Back slightly quicker with an update this time, I blame my lack of motivation to do uni work but it's also how I am as a person tbh. I credit such a quick update as well to those sending messages and leaving responses, believe me I read them all! Thanks for everyone being really understanding of how long I take to update xx maia, I don't think sjm would be too happy if I published a book literally just stealing her characters haha
Feyre awoke later the next morning, tucked into Rhys's bare chest. One of his arms was banded tightly around her chest, the other was circling her waist loosely. Feyre could feel the slow, even rise and fall of his chest everytime he breathed in and knew Rhys was still asleep.
Very slowly, Feyre rolled so she could face Rhys while he slept. But the sudden movement made Rhys's arms tighten around her and his breath hitch, so that by the time Feyre turned around, she found Rhys's eyes already open and staring at her.
She offered him a small smile before tucking her head into the crook of his neck, nuzzling him with her nose.
After a few minutes Rhys sighed before saying, "this could be the greatest mistake of my life, but do you think we should get up and get dressed?"
Feyre groaned in reply and curled further into Rhys's body heat, making Rhys chuckle.
"Come on. Don't make me rip the blankets away from you." Rhys whispered dangerously in her ear.
"You wouldn't." Feyre warned.
"Oh I would. There's definitely too many layers covering you right now."
Feyre playfully flicked him on the nose, but began disentangling herself. She tried to remain covered by the blanket as she searched for her clothing but then thought why should she care if Rhys saw her naked now? Shrugging off the covers, Feyre stood before Rhys and began stretching as if he wasn't even there.
Rhys growled low in the back of his throat. His eyes shamelessly wandering over her body hungrily.
"Feyre darling, any other time and I wouldn't have even let you out of this bed so easily, but as we are on a very strict time schedule... I think I'll have to go and have a shower."
"Want me to join you?" Feyre teased.
Rhys smirked at her. "I think that would defeat the purpose. But next time you are more than welcome to join me." He said while kissing her quickly on the lips.
While Rhys disappeared into the bathroom, Feyre set about finding some clothes and trying to arrange her hair in a way that wouldn't be so evident as to what they had been doing last night.
When Rhys reemerged Feyre looked much more presentable, much to Rhys's delight.
When the two made it to the kitchen they saw Cassian in an apron cooking everyone breakfast. The sight would have surprised Feyre, if she hadn't soon realised that Cassian did the majority of the cooking for his friends because he was surprisingly good at it.
Nesta and Elain were sitting at the kitchen counter, the first ignoring Cassian altogether, the latter chatting raptourously to him about what herbs he used in his cooking.
"Well I'm glad someone finally understands the art of cooking." Cassian said while mock glaring at Rhys.
Rhys smiled at Elain while Cassian returned to his cooking.
"And where did you disappear to last night?" Nesta said, eyes on Feyre.
Feyre sat opposite her eldest sister at the counter and raised her eyebrows in a challenge.
"I was under the impression Feyre slept in her room with you two last night." Mor said, looking up from her laptop suddenly interested.
"She was. Until Rhys knocked on the door early this morning and Feyre didn't come back." Elain said mischieviously.
Rhys locked eyes with Feyre from where he was sitting next to her, the two saying nothing, but twin smiles dancing on their faces.
"I KNEW IT!" Cassian yelled, while holding a frying pan of bacon.
"Cassian please, it was only a matter of time." Amren drawled from her position on the window seat.
"Don't you ruin this for me Amren." Cassian replied, while messing up Rhys's hair.
"We should really get back to preparation for tonight." Azriel said, flashing Feyre an apologetic smile.
"Thanks." Feyre mouthed back to him.
"What's there to talk about? I've already arranged everything, we just need to set up and get dressed." Mor said confidently.
"My god woman do you ever sleep?" Cassian joked.
Mor poked her tongue out at him. "Some of us have better things to do than ogle ourselves in mirrors."
Feyre couldn't help the small laugh that escaped her.
"If I were you I'd be more careful about insulting the person cooking your food." Cassian warned.
"I think I'll skip breakfast then and get a head start on setting up the hall for tonight." Amren said excusing herself from the room.
The others talked and joked more while Cassian started dishing up breakfast, arranging Rhys's eggs and sausage into a somewhat cruder picture than anyone else's. When he got to Nesta's plate though, he skipped it altogether.
"Excuse me?" Nesta asked icily.
Everyone drew further back from the counter, preparing to run.
"You didn't ask for any breakfast. How was I supposed to know you wanted some if you didn't ask?" Cassian sneered at her.
"Oh stop being so immature." Nesta shot back.
"Why don't you just ask Azriel to make you some breakfast?"
Azriel looked like he wanted to just about fade away into the shadows rather than be anywhere near this conversation.
Shooting to her feet, Nesta stormed from the room.
"Cas-" Rhys began before a raised hand from Cassian stopped him.
"I'll go bring her some food in a minute don't worry. But she can cool off first."
Elain hesitatingly got to her feet. "I'll go talk to her." She said before rushing from the room, bumping into Lucien as he entered the room. Lucien grabbed her arms, steadying her before she could fall. Elain smiled sheepishly at him before darting down the hallway.
"Well that went well." Mor said chirpily.
"Is there a reason Nesta nearly threw me down the stairs just then?" Lucien said, sitting in Nesta's recently vacated seat.
"Oh don't worry, that's just how she says goodmorning." Cassian muttered.
Feyre had been with Mor all morning, setting up the giant ballroom that a friend of Rhys owned and agreed to let them use for the night in the name of charity.
"Rhys can be a real sweet talker when he wants to huh?" Mor winked at her when Feyre couldn't stop marvelling at the size of beauty of it.
Feyre had wound fairy lights around windows, and bannisters all day until her back ached from trying to reach high places. Occasionally becoming sidetracked by the beautiful carvings in the stonework of walls and columns.
Caterers came and went, setting up a banquet area and preparing food and drinks. Electricians adjusted lighting and even carried in a giant crystal chandelier to suspend over the middle of the dance floor.
"How did you manage to arrange all this so quickly?" Feyre asked Mor in awe.
"I have my ways." Mor laughed. Somewhere in the building, a clock struck making Mor clap her hands together in surprise. "My god, look at the time! We have to start getting ready!" She cried while dragging Feyre into a hallway and shoving her inside a spare room.
"We're getting ready here?" Feyre asked puzzled.
"Of course. I couldn't leave this place for even a moment with all the deliveries I'm expecting and people to boss around. Don't worry I've already arranged for all our things to be here." Mor said, indicating a few boxes placed on a dusty looking bed.
Mor wasted no time, tearing open boxes to find her dress, shoes and makeup. Feyre approached her own pile, reaching into one to find her dress.
"Umm, Mor. This isn't my dress." Feyre said puzzled. A few days ago, Mor had taken Feyre shopping in Velaris where Feyre had bought with her coffee shop wages a floor length black dress. It had been modestly cut but had a thigh high slit reaching up one leg to show off some skin. The dress had been nice and Mor had highly approved of it, but it was not the dress that Feyre was now looking at.
Inside the box was a light blue dress. It had hundreds - no, thousands of small sprakling gems set into it, and Feyre couldn't help but gasp as she shifted the material under the light making light dance off it like the stars themselves.
"That is certainly not your dress. It's better!" Mor squealed from over her shoulder.
"There must be some mistake." Feyre said, pulling the dress out fully from the box.
Mor snatched up a small note that fell out, smiling softly as she handed it to Feyre. The note read 'Feyre, I know you already had a dress in mind, but I saw this and thought of you. -Rhys.'
"That bastard never tells me where he finds his clothes." Mor grumbled. "Well, try it on!"
With Mor's help Feyre was able to do the dress up and put on the matching shoes. The dress was long sleeved, the neckline ending just below her collarbones, almost making her look matronly. If it weren't for how tight it was on her bust and waist which the sparkling gems did more to accentuate. "Not to mention how great it makes your butt look." Mor added when Feyre voiced this to her.
Mor arranged Feyre's hair into a neat, half up, half down look with loose curls and applied a light amount of makeup. "This way we can still see your freckles." She said, before lining Feyre's eyes and applying the lightest amount of blush. Mor stepped back to survey her handiwork.
"Oh you are going to just make Rhys drool over you tonight. If you need any favors from him, ask him tonight, I'm sure he'd do anything for you." She laughed.
Feyre laughed and thanked her. "You look pretty great yourself." And it was true. Mor was wearing a bright red dress with matching lipstick. Her neckline dipping nearly all the way to her navel, before flaring out slightly at her hips. Her makeup was dark and smoky, and her hair was pulled back plainly into a high ponytail, leaving all the attention on her face and body.
"Azriel won't be able to take his eyes off you." Feyre added slyly. But when Mor didn't smile back, Feyre grew worried. "Mor, is everything okay?"
Mor looked conflicted but ultimately decided to confide in Feyre as she lowered her voice. "Az and I aren't like that."
"What do you mean?"
"I love Az. Just as much as I love Rhys and all our friends. But that's just it, like a friend."
"I don't understand." Feyre asked puzzled. She had seen how close Mor and Azriel were and just assumed they were secretly together, or at least had feelings for eachother.
"Feyre can I tell you something that cannot leave this room?" Mor asked gravely.
"Of course."
"I don't... like men in that way."
Feyre paused as she took in this information, replying very sophisticatedly, "Oh."
"I'm not ashamed of it. I've been with both men and women but I only fall in love with females. But you have to understand that my family... they're very cruel people and while I don't care about what they think of me anymore, I worry about what they would still be able to do to Rhys, or a future partner."
"Does Rhys know?"
Mor shook her head sadly. "I want to tell him, I know he wouldn't think any less of me for it. I just don't know how."
"And Azriel?"
"He's guessed."
"But Mor, I think he still loves you." Feyre said sadly.
"Sometimes even when we're told someone can never love us, that won't erase our feelings. I can help Az move on, but only when he wants to."
Feyre nodded in understanding. "Thank you for trusting me with this."
Mor without warning hugged Feyre to her tightly. "Thank you for listening Feyre. Both you and Rhys are so lucky to have one another." She finished sadly.