Henry allowed a grand total of just three days for the wedding preparations. I'd say it was a nightmare but I felt so detached from the whole thing, it hardly mattered anymore. My one priority became keeping any involvement I had to partake in away from Catherine - I might have no choice in the matter, but I would not inflict unnecessary pain on her. Particularly as I stood for my dress fittings. I should note that my wedding gown was stunning: mostly white but with a delicate silver trim, which added an element of sparkly starlight to it. It would have been the perfect dress, if only….

It occurred to me there were far too many aspects of the day that I would be dreading, simply because I couldn't control them. I would have to grit my teeth and bare most of them, but there may be something I could do to ease my discomfort. The day before the wedding, I went to see Nostradamus.

'I am only too willing to be of service, but I'm not sure slipping a bride a sedative on her wedding day is the wisest of options.'

'I'm not asking to be knocked unconscious, Nostradamus. I just require a small amount, to take the edge off the nerves.'

'You understand that could be dangerous.' He added. 'Without proper observation on the day-'

'You'll be at the wedding.' I reminded him, dismissively. 'If anything were to go wrong, you'd be right there to help.'

'If anything were to go wrong the King would have my head.'

'Nothing will go wrong!' I insisted. He gave me a look.

'Charity, you are hiding something.' I sighed. He was too used to this practice in dealing with Catherine.

'The sedative is not for the wedding itself. It's for the wedding night.' I admitted. 'I honestly don't know how I'll be able to get myself through it and a sedative would be ideal in helping to calm my nerves. If, by some error, I do take too much and fall asleep thereby postponing the whole thing, even better!'

Nostradamus looked decidedly unimpressed but he was very conflicted by my words.

'Marriage is one thing but it's just the beginning. I'm simply not ready to give myself to him yet. Not again.' I added.

Nostradamus said nothing. Instead he turned and went to his cabinet, extracting a small bottle which he handed me with a warning.

'Just a sip will suffice. It's of vital importance you are very careful with this.'

'I will be, don't worry.' I told him gratefully. 'Your head would not be the only one on the line.'

The morning of the wedding, servants arrived with breakfast. I didn't have much of an appetite, but the spread was too heavenly to resist. I tried to ignore my wedding dress, staring at me with accusing eyes while I ate. The veil was draped over it and was equally beautiful. I was busy admiring it when Catherine arrived, carrying an ornate box with her.

'A gift.' She told me, opening it to display a sapphire necklace.

'Oh, Catherine, it's beautiful!' I reached out, hands fingers lightly skimming the jewels as they sparkled. 'But this is too much.'

'Nonsense, if I want to present my Lady with a gift on her wedding day, I shall do exactly that.'' she insisted, removing it from the box and handing it to me. As I took the necklace in my hands, she cast a quick side-eye glance at the dress. 'And it will match your gown perfectly.'

'A lot better than this plain one, certainly.' I fingered the thin chain around my neck. Holding the gift in my hands, there was something about this one. Looking at it closer, I noticed the links between the sapphires each contained a tiny 'C'. You wouldn't see it, not unless you studied it as closely as I did it.

'You had this commissioned specially.' I realised. 'But how did you get it done so quickly?'

I'd expected her typical smug reminder of just how far her reach extended, but her eyes told me there was more to this.

'Leave us!' she commanded the servants, who quickly bowed and left.

'Catherine, when did you get this done?'

'Weeks ago.' She admitted. 'I'd intended to give it to you on a rather different special occasion but…'

Her words caught me as I understood what it cost her heart to give me this now. I wasn't sure how to respond and found myself turning towards my dressing table instead.

'I know this is difficult, but they were helping ready me.'

'We'll send for them shortly.' she replied, joining me on the bench. 'In the meantime, I can help.'

She sat facing away from the table and turned towards me, brushing my hair aside so she could unclasp the chain from my neck. Catching it in my hand, I leant forward to replace it on the table, trying to ignore the feel of her fingertips on my skin as they played with my hair.

As I moved back her lips made contact with my neck. She kissed a trail along the skin to an area just below my ear, which she had long since discovered was a sensitive spot. The unexpected touch sent the required shivers through me, making me gasp before I had a chance to think straight. I allowed myself to enjoy the sensation, just for a moment.

'How exactly does this help me get ready?' I asked, licking my lips as I tried desperately to focus and not simply melt into her arms.

'It doesn't.' she whispered between kisses, continuing to tease my neck with her lips and tongue. 'It serves to remind you where your heart's loyalty lies.'

'You don't need to arouse me to remind me of that.' I replied with a quiet laugh, biting my lip. Accepting it was a battle I likely had no chance of winning, I sank into it. I turned to her, my lips eagerly searching hers and our kisses quickly grew hungry, urgent.

She ran her arm down my back and wrapped it around my waist, pulling me firmly to her. I reached down, gripping her hand as our fingers entwined. Her other hand reached down my leg, fussing with my skirt until she was able to slide beneath it. She drifted up my leg, caressing my skin with her fingers until they reached their destination.

'Catherine…' I whispered between kisses. 'Don't.'

The words escaped my lips without conscious thought, along with a feeling of unease that I perhaps shouldn't allow this to happen. But even with this moment of appealing to my better nature, my legs ignored my subconscious and parted, granting Catherine's hand the access it took without hesitation. I moaned into her mouth as her fingers explored my folds, my resolve weakening with each tingle of pleasure, my arousal growing with each caress.

'Do you want me to stop?' she asked.

I couldn't speak, I could barely breathe. Of course I didn't want her to stop, I would never want her to stop. I never wanted this moment to end, knowing what was waiting for me shortly after.

'No, don't stop.' I shook my head. 'Please don't ever stop.'

Her fingers hadn't stopped working on me regardless, relentless in their task of pleasuring me to distraction. My body's natural instincts took over at this point, responding by shifting position to allow them to go further with their carnal task. Catherine took this response as intended and slipped her fingers inside me, holding me tight as she worked on building my arousal. I moaned deeply, not thinking or caring about stifling my cries as the sensation built-up inside me.

Our lips separated as she returned to kissing my neck, working my sensitive spot as only she knew how. I tried to free her hand, desperate to cling to something solid to ground me, but she tightened her grip in response.

'I want your hand in mine, just as mine is in you, when you reach your climax.' she whispered close to my ear, the sensation of her breath on my skin only added to my already highly intense stimulation. I moaned harder now, gasping her name as I leaned into her. She pumped her fingers faster in me, feeling how close I was to the edge. I surrendered myself to it, collapsing in her arms as the orgasm took me.

Standing at the altar with Lord William, only hours after being intimate with Catherine, you'd probably expect me to say I was wracked with guilt. Would you fault me very much if I wasn't? If I explained that the Charity he was marrying was present in mind and body, but no more. My heart had no part in this, my soul its own separate entity, and so my conscience remained silent.

I enjoyed the day as much as I would any other festivity, hindered only by the small detail that my wedding ring was not exactly a perfect fit. I could have deemed that a sign, but this union did not exactly require assistance from the gods to show us the fates were against us. It also didn't require Henry's smugness mocking me throughout, but that certainly didn't stop him. Each time he caught my eye it radiated off him so strongly, I had to fight to hide my seething.

'Ignore him.' William held me close, whispering to calm my nerves. 'If you make your feelings known, he's won. Your best revenge on him is to simply enjoy yourself. I'm not saying it's easy-' he added, off my look '- but it's better than the alternative.'

I had no choice but to smile and nod my agreement. He was right and, after all, I had agreed to maintain this illusion of contentment with my new husband. This was my new role and I had to draw upon this commitment and make the effort I'd agreed to. Besides, wedding or not, this was a party and I was resolved to enjoy it!

By the end of the day we were worn out. My change in demeanor had made all the difference: the occasion (much to Henry's chagrin) had been quite the success and, as a result, our good spirits followed us all the way to when we retired to William's chambers. He even insisted on carrying me over the threshold, which I agreed to despite finding the tradition utterly ridiculous. As luck would have it, somewhere in the process the end of my veil managed to become twisted around my leg, thus proving my point.

'My dress was not exactly designed for this.' I laughed as he carefully set me back on my feet, where I carefully untangled myself. William set to pouring us some wine, while I removed my jewellery and set it on the dressing table. I ran my fingers lovingly over the necklace Catherine had gifted me, before turning my attention back to William.

'Wedding dresses are designed for precisely two things: first, making the bride look like a princess. Job done remarkably well in this instance.' He raised his glass to me and handed me mine. I graciously accepted both the drink and the compliment.

'And what's the second?' I asked, taking a sip. He walked around me, considering his words carefully while he inspected my dress.

'The second is to make the husband feel like a complete and utter fool, when he cannot figure out how to remove the garment from his new bride.'

I laughed, though mostly to cover my nerves.

'Yes well, that's not usually the husband's task.' I reminded him, pointing out the now obvious missing factor from the room 'Perhaps it might be wise to wait for the servants to assist me with undressing.'

'Ahh, I'm afraid I instructed them not to disturb us tonight.'

'I see. Not the wisest of decisions, I'm afraid.' I noted, slightly nervous as I thought about the vial tucked into my corset. 'So now what? How do you intend to go about this?

'I could summon them.' he suggested. 'Or…'

'Or….?' I raised an eyebrow, prompting him.

'How attached are you to that dress?' He asked me.

I looked down at the garment. 'Not especially. Why, what did you have in mind?'

He took steps towards me. 'If you trust me and you allow me - it might take some force but I can get you out of it.' I took another, larger sip of wine and nodded as I gathered the veil up in my arms.

William stood behind me and took hold of the dress by its top of the seam, working along on the fastenings as much as he was able. The layer of ribbon and lace were simple enough, but once he reached the clasps with their intricate beadwork, he had to admit defeat. In an act of powerful determination, he gripped the garment tightly in his hands and pulled the seams apart, ripping through the fabric as he went. I felt a twinge of guilt at the work involved in this dress, watching as various beads and jewels scattered the room. It was rather impressive the quantities they'd managed to include in such a short space of time.

Once William had ripped it low enough, he slid the sleeves from my shoulders, letting it fall as he moved in closer and kissed me - right on the sensitive spot of my neck, where Catherine's lips had aroused me only that morning. He wouldn't be aware of the effect it had on me, that he could have me melt into his arms. Kissing that spot was almost guaranteed to send shivers through to my core, but it also cemented the guilt in me that I was cheating on Catherine. Despite that, I had to bite my lip to stop the gasp that tried to escape me. I needed to figure out how to take that sedative. And fast.

Clutching the veil in my hands, I had a sudden flash of inspiration. I quickly removed myself from his grasp, pretending to react to the thrill of his kisses and making a show of wrapping the veil around myself as I did so. William laughed as I became entangled by the fabric, not seeing the one end gripped firmly around my left hand.

'I suppose I'll have to unwrap you.'

'If you'd like.' I smiled, handing him the loose end and wiggling the ring with my thumb. I prayed my idea would work.

He twirled me and… 'Oh, my ring!' I cried-out as it went flying off my finger.

'Good lord, it really is far too big, isn't it?' William's face dropped with surprised disappointment.

'It's a loose fit, that's all. I'll just have to make sure I'm extra careful with it.' I reassured him. 'Speaking of which, where did it go?'

'Somewhere over there.' he turned to look in the general direction. 'Why don't I find it while you refresh our wine?'

'Perfect!" I beamed at him, then went to the drinks table in relief. I poured the wine and snuck the sedative out from my corset. I paused for a moment, considering…. and emptied the entire bottle of liquid into the glass. Then I bent down, removing my shoes in the guise of hiding the empty vial.

'Here we are, let's get this back to safety, shall we?' I turned and William reached out for my hand, slipping the ring back in its place. I could feel my nerves growing again, but made efforts not to show them too much.

'How about that drink?' I said, picking them up as he took a glass. Just as he was about to take a sip he stopped, looking at me curiously.

'Charity, are you alright?' He asked. I held his gaze for a moment.

'Perfectly fine.' I smiled. 'Well, just a bit nervous.'

He rubbed my arm with his free hand.

'Don't be. Let's just focus on us tonight.'

I raised my glass. 'To tonight.'

'To us.' he returned and raised his glass.

I watched as he took a small drink, smiled at me and then drained his glass. Then I brought my own glass to my lips, taking a long drink. I prayed this would work. And quickly.