The Value of A Name - One Delta's Journey

25 - Preparations

**Unedited**

It was only two days from our wedding ceremony, and the Kingdom still mourned the loss of their Queen. I couldn't blame them, I knew the pain that came with the loss of my mother, and the entire Kingdom ached with the same pain I had at 16. My heart broke with the Kingdom's, too, but not nearly as much as Griffin's.

Over the week following her burial and their return from war, he was mostly quiet, but he enjoyed telling stories about her and his life as her son.

They hadn't been close for a long time, and Griffin blamed it mostly on her responsibilities as Queen. After he was old enough to take care of himself, he spent a lot of time in the cabin, and then he took off for Auvomore for his royal training.

Griffin seemed sad that he hadn't gotten to spend as much time with her as he wishes he had now. He even said that he had gotten so much closer with his parents since I came into his life, making my smile grow slightly.

Too many nights, he had fallen asleep with a tear-stained face against my chest.

In Griffin's peace negotiations, he agreed to help the Iverene Kingdom find their new royal family to succeed the current King and Queen, and he had been completely swamped with that work. Construction had begun on the castle, preparing it for Griffin and my official move into it following our wedding and coronation. I had spent my time walking through the halls of the castle, a building Griffin would rather not have me in during construction. I quickly learned the layout and even gave some construction team members some nudges toward ideas that I wanted to include.

Currently, we were both in our office, and our doors might as well have been revolving doors. People were entering and exiting rapidly while Griffin and I attempted to get work done. I was trying to figure out my administrative team. I already had Sloane as my Beta and Cecilia as my Gamma, but I still hadn't found a Delta.

I called for Sloane around noon, and she stepped in. "Please shut the doors and do not allow anyone entry except our lunch, unless it is King Brennan or you receive express approval from Griffin or me." She nodded and followed Griffin's Gamma out of the room, pulling the doors shut behind her. I groaned and threw my head back against the chair. Griffin chuckled and did the same.

"Why is it that everyone wants to see us today?" I stared at Griffin, begging him to have a serious answer.

His smile grew wider on his face. "Because after tomorrow, they won't see us for at least a week while we are on our honeymoon, Little Light."

The door creaked open, and my head swiveled to look at our intruder, trying to identify who was entering our office. King Brennan stuck his head in and smiled at us, carrying a tray of food. Three plates sat on the tray, and I was grateful for the calm company rather than the noise of the morning.

I relaxed into my seat and pulled the tiara off my head, gently placing it in the drawer designed to hold it. Griffin really had put a lot of effort into making his parent's office our own, and I was hoping to put the same level of effort into our soon-to-be home, the castle. I knew after a few post-lunch meetings, Griffin would be leaving to make sure he had the final steps completed for our wedding, and then I would sneak away to the castle for more planning.

Griffin stood and walked to stand behind me, and Brennan placed the tray on my desk. Griffin rubbed my shoulders, relaxing the tension and releasing knots. I leaned into his touch and reached for the sandwich on the tray in front of me.

The simple peanut butter and jelly taste filled my mouth, and I slumped my shoulders, relaxing in the joy of my fiance rubbing my shoulder and having food delivered to me.