I couldn't believe it.

It had been three days since Adam made the announcement that he was officially the Alpha Superior of Europe, making me the Luna Superior of Europe.

The Centennial had ended. Everyone had gone home—including the Germans, who left sulking. Diedrick had stayed behind, which I wasn't surprised by seeing as he had just been practically disowned by his father for his assistance in Adam's ploy for control.

Nearly half a week had passed and I was still baffled by the scheme. I didn't understand how Adam had successfully taken over Europe without so much as lifting a finger.

"It's all in the tactic, darling," he said as he packed his suitcase.

"But I don't understand," I said. "How on earth did you get him to just give you an entire continent?"

"I didn't," he said. "Diedrick did."

"But how?"

Adam stopped packing and looked up from his suitcase at me.

"I offered Diedrick a position as Beta under the condition that he could get his father to sign the papers and he accepted."

"But you already have a Beta," I reminded him.

"I'm going to have two."

Adam wasn't making any sense and the look on my face made him aware I was confused.

"Listen," he said, "Diedrick wasn't given the Beta position in his father's pack. Traditionally, fathers will give their sons their Beta position and allow them to rule under them until they are old enough to rule as Alpha themselves. Nwabueze and Zhao are perfect examples of this. However, Diedrick's father didn't do this and allowed the man who has always been his Beta to continue to stay in power. That's how I got Diedrick on board, I offered him something his father had neglected to give him."

"And his father was okay with that?"

Adam shook his head, laughing.

"No, Alpha Schneider had no idea. That's why Diedrick was able to pull it out from under him so easily."

"How did he do it?" I asked incredulously.

Adam shrugged.

"I'm not sure, and quite frankly I don't care. He managed to get his father's signature on the property and pack transferal documents as well as their pack's seal of approval and that's all it took for the council of the other Alpha Superiors to notarize the decision."

"But if he was deceived, is it really valid?" I asked.

Adam sighed.

"I have signed documentation. For all those other Alphas know, it is valid."

"You don't think they're wondering why he was carried out of your office kicking and screaming?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"I said they knew it was valid, not voluntary."

I rolled my eyes.

"It doesn't sound very legit to me. What are you going to do if we get to Germany and he decides not to give you the land or his people?"

"Then I've got two other Alpha Superiors on my side to make him give them to me. Stop worrying about it," he said, chuckling.

I shrugged.

"I think it's a bit shady and I don't like it."

"I didn't say you had to," he said folding a shirt and putting it into the bag.

I attempted to zip my suitcase and huffed in frustration when I couldn't get it to close the whole way.

"We're only going to be there for four days," Adam reminded me. "Maybe if you took some of those clothes out of the suitcase, you could zip the bloody thing."

"No, I need everything that's in here," I said, putting pressure on the top.

"You need two pairs of pajamas?" He asked pointedly.

I nodded, trying not to break the zipper as I pulled it around.

"You sleep in my t-shirt every night and you think that being in Germany will change that?"

"You never know," I said.

"You could sleep naked for all I care, love. Here, give that to me."

I sighed and pushed the suitcase over to him.

Adam pressed the top of the suitcase down and pulled the zipper around effortlessly.

"Not fair," I muttered as he pushed it back to me.

He laughed.

"Ready to go?"

I nodded, pulling my suitcase off the bed and rolling it across the carpet.

"Let's do this."

I said goodbye to Vega and Mrs. Chandler as we left. The twins' birthday party had been the night before and went off without a hitch thanks to Liu's pristine party planning skills. They had been down in their room since the party playing a video game Adam had surprised them with for their birthday.

Mrs. Chandler assured me she would tell Mr. Chandler I said goodbye as I hugged Vega. Nwabueze had given her his phone number before he left, so she had been just as occupied as the twins.

Malcom and Victoria met us in the foyer while we waited for the car.

She looked all too happy to be sending me away and Malcom wouldn't stop congratulating Adam on Europe, even though it was the hundredth time he had done so since the announcement.

"Have fun," she said to me.

I raised an eyebrow.

"Thanks?"

I saw Diedrick walking down the hallway and my eyes widened.

"Why is he coming?" I whispered to Adam.

"Do you have a problem with that?" He asked me.

I shook my head.

There was just something weird about him that I didn't know how to feel about.

It was uncomfortably quiet on the way to the airport and while we loaded onto Adam's plane.

The two of them began to talk about their plans for Europe and I checked out of the conversation, uninterested.

I put in headphones and laid my head against the seat as the plane took off.

The trip to Germany took almost nine hours, and I was going crazy near the end of it. The cabin of the plane was much too small for me to enjoy listening to Adam and Diedrick talk politics.

By the time we had reached the Schneider's private airport in Bisingen, I could have kissed the ground and screamed, "Land!"

Needless to say, I was already dreading the trip back to the castle.

We drove through a dense forest for nearly an hour before I saw our destination through a clearing in the trees.

I gasped as I leaned forward, across Adam, to stare out the window at the beautiful, but monstrous castle that sat perched on a hill.

"Is that your house?" I asked Diedrick incredulously.

"Not anymore," he replied laughing.

We drove through a tunnel that led us underneath the castle and we pulled out onto a driveway that went straight up to a large set of doors. I got out quickly, staring at the castle in awe.

"Like it?" Adam asked.

I nodded. "It puts Disney to shame."

He laughed and handed off our luggage to two butlers who had come out of the castle to help us.

Diedrick said something to them in German and Adam did as well.

"I didn't know you spoke German," I said to him.

He winked at me as he took my hand and we walked up the steps to the front door.

I continued to look around like a tourist in a museum as we followed the butlers to our rooms.

Diedrick excused himself and left us as he went off to do his own bidding.

"Are you not worried that his dad won't try to kill him in his sleep or something?" I asked Adam.

He shook his head in response.

"No, he can take care of himself. Besides, Alpha Schneider doesn't stay here. Only Barret and Diedrick do."

I nodded as we continued the long walk up several staircases and through numerous hallways until we finally reached doors that led into a large suite.

The butlers left our luggage at the entrance of the room and left us.

The suite itself was gorgeous.

It opened up to a large bedroom and a lounge area. Nearly everything that wasn't blue silk or velvet was encrusted with gold or silver.

It was unlike anything I'd ever seen.

"I could get used to this," I sighed, throwing myself down on the couch.

Adam hummed in response.

"Are you hungry?" He asked me.

"Starving," I replied.

He found a phone and called for something to be brought up to eat.

After dinner, the sun began to set and Adam and I watched it from where we sat on the couch.

"We've got three more hours," he said, glancing at his watch.

My eyebrows furrowed.

"Until what?"

He smiled.

"Until your birthday."

My eyes widened.

In the craziness of everything, I had completely forgotten about my birthday.

"How did you know?" I asked him.

"You told me the day after I met you," he said laughing. "Also, your friend Vega reminded me two days ago."

I rolled my eyes as he laughed.

"I'm going to be old like you soon enough," I joked.

He smiled.

"Looking forward to it."

I slept soundly next to Adam that night and was disappointed to wake and find him gone the next morning.

I found a note on the side table that read: Feel free to explore. I'll see you for dinner.

I was slightly annoyed that I wouldn't see him for most of the day, but I was excited that I got to walk around and explore the castle.

I soon found that the castle was deserted, however. I ran into some maids and a few butlers, but that was it. There was not nearly as much life in this castle as there was in Adam's. It was almost creepy.

Another thing that creeped me out was the feeling that I was being watched. I walked all over the castle, looking at paintings, tapestries, and the various chandeliers and ballrooms, but it didn't matter where I went; the feeling was still there. I couldn't shake it.

It was because of this that I went back to the room earlier than I wanted to. At least I knew there that no one was watching me.

I took this time to myself to take a long bath and relax. I found various bath salts and serums that I added to the water, which made it even more enjoyable.

As I relaxed, the thought occurred to me that Adam hadn't given me a birthday present. In fact, he had not said anything else about my birthday since the night before.

It wasn't that I expected him to get me something. But, I also hadn't expected him to just leave me completely alone on my birthday.

I had just gotten out of the bath and was changing when he came back into the room.

"Ready for dinner?" He asked me, kissing my cheek.

"Yes, and some sort of social interaction," I joked. "There's no one in this castle. It was almost creepy."

I didn't tell him about the feeling of being watched that I had.

"Sorry about that," he apologized, "I really had to go over some things with Diedrick today so we could settle a few matters."

"It's okay," I said brushing it off.

I pulled out black satin cocktail dress that I had packed and laid it across the bed.

"I like that dress," Adam said, seeing this.

I smiled and changed into it as Adam went to shower.

I noticed him change into a black suit before we left which I thought was odd. But I thought nothing more about it as I clipped my diamond earrings into my ears and Adam and I left the room for dinner.

We reached the large dinning room that was dimly lit by candles that lined the table.

Our dinner had already been prepared and laid out for us when we sat down.

"Is Diedrick not joining us?" I asked.

Adam shook his head.

"No, he said he had a few things to do this evening, but he did say to tell you happy birthday, though."

I smiled at this.

Adam and I ate as we talked about his plans for Europe.

He intended for Diedrick to remain in Germany so they could keep things under control without distance being a hindrance, which I found to be wise.

I was still unsure about the whole Europe situation.

After we finished, dessert was brought out by two servants. It was two slices of chocolate cake, mine with a candle in it.

I laughed as I blew it out, silently wishing for my mother to come out of hiding.

It had been hard not spending my birthday with her. It almost didn't feel like my birthday.

We stayed in the dining room for a long while after we finished, still talking about everything under the moon.

I noticed Adam yawn.

"I'm sleepy myself," I said. "I think we should call it a night."

"I agree," he said, standing.

I noticed our dessert plates were still on the table and hadn't been collected by the servants after we had finished as our dinner plates had been.

"I'm going to take these into the kitchen," I said gathering them in one hand.

Adam almost said something, but his cell phone rang in his pocket.

He looked down at the screen and hesitated.

"I really need to take this," he said. "I'll meet you back up at the room?"

I nodded, walking through the double doors into the kitchen.

It was dark in there which really made me feel uneasy.

Had the chef and servants just disappeared?

The feeling of someone watching me returned and I all but threw the plates into the soapy sink water and ran out of the kitchen.

Adam was gone when I returned to the dining room, irritating me.

Why has he left me alone so much? I get he has things to do, but it's my birthday... and this place gives me the creeps.

I began to walk back to the room, still thinking on it.

I reached the suite and opened the door.

My jaw dropped.

Rose petals scattered across the floor and candles were lit everywhere.

I began to feel my heart palpitate in my chest as I walked in and closed the door behind me.

I took my heels off, looking around, and I began to walk slowly into the bedroom.

I gasped as I walked in.

Adam was on one knee, a velvet box in one hand and a smile on his face.

Oh my God...

- - -

Author's Note: If any of you care to know what the castle they're staying in looks like, just search Hohenzollern Castle! It's a real German castle and it's B E A U T I F U L!