Betrayed By The Hero, Loved By The Lord-Chapter 35: Saving dinner (1)

Selene didn’t eat until Xavier returned to the table. The noise outside was no longer there so she assumed it was going well but she doubted his parents would be invited inside now. Aside from what Harold told her, Selene was curious if there was something more to why Xavier didn’t get along with his father.

Selene felt sorry for Xavier since he might have missed out on what it was like to have a wonderful relationship with both of your parents.

"Did it go well?" Selene asked the second Xavier entered the dining room. His face didn’t give away if he was happy or angry.

"I sent them away but my mother will return tomorrow to meet with you. Next time, they will know to send notice that they will be coming to us. Now, where were we?" Xavier asked as he took his seat.

"We were having dinner but the food is cold now," Selene said, looking down at her plate. She suddenly wasn’t in the mood for dinner. "I will just have some blood and return to my room if you do not mind. Does that upset you?"

"I am annoyed that it didn’t go as I thought it would. I wanted to see what makes sitting at a table for dinner so important," said Xavier.

"Oh. Then we can stay a little longer but the food will need to be warmed. It is hard for me to consume when it is cold. Thank you, Harold," Selene said when the butler came to take her plate.

Xavier watched the interaction between the two. "You two seem to be getting along well."

"Well, he has been quite helpful to me when you are not around. He’s helped to point out what some of the rooms are for. I feel bad when it seems like I am taking him away from his work," said Selene.

Xavier locked eyes with Harold.

"Lord Blackthorn is more helpful than I am. He should receive all the praise," Harold said and then took the plates back to the kitchen.

"Does he not enjoy compliments? Does it make him uncomfortable?" Selene asked, puzzled by Harold suddenly speaking about Xavier. Harold was helpful to her so he should know it.

"It might make him uncomfortable so you shouldn’t do it again. I, on the other hand, enjoy compliments. You may shower me with them. Go on," Xavier urged Selene.

Selene opted not to. "I think I have given you enough compliments for the day. I would rather you tell me what to expect from your mother tomorrow. I still see her around the town but we are not in the same spaces as before. Is she coming to speak about the wedding or meet with me?"

"It might be both. She claims to be accepting of the marriage and I believe her but that doesn’t mean she won’t be judging you at times. You will be better off with her than my father but still keep your guard up. My mother still has her bad ways but I’m sure you will do well," Xavier said, secretly looking forward to their reunion.

"I hope so. Your mother is quite respected in our world not only because she is now a Blackthorn. I don’t want to use her to get invited anywhere but I would like advice. I hope this time around that having a mother-in-law will not be so tiresome," Selene said, thinking of Lucinda. "You are lucky to not have anyone to worry about."

"I did not expect that to come out of your mouth. Do you visit their graves often?" Xavier questioned.

Selene nodded her head. "As often as I can to keep their graves clean and add flowers. I know it is silly to speak to the dead but I like to tell them of what is happening in my life. Not the bad things of course. I wouldn’t want to trouble them in the afterlife."

"I know the humans claim we do not have souls but I believe I will be able to meet with my parents in another life so I try not to be so sad. I do wish I had a little more time with them. I am lucky they were so close to me all my life so there wasn’t anything I missed out on to have any regrets," Selene said, a smile forming without her realising.

Selene looked at Xavier who watched her intently. "I know all that is said about them but there are my parents. They were good to me."

"I am not judging you for continuing to love them. If they were good in your eyes then I won’t say anything to change it. When you travel to see them or go anywhere around the town, take guards with you. It won’t be long before news of us being in the palace together will spread around," Xavier said, thinking of who to assign to her.

"I will. I know to be careful. I am weak at the moment. I have my strength but it is not enough for skilled fighters. My father only taught me the basics. Do you mind if I learned how to fight? If I ever need to defend myself or protect anyone, I don’t want to doubt that I can succeed," said Selene.

"I can find you a good tutor. If you get upset with yourself for not trying to fight Gabriel, don’t. Instead of attacking him blindly, you controlled your emotions and thought of the result. He is a skilled soldier in the army. You have more strength but he would have found a way to hurt you. Leaving and coming up with a plan was better," Xavier said, trying to rid her of guilt.

To Xavier, Selene didn’t appear to be someone who could take someone’s life even when in a fit of rage.

"It could have all been avoided had I left Gabriel when he brought home Cassandra. I tried to search for where I would live with my maids and found a small room but it would only be ready the next morning. It might have been better to wander the streets," Selene said, the guilt she tried to not let consume her started again.

"That would not have been a good idea. The palace hasn’t brought any attention to it but there are attacks on vampires around the kingdom. A pureblood like you walking around with only her maids might have gotten all three of you killed. It must feel like your fault but you can’t dwell on this. You tried to leave the right way," Xavier said.

He wasn’t aware she had been looking for a place to stay and now wondered if the day they met after the banquet, she had been looking around for at least a room or small home. "Had you not thought of leaving until he killed your maid then I would have judged you. You might not like to hear it but only one of you dying is better than all three of you."

"I suppose it is better but I do not like the sound of it. Sometimes I get scared wondering what I would have done if you had not opened your doors to me. I do not know where I would have gone. I must plan for the unexpected better. I will not disappoint you," Selene promised.