Chapter 9 Lavender

The ride was so long. The two men at the front remained silent while I just stared out of the window. Outwardly, I was calm but inside, I was a mess.

After the long drive, the driver stopped in front of a large mansion. They stepped down from the car while I wrung my hands nervously.

"Take a deep breath" I said to myself. After a long inhale, i exhale and step down from the car. One of the men was already moving my luggage into the house. I expected the beast and his family to step out any moment from now but I didn't see anyone.

Instead, a girl who looked younger than I did came rushing out.

"A pleasure to have you here. I'm Rivka" she smiled warmly.

"I'm Paisley" I said before remembering I was supposed to act as Nevaeh but it was already too late.

"You have a beautiful name. Please come with me" she took my hands and led me inside the beautiful mansion. Everything in the house looked beautiful and expensive. From the flooring to the chairs and even the light bulb. The beasts lived in splendor and the place looked far better than I imagined it would look.

The room the girl led me into was even a more beautiful room. If I wasn't forced to be here, I would have been excited. The place screamed glam and I'm sure Kamiko would love it. And Nevaeh too.

If I was extremely wealthy, I was going to make my future bedroom with Edel look like this. Fuck Edel. I didn't pick his call and he must be wondering why. I reached into my handbag to search for my phone but I came up empty.

Fuck. I had forgotten my phone at home. I needed a phone to call mama and ask her to send my phone back to me.

"Do you have a phone?" I asked Rivka.

"No. But when the queen comes back, you could use her phone"

Will that be okay? I just got here and I was already borrowing. "Okay" I said instead.

"You can have a shower. I'll set a dress for you. The family will be back soon. You will be having lunch with them"

"Where did they go?" I asked without thinking.

"Ummm.. I don't know"

"It's fine" she nodded and went out. I was hesitant to strip and take a shower. But since I'm already here, I might as well play the part of good girl until they were able to find Nevaeh.

I stripped out of my clothes and took a quick shower. When I came out, there was an exquisite green dress laying on the bed. I picked it up. The material felt expensive.

Who wears such a glamorous dress for lunch. There was a knock on the door.

"The family has arrived" Rivka said from outside the door. Shit. I dropped the towel and quickly put on the dress. I didn't put on a bra because of the backless dress.

Rivka was still outside and she escorted me downstairs. I heard their voices before I saw them.

The moment I stepped into the sitting room, I paused. The room was crowded and I was overwhelmed.

"Oh don't be scared. Come here" a very mature woman said coming over to me with a wide smile.

"You're very beautiful" she sounded amazed.

"Thank you" I mumbled.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Paisley" she chuckled.

"You even have a pretty name. Oh goddess" I blushed shyly.

"Mama stop. You're overwhelming her" A pretty girl who looked just like her came over to us.

"I'm Winry and this is my mother, Elowen" This was the queen? She was so homely. I kind of expected her to be uptight and rude.

"Nice to me meet you"

She led me further into the room.

"This is my second brother Dryden and his mate Nouria" The couple who had their arms wrapped around each other smiled at me. I returned a stiff smile to them.

"This is my cousin Marisol"

"Nice to meet you Paisley" the blonde hair girl said in a sweet voice. She had a striking resemblance to someone I had met before but I just couldn't remember who it was.

"Nice to meet you too Marisol" Nevaeh was so lucky. She had the most friendly and amazing in laws.

"This is my Aunty, aunt Whitley" the elderly woman didn't offer a smile. She just turned her face to the left and Winry chuckled. Spoke too soon.

"Don't mind Aunty Whitley, she didn't have a good night sleep and probably the stress is getting to her"

Her aunt snorted. We all knew that was far from the truth. Aunt Whitley had made it clear she didn't like me. Well I didn't like her either.

I looked around the room. Where was the man Nevaeh was supposed to get mated to.

As if she sensed the question on my mind, she took my hands again grabbing my attention.

"My brother is not at home now. He's out with our father but they'll be back soon" Winry said.

Her mother rushed over to me grabbing my hands and moving me away from her daughter. She sat beside me on the couch and asked me questions.

"You're so beautiful. Which family do you come from. Silas must have mentioned it but I've forgotten already. I have a hard time remembering names. My siblings and I used to joke about it. We had a theory that my mother dropped me countless times as a child and... sorry I'm rambling" she smiled sheepishly.

"It's okay ma'am. I'm from the Dolivo family" she scrunched her brows trying to remember something.

"I know that family name... but for the life of me I just can't remember the faces. How is the village? Still the same as before? It's been a long time since I've been there"

"The village hasn't changed much ma'am"

"Ma'am? Don't call me that. You're going to be my daughter in law. I'll be glad if you call me mom"

Huh? I looked around and the others were looking at us. She wanted me to call her mom? That was too personal considering the fact that I wasn't going to be her original daughter in law. Her face fell at my hesitation.

"It's fine. You don't have to if you don't want to"

"No. No. Of course I want to. Mom" she smiled brightly and pulled me into her arms.

I returned her hug while feeling a lang of guilt. Mama needed to find Nevaeh and bring her back before anybody got too attached. I didn't want to hurt anyone.

Mom didn't release me for a long time.

"Mom" it was Winry's voice. Mom pulled away and looked at Winry before smiling at me.

"I'm sorry"

"It's fine"

The door opened and all our attention shifted to the door. An elderly man with a strong resemblance with Dryden came in. His eyes landed on me for a second before they shifted to mom who stood up from the chair and ran over to him. He caught her in his wide arms and kissed her. They were so adorable. Even in their old age, he looked at her like she was the only woman in the world. This was how I wanted it to be between I and Edel.

She pulled her mate towards her me and I got up from the chair.

"This is Paisley. Isn't she so beautiful?"

"Nice to meet you Paisley. I'm Dakarai. Has my beautiful mate been smothering you?"

She slapped his arm lightly and he chuckled.

"Not at all. She has been welcoming"

"We're glad to have you here" he smiled at me and we all heard a loud scoff. We shifted our attention to Aunt Whitley who rolled her eyes and stormed off.

"Ignore her. It's probably that time of the month" the others snickered and a short laugh escaped me.

"Let's move to the table. Brayan will be here soon" I nodded. So Brayan was his name. I wondered what he looked like.

I followed behind Dryden and his mate. Dakarai sat at the head of the table and Elowen sat on his left. The seat on his right was empty and I assumed it to be Brayan's seat. I took the seat beside it and Winry sat beside me. Aunt Whitley came to a table with a scowl on her face. Nobody laid her any attention.

As soon as the meal was served, the table went silent. The scent of garlic mashed potatoes and steak with mushroom sauce filled my nose. The meal tasted as amazing as it liked and smelled. Whoever prepared this meal deserved a five star rating and their very own restaurant.

Dakarai was the first to finish and he left the table with his mate. The table emptied out until it was just Aunt Whitely and I. She glared at me and I tried to ignore her burning gaze. I was about to address her when I heard a loud voice from the front.

"Where is she?" A deep masculine voice asked. I stood up from my chair, took a deep breath, squared my shoulders before making my way to the living room.

Our eyes met the moment I stepped into the room. His deep green eyes boring holes into mine. He had a small smile, almost unnoticeable. He looked so much like his father. His black hair packed sleekly in a man bun. He easily towered over everybody in the room. He was fucking attractive. My eyes travelled down the length of his arms and bulging muscles. His shirt fitted tightly against his body and his pants clung to his corded thighs. I could feel my panties get damp. I had never had this reaction to any man. Not even Edel.

"Come and say hello" his mother interrupted my gawking. My eyes shifted to her for a second before returning back to him. My legs moved in their own accord. With each step, I drew closer to him.

The smile on his face died out as i drew closer to him.

"Lavender and roses" he murmured like he just discovered something. I frowned at his statement. Lavender and roses were the common ingredients in my bath wash and perfume.

When I looked up at him again, he had a burning rage in his eyes and it was directed at me.