SWNOVELS Chapter 9
CHAPTER 9
I was astonished when I saw who the intruder was. It was a little boy, no older than seven years old. He had silky dark hair that was in a mess from probably playing with it and curious grey eyes. His white sneakers had mud stains on them probably from running around outside and he was covered completely in dirt. He was trying to look formidable with crossed arms and a stern expression but instead, he looked
cute.
“Hi, I’m Lyla,” I said in a soft voice, “Are you lost?”
“No,” he crossed his arms more, “I’m in my dad’s room; you must be lost.”
I was taken aback by the word ‘dad‘. I blinked a few times but the boy wasn’t an apparition and I honestly convinced myself that I had heard wrongly because there is no way this boy said that I am in his father’s room.
“Who is your father little man?”
“My father is the prince,” he frowned, “And I am not little; I am a big and strong boy.”
I was so shocked that my mouth fell open. It wasn’t until the little boy mimicked my expression that I realized what I was doing and closed it. I analyzed the boy and realized that he did in fact look a lot like Zander but he can’t be Zander’s son- he
would have told me.
Or maybe that’s why he wouldn’t speak to me in the car today. He was probably thinking of a way to tell me that he had a son who I would be meeting.
“Are you his new mistress?” the boy’s question had me flushing pink.
“That’s not a very nice word for young boys to use.”
“I’m not a young boy, I’m five,” he asked and I realized in that moment that he was probably too smart for his age, “Is it true? Are you his new mistress?”
“I don’t think I should be talking to you.” His questions had started making me feel uncomfortable, “Are you sure you don’t have somewhere else to be?”
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“You are his mistress,” he clapped his hands together almost as if he had figured something out, “You’re pretty so it’s okay.”
“I- I don’t-,”
“Bye mistress,” he waved at me and then snuck out the door. As quickly as he came, he was gone.
I was left more upset and unsettled by that conversation than I should have. Did Zander really bring me here so I could be his mistress? The last thing I want is to get into another entanglement like the one I was in with Derek. I actually thought he cared about me and now this.
I had to remind myself to breathe and relax and decided to wait for Zander to appear so he could explain things himself.
I had waited for an hour before I realized he wasn’t coming anytime soon so I decided to lie down in bed to wait. That wasn’t a smart idea because I fell asleep and only woke when someone shook me awake.
She gave
I looked up to see Marla. me a small smile and helped me out of bed. I had stood to my feet when I realized there were two other maids in the room. Marla led me to the bathroom to freshen up again and I didn’t feel so dirty so I just took a quick bath to wash up.
“Where am I going?” I asked as I returned to the room in a robe.
“You will be having dinner with the Prince’s family,” Marla explained, “He instructed us to help you get ready.”
Anxiety gripped me as I heard her words. She didn’t seem to notice or care because she started lathering me with some moisturizing cream. I allowed her work in silence because it gave me time to think about all the ways this dinner could go
wrong.
What if his family ends up hating me because I am not of royal blood? I still don’t know why I am here and it worries me a little.
Marla helped me into a beautiful white dress with yellow flowers over it. It was a short dress that stopped slightly above my knees and she it had puffy short sleeves. It was a bit low cut and it showed off a little more bust than I think anyone thought it would because I am a little busty. Marla handed me silver sandals to
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wear with it and we were done.
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I tried to calm myself as I followed her to the dining room. Each time I slowed my pace, she would stop and wait for me to catch up. At this moment, I wanted nothing more than to speak to Rachel or Anastasia because I knew they would have the best advice for me but there was no one I could talk to that would have
understood.
She finally stopped in front of a door and I knew we had arrived. I thanked her and she looked at me as if she wanted to say something but changed her mind last minute and walked away.
I pushed the door open and was surprised to see people already there. Zander was seated at the head of the table with his son and Lucas at his left. The seat to his right was open and Helena was seated at the next available spot after.
I took the open seat at this right and I knew I did the correct thing because Lucas smiled at me.
“You’ve met Lucas and Helena,” Zander began, “This is my little brother Ender.”
I was shocked, relieved and annoyed when I heard the word little brother. Relieved because it meant he didn’t lie to me about having a son and annoyed because it meant I was fooled by a five year old.
“You just ruined my prank Zander,” Ender pouted, “I had her believing I was your
son.”
Lucas choked on a laugh when he heard that and I saw the glimpse of a smile on Helena’s lips. Of course it would be funny from their point of view.
“Take whatever Ender tells you with a grain of salt,” Helena said, “The boy lies for a living.”
“That’s not true,” Ender huffed, “I am excellent at telling the truth; scouts honor.”
“You aren’t a scout,” Helena deadpanned and he frowned.
“I’m sorry about him,” Zander said to me, “He likes to play pranks on people; apologize Ender.”
“I’m sorry,” Ender kept his eyes on his plate, “I was trying to have some fun.”
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“It’s okay,” I assured him.
“I blame Lucas for his love of pranks.” Zander muttered with a small eye roll.
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Lucas piped up at that but didn’t refute the statement, he simply shrugged and turned to Ender for a high five which the young boy gladly reciprocated. I let out at breath of relief knowing that he probably also joked about the mistress thing. I decided to finally took in the sight in front of me.
The table was lined with more dishes than I care to mention. Some I had seen and others I had never. It felt overwhelming and it also felt like a waste because I remembered how sometimes I would go hungry and here they are with more than they need.
“Whatever is left is shared in the village,” Helena whispered to me, “I thought your would like to know.”
I was about to thank her for clearing my doubts when the door to the dining room opened once again and a stranger walked in.