Chapter 26

Hannah’s POV

Every ounce of my body was screaming; I wanted to cry. I thought back to the previous night when that stranger’s disgusting hands were all over me. The way he smelled lingered in my nose for the rest of the night. The ghost of his fingers pressed against me stained my skin.

I took a long shower after Sebastian had saved me; regardless of how hard I scrubbed, I never felt clean enough. I felt damaged and gross all over.

Sebastian looked so angry as he tore through that man’s skin. The rancid scent of that man’s blood and guts soaking into the floorboards remained in the living quarters.

A small knock sounded on the door, and I lifted my head off the pillow to see who it was. Caroline stood at the door, and she stared at me with concern lingering in her eyes.

“Alpha King wanted me to bring you to the wardrobe room, your majesty,” Caroline said.

I rose my eyebrows.

“Wardrobe room?” I asked her.

I wasn’t sure if I’d been in that room yet. I stared down at my pajamas and frowned.

“Yes; it’s where the royals get their clothes fit for big events,” she told me. “They have their designer, Erica, waiting for you.”

I dragged myself out of bed and followed her out of the bedroom. We walked silently down the hallway and down the grand stairs. As we entered the room, it opened up into a lit-up and huge space. I felt like I was backstage in a movie or something. There were flashy lights everywhere. There was a makeup station with a big vanity on one side of the room and a giant mirror with big lights surrounding it on the other side of the room.

A woman stood in the center of the room nearby a table with fabrics of a gown gently placed on top. She was analyzing the different gowns and making notes in a notebook. She was a tall and thin figured woman with long dark hair and big maroon glasses. She looked around the age of the queen and she looked extremely serious and intimidating.

I wondered why I had never met her before.

“What’s this about?” I asked before Caroline could leave.

“There’s a celebrity ball tonight,” she answered with a faint smile. “You are expected to attend it with Alpha King.”

My eyes widened in shock.

“A ball?” I don’t think I had ever attended a ball before. I wasn’t even sure how to properly act at a ball.

Erica put her notebook down as we entered the room; she was frowning at me for a long while. She was assessing my every move and every function of my body. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking; but telling from her face, she looked disappointed.

She sighed after a few moments and motioned for me to come closer.

“This just won’t do…” she said, staring at my hair.

I sheepishly brushed my fingers through my hair; I never found anything wrong with it, but I suppose it was messy from the bed. The brown of my hair was also noticeably paling a little bit and losing volume.

She started by measuring my body and taking down more notes. Then she added fabrics to my dress and I felt my face redden.

Was she insinuating I was fat?

I wanted to ask, but there was a part of me that found her intimidating. She started sewing together parts of the dress. She worked quickly and efficiently. Soon, she was placing the dress around my body and continued to sew it on me. I felt the dress tighten around me, nearly cutting off my air supply. I could hardly move as she tightened the dress a little more.

Once she finished, she pulled back and stared around my body for a moment with a pleasing smile. Then she stared at my face and my hair and grimaced with annoyance. I wanted to say something again but chose to keep quiet.

I turned to look at the dress in the mirror. I nearly gasped in awe; I felt like I was a genuine princess. This type of elegant dress felt almost awkward to me. I was hardly qualified to wear the clothing from that boutique store in the city that Sabastian bought for me, let alone a dress of this statue. However, it didn’t compare to my wedding dress so I guess I shouldn’t feel too awkward.

But the dress was a deep purple and brought out all my curves. It was strapless and rested tastefully on my chest, tightening around my torso but expanding around my waist, falling to the ground in delicate fabrics around my feet.

Erica grabbed my arm and helped me over to the hair and makeup station where she had me sitting. I could hardly bend but I did my best to appease her. She started doing my hair instantly; brushing it out, straightening, curling, and then finally pinning it back so it would run down my back and drape over my shoulders yet be out of my face as well. She kept a couple of curly strands to dangle down my features to compliment my appearance though. She pinned it back in a dark purple barrette which matched the gown, and the barrette had a light purple flower attached to it.

She started doing my makeup roughly after my hair. She kept my makeup light, only to amplify my already brightened features. It didn’t take long to do my makeup; once she finished, she pulled back and gave me another look.

“Much better,” she muttered, walking away from the makeup station.

“Well wait,” I said, calling after her as she started packing up her stuff. “Where are you going?” I asked.

“My job is done,” she muttered. “I’m leaving.”

She left without another word.

…

I thought Sebastian was going to have me accompany him to the ball, but instead, he sent his driver Lewis to pick me up from the palace and meet him at the ball. I felt awkward and a little embarrassed.

I wondered why he didn’t want to be seen showing up there together.

“He had some business to take care of early this evening,” Lewis explained as I slid into the back of his car.

“There’s always some kind of business,” I muttered.

“The Alpha King is a busy man, your majesty,” Lewis responded as he sped away from the palace.

Sebastian was waiting for me as we arrived. I felt a sudden relief upon seeing him. He wore a dark suit and tie with of course his mask firmly in place. Regardless of his mask, though, he still looks as handsome as ever. It made my stomach leap in my chest excitedly.

He offered me his arm to take and guided me through the ballroom. Everyone was wearing elegant clothing; there was classical music playing and women and men were dancing all around the room. Upon entering, I could smell the delicious foods baking from the kitchen, ready to serve.

I was surprised that he wanted to dance; I didn’t take him as much of a dancer. I didn’t know how to dance well, but I enjoyed the peacefulness of the music. He held me close in his arms and twirled me around delicately, allowing my dress to spin around freely.

He wrapped an arm firmly around my waist and I wrapped an arm gently around his neck as we continued dancing with the crowd around us.

I could see that everyone’s eyes were on us.

It was hard to read his expression through his mask, but I knew Nora’s mind was whirling. There was something about him that had her in such a trance and it sent a warmth through my insides.

It was hard to believe that this was the same man that yelled at me the night before.

Just before I could say anything to him, I heard a voice cutting through the ballroom.

“Sabastian?!”

A loud and unfamiliar female voice; there were soft gasps from those around us. We froze; I was unsure who would call Sebastian by his given name with such informality. He looked more curious than angry, and his eyes widened as he saw the woman that stood before us.

“Emily?”