The Princess And The Alpha *Excerpt Only*

Cake Face

"No, no Princess, you must remember that you should not snap a napkin open. And a large napkin like this should never be opened all the way, only folded in half." My tutor cried, quickly scooping up the napkin and refolding it. "Try again please, you must get this right, I don't want you to be shamed during a gala."

I wondered briefly if slamming my head on the dinner table right now would be considered shameful as well. Honestly, who gives a damn about a bloody napkin? No one, that's who. But instead of knocking myself out, I just rolled my eyes painfully and took a deep breath. Only one more hour of this than I would be free to be with Poison or bury myself in a book.

I endured every last detail about napkin etiquette, even know I wanted to scream out loud just to get rid of the pent up frustration and boredom. Thankfully, I had more self-control than I expected and I made it to the end of the hour without an extravagant melt down of sorts. But I was certain that if I heard the word 'blot' one more time I would come undone at the seams.

Unfortunately, the moment I exited the dining room where my training had been held I was greeted by Preston who smiled dumbly at me. Those boring grey eyes moved over my body in a silent scowl and I got a pinch of satisfaction from that. He made my life miserable, but it comforted me to know that I disgusted him, made him resent his own job.

"What is it, Preston? My classes are over. It is three in the afternoon, you are usually dismissed by now." I reminded flatly.

Preston's grin only grew at my snarky comment and my stomach dropped at his smugness. The only thing that made him happy was my suffering or praise from my parents.

"Your mother was just informed that two male alphas are coming here to discuss a land agreement."

"That has nothing to do with me. I don't deal with the politics or settle squabbles between packs. I'm only the princess, remember?" I said hotly.

"Yes, I certainly know you are only the princess, but your mother has requested that you join her and your father tonight. You see, both of these men are very powerful, nearly royal themselves, and they will expect nothing less than perfection upon their arrival. So you are to be on your best behavior young lady." Preston taunted, clearly enjoying this.

"Very well." I murmured, trying my best to hide my hatred for him and the situation. "Then I suppose I should go change out of this dress and find something suitable to wear." I nodded my head curtly at him, letting him know he was dismissed, then I strode around him, trying to look as elegant and as powerful as my mother.

I kept up my quick pace and fake confidence until I reached my bedroom on the other side of the palace. There, once the door was shut firmly behind me, I pressed the heels of my hands against my eyes, trying to collect myself. I had always been a structured person, I hated it when plans changed at all, it ruined all of my planning and frazzled me completely. And now I had lost my down time, away from being a princess and perfect. Right now, all I wanted was to get out of this dress and watch a silly kid's movie or soak in a hot bath until I couldn't even remember why I was stressed.

But, before I could even collect myself, there was a firm knock on the door and a second later someone had let themselves in. I lifted my head out of my hands to see my stylist walking in, immediately looking annoyed.

"Don't do that, Princess, you've already smeared your mascara." She chided, storming over to me. she inspected me once she was in arms reach, then shook her head, "Well, now all of your make up needs to be redone and we need to do something about that hair, and you need a new dress on." She sighed and shook her head.

I self-consciously touched my dark locks, frowning. I knew that I wasn't gorgeous like my mother and I didn't have her cold calculated confidence either. But I had gotten her wonderfully silky and shiny hair. Plus, I loved the natural waves to it. Then again, I did have a personal stylist for something.

"Sit, sit." She said, dragging me over to the chair in front of the vanity. "We only have an hour before the alphas arrive and now that you've ruined your make up we are going to need all the time we can get."

I sat in that chair for just under and hour while my face was twisted into awkward positions and I had brushes stabbing my eyelids. Then after that, my hair was yanked around curling irons, stabbed with a thousand bobby pins, and then a heavily jewelled crown was placed on top of it all. I had to admit, I looked pretty spectacular. Nothing like my usual self, but quite beautiful none the less. My hair was twisted up into an elegant bun with braids and a few loose ringlets and the crown sat on top like a gorgeous beacon of royalty. My make up was light, making me look youthful, but my eyeliner wings were still expertly drawn and my cheeks had been contoured to make me look slimmer. I was almost disheartened by my appearance. I knew I looked nice, but knowing that I also looked nothing like myself made me feel awful.

"Come on, come on, it's time for the dress, Princess." My stylist rushed.

The dress was stunning, like every other dress I put on. It was navy blue and floor length with artful bead work done on the bodice. It mixed timeless elegance with modern zest since it had a modest opening on the back and was constructed from flowing material. I smiled a tiny bit, loving the look of it. Then it was shoved on my body, and just like every other dress, it was itchy, uncomfortable and too damn tight.

"Come on now," my stylist scolded as she shoved my feet into high heels, "don't look like you're in pain. You look amazing."

And I did, I looked as gorgeous as ever. But I also looked nothing like myself. And I felt like I was a completely different person now.

**Hey, please vote if you liked it and comment to let me know what you think. your support means so much to me!**