Chapter 17 Elaina
ELAINA
Tanzy is all gratitude when I push open the door to my rooms.
“Oh, my Lady—thank you—thank you!” she cries and tries to kneel before me. I take her by the shoulders and raise her up and give her a tight hug.
“No kneeling,” I tell her. “Not ever.” I don’t want to be like the other Royals or the stuck-up nobles. Tanzy is my friend and you can’t be true friends if one of you is always bowing and kneeling.
“But you saved me!” she cries. Her eyes are red-rimmed and her cheeks are pink from crying. “You kept me from being maimed, my Lady!”
“I couldn’t let you be hurt—not when I could stop it,” I tell her, giving her a squeeze. “Now please, help me get ready. I need to look extra pretty tonight.”
“You do? Why?” she looks confused.
“Because…” I take a deep breath and decide to confide in her. “Because neither Prince Dorian nor Prince Xaren has yet bedded me,” I admit to her. “I’m trusting you to keep that to yourself,” I add.
Her eyes grow wide and she nods.
“Of course, my Lady! But why have they not, er, taken you? I mean, I know about Prince Dorian being a man-lover,” she adds casually. “Everybody in the Citadel knows that. But I wouldn’t have thought it of the Dark Prince.”
“Xaren’s not a man-lover. He’s just…reluctant to take me when he thinks I’m unwilling to be taken,” I say. I won’t say why—that’s Xaren’s secret and not mine to tell.
“Reluctant, is he? And are you unwilling to be taken? I don’t blame you if you are—he’s so frightening!” She shivers, her eyes going wide.
“He’s not as frightening when you get to know him,” I say. “And no, I’m not unwilling—not at all. I mean, I’m still a little frightened because of the first time being painful. But I’d rather it be with him than Prince Dorian.”
As I speak, I realize the words are true. I’m not unwilling anymore. In fact, the thought of what I must do—what Xaren and I must do together—makes me feel warm and eager inside.
But how can I convince him of that?
I have an idea.
“Find me something else to wear—not the lace dress the Queen sent. Something different,” I say to Tanzy. “Something…seductive.”
“Of course, my Lady!” She gives me a wink. “I know just the thing.”
“Thank you.” I nod.
I’m hoping that maybe if I look good, Xaren may be more willing to take me.
Also, I’m sick to death of the awful white lace dress the Queen ordered me to wear.
It’s not doing any good as far as I can see.
It just reminds me of her whenever I wear it—and that’s not what I want to be thinking of while trying to seduce my husband.
For that is my plan for tonight—I must seduce him. I must let him know I’m not unwilling—convince him that I want this—that I want him.
It’s the best plan I can come up with—I just hope it works.
Tanzy scrubs me in scented rose water and brushes my hair until it shines like a silver waterfall.
Then she helps me into a new night gown—one made of Damson-silk—finer and softer than anything I’ve ever seen before.
It’s a soft lavender color that looks good with my complexion and my triple-ringed eyes.
It’s also so thin that it shows the tight points of my nipples and the cleft of my sex where it clings to me.
Over the gown, I wear a thick, soft, foxen-fur robe that will keep me warm and conceal my near-nakedness from prying eyes in the corridor. It’s silver and almost the same color as my hair. I have fur slippers to match too, which should keep my feet warm—the flagstones are cold.
Tanzy finishes me off with a tiny dab of lip stain and two drops of a soft, floral scent behind my ears.
“There! My Lady, you look well-nigh irresistible!” she exclaims, when she’s finished with me. She puts her hands on her hips, admiring her handiwork. “No man could keep his hands off you, looking like that,” she declares.
I only hope that she’s right—I guess I’ll find out.