In the Slaters’ garden, Ruelle sat across from Lucian, her scarf wrapped around her neck and her coat hugging her, while Lucian sat with his coat hanging over his shoulders. Where they sat now in the garden, the snow had been thawed and cleared. Servants placed down the warm dishes on the table before they left.

Her eyes shifted and caught Peyton standing near one of the walls of the mansion, keeping an eye on them from a distance that Lucian approved of.

Lucian watched her look around, his wine-red eyes tracking every shift and breath of hers. The wind picked up just slightly and her hair moved.

"Would you have preferred we stayed inside?" Lucian asked, pulling back her attention to him.

"This is fine," Ruelle murmured, before adding, "It’s just... a little unusual."

"We’ll have the invitations sent out tonight," Lucian said, serving food on her plate. "Tell me who you would like to invite. I’ll have Maude send it along with the rest."

Ruelle gave him a small nod. It wasn’t as though she had many people she could call her own. "Just a few," she murmured, a hint of embarrassment in her voice. "Hailey and her family. Kevin’s."

"And?" Lucian’s gaze lingered on her, as if expecting more. He tilted his head slightly. "The prince?"

"He is your family," Ruelle replied with a small smile while wondering if it was okay to invite Edward. Not that she didn’t want to...but he hadn’t stayed until this morning to exchange any word and had left for the castle last night.

"He’s closer to you," Lucian answered. He looked at a distance towards the direction of the mansion walls and then said, "I’ll have the invitation sent in your name."

Ruelle then remembered she could send her second cousin, who used to visit her family but with how often he travelled, she wasn’t sure if he would be able to attend it.

"Have you decided how you want the wedding?" he asked, picking the fork and knife, before cutting a small slice of the meat.

"I haven’t thought much about it. I suppose something simple would be enough," she admitted quietly. But with it being a political wedding to complete the treaty, she could only guess that all ministers and other important figures would be turning up for it. There would be nothing simple about it. "How about you?"

"I just need you," Lucian replied before taking a bite from his fork.

Ruelle felt her stomach flutter and she quickly took a bite from her plate. Who knew Lucian Slater could say something like that to her... Wanting to serve too, she reached for the container without thinking, and her fingers found the hot metal handle. She quickly pulled it away, noticing a slight frown marring his face.

"It’s just a little burn," Ruelle said with a small laugh, holding up her finger despite the faint sting. "I’ve had worse. Hot tea spilled on my hand once but thankfully it didn’t leave a mark though."

Lucian leaned back in his seat, his head slightly tilted and he indulged her with the question, "You burned yourself with tea?"

"Not me. It was long back. I didn’t behave well and—" her words caught in her throat, noticing the icy expression on Lucian’s face. "You don’t have to worry about it and it’s in the past," she added before taking a bite from her food.

When she caught him continuing to watch her, she noticed a softness in his expression, and yet beneath it lingered a quiet displeasure, an intriguing duality that held her attention longer than it should have.

"Have you noticed," Lucian asked, lifting the glass and setting the blood into a slow, circular motion, "that you walk without raising your feet? What your father did may be in the past. But it hasn’t left you."

Ruelle’s eyes lowered, looking at the food on her plate. After a moment, she asked him, "Why didn’t you tell me... that you knew me? About the treaty."

"In the beginning, it didn’t matter. But later... I didn’t want to," Lucian’s reached where she sat. "Not until I knew you had chosen me. Anything else would have been no different from what the king or Edward was asking of you. You would have felt trapped."

"I see..." Ruelle murmured, watching Lucian take a sip of blood while his eyes continued to stay on her. She asked him, "And what if—if I didn’t come to fall for you?" 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Lucian pulled the glass away from his face. A quiet breath left him, almost thoughtful. The question was almost amusing, as he wouldn’t have let it end any other way.

"I would have taken my time," he hummed.

Ruelle gave him a small nod, her eyes lowering and feeling warm inside.

Eating like this together with all her troubles taken away somewhere felt too good to be true. A flicker of worry touched her mind. It’s okay, she told herself. Everyone was safe right now and that’s what mattered. As if to change her thoughts, she asked,

"Lucian, can I ask you to paint me?" Realising how vain and presumptuous it sounded, she quickly added, "I mean my portrait."

"No."

That was fast...

"Why not?" She pressed, unable to help herself. It wasn’t like the portrait would be sold to someone else. "I mean—"

"Here."

Lucian raised his fork, a piece of meat balanced delicately on the tines. The gesture was so smooth that it took her a moment to understand what he was doing.

Ruelle blinked, processing. Because he was doing a lot of things she couldn’t have imagined him doing. She looked left and right instinctively, checking for servants, for witnesses, for anyone who might be watching this intimate moment. Peyton hadn’t looked away from them.

"Lucian, I have the same food..." Her words came out soft. But he patiently waited.

She then carefully leaned forward, parting her lips and biting into it, though for a brief second, the fork seemed to move back. Making her reach for him. The meat was warmer than what she was having.

Clearing her throat, she apologised, "I am sorry that I don’t remember anything about when we were young. I thought my parents despised the vampires, especially purebloods." It was surprising they’d agreed at all.

"I heard a rumour that your father was going to be offered a position in the courthouse," Lucian responded as he set his fork down. "It isn’t easy for humans, especially to get in. It is why most of the humans turn into Halflings to be able to work there. To improve their chances."

"He could have got the position if he went through the treaty..." Ruelle murmured. Then she asked, "When did you realise it was me?"

"During the first week, when Hailey called your name during Jinxy’s class."

That far behind? Ruelle looked surprised. She couldn’t believe that this same Lucian had made her cry in the market.

But then he did mention his hate towards her kind. She wondered if their past had compelled him to hide her earrings and stopped her from being Sexton’s property. She couldn’t believe she had been brave enough to slap him... Truthfully though, if she had seen him pull out people’s ribs first, she might have maintained her distance from him.

Though in the end, everything seemed to have fallen where it was supposed to, she thought to herself.

The following morning arrived like an unwanted guest.

Ruelle woke to find the midwife already in the mansion with one of the ministers. She descended the stairs with Peyton right behind her. When she arrived at the lower floor, she caught Maude inspecting the midwife. And Lucian stood a couple of steps from them.

"Why is the midwife being checked for?" Ruelle whispered to Peyton.

"Mr. Slater is being thorough," Peyton’s response was plain as ever. "He forbid the male servants from this floor until your examination is done."

Maude turned to Lucian and gave him a nod of confirmation that the midwife was deemed acceptable. The minister, seeing this exchange, spoke,

"Miss Belmont is here too. Let the midwife begin with it without any delay."

"I am sure you want to get this over with," the midwife said with a smile and with Ruelle, the woman stepped into a room.

Inside the room, Ruelle was made to lay flat on her back with her knees pulled up and apart. She noticed Peyton had her back turned.

While the midwife positioned herself between Ruelle legs, Ruelle’s fingers rested on her stomach, twiddling. The woman spoke,

"I am going to check now." The warning came too late to brace for it.

"Nngh...!" the sound escaped Ruelle and her nails dug into her palms, giving her something to focus on.

After a few seconds, the midwife pulled away and said, "Alright, it is done."

Ruelle quickly fixed her clothes. She noticed the midwife rose with a satisfied smile. The woman stepped outside the room and informed,

"Miss Belmont’s chastity has been preserved."

The minister who stood outside the room looked pleased with the news. He turned to Lucian and informed him, "I will inform Carnifex about it so that the news can go out to the public. Thank you, Mr. Slater."

With that, the minister and the midwife left the corridor.

As Ruelle stepped out of the room with her face slightly red, she caught Lucian straighten from the wall he had been leaning against. He stepped forward with her scarf in hand, wrapping it around her neck without touching her, mindful of the minister’s assistant’s watchful gaze.

His voice softened as he said, "You did well."