For the next several days my life had been nothing but waiting. Waiting for meals, waiting to use the bathroom, waiting to escape. Alora, true to her word, delivered meals twice a day. She didn’t speak to me other than to tell me to enjoy my meal. She also, each evening, left a candle behind.

It was oddly peacefully eating by candle light, if not a bit lonesome. On occasion, I could hear people moving around below me. With nothing to do but think and wait, I was starting to go a bit stir crazy. The only thing I had for entertainment was a spider that dropped lazily from the corner of the room. My first instinct had been to squish it – but if I did so, I would have nothing else to look forward to.

On what I assumed to be the fifth day, a loud commotion sounded near the door. What’s going on? I stood up, crossing to the stairs. The door flew open and a handful of maids marched in. They didn’t speak, only motioned for me to follow them.

Thankful to be getting out of the musty attic, I walked down the stairs quickly. We made our way down the long corridor, down the stairs, and stopped before one of the several rooms. The maids walked inside quickly, and motioned me toward the mirror.

“What’s going on?” I asked as one of them pulled open a wardrobe.

“You are to go on your date with Lord Justin Blain.” One of them responded, pulling off my dress.

“She smells.” Another one hissed. “I think we need to wash her.”

Yes, because I was locked in the dustiest attic in the empire. I rolled my eyes while they bickered amongst themselves.

“I’ll get some items to clean her.” The short red haired maid turned, walking briskly from the room.

For the next three hours, the maids cleaned me, dressed me, and fixed my hair. One wrapped a ruby necklace around my neck while another placed earrings of the same shade in my ears.

I wasn’t vain by any means, but the reflection in the mirror was surprising.

The dress they had wrapped around me was a light white and red shade that cascaded down to my ankles. It hugged all the right places without being too form fitting. Although it was cut low, they had draped a thin shawl around my shoulders – covering some of the cleavage.

The makeup wasn’t thick enough to be obvious I had it on, but it accented my face enough to draw on my cheek bones.

My hair was pulled up in a tight bun, with a few pieces curling downward. The only thing that stood out as strange was the exhaustion in my eyes. Having been standing on my feet for three hours – there was nothing I could do about that.

“Done.” The red head nodded proudly.

“Nothing we can do about her figure.” A maid with dark brown hair, grumbled. “Why did Madam Poshlyn choose to show off her body so much? It’s not proper.”

“It’s not our place to judge.” One from behind me said.

They started to bicker again, as they walked toward the door. I watched them wordlessly until they disappeared down the hall.

Tired from all the poking and prodigy, I crossed to the sofa and sat down with a sigh. I hope I have time to relax before being thrown into Lord Murderer's vicinity. The pressure in my back eased a bit, but after a moment, the butler, who had previously informed me of the Duke’s orders, appeared in the doorway.

“Come,” He bit out. “Lord Justin Blain has arrived.”

Of course he has. I stood, and walked over to the butler – heels clicking. The butler scanned my body quickly, flushed a deep red, and turned on his heel. Oh? I thought, feeling a smile tug at my lips. What a pervert. I should have hit him with my shoe after all.

The butler didn’t speak again as we made our way through the halls. A few times, I caught him stealing looks in my direction. When he noticed I was looking, he cleared his throat, mumbling something about demons and damnation.

I opened my mouth, intending to tell him to screw off, but the words died as we reached the foyer. Lord Justin stood at the bottom of the stairs engrossed in a conversation with Gerald.

Why the hell is he here?

The butler motioned me forward before turning around and walking off. I stepped forward, walking down the large staircase. Halfway down, both men glanced up with conflicting expressions. Gerald looked as though he wanted to stab me, Justin – on the other hand – looked beyond pleased. His eyes scanned me slowly, lingering on my chest.

Disgusting. I groaned inwardly. He’s making my skin crawl.

“You look ravishing.” Justin walked forward, stopping at the bottom of the stairs, and holding out a hand.

“She looks like a clown.” Gerald grumbled, crossing his arms. “Did you get dressed in the dark?”

“Now, now, Lord Gerald.” Justin chuckled as I tentatively placed my hand in his. “I know your relationship with your sister is full of bickering, but she’s a vision.”

“A vision of death.” Gerald snapped. “She’s not my sister.”

If only you knew how right you were. I thought, stepping off the stairs with a click.

Justin pointedly ignored Gerald and raised my hand to his lips – gently kissing the back of it. A cold chill ran down my spine, but I forced out a half smile.

“Let us go.” Justin flashed a toothy grin, winding my arm through his. “Have you had a chance to visit Lady Viola’s Lake side estate?” He asked as we stepped out the front door. “I believe the salon she is hosting will be the perfect place for our date.”

I shouldn’t have been surprised by his ‘suggestion’ it wasn’t outside the norm for nobles to attend salons to mingle, but his purpose was painfully obvious. He wanted to show me off to high society and stake his claim. Though it’s not like it matters much. He’s going to try killing me in the near future.

“It sounds as though it will be an interesting experience.” I said at last.

“Indeed.” He chuckled. “There won’t be too many people in attendance. Around twenty or so. I believe you’ll get on swimmingly with the other ladies…”

I tuned him out as we walked toward the already open carriage. His rambling was, in all honesty, annoying to hear. At one point he spoke about a business venture with someone named Lord Walterbee, at another he mentioned how he wanted to increase his revenue.

By the time we got into the carriage and pulled away – I wanted to plug my ears. I couldn’t tell if this was his actual personality or if he was trying to ‘win me over.’ How can people talk to this man without falling asleep?

“...what do you think, my lady?” He asked suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts.

“I’m sorry?” I turned my gaze from the window, looking at him. “I apologize. My mind was elsewhere.”

“Oh, it’s fine.” He flashed another smile – one that didn’t reach his eyes. “I was inquiring about your preference for children.”

“My…preference?” I asked slowly. What the hell is he talking about? How did he go from talking about cigars to children?

“Yes.” He reached forward, taking my hand. “As you may know, I have been married before. Due to some…unfortunate circumstances, I am still without an heir.” His fingers tightened around my hand, applying enough pressure to send warning bells through my mind. “I do hope to have at least two children with you. However, if you wish to have more, we can choose to do so.”

“Don’t you think it’s a bit too early to be discussing children?” I pulled my hand away – pretending to adjust my hair. “We aren’t even wed yet.”

“We will be soon.” He frowned, something dark passing behind his eyes. “Perhaps you’re right.” He smiled again. “We will discuss this in detail later.” He paused, glancing toward the window. “We’ve arrived.”

Thank god. I thought, almost sighing in relief. Being in a closed space with him is suffocating.

As we stepped out of the carriage, I almost bolted.

I had no idea what awaited me at the salon – but it had to be far better than dealing with him one on one.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t predict the social nightmare that awaited me.