“Which reminds me, I wanted to talk to you about something,” I said.
Her eyes widened. “Sure, anything!” she replied encouragingly.
I looked down at my nails and picked at them nervously.
“In my past life, I was sick—like, really sick and everyone around me had to take care of me. I lost my independence and it sort of messed with my head. It made me hate myself. So as much as I have appreciated all of your help getting me adjusted to the way things work around here, I think I can manage on my own now. I like being self-sufficient.”
She offered a kind smile and nodded, yet I could sense her underlying disappointment. “I understand, Lila,” she said, gently taking my hand. “But I love being your handmaid. I don’t know what I am going to do to fill my day now.”
I gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “You can be my friend,”—I needed her. “And hopefully this will free up some of your time so you can figure out your relationship with the General. But I am still going to need your help with my makeup for formal events because you know I’m hopeless.” We both laughed, and she agreed in the politest way possible.
“You were the only one in the Lady’s wing, so now I only have meal service to worry about if they need me, which most of the time they don’t,” she explained.
“Wait, the Lady’s wing? As in where female guests stay?” I asked pointedly.
She tilted her head and gave me a confused look. “What? No. Royal guests stay on the second floor. You have the Lady’s wing— the fourth floor, opposite side of the High Lord’s. As in the Lady of Flame.” She articulated that last part, Lady of Flame.
My heart skipped a beat. “What? No, that can’t be right.” “See for yourself. Go explore the other half of your floor—maybe wear that outfit he’s so fond of,” she smirked.
“Yeah, thanks for that by the way. I should have known matchmaker was one of your many talents,” I said with a slight eye roll.
“You’re welcome,” she replied while batting her long lashes.
I yawned and noticed the sun was lower in the sky. “I need to freshen up and rest before dinner with Titus tonight. I’m glad I got to see you, Cal.”
“Would you like me to draw you a bath and set out a gown?” she replied enthusiastically.
I gave her a disapproving look.
“Sorry—old habit,” she said quickly. “Let me know if you need me for anything, anytime, Lila,” she added warmly.
“You do the same,” I replied with a smile.
I left the tray of fancy desserts and walked to my room.
It was exactly how I left it except…the lighting looked different. I looked up and all of the cruel firefly lights had been replaced with black volcanic glass chandeliers with candles that burned but never dripped, like the ones from the party. Calpurnia called them Everburn candles. My heart exploded. He did this. I knew he did.
I bathed and rested before slipping into a simple red silk dress. I styled my hair to the side to cover my mate mark and tried my best at some makeup. It wasn’t as good as Cal’s
handiwork, but it would do. I finished the look with my pearls and headed out for dinner when I noticed a note under my door.
~Lady Delilah, meet me in my quarters. I’ve been working on something to aid in your training. – Gleeda.~
That was odd, but it was on the way to the balcony, so I figured I had a few extra minutes to spare.
To my surprise, I found her room with the double arched doors all on my own, and I knocked.
“Come in, child,” I heard her say, then I opened the heavy door. “Well, don’t you look lovely,” she stated.
“Thanks, Gleeda. You do too, as always,” I replied. “You wanted to see me?”
“Oh yes. I’ve been working on a training elixir and I’ve finally perfected it. It’s to help you build muscle and get stronger at a much faster rate, as well as recover faster from physical soreness,” she explained.
“Oh, great. Thanks. Are there any side effects?” I asked. I couldn’t help but wonder if this was Titus’s doing so that I would retrieve the dagger more on his timeline than my own.
“I would not give it to you if there were anything concerning. The only thing you may experience is an increase in appetite,” she added. “Now let’s see that burn.”
My eyes widened, my back stiffened, and I couldn’t help but show the pure panic I was feeling.
