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I grabbed her brush, setting it down on the small raised topper to her vanity as I took the pins out of her hair. She’d curled it herself, and every pin was shoved hard into her hair, holding it perfectly in place.
Once the hair was falling in beautiful curls down her back, I took one small section at a time and started counting.
Minutes turned to an hour and on the final strands, even Vanessa seemed antsy for it to be done.
Before the brush was set down, she was barking more orders. “Draw my bath and help me undress.”
I rolled my eyes the minute I walked toward the bathroom. I’d never understand the wealthy, or in this world, royal and wealthy. I could understand wanting cooks; the food the staff made was incredible. I could understand housekeepers and even feeders here since others hadn’t adopted Noah’s ways yet. But this, dressing, undressing, petty errands. It would never make sense.
And I knew that much of it was Vanessa wanting me to continue to be humiliated, but she had been like this to everyone since arriving.
The water warmed quickly and I plugged the tub to fill it. Vanessa stood with her hands on her hips, waiting for me to come back into the room. She couldn’t even be bothered to take her own jewelry off, so I moved quickly, taking everything and putting it away. I unzipped and unbuttoned her perfect dress, and she stepped out, walking toward the bathroom. When she reached the tub, she stripped the remaining clothes off and stood there, flawlessly naked.
I was in shape, toned and solid from training so hard. But my average chest and flat ass looked boyish in comparison with Vanessa’s ample curves and her tiny waist. She was like an impossibly proportioned Barbie doll.
Seeing me glaring, she laughed. This one sounded much more like what I’d imagine a villain’s laugh to be. “A servant could never have a body like this.”
“Enjoy your bath,” I said through gritted teeth. I might be holding it together and not letting her make me feel bad about myself. But comparison could be a strong tactic. Watching her and having her point out my flaws—she didn’t have to say much to trigger those insecurities in my head—was harder to fight.
“Ah, ah, ah.” She wagged her finger at me. “You’re not dismissed, Cora.” Vanessa stepped in slowly and lowered herself. “Grab the sponge, I can’t reach my own back, and my hair requires massaging when it’s washed.”
I hated her. Loathed her.
I rubbed her shampoo into her hair.
“More to the right, have you never washed your hair?”
I ignored the jab and she sighed, far too deeply to be real. “Noah loves the smell of my hair. A real lover always takes care of herself so that her fae is pleased. A human could never understand how intimate our senses are as fae.”
She held up her arm, rubbing her fingers along it. “Every touch, scent, movement means something when you’re intimate. And I need everything to be clean and perfect for Noah tonight when he comes over again.”
Again.Like I’d caught them the last time I entered Vanessa’s room too early in the morning.
“Toward the left now,” she said.
My fingers tightened from shaking so hard as the rage swept through me. Vanessa didn’t let up. She was obnoxious with her orders, having me scrub here and there and redo her conditioner. After washing her back twice, she smacked the sponge from my hand. “That’ll do. Close the door behind you and wait for me to call you in. Gather warm towels from the kitchen. I don’t want to freeze when I’m done.”
I turned on my heel, fleeing from the bathroom, but before I could escape and shut the door, she called out one more order. “And put my white lingerie with the roses and pink shawl out on the bed. Noah deserves to be rewarded tonight for such a wonderful proposal.”
I took the two steps backward to get out of the bathroom and closed the door. I opened my mouth, flailing my arms and punching forward in silent screams of frustration.
After a few moments of freak-out, I walked to her drawer, flinging the garments she’d requested to the bed and leaving her and her stupid room behind completely.
“Noah deserves a reward, blech,” I said, repeating her sickening words as I stormed toward the kitchen.
There was no way this marriage could go forward without Noah seeing her for what she really was. Right?
The kitchen was empty when I got there, no doubt everyone was sleeping. Vanessa’s hair and bath took so long that all I wanted was to crawl into bed after the night I’d had. But I wasn’t done yet. Almost, but not yet.
Once the queen-to-be got her towels, hopefully I could flee and be alone to process everything this night had revealed. Everything that had happened to me and to the Unseelie kingdom overall.
I shuddered as the towels from the warmer touched my skin. It was heavenly, but I was cold. Cold from pain, numb from the hurt of the evening. The change in temperature was shocking and another reminder that I needed to be in my own room. My own bath. My own bed. There was so much to retreat from and I needed to do it sooner rather than later.
I walked back, hoping Vanessa was finished by now so that the time with her would be minimal.
I entered her room quietly in case she had something else to say about how servants sounded like trolls stomping around, and they could never be as silent as the fae.
I wrapped the towel close to me and waited for Vanessa to call for me. Hopefully she hadn’t already. Though now that I thought about it, that would be just my luck. Perhaps I should knock.
