Cursed and Fated: Offered To The Wicked Alpha Prince
Chapter 13: She’s beautiful, no doubt

Chapter 13: She’s beautiful, no doubt

Adeline surveyed the expansive guest suite, a room far more grand than anything she had known, she would use until she became Gideon’s official wife. She had just lowered her worn satchel onto a velvet chair when a knock echoed through the room.

"Miss, your dinner has arrived," a maid announced, entering with a heavy tray. She began arranging an array of steaming dishes onto the table, the portions far exceeding what Adeline usually consumed. "Prince Gideon has strictly instructed that not a single grain is to be left behind."

Adeline stared at the spread in disbelief. "But I don’t have much of an appetite," she admitted. "I don’t think I can finish all of this by myself."

"Miss, it is a specialized, healthy meal," the maid replied firmly, though not unkindly. "The Prince was very clear. He wants you to recover your strength quickly."

"I’ll try, then," Adeline said, offering a faint, weary smile.

"Thank you." Once the doors clicked shut, Adeline headed to the washroom to freshen up.

The interior was stunning, far more luxurious than any room she had ever seen. She washed her hands and face, dabbing her skin dry with a towel so soft it felt like a cloud against her cheek.

Returning to the main room, she pulled up a chair and began removing the silver lids one by one. Her eyes gleamed.

The aroma was intoxicating, and despite her usually small appetite, the sight of such a feast was impossible to resist. She found herself eating with a hunger she hadn’t realized she possessed, savoring every bite until the plates were nearly bare.

"Oh my god! I actually ate it all!" she whispered, pressing her palms against her stomach. A genuine smile lit up her face, the simple comfort of a full belly warming her.

But the warmth was fleeting. The smile slowly faded as Gideon’s dark, troubled expression flashed in her mind.

"I truly trusted the wrong person," she mumbled to the empty room. "She speaks with such sweetness... I couldn’t even guess that she was the enemy."

Shaking her head to clear the intrusive thoughts, Adeline stood up and walked toward the door. When she pulled it open, she found the maid still standing dutifully in the corridor.

"I have finished eating," Adeline said softly. "Can you tell me where the kitchen is? I’d like to return these."

The maid stepped into the room, her eyes widening slightly when she saw that Adeline had already neatly stacked the bowls, plates, and cutlery back onto the tray.

"I will carry them to the kitchen, Miss," the maid insisted, quickly moving to pick up the tray. "It is not your place to perform such chores in this palace. Please, get some rest. Good night."

As the maid departed, Adeline turned the lock from the inside. She retrieved her phone from her satchel, plugged it into the charger, and finally climbed into the vast, soft bed, letting the exhaustion of the day pull her into the pillows.

As she stared up at the intricate patterns on the ceiling, Gideon’s cold declaration echoed in her mind once more.

"My freedom was never mine to begin with," she whispered. "It truly was a foolish dream to think I could live on my own, on my own terms. But Prince Gideon... he didn’t punish me for betraying his trust. He must loathe me for being so easily swayed by his stepmother."

She rolled onto her side, pulling the heavy duvet closer. "But I had no idea the Luna Queen was his stepmother. I didn’t know their history was so poisoned. If I had known, I wouldn’t have believed a single word that came out of her mouth."

As sleep began to tug at her senses, her thoughts drifted back to the moment Gideon had caught her at the back exit. She recalled his piercing golden eyes again, peering into her very soul.

It was a gaze that should have terrified her, yet in the silence of the night, she realized with a start that it hadn’t. Despite his fury, she had felt a strange, unsettling sense of safety under that gaze.

"Why did he say he liked me? What did he like about me?" Adeline lifted her hand and wondered what her touch did to him.

~~~~~

Gideon sipped the neat alcohol, the burn of it grounding him as his Gamma reported on the night’s progress. "As per Your Highness’s orders, I have secured Adeline’s family in the dungeon for the night."

"Good. You are dismissed."

Gideon swirled the liquid in his glass, the light catching the shifting ice as he recalled Adeline’s face.

"She is too soft for this palace," he murmured to the empty room. "I wonder what she and Father spoke about. She remains silent only because he commanded it. But Presley will not sit quiet; she will resort to much more extreme measures from this point forward."

He chugged the remaining alcohol and set the glass down with a sharp clink before rising to his feet.

Reaching into his bedside drawer, he retrieved a small jar of special healing ointment. With the moonlight guiding his steps through the silent corridors, he made his way toward Adeline’s room to leave it for her.

However, when he reached her door, he found it locked from the inside. A chuckle escaped his throat; he should have expected her to be cautious.

He turned back and used the private passage that connected his suite to hers, a hidden architectural detail of the palace meant for the royal couple.

Stepping inside, he noticed the room was still bathed in bright light. Adeline was sleeping peacefully.

’She sleeps with the lights on,’ he noted silently.

He moved silently to the bedside and gently took her hand. Careful not to disturb her rest, he began applying the cool ointment to her wrists and knuckles.

He hadn’t been able to ignore those marks earlier. While the minor scrape she had received during the attack had already vanished, these bruises were older and deeper, likely a parting gift from the family currently languishing in his dungeon.

Once he finished, Gideon carefully placed her hand back in its original position. He took in the soft features of her face in the glow of the room.

"She’s beautiful, no doubt," he whispered. His gaze stalled on the small mole right next to her lip, a delicate beauty mark that seemed to anchor his attention.

His fingers moved almost of their own accord, brushing a few stray strands of hair away from her temple. With one last lingering look at the woman he had claimed as his own, he turned and silently vanished back through the private door.