Diedrick smiled.

"I'm glad you're happy to see me."

I'm not.

"I thought you would be gone for a few days," I said gulping.

He waved his hand dismissively as he strolled closer to where I stood.

"My father and brother have been laid at rest, so I came back. There was no time to waste mourning."

I took a shallow breath.

"I'm sure Adam would have wanted you to tell him," I said. "He and Jace have just left for Utah."

Diedrick nodded.

"Yes, so I heard."

His eyes narrowed in on my hands.

"You're bleeding," he commented, walking over to where I stood.

I looked down to see that I had indeed been stuck by the pin in my hand, probably in fright after Diedrick scared me. I huffed and held my hand away from my body to ensure I didn't get any blood on the white dress.

Diedrick carefully took my hand in his and led me off of the platform. He instructed me to sit down on the high-back chair and I did so, warily.

He kneeled in front of me and took a handkerchief out of his pocket. Diedrick began to dab at the small drops of blood with the handkerchief, all the while I tried not to roll my eyes at the dramatic exaggeration. It was only a little blood.

"Keep some pressure on it," he said, putting my other hand over the wound.

I nodded and held my palm tightly. I saw Diedrick eye the ring on my left hand as I did so.

"Lovely diamond," he commented, leaning in to inspect it closer.

I felt my heart begin to race.

"Thank you."

My shallow breathing was an indication as to how it made me feel to have him so close to me. It felt wrong. I kept waiting for Adam to appear at the door, but he never did.

Diedrick came close to saying something but was interrupted by someone clearing their throat at the doorway.

I looked up to see Liu and sighed in relief.

"Am I interrupting?" She asked, glancing between Diedrick and myself.

My eyes widened as I shook my head fervently.

She must've seen the panicked look in my eyes, because she stepped into the room and eyed Diedrick warily.

"I need to speak with her, if you don't mind," she said to him.

He stood up and brushed off his knee, nodding curtly at her as he left the room.

"What was that all about?" She asked as soon as he was gone.

I groaned. "He won't leave me alone."

"When did he get back?" She asked. "I didn't think he was going to be back in the castle for a few more days."

"Just now," I replied. "I don't think Adam knew he was coming back today either, otherwise I have a feeling he wouldn't have left."

"Do you think he fancies you?"

"Adam seems to think so, and I'm inclined to believe him," I answered.

Liu spotted the diamond ring on my finger and gasped.

"Oh my God, It's gorgeous!" She said. "Jace told me Adam was going to propose, but I wondered what the ring would look like. This is so much better than anything I imagined."

I huffed.

"Who else did he tell? It seems like everyone knew but me," I said.

Liu laughed.

"That's how it's supposed to be."

She looked around the room and then back at me.

"You're trying on wedding dresses I see," she said, gesturing to the make-shift skirt.

I nodded and stood up.

As I did so, Laura returned to the room with a trunk in her hands. She was gasping for air as she placed the trunk on the ground.

"I apologize," she said, wiping sweat from her forehead with her arm. "I haven't walked up that many stairs in my entire life."

"It's no problem," I said. "It took me forever to get used to it myself."

"I'm still not used to it," Liu laughed.

Laura leaned down and pulled out a few bolts of fabric. On one spool was satin; on the other, tulle; and one lace. All of them were pure white.

"Alright," she said. "Come over here so we can start measuring."

I walked over to stand in front of the mirrors as Laura began to pull off samples of the assortments of fabric to see which looked better.

We stayed in the room for a few hours as we put the finishing touches on the design and picked out fabrics and textures for the dress.

Liu never left my side, for which I was grateful. I didn't want Diedrick to take her leaving as an opportunity to come back inside the room.

As soon as we finished, I changed back into my clothes and Laura told me that she would keep me updated on the dress' progress and would call me if she needed anything else.

"I should have it done by the end of the month," she assured me.

My eyes widened.

"That's a little soon," I said. "Are you sure you don't need more time?"

She waved her hand dismissively.

"I've dropped all my clients for the next few weeks to focus on this dress. It's an honor to serve my Alpha and Luna Superior."

"For what you're charging, you can afford to drop your clients for the month," Liu muttered so only I could hear her.

I laughed nervously and reached out to shake Laura's hand, hoping she had not heard Liu's snarky comment.

"I'll have someone come and fetch this trunk for you," I assured her. "Thank you for coming today. I'm looking forward to seeing the dress when it's completed."

Laura smiled and nodded.

"It is my pleasure, Your Highness."

She left the room and I asked the guard that was standing in the hallway to help her carry her things down the stairs.

Victoria reentered the room once Laura had left.

"Beta Schneider would like to speak with you," she informed me.

I rolled my eyes.

What does Diedrick want now? And why is she even talking with him?

"Did he say what it was about?" I asked her.

Victoria shook her head in response.

I huffed.

"Where is he?"

"In Adam's office," Victoria replied.

My eyebrows furrowed.

"Why on earth is he in there?"

She shrugged as she took a sip from her tea.

I groaned and left the room, Liu hot on my heels.

"Do you want me to come with you?" She asked.

I shook my head.

"I'm sure you've got other things to do," I said. "I can handle him."

Liu gave me a wary look before going her own direction down the hallway.

I began to make my way to Adam's office, furious that Diedrick was in there while Adam was gone.

Who exactly does he think he is?

As I entered the office, I noticed two things: one, the guards were not at their post; and two, the lights had been dimmed down inside his study.

I gulped, beginning to feel anxious about my decision to come alone.

I walked down the hallway and peered into Adam's study cautiously.

Diedrick was sitting on Adam's desk, flipping through a file.

"You're not supposed to be in here," I said firmly, stepping out where he could see me.

He looked up from the folder and smiled as he saw me enter the room.

"Ah, Evelyn," he said, closing the folder and placing it on the desk. "Thank you for meeting me here."

I began to feel my blood pressure rise.

"What do you want?" I asked, my patience growing thin.

"In truth, I was originally going to invite you to join me for dinner," he said.

I raised an eyebrow.

"And now?" I asked.

Diedrick smirked and got off the desk where he had been sitting.

"Well, now I'm starting to think we could just take dinner in my room."

He had walked close enough to me that I had been able to reach out and slap him. The sound of my hand hitting his cheek echoed through the room.

"Are you aware that I am mated to your Alpha?" I asked incredulously.

"Is that what's stopping you?" He asked, unfazed by the slap.

Diedrick started to walk closer to me and I began to back away in response.

"You felt the connection the night we danced," he said.

"There is no connection between us," I assured him.

My heart skipped a beat as my back hit the wall, unable to go any further away from him.

Diedrick saw this opportunity as an advantage and placed both of his hands on either side of my face, leaning in close.

His menacingly tall frame got closer to me and my breathing became shallow as he leaned in.

"I could make you feel things you thought were unimaginable," he said, coming close to whisper in my ear. "Adam does not compare to me, I promise."

I cringed and raised my knee to hit his manhood.

Diedrick groaned and I took the opportunity to flee.

Although I never heard him leave the office and follow me, I ran fast up the stairs and down the hallway to Adam's room.

"Beta Schneider does not come on this hall under any circumstances," I said to the guard standing in the hallway.

I saw conflict flash across his face.

"Is there a problem?"

"I'm afraid he's sleeping in the guest room next door," he said gruffly.

I gulped.

"Well, he's not allowed in this room," I said firmly, closing the door behind me.

I took a deep breath and slid down the back of the door.

My heart was still racing and I could see my hands shaking as I held them up in front of me.

I took a deep breath and exhaled.

Noticing the phone in the corner of the room, I stood up and made my way over to it.

I held the receiver a good distance away from my ear as I anticipated the shrill voice of the operator.

"Can I connect you to someone?" She asked, her voice piercing through the phone. 

"Adam, please," I said politely.

"One moment."

I tapped my foot against the ground anxiously as I waited for the call to connect. It rang for a few seconds before Jace answered.

"Hello?"

"Jace? It's Evelyn. Can I talk to Adam?" I asked.

"For sure. Give me a second."

I heard a muffled exchange of voices before I heard Adam's voice.

"Hello, love."

I sighed and felt my relief flood my body at the sound of his deep, accented voice.

"Hi, Adam," I said.

"I've got news."

"Me too," I said, laughing nervously.

"You first."

"No you."

"Fine," Adam said. "Which would you like to hear first, the good or the bad?"

"Good?"

"The good news is, we've only been here for a few hours and have already gotten reports of a several cases where Vampires are believed to have attacked. So, that means Mr. Chandler was likely bitten before he was found which means there aren't inside the castle."

"Well, that's a relief," I said. "What's the bad news?"

"The bad news is, Jace has already lost his lead on your father."

I could hear the disappointment in his voice.

"I'm sorry," I said. "My dad is a smart guy, though. He graduated with honors and at the top of his class from law school. He won't be easy to find if he can help it."

The line was silent for a few moments before Adam's sighed.

"What was your news?" He asked.

It was quiet for a moment as I bit my lip, trying to find a way to tell him.

"Evelyn?"

I gulped.

"Diedrick's back," I said.

"Christ," he exclaimed. "What the bloody hell is he doing back so early?"

"He said he didn't want to waste time mourning when he could be here," I said, sitting down on the bed.

"No, he didn't want to be away from you for a long time," he said growling.

"That's the other thing," I said, feeling my stomach drop.

"What?"

His voice was deep and slow, as if he was already thinking of all the things I was about to tell him.

"He kind of hit on me," I said.

"'Kind of'?" He asked.

"He tried to get me to go up to his room, which happens to be right next to yours," I explained.

The line went silent for a few moments.

It was as if I could feel his rage seeping through the receiver.

"Adam?"

"I'm on my way home and I want you to stay in that room and keep the bloody door locked until I get there. Do you understand?"

"Wait, what?" I asked, standing up.

"I'll be there in a few hours," he said.

I could hear him giving out commands to Jace and the others who were with him, telling them to pack up.

"We just got here," I heard Jace say.

"Don't do anything rash," I said. "I just thought you should know."

"I don't care," he said. "I'm on my way home and that bastard better pray I calm down before I get there."

I heard someone knock at the door and my eyebrows furrowed.

Who could it be? Liu? Victoria? ...Diedrick?

Adam continued his threats and ranting as I walked over to the door and opened it.

I interrupted him.

"Adam..."

He stopped.

"Yes?"

I stared at the vase of red tulips that sat on the ground and the guard who was lying dead in front of them, blood spilling out of his mouth.

I began to feel lightheaded as tears of horror filled my eyes.

"Please hurry."

- - -