Making Memories for Alexandra
POV: Lucien
I decided that I needed to leave the banquet hall as soon as humanly possible because, like Derek, I had a few things to set for my date with Alexandra. I know this night wouldn’t make her fall in love with me but I had the small hope that she would remember this night for a very long time. Perhaps when her curse was lifted, she would look back at this time in her memories and think about how it would have made her feel. I knew that this night would be one that was unforgettable for me, I was going to show her my secret spot. No one, not even Blake, knew about this spot and Grand Pretre advised that this would be the best place to take her. She wouldn’t specify why but she just told me that something special would happen there. I went to my room to change into clothes that I could get myself dirty in. I would need to dig a boat out of storage and paddle out to my spot. We could easily hike there if this date were during the day but it was dangerous at night. I wanted to take the boat out there to make sure it was sturdy and I would have time to get it fixed should I need to. I would need to talk to Jess about Alexandra’s attire because I wanted to make sure she was comfortable. She seemed to be occupied talking to the other girls so I would have to find a way to catch her before she went to her room to get ready. I pulled a servant aside when I came out of my room and asked him to send Jess to me when he saw her. The servant bowed and left and I walked over to the boat storage shed. I had pulled the boat out of the shed and cleaned out the cobwebs and dust.
I was pulling the boat down to the water when I heard Jess clear her throat behind me. I turned and wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand, “Jess, I’m so glad you came to find me before I rowed out. Did you want to go for a ride?” She shook her head vigorously, “I get sick on the water in a boat so I would rather not. Thank you though.” I found a nearby tree stump and sat down, “I need to talk to you about my date with Alexandra tonight.” She held out a cold bottle she had in her hand, “One of the maids figured you’d need a cold drink. So what did you need from me?” I downed a big cold gulp of water, “So I don’t know if I will have time to come and tell her what sort of attire to wear.” She looked over at the boat and then at me, “I’m guessing the boat is for the date? So should she wear comfortable clothes then?” I wiped my lips that had residual water on them from the last drink of water I took, “Sort of, I have a special place I am taking her that would require swim attire. If she could wear a bathing suit and something she could slip off easily.” She nodded, “I think I have something she can borrow just for that purpose. Is there anything else you need? I should get going soon, the girls are gathering in my room to get each other ready.” I looked out at the lake and sighed, “I wish she could feel the way I will about this date.” She patted me on the shoulder, “She will. Someday, just make it unforgettable. Make it count Lucien. You’re already a man that is worthy of her.” I looked down at the bottle in my hands and then smiled up at her, “I will make her night special. I’m counting on her feeling things about this night once this stupid curse is lifted. I’m going to head out now so I can be ready in time.”
I took the boat out to my spot then back and it seemed to be just fine. I walked over to the kitchens to check on the picnic I had ordered so that I could take that out to the spot and we could have a candlelit picnic. Jess had told me what Alexandra’s favorite meal and I had written ahead to Dana to ask her for the recipe and I made sure someone went to town to grab another couple of slices of cheesecake. I walked in and everyone bowed. It always made me feel a little awkward to be bowed at in such a relaxing place. I walked up to the cook and observed that they were well on their way to fixing the meal that I had requested from them. I personally had never had fried chicken but apparently Alexandra was such a huge fan that she would have this as a meal once a week. The other cooks were preparing the area where Meldon and Alesha would have their cooking instructions and another part of the kitchen where they were preparing some kind of picnic meal for Blake and Litha. Blake had complained to me that he wasn’t looking forward to the date with Litha. He said, “If it weren’t for the fact that I plan on working on figuring her involvement out with The Order, I would have gone back early.” He wanted to make sure that Alexandra could trust her because he believed that she still didn’t trust her despite what his spies were saying to him. I had wondered if he told her the information about Litha staying behind while her father attended meetings. The cook asked me a question about what to pack as a beverage, “I think you could pack the honey wine but just in case throw in some cool bottles of water. I don’t want her to feel like she has to drink while she’s out with me.”
I left the kitchen after a while and headed towards my room but I heard the chatter from Jess’s room. The ladies were laughing and talking about what the dates would be like tonight. Alexandra and Jess were being picked on by Alesha and Litha about how their dates were so mysterious. That had reminded me that I wanted to check in with Derek. After all the things that Jess had done for me, I wanted to ensure her night was going to be just as great as Grand Pretre had said she would. She was a prophet but I still liked the assurance since Jess was quickly becoming a very good friend of mine. I made my way over to Derek’s room and knocked on the door. Derek opened the door with a panicked look on his face, “Oh thank the Gods Lucien, I need your help.” He pulled me into the room and I found his room was scattered with all sorts of formal wear. He waved his arm around, “I usually have my mom to tell me what to wear to formal events but I obviously don’t have her here. You’re always so well dressed so I figured you would know what to do. I went to find you earlier and I couldn’t.” I looked around at the various outfits sloppily laid out on the bed, “What color is she wearing? Do you know?” He nodded enthusiastically, “Pink, I always thought she looked beautiful in pink so I bought her a ball gown to wear to Lycan Falls.” Lycan Falls was famous for the wolf-shaped rock where the falls poured out of what would be its mouth. All lycans had been there at least once in their life and each one made a wish in the looking pond at the bottom. I looked at the various color suits he had brought but one caught my eye on the other side of the bed. It was a white tuxedo with a black vest and black bow tie. I held it up and then looked at him, “This would match well with what she is wearing.” He stared at it for a little while and I thought he was imagining how he would look beside her with it on. We spoke for a little while on the date that he had planned and I helped him to tie the bow tie.
I walked back over to my room so that I could get changed out of the sweaty clothes, bathe and change into my clothing that I had planned to wear. After I got all cleaned up and changed, I left my room to go pick up the basket and then pick up Alexandra on the way out. As I passed by Jess’s room I heard Alexandra tell her, “So about the Run, Jess, I wouldn’t worry about it. He told me earlier that he wasn’t thinking when he invited you out. He would like to take you to a nice dinner some night when we get back.” Jess asked, “What about your escort? Don’t worry about it. I will see if Blake has a guard to supply to me. I will need one in the future anyhow. Your Run is coming up.” I knew from the look on Jess’s face when he asked her at her birthday celebration that she was terrified about going on a Run with him. I smiled as I walked away knowing that Alexandra had done her best to ease her mind. When I got to the kitchen, they were just finishing up the basket that I had requested. I looked out the big window as they were finishing up and saw the open carriage carrying Jess in her beautiful ball gown and Derek in his white tuxedo. The cook handed the basket to me along with the blanket that we would need to set down where we were going. I walked towards Jess’s room and the girls were starting to pile out of the room. Alexandra was the last to come out of the room, “Are you ready or do you need more time?” I looked down and Alexandra was wearing a light blue sundress, flip flops, and her hair in a ponytail. She smiled up at me and nodded, “I’m ready. My swimsuit is under this dress. Jess conveyed your instructions well I hope.” I smiled at her and offered her my arm, “Perfectly. Shall we?”
She tucked her hand into my arm and I escorted her out to the boat. I helped her into the boat and tucked the basket and blanket firmly into the boat and started to row us out to my secret spot. Alexandra looked around at the darkness of the water, “Where are we going exactly?” I smiled up at her, “I’m taking you to my secret spot. I used to go out there when I was younger to get away from the royal family life. I got to be normal there and not have to worry about duties and obligations. It’s really special at night so I wanted to take you there.” She reached her hand into the water as we glided along the water. We started to near the water cave that I had found when I was younger. We glided into the cave and I tied the boat then helped Alexandra out of the boat. The unique thing about this cave was that there were special rocks that glowed a beautiful blue. I didn’t know what they were but they made this place feel special and I had loved to row out here often when I got to come out here after my father had died. She looked amazed by the sight of the glowing cave, “It’s beautiful here. I can’t believe you found a wonderful place like this.” I pulled the basket out of the boat and spread the blanket on the cave floor, “Let’s eat first and we can take a swim.” She nodded and settled onto the blanket, “So what’s for dinner?” I pulled out the fried chicken, the mashed potatoes with gravy, and bread rolls. She gasped, “Oh my Goddess! How did you know I love this stuff?” I chuckled, “I got a hint from a cute intuitive blonde.” She laughed as she placed a piece of chicken on her plate, “I gotta give her a high five then. You’re the best too, Lucien.” I blushed, “It’s nothing. I just asked someone else to fix it for us.” She shrugged, “True but you were thoughtful enough to ask Jess and request someone to make this for us.”
A while later after we had finished dinner and dessert, she patted her stomach and looked up at me, “So what did you think?” I laughed, “It was pretty amazing, I’m going to have to give my cooks at home that recipe. I can see why you like it.” She laughed with me and then gazed into my eyes, “We should take a dip. You look like you could use a cool down.” I nodded and took my shirt off, “I’m a bit warm so I really could use the dip.” She took off her dress to show her black bikini and she took a cannonball into the water and I dove in after her. She started to laugh and splash at me and I laughed and splashed back. When we were spent by the splashing and laughing, we waded over to the edge of where the cave met the water. We both leaned on the ground of the cave and looked at each other. She smiled at me, “I don’t know why but this place makes me feel so different. I can’t put my finger on it but I suppose I can understand why you would want to come here. It’s so peaceful. Is this where you would run away?” I nodded, “I needed an escape from duty and obligations so I would spend hours out here when we came. My father didn’t like that I would disappear for hours but my mother told him that I needed to be alone sometimes.” She sighed, “Did you feel lonely growing up?” I nodded, “Yeah, I had Blake but he has always been so aloof so I had no one. I sometimes feel like I still have no one.” She leaned over and shook her head, “You have Jess, Derek, and….well…me.” We both stared at each other deeply at that moment and she leaned over then kissed me. It was a shock for me that she would be kissing me when she couldn’t feel anything for me. She pulled away, she hugged me and then whispered in my ear, “Can I tell you something, Lucien?” I hoarsely spoke back as I held her in my embrace, “You can tell me anything.” She breathed in deeply, “I think I’m in love with you.”
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