The first pale light of dawn crept through the velvet curtains, spilling across the chamber in golden shafts. The night had passed in uneasy silence, two souls lying apart, yet tethered by unspoken tension.
Sophia stirred, the weight of unfamiliarity pressing upon her. Her lashes fluttered open, only to find herself mere inches from Alexander. At some point in the night, their distance had diminished. His steady breathing brushed against her cheek, his features softened in slumber.
Her heart jolted. So close…
She scrambled back instinctively, silken sheets tangling around her legs. The sudden motion disturbed him. Alexander's storm-gray eyes snapped open, sharp even in the haze of waking. His gaze locked onto her, lingering on the flush blooming across her cheeks.
"What are you doing?" His voice was rough with sleep, edged with suspicion.
Sophia lowered her eyes, gathering her composure. "N-nothing. I—"
But she stopped, her mind quickening with the awareness of what this morning meant. Rumors would already be swirling through the palace corridors. The concubines would not rest until they pried into the truth of this union. They would send spies may be maids, chamberlains, even guards to confirm whether the crippled prince had indeed consummated his marriage.
Sophia took a slow breath, her mind sharpening. If they found nothing, Alexander would be mocked further, dragged into deeper humiliation. That, I will not allow.
She pricked her fingertip against the edge of a jeweled hairpin left on the nightstand. A few crimson drops welled up. Carefully, she pressed them onto the white silk sheets near where she had lain. They bloomed faintly against the fabric, its subtle, but unmistakable.
Alexander's eyes narrowed as he watched. "What are you doing, Lady?" His voice was low, dangerous.
She forced a faint, flustered smile. "Protecting us," she whispered.
Before he could press her, she rose, wrapping herself in a robe. Her cheeks still burned, and though her steps carried deliberate grace, her heart thundered as though she truly were a shy bride fleeing after a night of passion. She paused at the door, glancing back once.
Alexander sat half-reclined against the pillows, his damp hair tousled, his sharp features still softened by morning light. His gaze was unreadable, but not cold, not entirely.
Then she slipped away, leaving the chamber with the aura of a bride retreating after a night of intimacy.
Meanwhile, in the Court
The palace corridors hummed with anticipation. Maids whispered, chamberlains smirked, and nobles gossiped.
"The sheets will tell the tale, "One maid whispered.
"Do you think he even could?" another scoffed.
"Concubine Selene has already sent her girl to check," a third murmured.
Within the hour, the bloodied marks were "discovered." Word spread like wildfire through the palace.
"The marriage was consummated."
"The crippled prince is still a man after all."
"Perhaps the Valehart girl isn't as foolish as we thought."
In her gilded chamber, Concubine Selene's painted smile faltered when her spy whispered the report. Her eyes glittered with new calculation. "So… the game begins."
In the shadows of the court, schemes were already twisting into motion. But for now, to the eyes of the kingdom, the union of Sophia Valehart and Prince Alexander Daxton was sealed.