Maid For You 3

Chapter 3

I dispersed Prince Coleman's dinner platter in the kitchen, and as I stepped back into the hall, I had to take another deep breath. I'd had to do that a lot. I could have gone into the dining hall through the kitchen, but I wanted another moment to collect myself.

It's fine. I thought. I'm fine.

I didn't have the energy to "fake it till you make it." I didn't walk into the dining hall with my shoulders back and my posture confident. I just scurried to the back of the buffet line hoping I wouldn't draw any attention. The not-so-subtle looks my way and the vindictive whispering proved my hopes to be in vain. I placed eggs, toast, and sausage on my plate, and sat at the end of one of the long tables nearest the empty front head table and hoped people would forget about me.

"Well, well, well." It was Raven, her dark eyes cold and her lips pulled into a sneer. "The prodigal son has returned. Or, I suppose, the prodigal maiden."

I stared at my plate. Why couldn't she just leave me alone?

"Hello Raven," I said, focusing on the eggs on my plate. I already felt awful, I didn't need her here pushing my buttons.

"Did you have a good time?" Another voice came into play—I recognized it as Isabella's.

"So," Raven started, and I glanced up from my food to see that she and Isabella were seating themselves on the bench across from me. "Congratulations on whoring your way into position of Queen Maiden."

"How very noble of you," Isabella drawled.

"I didn't do anything like that," I said, poking at my food. "The Queen said so herself."

"She doesn't know everything," Isabella said. "I mean, clearly. Because I doubt she knew that you were also sleeping with her daughter's fiancé!"

"That's not true," I said, suddenly feeling like I was going to cry. "Besides, Nikolas isn't even Princess Calista's fiancé."

"Nikolas?" Raven's eyes flashed victoriously. "So you are that casual with him?"

"Of course she is," Isabella narrowed her eyes. "What name must she cry when she's in bed with him?"

I felt my lip starting to quiver.

"What, is this your plan to make Prince Coleman jealous?" Raven asked. "You want to be his only lover?"

"Here's my issue!" Another voice interjected. It was some guy I didn't even know. "I don't think she's sleeping with Prince Nikolas because he wouldn't do that. But she weasels the position of Queen Maiden, and then mocks the position by choosing a Nikotan?"

Another girl piped in. "I heard you were chasing after Prince Coleman to harass him. Are you really so desperate?"

"How long have you been with the Prince?"

"What was your plan exactly?"

"You are just like Marstella."

"No, she's worse than her."

"What a climber. How could you?"

"Are you pregnant?"

"How did you reel in Prince Nikolas? What are you blackmailing him with to get him to take you to the Winter Ball?"

"You must think you are so much better than us. Get over yourself."

"What a traitor. How could you do that to Aregano?"

"You do know that Prince Coleman is never going to love you, don't you?"

I couldn't even see my plate anymore as my tears blurred my vision so profoundly. I sat that hunched, dejected. I didn't even know what to say.

"What is going on here?" An angry voice interjected. It was Luke, and suddenly I felt his warm hand on my shoulder. "What do you all think you are doing? Why are you all ganging up on her? Should I fetch Missus Lucille?"

I heard some bitter grumbling, but people dispersed.

I sensed Luke sitting next to me, though my head was hung and I didn't look over at him.

"Cassie." I felt his hand on my shoulder blade. "Are you okay?"

Are you okay?

Somehow, that question broke me.

I pushed myself off the bench and ran for the door of the dining hall as tears began to flow down my face. I ran into my room, shut my door behind me, and collapsed on my floor and buried my face in my hands and bawled into them. Why were they so cruel?

I had the sudden wish, the sudden thought of Coleman coming into the room and pulling me into his arms, telling me that everything would be okay.

However, the thought just made me more devasted, because it just drove the point home that he wouldn't do that. "Prince Coleman is never going to love you." It was true, it was true.

He doesn't care about me. He isn't coming to help me. He'd rather be free to be intimate with dozens of women. He doesn't care. He doesn't love me.

I laid on the floor for a minute before I pushed myself off the ground and grabbed my phone. I didn't know who to talk to. There was no one who knew, only Coleman and myself understood the nature of our relationship. I couldn't talk to Luke about it. Sure, he'd get why everyone picking on me was upsetting, but my distraught state ran deeper than that. Their rudeness was just the cherry on top, the last straw to this whole debacle.

"Are you okay?"

No, Luke, I'm not. And you can't know why.

I felt alone in my sorrow, no one who could understand except for Coleman, though he was the last person who I could talk to. I haven't told anybody the whole story except for...

A crazy idea suddenly popped into my head.

I opened up my contacts and scrolled down the "N" to find Nikolas Nikotovich. I opened up his contact information and began to call him, but after two rings I quickly hung up.

This is a stupid idea, I thought. I can't call him.

Just when I was about to cry again, a knock sounded at my door, and heard Luke's voice say "Cassie?"

Oh no.

I took a deep breath and tried to steady my voice. "I'll be out," I said, my voice wavering anyways. "I just need a few minutes." I stood up and ran to my small bathroom to assess the damage.

I'd have to redo my makeup all over again. I quickly snagged a makeup wipe, scrubbed and dried my face, and reapplied my makeup as quickly as I could. When I finally left my room ten minutes later, Luke was still waiting outside of my door for me, his face drawn into a worried expression.

"Cass," he breathed. He walked over to me and wrapped me in a hug, and it was a hug that I didn't know I needed.

"You'll make me cry again," I mumbled as Luke held me.

"They shouldn't have been so rude to you," he told me. "I'll make sure things get better."

"Okay."