Chapter 65: Chapter 65

Winter Solstice

Sanaya’s P.O.V:

“There are way too many guests today…” I told Amber, clutching her hand in mine as we peaked from behind the corridors, at a safe distance from the crowd and hidden in the shadows.

Lancelin had decided to throw a sort of ‘after-party’ to celebrate his coronation properly, since his actual coronation ended up in a disaster. Also, since Queen mother Valleria had rushed to get the crown on Lance’s head, the coronation had been super rushed, which meant that a lot of people, including several members of the Dark Council, hadn’t been able to attend. Hence the after-party.

“Don’t be a sissy!” Amber scolded. “You’re a vampire now, a part of the immortal world itself and Lancelin’s fiancé. Hold your head high and rock the shit out of this party.”

I looked at Amber wide eyed. Why do I keep forgetting that I was a vampire? It’s hardly been a month since I was turned so I don’t have to drink blood that frequently and whenever I do, it’s always been from Lancelin…except the first time when I had drank from Lance’s father and drained him to the brink of death, thus helping his family to get rid of the man who had not only killed one, but two unborn children.

In the last few months since I had transferred to ReefWood Inc. from BlueStar, as Lancelin’s new Scribt, I had seen too much, been through too much to last a lifetime. But it had all been worth it because they had all brought me closer to Lancelin. I was indeed immortal now and I belonged next to him as his mate.

Squaring my shoulders, I took a deep breath and released it through my lips, calming myself. Since Lance was today’s host, he had to be present at the ball room right from the start, along with his older half-brother Acelin and their mother Queen Valleria. If he was beside me, I wouldn’t be feeling so nervous, but I know that Lance is waiting for me downstairs and we can no longer keep the guests waiting. After all, I was sort of the main star of the show.

Taking Amber’s hand, we came out of the shadows and started to descend the stairs…and immediately, all eyes were on us. Me, to be precise.

Everyone was eager to meet the Incubus King’s vampire mate and make comments about how our relationship would even work. Since my transformation, my identity had been hidden from the entire world. For what people knew, I was the daughter of a high ranking noble from the vampire dimension who had come to visit the Incubus King and fallen in love with Lancelin. If my secret got out, Lance would have gotten transformation requests and permissions pouring out of his ears. And we could not risk that. Lancelin and I had sacrificed the right to have children in order to be together. It was an unfair advantage of being royalty and I had a hard time accepting that but there was nothing we could do at the moment than to hope for a different future.

I was wearing an evening gown in white with intricate gold work that looked straight out of a fairy tale. Paired with golden heels and gold danglers. The pattern and color theme matched with Lance’s golden embroidered white suit jacket and pants. Amber had chosen a green silk gown to match her eyes and her statement gold jewellery. And even though we both looked stunning and confident on the outside, my heart was racing a thousand miles an hour as I watched several hundred of pairs of eyes in my direction, judging me for my looks and status to my eligibility at being able to stand beside Lancelin Eustein, the King of all Incubus and a member of the Dark Council.

But then my eyes landed on a pair of topaz orbs, standing at the base of the stairs and all my worries and anxiety just…vanished.

Every time I see this wonderful man, I always feel my heart skip a beat. It’s almost unreal to call this man mine; my mate. But every time I see the love in his eyes, I know that he does indeed belong to me, just as I belong to him.

Lance extended his hand towards me and as I descended the stairs, I placed my hand in his. Lancelin’s smile was bright as he pulled me in for a kiss, a bare second’s worth of contact between our lips, but that was enough for me to calm my jittery nerves and feel at home.

“You look beautiful.” He whispered into my ears.

“You don’t look too bad yourself, Your Highness.” I smiled up at him as he placed his arm around my waist.

Amber cleared her throat from behind us and Lance turned to give her a glare. She just shook her head and went her separate way while muttering something about ‘couples’ and ‘honeymoon phases’ under her breath. Thanks to my vampire hearing, I was at least about to catch half of it before her words got lost in the chatter of the room.

The first person to greet us was Erick and Alina, the royal vampire couple. They did it to erase all suspicions from everyone’s mind and I curtsied to Erick to add to the show. Miaka, the Demon King and the youngest, most beloved sister of the Dark Council members was absent because she had to attend some serious meeting with the humans in her dimension. From what I gathered as Lancelin debriefed me before the ceremony, the humans in her dimension were growing aggressive and wanting to overthrow the demon rulers since she was just a teenager. Little did the humans know, that said teenager could eliminate everyone without even blinking her eyes.

The next people on the line to meet us were a few of the Incubi nobility, including Sophia’s family. Sophia was a friend from work and even though she knew me since I was human, her family had taken an oath not to reveal the truth. It was good to see my old friend once again, even though I haven’t been able to see them for the last month since I was busy being trained in the immortal ways; learning supernatural politics and etiquette, and getting used to being a vampire all at once. But I did plan to catch up with them real soon, once the Winter Solstice ball was over.

“Ladies and gentlemen.” Queen mother Valleria called out to the crowd and the room immediately fell silent. She wore a black gown tonight, encrusted with silver threads and diamonds and looked regal in her attire. Her long hair was tied in a stylish bun on top of her head and a diamond studded pin shore brightly on her head, but mostly, she wore black to reassure her people that she was still mourning the loss of her husband, the late Incubus King Nathaniel Eustein, Lancelin’s father.

The truth was a lot dire than what the people knew but the entire family had remained quiet to prevent an uprising during the initiation of Lancelin’s reign. If the truth got out someday, then we hoped that it would be at a time when Lancelin was well ingrained in his reign and people trusted him for who he was and not just as Nathaniel’s son.

Queen mother Valleria went on to say a few words in remembrance of late King Nathaniel and the Incubi in attendance all bowed their head in respect, showing us that we had indeed made the right decision about hiding the truth from everyone. “And now, let the Winter Solstice Ball commence with the first dance by King Lancelin and his chosen partner, Sanaya Johnson.”

“It’s time.” Lancelin told me as he guided me to the centre of the ball room with his arms securely around me.

“Let’s do this.” I swallowed nervously.

I had been practicing tirelessly for the last week for this first dance, first with a professional trainer and then with Lancelin himself, but I was still scared that I might end up stepping on his toes, tripping on my dress or just fainting from having all eyes on me.

Everyone moved to the sides to leave a large room in the middle in the shape of a circle where Lance and I would be dancing. The lights dimmed all over the room and the focus shifted to us as Lance and I took our positions. The orchestra that had been playing some merry music in the background now took their position as well, getting ready to play the tune for our dance.

“Hey…look at me.” Lance whispered as we stood facing each other, not touching. “Look at me only. Forget the world, forget everything else. It’s just you and me.” Lance whispered, calming my nerves with just his words.

“Okay.” I exhaled and squared my shoulders before raising my hand, as Lance raised his, facing my hand palm side up. The music began to play then and the entire room fell silent, allowing me to focus only on Lance’s topaz eyes that burned bright with love, only for me.

Before I knew it, Lance and I were gliding around the dance floor in perfect harmony. Lance was right, everything else just faded away when I was with him. It felt like there were just the two of us in this entire world and nothing else mattered. The skirt of my dress flared around my body, flirting with my ankles from time to time, but I wasn’t afraid of falling anymore because I knew Lance was there to catch me. All my fears just vanished and I started to really enjoy the dance, noticing the intricate details in our body movements; how every twist and turn was planned according to the music and just how harmonious our bodies were on the floor.

Once we were well into the second verse of the song, Lance added a few playful twists to the original choreography by spinning me once at an unexpected turn and then dipping me with his arms around my waist at another turn. It was a beautiful thing to be able to dance like this with Lancelin, without fears or worries…like we were free.

Both of us were smiling as the dance ended with me in Lancelin’s arms. It was only when the cheers went up all around us that the spell was finally broken.

“See?” Lancelin’s eyes sparkled like embers under the lights. “You did great. In fact, you were perfect.”

“It was all thanks to you.”

Lance helped me off the dance floor and we once again had to plaster a smile on our face as several people came to greet us and offered to dance with us. Lancelin took up a couple invitations since he had to be polite, while I did the same but only with people I knew. King Erick was one of my partners and I actually liked dancing with him. He was friendly and kind and he pointed out exactly which people to avoid in case I got more offers. Those were the kind of people who would either probe too much with tricky words or had certain special abilities that could get me in trouble.

By the time everyone was called to the banquet hall for dinner, my feet were killing me and I was ready to pass out. I didn’t think vampires could get exhausted but I was ready for a year-long nap, right about now.

“Are you alright?”

Surprised, I turned to find Lance behind me, guiding me away from the crowd with a hand on my lower back.

“I’m fine,” I reassured him. “Just tired. You should head to the dining room, everyone will be expecting you.”

“I’ve told mother and Acelin to handle the dining room for the time being.” Lance and I were back inside our room before I even had the time to blink. “So now, I can take care of you.”

“How?” I blinked several times to make sure that this was indeed our room and my fatigue wasn’t leading to hallucinations.

“I ran into Erick before I came to you.” He pushed me down on the bed and knelt in front of me. Taking my feet into his hands, he took off my heels and began massaging my feet. “Feeling better?”

“Yes, thank you.” I smiled at him as Lance came to sit beside me on the bed.

“You did great today.” Lance told me sincerely. “I’m so proud of you.”

“I understand how much it means to you that your people accept me. I’ll always be beside you and I’ll always support you whenever you need me.”

“I’m glad I have you.” He took my hand and the diamonds on my ring finger sparkled under the lights of the chandelier. “And I’m sorry for what you had to sacrifice.”

“I have you.” I told him. “I’ll be sad and disappointed that we can’t have children together, but I’ll always have you without having to share you with anyone.”

“Yes.” Lance smiled, kissing the palm of my hand.

“Now…how about a drink before we head off to deal with nosy guests?” I smirked. The scent of him was always a temptation I couldn’t ignore and after the day I’ve had, I deserved a reward.

“I thought you’d never ask.” Lancelin laughed; the sound contagious and hearty.

And as I pulled him in for a kiss, capturing that laughter with my lips, I knew I had found my home…my forever.

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