Chapter 116

The sight of Draven’s waiting carriage stirred the restless anticipation that had been building in Cassandra all morning.

She had known he would come for her, but there was something different about this visit. Today, she would be meeting his family for the first time—her future in-laws.

It was another step toward her ultimate goal, narrowing the distance between the existence she imagined for herself and the one she was preparing to leave behind.

She descended the palace steps, her maid following a short distance behind.

Draven was waiting for her at the bottom.

He had clearly been there for some time and he cut a striking figure. His dark coat fit him perfectly, drawing attention to the breadth of his shoulders and the lean strength of his frame.

He looked particularly handsome today. Then again he always did, Cassandra thought.

The observation immediately irritated her. She had no business noticing such things, especially when his attention was already fixed so intently upon her.

His gaze remained on her as she approached, lingering for a moment before travelling slowly over her appearance.

Cassandra felt it like a physical touch and she knew exactly when he spotted his ring on her finger by the way his eyes lit up.

"You are ready?" he asked when she reached him.

Cassandra nodded, hoping he could not detect the nervousness she was trying to conceal. "I am."

He extended his hand toward her.

It was a simple gesture, yet Cassandra hesitated before accepting it.

Taking his hand meant allowing him to lead her into a situation over which she had very little control. She knew almost nothing about his mother and sister beyond what Draven had chosen to tell her.

Still, she placed her hand in his.

His fingers closed around hers as he helped her down the final step.

In truth, Cassandra felt guilty. She knew Draven could have demanded considerably more from her. He was the one receiving the lesser benefit from their arrangement, yet he had never attempted to push for more.

He had asked for only one condition.

Before their wedding, she was to meet his family.

By any reasonable measure, it was hardly an unreasonable demand from a man she intended to marry.

Yet Cassandra had dreaded it from the moment he mentioned it.

More than once, she had caught herself searching for ways to avoid the meeting entirely. Each time, she stopped herself before she could take the thought any further.

They had made an agreement after all.

Draven had upheld his side of it without complaint, performing his role so convincingly that there had been moments when Cassandra almost forgot their relationship was supposed to be a ruse.

To withdraw from her promise now simply because she had some misgivings was selfish.

And Cassandra knew she didn’t want to disappoint him.

Her hand was still in his and neither of them seemed particularly inclined to release the other immediately.

Draven lifted her hand and pressed a light kiss against her knuckles before releasing it.

The gesture was tender and was quickly becoming a habit of his. He did it whenever he saw her, whether or not they had an audience.

He opened the carriage door and helped her inside before following her. Once the door was closed, they were alone.

As the carriage lurched forward, Cassandra found it amusing to think that, not long ago, merely being alone in a carriage with Draven had been enough to spark a scandal.

Now they were doing the very same thing again, yet neither of them gave the matter a second thought. It hardly seemed worth worrying about when they were already engaged to be married.

Cassandra settled against the seat, watching the scenery drift past the carriage window. She wasn’t afraid of meeting Draven’s family. At least, she didn’t think she was. There was simply a part of her that was curious to know what awaited her at the end of the journey.

With nothing else to compare the experience to, her thoughts inevitably turned to the first time John had formally introduced her as his fiancée. That memory had never been a pleasant one.

John’s mother had never taken kindly to her. Agnes Ravenshire was a controlling, egotistical woman who could not accept that her son had chosen a wife she neither liked nor approved of. She had always found something to criticize and had never bothered concealing her disdain.

Everything about Cassandra had been subject to scrutiny, from her age and complexion to her political views and even the devotion she showed toward the queen. Nothing she did had ever been good enough.

Cassandra had spent much of their engagement and marriage trying to convince herself that Agnes’s opinion did not matter. John’s father, at least, had been neither cruel nor excessively welcoming, which Cassandra had considered a considerable improvement over his wife.

Even so, the experience had taught her how uncomfortable it was to enter a family knowing that one of its members had already decided she was not good enough.

She hoped Octavia would be different.

Marriage, even one entered under circumstances as complicated as theirs, would be difficult enough without having to endure the constant disapproval of the man’s mother.

"What is your family like?" she asked after stewing over the thought for a while. "I remember what you told me about them before. I want to know what I should expect when I meet them."

Draven’s brow arched slightly.

"My family," he began, "they are kind."

Cassandra gave him a doubtful look. "That tells me very little."

He chuckled, scratching his jaw as he considered what he should tell her. "My mother is a kind woman, Cassandra. Though I might be a little biased, you needn’t concern yourself with whether she will take an immediate dislike to you."

"I wasn’t concerned about that." She lied, but Draven, ever perceptive, recognized her words for what they were.

"You were, and there’s nothing to be ashamed of," he replied calmly.

Her mouth opened and closed several times as she searched for a suitable response, only to huff when none came to her.