ariel and Asher and how similar their cases were to those two siblings. Asher happened to be just like Holland, with the same characteristics. I have learned my lessons from Asher, and I hope that I'll be able to use them to get myself out of this mess.
On getting to my room, I was quick to lock the door behind me as I rushed to my bed and fell beside it. I brought my knees to my chest while different thoughts kept going through my mind.
"I've accepted the proposal, and I'll marry Princess Addison next Saturday." Holland's words kept on repeating themselves in my head as it seemed like they were echoing in my room, and I couldn't stop myself from hearing those words.
I couldn't come to believe that he had said those words. I had thought that his attitude and hatred towards me would be to my advantage, as he wouldn't want to get married to me, but he had just proved me wrong.
"I can't let this happen."
"I just can't let this happen," I said as I panicked.
Saturday was just three days away, and Holland had claimed to want to marry me, but I couldn't let it happen. I can't let him marry me, and I can't marry him.
He isn't my mate and I was pregnant for Alaric but the only reason why I had accepted to come to Latvera in the first place was because I believed that I could buy myself some time but wasn't expecting it to be so soon.
The look on the king's face and the question he had asked Holland immediately after, proved that Holland was rushing it, but there wasn't much that could be done, as the king didn't want his son to change his mind about the wedding. I just got here and haven't planned my way out yet, but a marriage was knocking on the door. I can't let this happen. I need to do something about it.
"Princess Addison." Skye's voice called for me from behind the door, followed by a knock, but I could easily tell that the knock wasn't from her as I could feel another wolf's presence behind the door and the smell belonged to Simon, but what was he doing here?
I understand that Skye might be here to comfort me, but what was Simon here for?
I didn't want to think too much about their situation because I was completely exhausted and thinking was now like a heavy task. I just wanted them both to leave.
"Addison, please open the door." Skye begged again, and I hated to make her beg, but I had no energy in me to say words to her or to see their faces. Hell, I don't even know if I can bear to see their faces.
I just wanted to save the rest of my strength so I might be able to come up with a solution later.
"Leave her to me," Simon said to Skye, as I heard her hum in response and her smell became fainter as her steps trailed away.
"I'm coming in," Simon said, and he instantly pushed the door open to meet me seated on the floor beside the huge king-sized bed.
The look on his face was filled with pity, as his grey eyes held some sort of emotion that I had never seen. He was in my room, but he wasn't walking away from the door as one of his hands was holding a tray of food while the other hand was still on the door handle, but his eyes were fixed on me.
Some moments passed without him moving away from the door or saying anything to me, and I realised he had nothing to say. I needed time to be alone, to be away from people. I needed to think of a way out of this mess, but Simon was being a distraction at the moment.
"Please leave," I begged as I disconnected our gaze.
"You didn't eat, and I brought you food."
"Please leave," I begged again, but this time, my voice was louder and fiercer with a threatening growl in hopes that he would leave me alone.
"What if I don't leave?" He asked as he let go of the door handle and walked into the room after closing the door.
"I don't want to talk to anyone. Just leave. I'm not requesting much, please. " I begged again, but my voice didn't come out as fierce as I wanted it to be. Rather, it had a crack in it.
"I'm not leaving you, Addison," Simon said as he walked over to my bed and sat on the floor beside me. Perhaps if this were to be on another occasion, then I might embrace him, but at this point, I'm drained of thoughts and suffocating with the amount of empitiness in me. I was going to get married to a man who I had just met while my mate was in a completely different place searching for me.
"I know you're having it tough right now, but I assure you that nothing will happen to you. I'll protect you from my brother with every breath in me, but I might not be able to change anything about the wedding," he said, as I could hear him placing the tray of food on the bed while he released a heavy sigh.
"Then what is the point of protecting me if this wedding happens?"
"I can't keep you away from Holland, but I can keep Holland away from you, Addison."
"But I don't want this marriage, not this soon!" I yelled, but my tears betrayed me as they flowed down my cheeks. I didn't want him to see me this way, so I buried my head in my knees.
"Don't hide from me, it's okay to be you and let your emotions out."
"For the sake of the moon goddess, Simon, stop talking like you know me. You don't know me and we have only known each other for two days, so just shut the fuck up and get out," I yelled as I became tired of his words that weren't going to help but only make things worse.
"Just leave now!" I cried as I stood up from the floor and pointed towards the door with my eyes away from him. My chest was getting tighter and it was starting to become hard for me to breathe, but I tried to hold my ground without crashing on the floor. I needed him to be out of this room, and I don't think I would be able to bear the sight of any of them for a long time.
"You're burning yourself up. You're not breathing well," he said as he stood up from the ground and stood right in front of me with his body frame covering my small body. He was so close to me and his smell grew stronger than before, but something strange was happening to me as my body suddenly started to become calm.
I had no idea what was going on with me or what he was doing to my body, but my chest wasn't tight anymore, I was able to breathe well and my thoughts were coming together.
"You shouldn't hurt yourself this much. Let me feel the pain you feel instead." He softly cooed into my ear as his broad arms sneaked around my waist, pulling me closer to his chest in a hug as the sound of his heartbeat made me feel safe.
I don't know if this is right or wrong, but at this point, I was unable to resist him as I became submissive to his touch. unable to move away from him.