The Taste of Seduction

Meredith cocked her head at him, "Huh….N-nothing."

Her mind was occupied by the blue-eyed man. Her instincts were telling her it was him but if he was finally here why hadn\'t he looked for her yet?

Marcus must have caught the scent of her tension because he pulled her closer, bringing her against his chest.

"Don\'t lie. It\'s not very princess-like." He smirked at her

Meredith flushed at how close they were as they danced together. His smile grew bigger as he swirled her around.

"So are you going to tell me what\'s wrong?" Marcus questioned again.

"Just not used to this much attention."

Marcus\'s grip tightened on her hand as he gave it a comforting squeeze, "You\'re doing so well."

Meredith managed to nod and they continued to dance. She caught Katrina smiling at her and she

managed a small smile to her but she didn\'t miss the fact that the man\'s eyes were on her. He looked absolutely furious.

Suddenly the song ended and everyone erupted into cheer. Meredith averted her gaze and stared at Marcus. They stood in front of each other while he still held her hands.

"I have a gift for you." Marcus whispered.

Meredith raised her eyebrows. "What?"

Marcus removed something from his pocket. It was a small box with a ribbon tied on top of it.

When Marcus opened the box, she found a beautiful, white ruby ring inside, Just outside the prongs and slightly below the ruby stone, a contoured ring of round bright cut set diamonds lined with milgrain to form a halo around it.

It was a gorgeous ring, fit for a queen.

Meredith studied the ring more closely and found an inscription so faint, \'Wilson.\'

His family\'s name meaning he was giving her a family heirloom.

Meredith just stared with wide open eyed at the ring and felt like the whole world was breaking, crumbling apart around her.

In her dreams it had always been Atlas giving her a ring….

"Do you like it?" Marcus asked, as he fidgeted. Clearly he was a little nervous about what her reaction would be.

A single tear slide across Meredith\'s cheeks and she noddded, the lump in her throat was too much for her to speak.

Marcus got on one knee and his lips curled up slightly,

"Meredith Rossi of Arkaans , I promise to protect you with my life and to devote the rest of my life

for your happiness and to the well being of our

kingdom. I will rule at your side until my dying

breath. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?"

Marcus said his eyes boring into hers. Meredith stared down at him, her lips parting but no words came out.

The crowd began to whisper to each other, their

wide eyes darting around. Some of the women swoon while others frowned, jealousy brewing in their eyes.

"Yes." Another tear rolled down her cheek as she

smiled down at him.

To anyone else, the tear would come across as happiness but only she knew how much her heart was hurting.

A worried glint passsed through Marcus\'s eyes as he stood up and slid the ring on her finger. He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss on her cheeks.

"The ring is laced with magic that can help hide your emotions." Marcus whispered in her ears before he pulled away from her.

Cheers and congratulations erupted across the room and they were immediately surrounded by adorning party goers.

"Princess, congratulations-"

"Oh let\'s see the ring!"

"Wish you happiness! Princess."

"Amazing, that you\'re here after all this time!\'

"Where did you get this amazing dress?"

"How does it feel to be proposed by the prince."

Meredith felt suffocated as everyone around them

began blabbering at her, each of them striving to

get her attentions.

"Sorry guys, I want my fiancé all to myself."

Marcus suddenly said as she felt his hand gently touch the back of her arm, just below her elbow, and he began to turn her away from the murmuring crowd.

He steered her towards Katrina.

"Congratulations my friend." Katrina pulled Meredith into a hug.

"Thank you." Meredith said numbly.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah I just need a drink. All of this… it\'s overwhelming."

"Here, try this one. It\'s quite good."

Timothe who was standing beside Katrina offered, picking up a glass with a translucent, blue liquid inside of it. It was garnished with lime on the rim. Meredith took it from him and gave him a shy smile.

"Thank you." She said, taking a small sip. Meredith closed her eyes and let out a satisfied moan as the liquid hit her tongue.

"Don\'t be deceived by the sweet taste and drink them too fast. The liquor here is much stronger than human liquor."

Marcus said, suddenly. She had forgotten that he was beside her.

"Perfect…because I really need some liquor in my system." Meredith replied.

Suddenly the music grew louder and people began to dance.

Some moved away, toward the outskirt of the

ballroom, to give the dancers more space. The

strange, booming music filled her senses and her eyes roam the room looking for blue-eyed man.

But he was nowhere to be seen. Meredith frowned in disappointment and gulped down the drink.

"That…where is Elvin? He promised he would be present at my welcoming ball and the fae King? Did he reject the invitation?"

Meredith asked.

"Elvin was here but he was called away by Aurora when you were dancing with Marcus. The fae king…had accepted to carry out the ritual even though he couldn\'t be present today. But first he had certain conditions that\'s why Elvin was called away by Aurora."

Timothe replied.

Meredith nodded. She turned to look at Marcus.

"I want to get some fresh air. Is it okay."

Marcus contemplated for a while but he nodded.

"Becareful and don\'t go far away. I will come and look for you if you take long."

Meredith breath a sigh of relief and gave him a grateful look.

******

Meredith leaned her arms against the balcony as she breathed in the fresh air. The cold breeze ran along her skin and she shivered.

Suddenly she felt someone put a coat around her and she turned to look at the person.

Her whole body stiffened as she met the familiar eyes.

"Atlas." She breathed.