Chapter 230
1382words
One word: exhausted.
That’s the only thing I could feel right now. I’m emotionally, socially, and physically exhausted. All day, all I did was spend time touring around the place and familiarizing myself with every detail concerning the inauguration party.
To make sure everything would go smoothly, I even looked at and reviewed every photo of attendees.
Once I was sure I had every detail in my head, I decided to end my day and go back to my bedroom.
From sitting down on the edge of the bed, I laid my upper body down and shifted my gaze to the side to see it was already nine in the evening.
Moonlight shine from the window of my room, giving shine to my small desk where it refracted to Aaden’s photo.
Immediately, I stood up and stretched my body a bit before I hastily went to Aaden’s room.
Cautiously, I opened his door and peeked inside. A huge smile formed on my lips when I found two of the most important men in my life cuddled on the small bed.
Albert was lying sideways on Aaden’s bed while Aaden was using Albert’s arm as a pillow and wrapping his arms around Albert’s torso.
Their chests rose and fell in sync, both sleeping soundly.
Like an intruder in my home, I tiptoed inside and slowly grabbed the folded blanket from the side. I couldn’t have the heart to wake them up, so I gently covered them with the blanket.
But despite my so-gentle movement, Albert still felt my presence. He tried from his sleep before slowly opening his eyes. Immediately, he made a shushing gesture at me and carefully laid Aaden’s head on the pillow.
Aaden stirred in his sleep and cuddled the pillow Albert placed to replace his absence. His cheeks puffed as he sleeptalked, “Daddy Albert.”
“I’m here, buddy,” Albert whispered as he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead.
I stood in the guidelines, silently watching and moved by their closeness while my heart ached in guilt.
Albert had been very invested in me and Aaden. Like he promised, he saw him as his own, and I could never be thankful enough. But at the same part, I felt sorry because I couldn’t repay his kindness enough.
I’ve seen how much he loves and cares for Aaden. Despite not being his biological son, he had done more for Aaden than I had done for him in the past three years. More importantly, Aaden was often stuck with Albert.
“Come on,” Albert tapped my arm to wake me from my daze. Blinking a couple of times, I quietly let him pull me out of the room to get back to ours.
“How was your day?” He clung his arm around my shoulder before he pulled me toward the bed.
I laughed with him as we hit the bed hard.
“What else? Work, work, and nothing but work,” I replied as I pulled his arm and used it as my pillow before I embarrassed him.
“You?” I asked back.
Pulling me closer, he kissed me softly on my temple. “I played with Aaden all day until he finally fell asleep.”
Then, he gave me a mischievous smirk, making me back off a little bit from him.
Seductively, he continued, “Now, I’ll start coaxing another baby to sleep.”
He hugged me tight, enveloping me in the warmth of his body.
Laying on my stomach, I leaned my chin on his chest and looked at him with seriousness. “Can we talk?”
“About what?” He furrowed in confusion.
I swallowed, preparing for any possible reaction. “It concerns the servant management…”
He looked down at me, a glint of mischievous vanishing from his eyes and had been covered with the same seriousness in mine.
Agreeing, he stood up and sat on the table seat. Following, I poured him a glass of water before I sat on the chair in front of him and cautiously said, “I heard about Lily…”
His face tense. His jaw clenched, and his eyes turned sharp. “Who told you?”
I kept looking at him, knowing he was starting to feel anxious and trying to hide it. Extending my hands, I held his hand and comfortably told him, “It’s not hard to find out.”
I understandingly shook my head. “And I don’t want to blame you.”
He gritted his teeth and replied, “Lily is just an omega. You don’t have to care about her so much. She got what she deserved.”
Omega? What does she deserve?
I looked at him, completely bewildered. Being omega only meant they were physically weaker and not that they were lower beings. In fact, it even meant they needed more protection than the others.
Scoffing in disbelief as I tried to contain my rising anger, I said, “Have you forgotten? I was once an omega.”
I expected just words and reasoning from the others… but not him. He had always been polite to most servants on the surface that it never occurred to me that he was just like the other who looked down on omegas deep in his heart.
Seemingly realizing the fault in his words, he hastily explained, “That’s not what I meant. Look, Della, I only did it because Lily’s words would be hurtful to Aaden.”
I intently looked into him and calmly said, “Albert… You and I both know that her words did not hurt nor affect Aaden that much.”
Sighing, I spoke the truth, “It’s you who have been hurt.”
Hurt flashed in his eyes, and it seemed as though he had frozen up there. His chest rose and fell heavily as he stared at me in indescribable emotion.
Instantly, my heart clenched.
“Why are you being so harsh?” Trisha scolded, which jolted me even more.
Hurriedly, I explained, “Look, I am the princess and the heir of the kingdom.”
I looked at him deeply and held his hand, this time tighter. “You… you are my husband. We both will shoulder a royal responsibility among all our people. And that adds up to treating omegas fairly.”
Shaking his hand a bit, I made him look at me and solemnly asked, “Do you understand me?”
He slowly closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths before he pulled my hand and held it closer and tighter.
“I know I shouldn’t have done that. But…” He shook his head before continuing in difficulty, “Whenever I hear someone say Aaden looks like Kylian, all my reasons get devoured by darkness, and all I see is red.”
I could vividly see how deep in pain and guilt he was, which broke my heart further and raised my guilt.
He’s saying sorry to me and easily admitting his fault when he’s my fated mate, yet he’s the one who has been compromising and sacrificing many things for the past three years.
It’s all my fault!
Sliding out of my chair, I stood and went around Albert’s back to hug him and placed my head on his shoulder. “Albert, please believe me. You don’t need to feel uneasy or insecure. We will get married soon.”
With that, I pulled away a little and pulled his head to the side a bit to swiftly kiss him on the lips. “Kylian is only a part of my past, while you’re my present and future. We will spend many years together.”
I held his cheek and looked deeply into his eyes, genuinely saying, “I don’t want you to be stuck in the past and live in Kylian’s shadow. You are worthy of more than that, Albert. So much more.”
Those were the words that I knew were right. The words and plans that I knew I should do. But why was it like that?
Why did my heart ache at the thought that Kylian would just be my past? Why was there still a pain in my heart?
Feeling my emotions, I asked myself, “Is everything really over?”
I heaved a sigh and let calmness take over me before I gave myself a reply, “Yes, everything is now over. I’ll never see Kylian again, and I’ll do what I’m destined to do. I’ll accept and compensate properly the only man who truly cared about me.”
