Summary: The preparations for Jade and Liam’s wedding has begun, but Jade’s insecurities take the best of her.
Warning: This chapter contains psychological issues about eating disorders that might be a trigger for some people. Reader discretion is advised.
Jade’s life as a duchess and the King’s fiancee was busier than ever. Right after Drake was discharged from the hospital, Bertrand, Hana and the Queen Mother arranged a schedule with plenty of activities to prepare Jade for her duties as ruler. Although it seemed overwhelming in the beginning, all the classes she was taking eventually became a welcome distraction for her. Jade hasn’t seen Liam as much as she wanted to. The kingdom was facing complications because of the assassination attempt and his duties as a king took a lot of his time, so they barely had some time alone. They mostly have seen each other during courtly social events or lunch and dinner with their friends and his parents. He tried to hide, but he was usually tired and stressed, so she decided not to disturb him at night and looked for some solace by texting with him before sleeping.
After her engagement party, another activity was added to her schedule: the wedding planning. With Liam always occupied, she had to settle for choosing the decorations and other details of her wedding with Regina’s help. They grew a little closer and she was pleased to finally become friendly with Liam’s stepmother. However, she would give anything, even being in good graces with his family and the whole country, to have her fiancé by her side. Even if it was just to choose china patterns or centerpieces decorations. But there were always the family lunches.
“Lady Jade, I must say I’m impressed with your commitment to your daily schedule as a duchess. All of your tutors speak very highly of your wit and ability to learn fast,” Constantine acknowledged with a smile while they had the main course.
“Thank you, Your Majesty. I do my best to be a good student.”
“Is that so?” Liam raised an eyebrow at Jade amuzed. He already knew about her progress and proudly smiled waiting for his father to continue to praise her.
“Regina has told me about how quickly she’s learning Greek, Geopolitics and Cordonian History,” the King Father said.
“She also has an impeccable good taste for decoration. Your wedding will be a lovely event, Liam,” Regina touched Liam’s arm fondly. “There’s only one thing missing.”
“And what is it?” Liam queried.
“Her wedding gown,” Regina replied.
“Oh, don’t worry, ma’am. Hana and I are taking care of it,” Maxwell grinned. “This afternoon, we will host an exclusive bridal fashion show with only the best couture wedding attires for our Queen-to-be. I would invite you, Liam, but you know the tradition. We can’t jinx it.”
“I understand. I would never get in the way of an important wedding tradition,” Liam’s smile widened as he locked eyes with Jade.
“Your dress must be as regal, befitting for a young Queen,” Constantine commented.
“And don’t forget it has to match with everything we previously chose for the wedding,” Regina added.
“Yes, ma’am. Hana will be there to help me in case I miss any details,” Jade nodded.
The chat during lunch remained lively and everyone finished their meals. Liam stood up before and excuse himself to leave the table before dessert. Jade followed him outside the dining room.
“Will it be another late night of work?” Jade took his hand.
“I guess so, I’m sorry,” he smiled apologetically. She frowned and looked away. “I know we haven’t had some time alone in a while, but I promise I’ll make it up to you,” he cupped her face, gazing at her chestnut sad eyes.
“When?”
“I’m not sure, I have to check my schedule with Andrea.” Jade pouted. He knew she did it deliberately as an excuse to make him kiss her and chuckled before dotting kisses over neck, jawline and lips, “I mean it. I will make time for us.” He kept kissing her until she smiled again.
“I think I’ll have to figure something out to convince you, so you can make time for me sooner.”
“Any ideas in my mind, my Queen?” He smiled mischievously.
“A few. But you should go now. I don’t want you to be late for your meetings because of me.” They kissed tenderly and Liam walked away, heading to his office.
“Jade!” Maxwell chirped. “We were looking for you. Come on, the show will begin in ten minutes.” He offered her his arm and they walked into a room specially prepared. It had a runway, special lights, music, four seats at the front and exclusive dressing Room for the Queen-to.be. She hugged Julie, Hana and Max and a seat to watch the show.
Four fashions designer presented five of their gowns pre-selected by her friends and Jade chose two to try on. In her dressing room, she looked in and hated herself. She was a size 4, but gown number one was a little tight. She took the dress off, put her clothes back on quickly and punched the door. Waiting for her outside, Maxwell, Hana, and Juliet exchanged wary looks. Seconds later, Jade stormed out of the dressing room and went straight to her room to change and begin her swimming session.
For the second afternoon of the couture bridal fashion show, Maxwell asked the designers to send bigger size numbers and take off the tag. Jade tried on three of them and just said she didn’t like them. “They aren’t regal enough,” she shrugged.
“What?” Juliet stared wide-eyed at her. “You got to dress a beautiful Carolina Herrera gown, Jay!”
“I don’t like it,” she huffed. “Now, if you excuse me, my dance teacher is waiting for me.” Jade turned on her heels and walked out of the room, slamming the door.
Maxwell and Hana looked at each other, unsure of what to say, but Juliet didn’t buy Jade’s diva act. “Something is wrong with her. And trust me when I say this is not about the dresses.”
“Do you think she’s relapsing again?” Hana asked.
“Maybe. But we have to be careful to talk about that. We can’t make any rash assumptions or decisions when it comes to her illness.”
“Should we talk to Liam?” Maxwell chewed a fingernail.
“Not now. We still can manage that on our own. Let’s focus on selecting the gowns for tomorrow’s show and convincing her not to give up.”
To ensure Jade would go to the fashion show, Hana organized a special light dinner with just the four of them to persuade her. Jade only went because she had to choose a dress at some point. She needed to be open-minded, consider her options and find a way not to freak out over what other people might think, especially Liam’s parents. It was her wedding dress after all.
Jade sat at the front seat and tried to be practical about it. The models catwalked on the runway and she analyzed the fabric and the style, made questions and comments. But she still wasn’t pleased. “Did you just purse your lips at a Valentino?” Maxwell leaned back, shocked.
“It’s not my style.”
“You wore Olivia’s Valentino dress in Italy and in the next day, you mentioned you were never going to return it,” Maxwell commented.
“This is different.”
“How come?”
“Hey, why don’t we take a little break? Say… thirty minutes, perhaps?” Hana suggested with a smile.
“Hana, the designers ar-” Juliet elbowed Maxwell. “Uh, sure. See you in thirty, Little Blossom,” Maxwell plastered a fake smile on his face until Jade left the room. “Ouch! You’re tough,” he winced, rubbing his ribs.
“Jade is a savage and I’ve been getting her out of trouble for twelve years. I have to be tough.”
Jade wandered around the Palace halls looking around the previous rulers’ official portraits. She smiled as she passed by Queen Adriana’s and Queen Kenna’s. On the opposite wall, in a smaller frame, she saw the original painting of Queen Kenna and Prince Consort Raydan on their wedding day. She read stories about the battles they faced together before and after they got married and the great things they accomplished and wondered for a moment if Raydan ever felt insecure about his origins, if he ever felt misplaced for being a commoner or worthy of Kenna’s love.
She resumed to look at the rulers’ wall and her eyes gleamed. She marched towards the painting, her eyes welling up as she stepped closer to Liam’s official portrait. He looked so regal wearing the Crown jewels, his lovely sapphire blue eyes were so beautifully captured in the painting they almost looked real. She stared at the painting for a while. He was right there, a few doors away from her, doing what he does best: looking out for the ones he loves. Carried away by emotions, she smiled and turned around. “Mara?”
“Yes, Your Grace?” Mara appeared on the door frame.
“Do you happen to know King Liam’s schedule?”
“He just left the Palace to meet Cordonian’s ambassador in Australia in a restaurant nearby.”
“Can you find a way for me to get into the Royal Chambers?”
“Your Grace, I don’t think this is a wise idea.”
“Mara, I know it seems like an odd request, but-” she trailed off, took a deep breath and continued. “I miss him. I see the King in court events and meals with the Royal Family every day, but I miss my fiancé, the kind and passionate man beneath that stoic demeanor. I just want to go to his room and look around. I won’t do anything crazy.”
“Anything besides the loony idea of lurking into the King’s private room?” Mara chided. Jade bit her lip nervously, looking down at her hands. “Fine, wait here. I’ll let you know when you can get in.”
“The coast is clear,” Mara whispered and Jade stepped out of a closet.
“What did you say to them?”
“I said Lord Beaumont, Lady Lee and Miss Rossom were looking for you and told them to help searching for you.”
“You can give orders to other guards?”
“When Bastien is out ensuring the King’s safety, yes.”
“You’re badass, Mara,” Jade grinned.
“We have a half hour before someone alerts Bastien and King Liam that you’re missing, so be quick.”
Jade nodded and opened the door to Liam’s chambers. The room was so rich and pompous it didn’t even seem real. She saw two shelves with competition trophies and medals and smiled as she spotted Sir Winston in the middle. The wall had pictures of him with his family during a party, a picture of him as a toddler in the garden with his mother, another one with teenagers Maxwell, Drake, Bertrand, Tariq and Leo at the top of a mountain and the selfie Maxwell took at Coney Island. The nightstand of the left side had an antique clock, a lamp and their selfie at the Eiffel Tower. On the right one, another lamp, a Dostoyevsky book and their selfie after the engagement photo shoot.
A tear streamed down her face as she went to his closet. The custom-made T-shirt she bought for him was on display. The jade cufflinks she gave him were inside of a glass box along with the Statue of Liberty keychain. Taking his formal royal attire from the hanger, she smelled his suit and sobbed. Taking a deep breath, she went to his bathroom. The scent of his aftershave balm still hanged in the air, making her smile sadly. It annoyed her to make so many decisions about their wedding on her own, but now she understood a little of what he meant when he said she inspires him and pushes him to be a better man. She brushed her fingers on her cheeks to wipe the tears, took one last look at everything and walked out of the room.
“Are you ready to go back, Your Grace?”
“Yes, thank you, Mara. I hope I didn’t get you in trouble.”
“No need to worry, Your Grace. No one will find out. And even if they do, that’s nothing anyone can do about it. I was following the King’s orders.”
“What do you mean?”
“When the King hired me, he said my duty is to take care of your safety and well-being all costs. Above his own, if I have to. That’s what I’m doing right now. But if anyone asks, I know nothing about it,” Mara smirked.
Jade shook her head and smiled. “Thank you for doing this, Mara.”
“I have no idea of what you’re talking about, Your Grace,” Mara replied, glancing at Jade from the corner of her eye.
“Okay…” she giggled and went back to the fashion show room, trying to focus on finding the perfect dress.
For the last day of the fashion show, Maxwell, Hana and Juliet were determinate to help Jade on making a decision. They insisted she selected the gowns she liked the most for a final look. Or the ones she complained about less, as Juliet said. Much to her disdain, she obliged. From all sixty designs, she easily narrowed down to twenty, then to ten and to five. But choosing the one, the dress she would walk down the aisle to marry Liam wasn’t easy.
The five models wearing the gowns she chose waited for her decision. Her friends were restless and invited the Queen Mother to help and she didn’t look satisfied. “Are you ready to say yes to one of these dresses?” Regina asked. Maxwell, Juliet and Hana tried not to laugh. The Queen cocked an eyebrow at them and the room fell silent. Jade sensed the irony of the silly joke she made when she joined the competition for Liam’s hand. It did feel like she was in a reality show and she wasn’t happy about it.
“I’ll try on the Alexander McQueen and the Givenchy,” she said dryly.
The models nodded and walked away. Her friends giddily chatted. “Step aside, ladies, we have a new Grace Kelly,” Maxwell enthused. Regina gave a small smile. The Queen is friends with both designers and those two dresses were, according to her, the ones that were worthy of a Queen. Jade, however, was a mess.
She stepped into the dressing room and found the two haute couture gowns there. Taking off her clothes, she picked one of them and put it on. It was too minimalist and unflattering for her body type. She remembered, then, how Kiara babbled about Madeleine’s simple yet elegant Givenchy wedding dress. Closing her eyes and taking deep breaths to contain her anger, she took off the dress. As she dressed the other one, she stared at her reflection in the mirror, pulling her hair up into a messy bun to see it how would look like. She turned around, added earrings, hairpins, a veil, then changed to a headband, then to a fascinator. She hated everything.
The minutes passed by. She was about forty minutes in the dressing room. Maxwell knocked on the door. “Little Blossom?”
Hana approached the door. “Jade, can we see it? If you’re unsure, maybe we can help.”
“Go away!” She yelled, but her voice was a little tremulous.
“I think the Queen card did not work well,” Juliet said sardonically.
“But they were bonding. You should have seen them this morning. They chose centerpieces, lights, wedding gifts to the guests, Regina made jokes, she laughed,” Maxwell’s eyebrows drew together.
“That’s not how things happened, Max. I was there. Regina chose everything because she said she knows Liam’s preferences. Jade simply nodded and faked laughing most of the time. I did too,” Hana said.
“Crap. Now what?”
“Now we give her what she needs.”
Jade huddled in the corner. The gowns were scattered on the floor along with her clothes and shoes. Her eyes were red and puffy, her makeup was smudged. The mint candy melted inside her mouth and she hoped Juliet wouldn’t notice her she was throwing up again. She heard someone knocking. “Just go away, Max,” she pleaded.
“He left.”
She gave a sideways glance then stood up, picked up her satin robe and walked to open the door. “You made him leave his own fashion show? How?”
“First of all, I was told the fashion show was for you. And second,” she opened the door to find Liam leaning against the doorframe smirking and holding a large wooden white box, “I have my ways.”
“They shouldn’t have called you.”
“I’m actually mad they didn’t warn me before, we could’ve solved this sooner. Can I come in?” She stepped away and he got into the dressing room, placing the box on her marble sink and sitting on the couch. He beckoned her and she sat by his side, resting her head on his shoulder. “Will you tell me what’s going on?”
“I look awful in these dresses.”
“Is it even humanly possible?” He joked while pushing the robe aside to peek at her cleavage.
“Liam!” She grunted as she slapped his hand away.
He grinned. “Alright,” he pulled her close, his hand caressing her hair. “Let’s assume you look awful. What’s stopping you from choosing another dress?” She tried to chew an invisible cuticle on her manicured fingernail. “Jade?” he raised an eyebrow.
“Regina is helping me choose everything for the wedding because she knows what you like and I trusted her, but those dresses don’t look good on me.”
“She might know some of my preferences, but you have to give your opinion as well. You’re the bride-to-be.”
“But I don’t know how to plan a wedding where everything has to look regal and majestic.”
Liam tightened the embrace and kissed her temple. “You’ll be marrying a king and it’ll be a grand event, but our wedding won’t be just for the sake of Cordonia. We’re getting married because we are in love. The ceremony, the reception, our wedding attire… every detail has to remind our guests of us. And speaking of which…” he stood up and grabbed the box, “Hana told me you’ve been struggling to pick your wedding dress, so I brought you something that might help.” He opened the box and it contained three different tiaras. He picked up a silver tiara with pearls. “My mother wore this tiara on her wedding. She loved pearls and Father gave it to her as her something new.”
“It’s beautiful, Li! And I knew you liked giving me pearls for a reason,” her mouth curved into a smile as she studied it.
“You deserve all of them and more.” He put the pearl tiara back and took a gold tiara adorned with rubies. “This is the tiara my mother wore at her coronation. It has been passed on from one queen to another for many generations. Regina thought you would like it.”
“She is right. I really like it, it’s stunning.”
He put the ruby tiara back and traced his fingers on the last one. “I was saving this one for the day of your coronation, but I want you to have all the options you need to make a good choice.” He grabbed an exquisite tiara with encrusted diamonds and a round shaped jade gemstone in the center. “When you told me about the story of your name and your mother’s engagement ring, I wanted to give you something to remind you of your family and of who you are. I had it custom-made for you.”
“Oh my god…” she stared at the jade and diamonds tiara mesmerized at its beauty. “I don’t know what to say…”
“Just say you liked it.”
“Liam, I love it.”
He smiled giving her a quick kiss. “I can’t give my opinion about your wedding dress, but I hope these tiaras will help you somehow. I will also be joining you so we can plan our wedding together.”
She beamed wrapping her arms around him and kissing him. “Thank you so much, Li. I can’t wait to plan the wedding with you. And believe me when I say you helped me more than anyone else.”
“You’re welcome, my Queen.” They shared a loving kiss before parting separate ways. Jade stepped out of the dressing room, talked to Hana and they arranged a meeting with a fashion designer to order an exclusive design. On his way to his office, Liam discreetly talked over the phone. “You were right, Juliet, she is relapsing. But don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
