The King's Lover-Chapter 526: Bitter Old Woman

The next morning, Rose sat by the dresser fiddling with her white lace gloves as Chelsy brushed her hair. She twisted the wedding band which was visible through the lace.

Chelsy had wanted to wear the band over her lacy gloves but Rose had refused. Rose was dressed in a simple light-colored dress with a matching necklace and earrings.

Caius had left her room just as her maids arrived this morning and said he would be back to take her to breakfast. Rose had tried to decline, saying it was too early, but Caius wouldn’t let her, and now here she was dressing for breakfast.

"Are you unwell?" Chelsy asked.

Rose pulled herself out of her thoughts. "No," she mumbled. "Why do you ask?"

"You keep sighing, Your Majesty."

Rose did her best not to show any surprise that Chelsy called her by a title. She thought the girls accepted and adopted the new way of addressing her a little too easily.

They had even curtsied to her as soon as they entered her room. Isla was the most excited of the sisters. She didn’t hesitate to call her "Your Majesty" every chance she got. Rose wouldn’t be surprised if she got used to it, given how often they called her.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Isla chimed in, smiling a little too hard. "Do you need me to bring anything for you, Your Majesty?"

"I am fine," she simply said. Rose couldn’t tell the girls she was just nervous. It felt like it wasn’t a very queen-like thing to do.

"Yes, Your Majesty," they both said simultaneously while Chelsy returned to work.

"So... Your Majesty," Isla said and scooted closer. "You are Queen now? Does that mean you’re the second Queen, and can you do as—"

"Shut up, Isla. You can’t ask the Queen questions as you usually would."

"But I addressed her properly," Isla glared at her sister for interrupting.

"Doesn’t matter. Go do your task and stop idling!"

Isla flared her nostrils but did as her sister asked, as she knew it wouldn’t be in her favor to be disobedient.

It was pretty obvious that Isla was pleased about Rose’s new status. Rose wasn’t quite sure if the young girl knew exactly what it meant, but she at least knew they were now the maids of the new Queen. That was a promotion.

"I am really sorry about my sister’s behavior," Chelsy said.

Rose just chuckled and shook her head, but she didn’t say anything in response. She wasn’t worried about Isla, as she knew that Chelsy would always be there to make sure she didn’t step out of line.

Moments after Chelsy chased her sister off, Rose heard a knock, and a nervous tremor coursed through her body. It was time, but she wasn’t sure she was ready just yet.

Isla unlocked the door, and Caius stepped inside. Isla hurriedly took a step back while she curtsied. Just like her elder sister, she was equally terrified of the King.

He walked directly to where Rose sat, barely giving the frightened Chelsy time to step away. She curtsied, tightly gripping the hem of her dress.

Caius ignored both sisters; he was completely oblivious to their presence. His entire attention was on the woman who was sitting down with a nervous look on her face.

"Shall we?"

No.

However, Rose didn’t say that. Rather, she adjusted the circlet on her head and accepted Caius’s outstretched hand. He carefully helped her to her feet while keeping a close eye on her, but Rose couldn’t meet his gaze.

She could feel his signet ring as he held her, and she remembered hers was still sitting in the box. It felt a little too much to adorn both the signet ring and the crown.

The crown and her wedding band were enough to show her new status. Rose was so anxious she feared she might not make it to the dining hall without collapsing.

Caius squeezed her palm. "Are you ready?"

No.

But Rose nodded despite her mind screaming no.

"Good," Caius said and started pulling her towards the door.

Just before they slipped out, Isla raised her head and waved vigorously at Rose, her face bright with a smile. Rose found her excitement amusing, and for a moment, she forgot her debilitating fear.

They got out to the corridor, and Henry bowed without saying a word. Rose wondered if he knew, and who else did, and what their reaction would be, and her feet felt unsteady again.

"What’s wrong?" Caius asked as he adjusted so her palm rested on the curve of his elbow.

"I am very worried," Rose whispered as they walked towards the stairs.

"Is there anything I can do to reassure you?"

"They won’t easily accept us," she mumbled, leaning into him. She wasn’t so sure her legs could hold her weight.

"Let me worry about that. For now, I want you to join me for breakfast as my wife. Don’t think about anything else. I will be right by your side. No one will dare do or say anything wrong."

Rose didn’t particularly care about acceptance, but she feared her new status might be meaningless if she wasn’t accepted, and worried it might cost her as it usually had.

The old Queen was disrespectful towards her, and Rose was more bothered about this than anything else. However, she couldn’t keep herself locked up because of some bitter old woman.

She nodded and looked up at Caius with what she hoped was a smile. She was trying to show him that she would be strong. He nodded his approval as he looked down at her.

Soon enough they were close to the dining hall, and Rose could see the double doors of the dining room. Two guards stood at the entrance, and as they got closer, the guards bowed and opened the doors.

Rose took a deep breath as they walked through the open doors of the dining room, her grip on Caius tight, and she feared her anxiousness might take over.

However, the reaction of a particular guest at the table made pushing against her fear worth it. To say the Queen was not pleased was an understatement.