The King's Lover-Chapter 407: Day of the Wedding

The day of the wedding arrived faster than Rose foresaw. It was as though fate couldn’t wait to move this along and the day drew closer, Rose found herself getting more miserable by the day.

The night before the wedding she didn’t get much sleep, only rolling from one side to the other as the next day slowly started. One would think she was the bride about to be married, given how anxious she felt.

But Rose’s anxiety was completely different. One might say she was slightly terrified of what the day held, as it would either make or break her—and as the day drew closer, she found herself leaning towards the latter.

A part of her believed Welma’s words; the maid had no reason to lie. But at the same time, she wouldn’t put it past the Crown Prince to tell his mother what she wanted to hear. As the wedding day approached, this suspicion became harder for Rose to ignore.

She eventually did fall asleep, but her dreams were filled with nightmares. Though she slept late, she woke up before the sun rose and didn’t stir from her bed until the maids arrived. Chelsy and Isla were awfully quiet; even they couldn’t fail to notice how heavy the atmosphere was.

"Is there anything else you need?" Chelsy asked after they had brought her breakfast. She was clearly concerned.

Rose raised her head from her meal and slightly shook it. "I don’t think so."

Chelsy fiddled with her apron while Isla looked everywhere but at Rose. There was definitely something wrong, and Rose dropped her cutlery to give them her full attention.

"W-we will be required to join the other servants to serve during the ceremony, and we might not be able to help you with anything during that time. So if you need anything now, please let us know as we might not be available then."

Rose understood and immediately started to think about what she would need. "Water," she replied, "and some snacks." She doubted she would be hungry, but it was best to have something to eat rather than starve.

"Alright," the two maids nodded and left the room.

Rose found it hard to pick up the cutlery again; the food felt sour in her mouth. She forced herself, as it was clear she might not get much to eat for the rest of the day. She knew the wedding would last the whole day and probably late into the night.

The first and last ball she had attended had been just as long. Considering this was the wedding of the Crown Prince, Rose didn’t want to imagine how long it would be. The lords loved to party.

By the time the maids returned with snacks and water, Rose had finished breakfast. Chelsy placed the items on the table and looked at Rose sympathetically before withdrawing from the room.

Rose did her best to pretend she hadn’t seen that, but she could only imagine what the maids thought. She did find it a little ironic that they felt sorry for her. What else was going to happen? The Crown Prince was bound to marry a princess at some point; there was no question about that.

Rose took the quill and began to write once more. It was going to be a long day; she might as well keep busy.

---

Not too far from Rose, on the opposite wing, the ceremony had begun. Guests filled the great hall as they waited for the bride and groom to arrive. The priest stood at the very front, on the elevated platform.

The priest was dressed in very ceremonious attire: a large, elongated cap with strings hanging from the front that made it a little difficult to see his face. The robes were also oversized, making it hard to determine his build.

The great hall was dutifully decorated. Guests were dressed beautifully, and whispers floated through the space. The weather was magnificent, soft rays of light streaming through the glass windows to illuminate the hall.

Caius arrived first, dressed in his ceremonial white and gold attire. His hair was slicked back, and he wore a gold band around his forehead. His sword was sheathed at his waist, the hilt adorned with golden embroidered strings.

His black boots barely made a sound as he marched to the musicians who played as he entered, welcoming him with a fanfare. The guests were ecstatic. Caius could see his parents seated some feet away from where the priest stood; even his sick father was in attendance.

Caius’s eyes swept the crowd quickly recognizing more than a few people, before he went to stand by the priest. The joining was usually done swiftly, followed by the rest of the ceremony—lords eating, drinking, gossiping, and merrymaking as much as they wanted.

The hall went silent as he reached the platform. Almost immediately, the huge doors of the great hall opened and two preteen girls walked forward. They moved slowly, in rhythm with the music.

Behind them was Princess Caira, a veil covering her face. She was dressed in a white, flowy dress, the train held by four ladies. On her right was Lord Leopold, who had offered to walk her down the aisle a little too enthusiastically. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

The young girls sprinkled flowers as they walked. Caius forced his eyes to remain glued to the scene, pretending to be captivated. Caira didn’t look up as she walked, and Caius didn’t want her to.

Whispers echoed through the crowd about how beautiful she was despite the veil. Caius didn’t disagree; perhaps, if he were someone else, this might have been a joyful occasion.

After what felt like forever, she arrived at the platform and was helped onto it. They stood facing each other with the priest between them. Caira didn’t look up at him, and Caius fixated his gaze on the top of her head.

The priest began to speak, and Caius zoned out. He tried to listen, but he couldn’t, not when it felt like a million ants were crawling over his skin. He caught his cousin’s eyes; Rylen was seated next to his mother and Rylen’s expression was able to pull him back into his body.

Caius looked away just as the priest started the vows. He repeated them under his breath, and after him, Caira said hers.

At the end of the vows, the crowd let out an excited sound, many of them clapping. Eventually, they settled down, and the priest gave the order that Caius might lift the veil and kiss the bride.

Caius gripped his sword until his knuckles turned white, then slowly lifted the veil. Caira blinked as she stared up at him, her blue eyes sparkling with unshed tears. Her thick lashes fluttered rapidly to hold them back. There was a bright smile on her face and a hint of color on her cheeks.

Caius tossed the veil back and let his hands fall to his sides. He looked at her lips and brought his face closer. He could see her eager eyes and fought the strong urge of disgust that filled him.

Caira closed her eyes, and Caius kissed the side of her lips, positioning his head so that none would be the wiser, thinking they had truly kissed. Caira’s eyes flew open, filled with disappointment; the tears she had held back threatened to spill.

She closed her eyes and tried to compose herself just as Caius pulled away. Her bright smile returned as the guests went wild with cheers.

They were then handed a cup of wine to drink from, symbolizing their union. The groom was usually handed the cup first and would offer it to the bride before taking a sip himself.

Caius accepted the cup and offered it to Caira gently, giving her a drink. She gulped, and he pulled the cup away. It was quick, and no one would have noticed, but Caira did: he refused to drink from where her lips had touched. Worse, the Crown Prince didn’t actually drink from the cup at all.

He made it look as though he drank the contents as he brought the cup to his lips and gulped, then quickly handed it back to the priest.

Caius turned his gaze to Caira and saw her smile falter. The tears in her eyes no longer held the joy they once had, but he didn’t feel a single shred of sympathy for her.

He stretched out his hand to her with a fake smile, and she looked up at his face. It was hard to read her expression, but Caius didn’t particularly care.

Caira’s smile remained in place, even though it was obvious something wasn’t right. She slowly placed her hand in his, and together they walked down from the podium to where a table had been prepared for them as the rest of the ceremony continued.

To Caius, the worst part was over. Now he just had to keep up appearances and deal with different lords for the rest of the day until the ceremony was actually over. Perhaps, he thought, the worst part was truly only just beginning.