"My lady, lord Vincent Walenshire is here to escort you back to the palace." Anna looked at the butler surprisingly. He had never cared enough for her to come this far just to escort her? That did not make sense!
"Invite lord Vincent for breakfast. It is almost time." Rowan's voice was so calm and collected and his reply was so mature that Ana looked at him with awe.
"I have already done that, young lord. But lord Vincent said that there is an urgent matter at the house and that the presence of a lady is required. He apologized and said that he would join us again in the future." Ana frowned as she did not remember anything urgent happening in the palace but if Vincent had come personally. The matter would really be urgent.
She stood up at once.
"Rowan, I apologize but I have to leave. I am worried about the matter." he nodded his head understanding as she smiled and ruffled his hair, "then i will wait for your letter so that we could meet you again."
After that she left from there with hurried steps.
"Do you know what happened in the palace of Wellenshire?" asked Rowan to the butler who was good at keeping information. There was hardly anything that he did not know but the old man shook his head.
"I have no idea but the matter could be serious. Lord Vincent looked worried and his eyes were swollen. He must have cried before coming here." that made Rowan's gaze deepened.
"Shall I go and look into the matter?" he did not feel at ease. For some reason when Ana told him that she had been starved, she looked so much in pain that it did not look like just a passing dream.
"That would be hard! They have not asked for you, my lord. More than that, I have heard that your highness is accompanying the second prince and third princess in the cellar. I am sure they will invite you over breakfast. You must be ready." Rowan's eyes deepend but he already knew his duty so he nodded and went to take a bath.
As soon as he returned, he was called by his father for breakfast. The moment he entered the dining hall, Meredith smiled and waved her hands to sit beside him.
She was sitting next to father, at the seat of his mother.
"It is my honor to meet the stars of the empire." he bowed his head when Meredith chuckled.
"We are family Rowan. You did not need to be so formal. You can call me Aunt Meredith. I am just like your mother. Aren't i?" she patted his shoulders as she smiled at him when he nodded.
"It has been so long since I last met you. You have grown taller again." she smiled when he nodded.
"You look more beautiful too." he replied back with a stoic face but she still could not help but blush.
"Such a flatterer you are! To be honest, when I came to know that Lady Anastasia was coming to meet you and staying in the palace, I could not help but feel worried. I was worried that you will have a misunderstanding with her because of your cold and closed off nature. I came to support you and explain to the lady about your condition." she said softly as if she was too worried about him but the way she painted the picture as if he was mentally sick.
"But I was surprised to know that you are already so close to Lady Anastasia. It felt like I was here for no reason. Haha! Did you like the lady so much that you invited her to stay in your chamber instead of the guest room last night?" She looked at him calmly but he was sure that she was testing him.
She wanted to show his father that Lady Anastasia lied since Rowan had never let even his father stay in his chamber at nights. Even if he was sick.
"Ah, that! The lady liked my garden too much so I told her she can stay here. I didn't mean to trouble her. Was I wrong there?" he asked back with a hint of apology when her eyes turned cold.
She forced a smile on her face, "ah! That is not the case. I was just surprised when the lady told me about your invitation. But Rowan, you have never invited me to live with you in the past. Do you not like me enough to spend time with you?" Although she still had a smile on her face, Rowan could feel the pressure. After all, she is from the royal family.
Even if he was their blood related, they were the one ruling over them.
"I thought I would be overstepping my boundaries if I did that, aunt. But if I knew that you wanted to stay in my chamber, of course, I would be more than happy."
"See, i have told you, he likes you more. You should not be worried about such foolish things. More than that, lady Anastasia is going to be his mother soon." Lucas who was busy in talking with Garry all this while finally indulging her sister who laughed embarrassedly and nodded her head.
"I was surprised when I came to know about the choice of father. But you are right! She is going to be the lady of the house. I should not be possessive here.'' She lowered her head and started eating with an aggrieved look on her face when Rowan looked at his father whose face was still but he still nodded his head.
"Even if I have a mother, aunt. You would be the closest one to me. You can come anytime and I will be happy to be invited by you." that made Meredith blush and hug the child.
"I know you are the best, Rowan."