Chapter 77 - "... He Won't Hurt Her,"
Chapter 77 – “… He Won’t Hurt Her,”
Paulina, who was busy moving from one pillar to the other, trying to hide from guards as she sneaked out of her quarters, heading for Princess Amber's chamber, almost jumped out of her skin in fear when the first bell rang.
She didn't know this, but she was lucky that she had been constantly using the scent mask Alvin continued to provide for her. If not, her hiding would have been pointless because they would have sniffed her out easily.
Even though she knew that she was not supposed to be out after the first curfew bell, she planned on spending the night with her mistress. She didn't trust anyone in this palace, and after Beth's severe punishment earlier, she had a feeling that Beth was going to do something bad to her. She knew it was silly since there was a very high chance that Beth was probably bedridden, but she couldn't put her mind at ease until she was inside that room to take care of her mistress by herself.
Williams, who was heading towards his room after leaving Alicia's room, paused when he noticed a movement from the corners of his eyes.
He narrowed his eyes when he saw the edge of a maid's gown at the corner of one of the pillars. Hearing the heartbeat and getting a whiff of her scent, which he had become used to by now, he could tell that it was Paulina. Did the girl have a death wish? What was she doing outside here at the time? Williams pondered as he watched her leap to the next pillar, completely unaware that she was being watched.
Williams sighed to himself. He was in plain view, yet she hadn't seen him. Was this how she planned to hide herself from the guards?
It seemed like she was bent on getting into trouble, and he was certain that she would be caught by the palace guards before she succeeded in doing whatever it was that she had in mind.
Thankfully, it was just the first warning bell that had been rung. He decided to just stand there and wait till she bumped into him and realized what a silly plan this was.
Meanwhile, Paulina was thanking her ancestors for successfully leading her halfway when she suddenly took note of someone standing in front of her. She jumped in shock and used her hand to cover her mouth, muffling her scream, and turned to run away without even looking at the person. She only saw the body build of the person and prepared to flee, but it seemed like she only succeeded in taking three steps before the person appeared in front of her and her head bumped right into his chest. She immediately took a step back and bowed her head as she began to apologize profusely.
"I'm… sssorry. I… didn't…."
He interrupted her squeaky ramblings and said, "Do you have a death wish?" Williams asked as he observed the shaking little girl in front of him. Maybe it was wrong to refer to her as a "little girl" since she was older than him, but he couldn't help it. He could literally use her head as a table to support his elbow. She was little and fragile.
"I… I am ssssorry… I did—"
It suddenly occurred to her that the voice was familiar, so she quickly snapped her head up and was met with William's prying eyes. She looked down immediately, noting she would have preferred to be caught by a guard instead. This royal made her scared and uncomfortable for no reason at all. And he was a nice person, but she couldn't understand why she was always scared.
"You were smart to not scream. You could have been in trouble if your voice was heard. What are you doing out here at this time?"
Paulina tried to speak, but she suddenly didn't know how to.
"I… I w-want… I am…"
"Breathe, Paulina," he said in a gentle voice, urging her to relax and breathe because if she continued like that, there was a high chance she was going to collapse.
As if she had been waiting for permission, she immediately took a deep breath and breathed out loudly.
"T-thank… y-you, Milord," she said timidly, without daring to raise her head to look at him.
"For what?" He asked curiously.
Paulina searched her brain for the answer. What was she exactly thanking him for?
"F-For… telling… me to… breathe?" She asked uncertainly and raised her head to look at him.
William's lips twitched in amusement before nodding.
"If you are going to see your mistress, you should return. The second bell will sound in a while, and also… Prince Harold is with her."
"Eh?" She looked up in surprise. "What… is… he d-doing there?" She asked and started to visibly panic as she considered racing to the room. What was the prince doing to her unconscious mistress?
"He is her husband. He won't hurt her." Williams reminded her.
"But—"
"No buts," he said before looking at the window closest to them.
"You are going to complete your painting tomorrow, right?" He asked, looking back at her. When she nodded, he said, "I guess we can start mine the day after tomorrow."
"Uhm… I…"
"You aren't planning to go back on your word, are you?" He asked with a narrowed gaze.
"No, no, no, no." She rushed to assure him while waving her hands. "I… I will… do it."
He gave her a half-smile that lasted only a second before he looked behind her.
"At the count of twenty, the next bell is going to sound," he informed her and saw how her eyes widened, as panic set in again.
He was about to tell her to run before she turned around and ran away without a single word to him, holding her dress in her hand to help her run easier.
His lips curved into a smile as she disappeared from his sight. "She is super fast," he said to himself, keeping his fingers crossed that she would be in her room by then. He had lied about the seconds; it would take 40 counts before the next bell rang. But at least she would have gotten to her room by then before the palace night guards came out.
*******
Meanwhile, inside Alicia's chamber, after Williams left, Harold returned to Alicia's bed and sat down beside her once again, contemplating whether or not he should take his wolf's suggestion and spend the night beside her once again. He was just as curious as his wolf to see if his curse had been broken, or if it had been by chance that the first time he spent the night with her, he did not shift into his wolf form.
He knew that it was a pretty risky thing to do, as he was certain that both the Queen and Ivan would probably have people keeping an eye on him to see if the rumours they had heard were true. And it was even riskier because if that didn't work, it meant he was going to shift in here. Of course, like them, Alvin had also heard the rumours going around among the palace guards that one of them had seen Harold leaving his bride's chamber earlier that morning. Hence, he'd stylishly brought it up at the dinner table to dispel the rumour.
What if the theory was true, and he didn't have to transform whenever he passed the night with his bride? What would that mean for their marriage? It was one thing to sleep beside her when she was unconscious and didn't know that he was there, but it would be an entirely different case when she was conscious. Not that he wanted to spend the nights with her, but would she want to even spend the night with him?
'What if it only happened because she is unconscious?' his wolf asked.
Harold sighed. The unanswered questions were becoming too much, and the only way he could get the answers he needed was by trying out the theories. He would spend this night with her, and after now when she regains her consciousness he would let her be, and they would return to their separate lives.
With that thought in mind, Harold left her bedside and left the chamber through the door so that whoever the queen and Ivan had set to check the time he left the chamber would actually see him leave.
He continued down to the main palace door and exited just as the second bell rang. Once he got out, he quickly made his way to the other side of the palace, as though he was leaving the vicinity of the palace. He still had some time before his transformation, so he went around the palace and sneaked back inside through her window after making sure that no one was in sight.
After a moment of hesitation, he climbed her bed.