Chapter 130

Third Person POV

“He’s such a jerk!” Mia hissed in her room, folding her arms across her chest as she paced back and forth. “They can’t seriously expect me to marry such an asshole.”

“Oh, but you must. Your father ordered it,” Emily reminded her. “I’m sure it was just a misunderstanding.”

“You didn’t hear him, Em,” Mia said, sitting on her bed and burying her face in her hands. “He heard some of the rumors about me online and he blindly believed them. He thinks of me as an airhead and not worthy of his hand in marriage. It was embarrassing listening to his cruel words.”

“I wish I could have seen it when you dumped that food on him,” Emily chuckled, even Rachel seemed to be holding back her own chuckles.

“I’ve known Prince Lucas for quite a while, and he’s never been like that,” Rachel said, trying to intervene. “He was always very kind. Probably one of the kinder princes.”

“That wasn’t the impression I got from him,” Mia huffed. “He was disrespectful and awful towards me. I couldn’t help but ruin his clothing and run out of there as fast as I could…” She paused for a moment when she remembered Xaden’s face.

She sighed and lifted her gaze from her hands.

Xaden was so kind to her that it warmed her heart; he was also incredibly handsome. She wished that it could still be Xaden that she married and not his jerk of a brother.

Alpha Kenneth wanted her to fight for Xaden though because he was more deserving of her, so maybe there was still a chance. She wasn’t sure why this Alpha cared so much other than the fact that he’d been loyal to the royals for a long time. Perhaps he wanted Mia to be the Luna Queen because Xaden had a better chance at winning the throne over his other brothers. Or maybe he thought that Mia could make Xaden truly happy, and he wanted to see Xaden happy.

“Shall we change our clothing back?” Rachel asked, fiddling with her fingers nervously. Mia forgot she was still wearing maid clothing, and she nodded.

She quickly got out of the maid’s uniform and put her normal clothes back on. She gave Rachel her clothing back and she quickly changed as well.

“Thank you for your help, Rachel,” Mia said thoughtfully. “I hope we will get the chance to speak again.”

Rachel nodded.

“It was an honor to assist you, Your Majesty,” she said as she bowed. She went to the door and opened it, freezing when she saw Luna Queen Leonora standing on the other side.

“Oh, there you are Rachel,” she said, her brows pinched together. “They needed some extra help in the kitchen. I guess they ran into an issue they need to rectify and could use extra hands.”

“Sorry, Your Majesty. I was helping the Princess with something,” she said quickly, her eyes fixed on the ground.

“I don’t mean to keep her to myself,” Mia said, standing to her feet. “It was my fault.”

“It’s not a problem,” the queen said gently. “Hurry along.”

Rachel nodded and rushed out of the room. The queen looked at Mia and smiled.

“I hope the room is to your liking,” she said, glancing around the vast space.

“It’s lovely, thank you,” Mia said sincerely.

“Lucas and a couple of his siblings are in the parlor waiting to meet with you. Unfortunately, his oldest brother couldn’t make it, but Xaden and Charlotte are there, and the King and I will join as well. There will be some munchies and refreshments… I’m sure you are famished after your long trip. Would you like me to escort you?”

Mia frowned and glanced at Emily who gave her a quick shrug. The last person Mia wanted to see right now was Prince Lucas, but it didn’t look as if she was going to have a choice.

“Sure, but would it be okay if I met with Lucas alone?” She asked innocently. “I’m a little nervous and I don’t want there to be so much pressure on our first meet.”

“Oh, of course,” the Queen said with a small frown; she couldn’t mask her slight disappointment. “I didn’t mean to put so much pressure on you. Meet me down in the foyer and I’ll grab Lucas.”

Mia nodded as the queen left. Mia spent the next several minutes getting ready to meet her fiancé for the first time. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. One of her warriors stood on the other side as Emily opened the door.

“We are going to escort you downstairs,” the warrior said.

Mia nodded and started to walk out of the room with her warriors and Emily following after her. They waited in the front foyer for several long minutes before she heard footsteps nearby. The king and Queen walked through the foyer with bright smiles on their faces.

“Princess, thank you for agreeing to this meeting,” King Arlan said. “Our son will be here in a moment.”

Mia nodded and gave him a tight-lipped smile. A few minutes later, Lucas walked through the foyer, and his eyes immediately found Mia’s. She thought he would recognize her right away but was surprised when his eyes showed no recognition.

“Lucas, this is Princess Mia. Mia, this is our son, Lucas,” King Arlan introduced.

Lucas stepped in front of Mia and held out his hand for her to take. She stared at it for a brief moment and then back at his eyes.

He lowered his hand after a beat of silence and his frown deepened. He glanced over her shoulders at the warriors who stood a good foot away and his frown deepened even more.

“You have female warriors?” He asked, confused. “I never heard of such a thing.”

Had he not researched the vixen shifter community? This made Mia dislike him even more.

“Lucas,” Queen Leonora scolded harshly.

“Most of the Vixen warriors are female,” Mia told him, narrowing her eyes. “Vixens are mostly a female population.”

“But we kick ass,” one of the warriors growled in her defense.

“We can attack without ever being seen,” another said, rolling her eyes. “And we don’t take well when we are undermined.”

Mia grinned at her warriors; she took pride in them. She trained most of them herself and often fought alongside them.

Lucas nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

“I see,” he murmured; not sure what else to say.

“Lucas, how about you take Princess Mia for a walk,” King Arlan suggested. “Get to know one another before the feast tonight.”

He seemed hesitant, but he eventually offered her his arm. She looked at it briefly and this time, she accepted it. She glanced over her shoulder at her warriors and gave them a curt nod. They seemed to have gotten the message because they nodded and stepped back, allowing them some space to walk freely.

After saying goodbye to the king and Queen, Mia allowed Lucas to guide her away from the foyer and out to the back door where they were enveloped in the cool evening air.

“This is a lovely castle,” Mia observed as she took in the entire scenery.

“It’s cozy I suppose,” Lucas murmured.

Mia frowned at his short response.

“I’m sorry for not joining you in the parlor. I wanted our first meeting to be lowkey,” she told him.

“Hmm.”

“Your siblings were there, right?” She asked.

“Hmm.”

“Are you close to them?” She asked.

“I am.”

She frowned; she wasn’t getting anything out of him, and it was irritating.

“Tell me about them.”

“What’s there to tell?” He muttered.

“Anything,” she told him.

He guided her over to the gardens where they sat on the stone benches. He unlinked his arm from hers like he couldn’t stand touching her, and she furrowed her brows at the gesture.

“What are their names?” She asked when it was obvious he wasn’t going to say anything more.

He glanced at her, looking annoyed.

“You mean to tell me you didn’t research anything about the royal family?” He asked her.

She pressed her lips in a thin line and folded her arms across her chest.

He was one to talk; he didn’t research anything about the Vixen community either!

“I did, but I’d like to know about them from you and not what I’ve read online. You know, stories online aren’t always true,” she told him, giving him a pointed look.

“Hmm.”

Her patience was starting to run thin with his short responses, but she bit her tongue and tried again.

“Do you have any hobbies?” She asked him.

He raised his brows.

“Does it matter?” He asked.

“Yes—”

“I don’t forge gold, if that’s what you are wondering,” he snapped, cutting off her words. She stared at him open-mouthed. “I don’t mine for diamonds so if that’s what you are after, you’ll have to get that elsewhere.”

“What on earth are you talking about?” She asked him, folding her arms across her chest.

“Don’t think I know why you are wanting to marry me,” he scoffed. “I know it’s been ordered by our parents, but I’ve heard you are getting quite the fortune out of it yourself. Plus, I’m not the only one you’ve tried to marry for money.”

Her heart was heavy in her chest at the mention of her past. She was engaged once before but caught him cheating; he spread nasty rumors that she was only after his money despite her being a princess. Those rumors were supposed to be squashed… how had Lucas found them?

She suddenly stood to her feet, not wanting to be near him anymore.

“Do you seriously think I need your money?” She asked, putting her hands on her hips as she glared down at him. “I am one of the richest heiresses in the country. I am a Vixen princess, and I’ve personally trained each of my warriors. I do not want anything, nor do I need anything from you. It’s an insult for you to think otherwise.”

“If not for the money, then why agree to marry me?” He asked, surprising her even further.

“Because like you… it’s my duty,” she said through her teeth. If you truly think that I am selfish, cruel, and not so bright, then perhaps my family needs to rethink this arrangement.”

His eyes grew large upon hearing her words.

“What did you just say?” He asked, standing to his feet.

“You heard me,” she growled. “Clearly you are not willing to actually get to know me and only go off the rumors you read about online. My father would never want me to marry someone like that, regardless of the agreement he’s made with your father. This was a mistake.”

“How did you know that I said those things?” He asked.

She rolled her eyes.

“Don’t you recognize me, Your Majesty?” She asked sarcastically as she mockingly bowed to him. “I’m the maid that spilled that food on you after I caught you being the biggest jerk I’ve ever met!”

“It was you?!” He asked. “And what right did you have to spy on me like that?”

“I wanted to know what I was getting myself into,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. “And I didn’t like what I found.”

“Are you usually this childish?”

She scowled at him, but her cheeks also grew pink because he was right. Spying like that and dumping food on him out of anger was childish, but she couldn’t help herself.

“Are you usually this judgmental?” She shot back.

He was speechless and unsure what to say. She turned on her heel, not wanting to discuss this any further; she’d had enough and had already made up her mind.

She was not going to marry this Prince.