Williams POV
William brushed the thought of Doris out of his mind for the evening. He had an idea of what she would be speaking to Martin about, and he couldn’t help but feel annoyed by it. She obviously wanted him so badly that she would pester his own brother to try and put a word in his ear.
But that wasn’t going to work. He had no interest in bedding with that maid. It was almost laughable.
“We need to find our mate,” Waylon said, his patience running thin. William could hear the distress in his voice.
They hadn’t bedded with Melody yet, but with the amount of heat he was feeling, he knew he needed to see her soon.
The wine William had drunk during their outing was beginning to rush to his head. Peter, William’s driver, pulled the carriage to a stop in front of the palace. They had just returned from their favorite Italian restaurant in the kingdom.
As usual, William had drunk a little too much and could hardly form proper sentences.
“What a lovely evening,” Lady Jane said as she slid out of the carriage with ease. Lady Grace slid out of the carriage next, followed by the gentlemen.
“I must say, Lady Jane, it’s nice having you back at the palace,” Grace said; her voice sounding a bit strained.
William had to stifle a groan as he knew that Grace didn’t particularly like Jane. For the sake of ruining the evening, Grace played nicely. But William could see through her and knew what she was truly feeling on the inside.
It didn’t matter though. Grace had her chance, and she gave it up to marry his brother. She had no right or reason to be jealous over anything. William made that perfectly clear by not paying mind to her the entire evening.
“I too am grateful for being back. I’ve missed my dear friends and family so much,” Jane said as they began walking inside. “I just wish I could have grown more acquainted with Lady Melody.”
William tuned the women out as he stumbled into the palace. His breathing was rapid as he tried to maintain a cool head.
“We need to find our mate; I can’t take it anymore. We must have her,” Waylon continued to whine.
William found the grand stairs, but before he could make his way up to them, he felt a firm hand on his shoulder. Martin stood closely behind him.
What could his brother possibly want right now?
He spent an entire evening with him which was much longer than he wanted to. He felt unnecessarily annoyed at the fact that he constantly seems to be hanging around that useless maid, Doris. When she worked in the library, he was always in the library. Only hours before their outing tonight, he spotted Doris coming out of his study.
He pushed his feelings into his stomach; there was no use getting worked up over a maid he didn’t care for.
“I wanted to ask what it is you plan to do with Lady Melody?” Martin began, locking eyes with William.
William scoffed.
“What business is that of yours?” William asked; his words slurring slightly as the whine was hitting him hard.
Martin frowned and stared down at the ground; there was something he wasn’t saying, and it was annoying William.
“She’s your mate. You should want to bed with her,” Martin finally said, after a breath of silence. “I care for you, brother. I want to make sure you are well.”
William rolled his eyes; Martin was clearly trying to make him want Melody so that he could have Doris. It was obvious that Martin wanted Doris for himself.
But there was no competition because William wanted nothing to do with Doris.
“Who I bed with is not your concern,” William hissed. “As far as my mate goes… she’s also not your concern.”
“I understand your frustrations,” Martin tried to say, but William turned away before he could get the chance to say more.
“You have a wife to tend to,” William muttered, stalking up the stairs.
As he made his way to his chambers; he stopped as he felt a presence. The halls were dark, and he could hardly see, but from the scent, he knew there was someone nearby. Someone at his door.
The soft scent of roses filled his nose; it was familiar and comforting. He reached his arm out and grabbed onto someone else’s arm. The softness of her skin pulled him back to the night he marked her. He breathed in the scent of her hair, feeling the softness of her skin against his and the familiar goosebumps that formed around her arms.
Her body was trembling, and the scent of roses filled his nose as her hair brushed across his face, tickling his features.
“Our mate…” Waylon cried out, hungry for her body.
(Doris)
“What if I get caught?” I asked, staring wide-eyed at Lady Melody.
She rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest.
“You won’t get caught. If you do, you’ll get punished,” she seethed, annoyed that I would ask such a question.
I just couldn’t believe what she wanted me to do. Even after I told her that I spoke to Prince Martin and that he was more than happy to assist, it still wasn’t good enough for her. She didn’t believe that nothing was going on with Prince William and Lady Jane.
She was asking for me to stand outside of his chamber doors and see if he brought Lady Jane home after their evening out. I couldn’t in my right conscience do such a thing. I kept telling Melody that she needed to trust in William and that once he is ready, he will call for her.
But she won’t listen to reason.
I knew she wasn’t going to listen to me.
“Yes, my lady,” I said after a breath of silence.
The hallway was dark and quiet. I could hardly see where I was going as I walked toward William’s chamber. There was only the faint flickering of some lights under a couple of doors. I used the wall as leverage to keep myself standing and to find my way down the halls. I wouldn’t dare turn on a light because then I would definitely get caught.
It was late in the evening; they couldn’t possibly still be out.
I found William’s chamber and was surprised that his light wasn’t on; perhaps he was sleeping?
I pressed my ear against his door to try and listen, but I couldn’t hear anything unusual. I tried to keep listening but there was still no sound.
I waited for a few moments; I needed to be sure because if it turns out he did bed with Lady Jane and Melody found out, she would be furious. There’s no telling what she would do. I could hardly imagine the punishment.
Moments turned into minutes, and I stood against his door with my back pressed against it. Trying to steady my rapid heartbeat, I took in a steady breath and exhaled. I placed my hand on my chest and felt my heart beating against it.
I heard some light murmurs coming from the grand stairs and I had a moment of panic. It couldn’t possibly be William? It was so late. How could they be getting home just now? I saw a faint shadow making its way up the stairs and I knew there was no use trying to run down the hall and escape.
He would see me for sure.
My only hope was to stay against the wall and hope he didn’t see me. My features were dark enough that the shadows would be able to keep me hidden. As long as no light was shown on me.
I pressed myself firmly against the wall and closed my eyes, praying he didn’t see me. I sucked in my breath and held it, keeping myself from making any sounds and any movement.
Before I could grasp what was happening, I heard a voice coming from the grand stairs.
“Mate…” William said, hungrily from the stairway.
I gasped; I could hardly see him, but I could feel his presence. I knew he was there; I felt around the wall to try and get away and go back down the hall before he saw me, but I felt his strong hands around my wrist, and he held me in place.
He wrapped his other arms around me, pressing me against his body. He held me close to him; his breath warming my features as the smell of wine roamed through my nose.
He was drunk again.
This time, my body felt obedient to my own commands, I struggled against him as he held me tighter.
“My mate. I need you,” he whispered against me.
He was mistaken; he thought I was Melody. I wasn’t his mate. I couldn’t be his mate.
“Please let me go,” I said, trying to keep my voice low to not alert anyone else, but loud enough to get the message across.
“Why do you fight me?” He asked, his words slurring slightly.
He loosened his grip against me enough for me to be able to break free from his grasp, however, he kept a hold on my arm to keep me from going anywhere.
“Unhand me,” I said, firmly.
He laughed lightly as he placed the back of his hand against my face and rubbed down my features; he breathed in gently as if he were taking me in. I could hardly see him so there was no doubt in my mind that he could hardly see me.
“You are mistaken,” I said, yanking my arm out of his grip.
Before he had a chance to grab me again, I ran down the hallway and towards Melody’s room.