Chapter Three-Hundred-and-Thirty-Six
3rd Person POV
“Take things slow? No! You don't want Queen Agatha changing her mind about this,” said Reginald. He had experienced forbidden love with Xanthippe and if he had been any wiser he would have married her immediately. He would not have waited to court her. It was the singular regret of his life and he would pay for it dearly for the rest of his life.
“She is not going to change her mind and if she does, we'll simply elope. I and Gabriella do not need an elaborate wedding,” remarked Harlin.
“You don't need one but your mother does.”
“Which reminds me, what possible reason could the Lord of the Sky have to visit our pack?” Harlin asked his friends but he was met with silence.
“Perhaps to check on the progress of the infrastructure?” quipped Charlotte shrugging her shoulders to show she was not sure of what she was saying.
“Maybe the sky wants an intentional relationship with Earth and since Queen Irvette was the one to request the sky help in eradicating the zombies, he finds her easy to speak with?” At this point, his friends were just guessing.
While everyone guessed the reason for the special attention, no one could guess that it was because, for the first time in many centuries, the sky was seeking a romantic connection with the earth.
****
The day finally came when Caephas visited Irvette in her palace. She was unaware of Caephas’ intention and was very surprised to see him arrive with a basket of roses. She looked very confused but accepted the gift in good faith.
“You don’t seem very pleased with the flowers,” remarked Caephas who had been expecting much gusto from his gift.
“I am flattered Lord Caephas, it is just that roses are a rather uncommon gift for a state visit,” replied Irvette.
“I was told that earth women love roses,” he returned, disappointed that Jude had given him bad advice.
“When you are trying to woo them which I’m certain is not your intention,” returned Queen Irvette.
“And if it is, will you be pleased?’ asked Caephas, his heart beating sporadically.
“I will certainly be flattered but I am well past all that love nonsense,” returned Irvette with a polite smile.
“Love nonsense? I used to think love was nonsense myself. I could never understand why anyone would lose sleep over someone that is until I met you,” Jude had also advised him to be bold and clear about his intentions but Irvette’s facial expression told him Jude’s advice had been suicidal.
“Lord Caephas, I am unsure as to what you are implying,” returned Irvette politely.
“This is uhm… a marriage proposal?” without anyone telling him he knew this was bad.
“I’m listening,” replied Irvette, folding her hands. Caephas blinked in surprise, “you said you were past love.”
“I am. It does not mean that I am past marriage. If a marriage alliance will reinforce my authority as queen and help me fund the projects I need to fund to help my people, I will be open to it. I am currently considering Alpha Raphael’s proposal. I will be his sixtieth wife but he has a very large purse, some say his purse has no bottoms. Do you know what that means?” Irvette was thoroughly enjoying herself against her better wishes, making men uncomfortable just came easy to her.
“You are only interested in money and power?” inquired Caepahas. Who knew that beautiful women wanted things like that.
“I have a much larger purse than Alpha Raphael,” the name seemed vaguely familiar to Caephas, he recalled Dagen mentioning the name once to him.
“You don’t say, I am considering giving the entire pack a facelift, that will cost a lot,” continued Irvette.
“And I have a lot,” replied Caephas.
“Lord Caephas, it is quite easy to manipulate you,” remarked Irvette with a laugh that pricked Caephas's heart.
“I am very bad at this. Usually…”
“Women throw themselves at you. Indeed I am flattered by your request but you will find if you just ask around that I have done some unmentionable things which you will be appalled by and would not want to be associated with,” Irvette’s tone was serious and meant to scare Caephas off.
“You’ve done worse things than I know of?”
“You know of my past and you’re still here?”
“I heard someone say to me that love makes people do stupid things.”
“I’m sorry Lord Caephas but I am not deserving of your love but I hear the Fae Queen is hoping to make an honourable man of you,” Irvette winked at the end of the sentence.
“I have no interest in that woman,” scoffed Lord Caephas in annoyance.
Irvette sensed that something was off so she asked, “Did something happen?”
“Let's just say she's something else, the nerve of her,” said Caephas with anger.
“You supernatural beings and not wanting to share,” replied Irvette with a scoff of her own. She still found it strange that Regina had dragged them out of Mount Shasta without so much as an explanation.
“Supernatural beings?”
“Regina, just the other day she…” but Irvette kept quiet. Her guess was that this was something Regina probably did not want Caephas to know about, whatever it was.
“What did Regina do?” asked Caephas but he could already guess that he was not going to get an answer out of Irvette. Regardless, Irvette had said enough. He remembered now that Regina, Dagen and Irvette had left rather suddenly at the soiree the other day. It had not bothered Caephas then but it certainly bothered him now. It meant that Regina knew something that he did not and he had to get to the bottom of this.
****
“Caephas?” quipped Dagen as he let go of Regina. Caephas had walked in on a private moment between the two.
“I didn't know you two were… anyway I have more important business to discuss with you, lady,” Regina did not like Caephas' tone.
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