Hi! :)

Thank you all for the response! I've replied to the reviews at random but you love you all and hence, the early update :D

I'm starting to wonder if it was a good thing to raise your expectations like that. I mean, what if this chapter doesn't live up to the hype?! Hopefully, you guys will like the part 2 of the jealously saga as well as you liked the first one :p

Enjoy :)


Rose

My heart pounded faster as I walked over to Dimitri and Natasha, fire burning in my veins.

When my father had announced that Dimitri Belikov was to be my husband, I did some research on him. He had an impeccable track record as my mother had pointed out, managing to avoid any type of controversy.

But people talk, they always do in circles like ours. When Dimitri had showed no signs of ever courting a lady, people jumped to track his inner circle and naturally, fixated on his close female friends.

Natasha Ozera was one of them.

Her friendship with Dimitri was widely famous and people took to saying that she might be Dimitri's first choice for a wife. Hell, I'd personally seen many media reports praising Natasha Ozera and gushing about why her marriage to Dimitri might be the best thing to happen to Russovia.

Of course, after our betrothal was announced, there were hundreds of articles of the same nature; this time praising me instead of Natasha.

But the point is, she was the woman who was there before me.

She'd been set to take the position meant for me, by Dimitri's side and as the queen of Russovia.

I had every right to be apprehensive about meeting this Natasha Ozera.

Yes, I did!

Dimitri straightened as I approached, as though sensing my presence. He looked around before his eyes landed on me.

I plastered a smile on my face as I walked closer, desperately trying to conceal my- anger?

Dimitri's grin softened into that mysterious half smile that he also wore around me. Was that bad?

Could she make him laugh when I couldn't?

"Rose," he said softly, cutting off his companion's words. I felt smug until she turned around to look at me.

She was…pretty. Very pretty.

Her pictures did not do her justice.

Ice blue eyes set against a pale face and dark waterfall of hair enhanced those pretty features that were currently beaming. She was tall, taller than me and had a great body wrapped in that edgy gown that made her eyes glow.

Contrary to what I expected, she seemed happy to see me.

Now, why was that?

When I stepped up next to them, Dimitri had already schooled his features but that half smile that he always wore around me lurked at the corner of his lips.

"Rose," he said simply, gesturing to Natasha. "This is Tasha Ozera, the princess of Yavana."

I looked away from Dimitri to nod to her with a fake smile.

"Tasha," he turned to her with a smile that made me want to punch him. "This is Rose Mazur, the princess of Loha."

I tried to keep a smile on my face as I shook her hand with the usual pleasantries. I didn't want to come across as a jealous bitch.

Whoa! Jealous?

Was I really jealous?

I couldn't recall a single instance of jealously ever before. I didn't need to. I had everything. Wealth? Of course. Family? Neal made up for everything wrong with my mother. Respect? No one had treated me with anything less. Love and adoration? My citizens gave me that and much more. Looks? Oh, hell yes.

I had everything. Everything but Dimitri.

Or did I have him too? He was betrothed to me, after all.

But what was his connection to Tasha? A lover?

No, that couldn't be it.

Dimitri would have told me...right?

"Princess Rose." Tasha greeted me with a wide smile. "Your dress is beautiful!"

"Thanks," I said, perhaps a little shortly.

"How are you holding up?" Tasha continued, "the party must be stressful."

For a moment, I thought she knew about our conflict and the tension between Dimitri and I but then realized that she was just talking about the usual pressures.

"Oh, I'm fine." I answered though it was far from the truth. Eyeing the champagne glasses in Dimitri's hand, I added pointedly, "Dying of thirst though."

"Sorry," Dimitri apologized immediately, handing me a glass. "Tasha distracted me."

Tasha laughed as I tried not to scowl. Did he realize that the sentence could be misconstrued in so many ways?

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Dimka." Tasha mocked, using his stupid nickname with a familiarity that did not sit well with me. "I'll try to not distract you again."

Dimitri chuckled, his eyes bright as he looked at his...what? Friend? Ex?

"Well," I said with a smile that even I knew looked fake. I couldn't stand around watching them flirt like that. "Now that I have what I came for-" I tilted my glass slightly. "-I'll take my leave."

"Oh Rose, don't go." Tasha appealed while Dimitri's eyes reflected confusion. She skipped the usual 'princess' even though I hadn't asked her to, as though we've been friends for ages. "I've always wanted to meet you."

I raised my eyebrows, mourning the fact that I couldn't raise both together. Dimitri's lips curved up as though he knew what I was thinking.

That bastard.

"I've heard a lot about you, Rose." Tasha continued. "You've always stood up for women everywhere. I hope you know you're an inspiration to all of us."

Was this woman serious? I wanted to hate her but she was making it hard.

"Wow." I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear as I digested her words. "That means a lot, Princess. Thank you."

"Call me Tasha," she said and I was hard pressed to not return the favor.

"Tasha is also a huge campaigner for women's rights." Dimitri told me. "Thanks to her, Yavana's council has 39% reservation for women."

Damn. Double damn. While I did not like the way he was praising her, I couldn't deny that I had a new found respect for her.

"That's great," I told her, not having to force a smile anymore. "We need to do all that we can to survive in this world of men."

Tasha laughed and agreed, gripping Dimitri's arm.

I think I narrowed my eyes at them.

Dimitri mistook my expression to possibly mean that he was one of those men controlling the world. Suppressing a smile, he said, "you have my full support."

At that moment, Adrian and Viktoria appeared next to us. Adrian was grinning, holding Viktoria by arm. The latter was scowling mildly at Adrian, not looking pleased to be dragged around by him.

A twinge of relief shot through me at their presence.

"Are we interrupting?" Adrian asked innocently.

Both Viktoria and I snorted at the same time and then looked at each other with a grin.

"Of course not," Tasha said easily, greeting them both.

After that, there were only forced conversations; the air remaining awkward between us. I didn't care to diffuse it as I would have, sipping my champagne silently while my mind was busy pondering over the connection between Tasha and Dimitri. On his part, Dimitri didn't care to talk to Adrian, preferring to respond only when addressed directly. Tasha and Viktoria didn't seem to feel the oddity, however, and chatted merrily when Adrian kept trying to draw me into the conversation.

When Viktoria left, my discomfort grew.

I felt a rush of affection for Adrian when he remained by my side. If he hadn't been there, I knew I would have made some snide comments while watching Tasha and Dimitri interact in that easy way of theirs.

I couldn't say that Tasha was not likable. She was very pleasant and I knew I'd like her a lot if it hadn't been for the fact that she was definitely interested in Dimitri.

It was evident in the way she looked at him, the way she tossed her hair over her shoulder and smiled when he so much as looked at her. Not to mention that blatantly flirty tone she used when talking to him.

Was I reading too much into this?

I didn't know.

I also didn't know what Dimitri felt but I knew for sure that there was nothing going on between them.

I trusted him so much at least.

But what about his feelings? Did he like her?

It was hard to tell. For instance, when the topic changed to one of the many grand parties that Lord Tyrion of Westeros threw often, Dimitri confessed that he'd never been to one.

Tasha laughed and retorted, "Of course you haven't been to one, Dimka. You're always so busy that you don't know how to have fun."

Dimitri rolled his eyes. "I think you and I have a very different definition of fun, Tasha."

"You work too hard," she shot back and Dimitri immediately denied it.

"Oh, so you don't talk to Ivan for hours daily?" Tasha asked with an air of one who knew the answer. "In fact, I bet that you spent at least an hour talking to Ivan today, even though it's supposed to be your party."

Dimitri sheepishly admitted to it.

Happy at being proved right, Tasha rubbed his arm in sympathy but the move was a little less friendly and a lot more flirty.

That was the last straw for me.

"I'm sure you both have a lot to catch up on," I told them with a forced smile. My eyes remained on Tasha's, knowing that I would snap if I looked at Dimitri. "Adrian and I will leave you to it."

"Yes," Adrian agreed wholeheartedly. "After all, we have a lot to catch up on too, Rose." Adrian put an arm around me and started to lead me away. "Did I tell you that I finally finished that painting you liked..."


Dimitri.

"Dimka?" Tasha frowned when Adrian and Rose left my line of sight. "Is everything okay?"

I nodded with a small smile, not seeing the point in telling Tasha something I hardly understood myself.

Why had Rose left like that? She seemed uncomfortable and angry. It was like she was my mirror, reflecting the exact emotions I'd been feeling. Why did she feel like that? Why did I feel like that?

All I knew was that I did not like her proximity to Adrian. What was going on between those two anyway?

My mind was in a mess, something that rarely happened with me. I've always had my emotions sorted neatly, kept in different compartments and labeled with a note on how to conceal them. Never has been been such a storm in my head, uprooting all my tucked away thoughts and creating one huge jumble that I couldn't even begin to untangle yet.

It was Rose, I knew that.

Rose was this proverbial storm.

When did everything get so complicated? One minute Rose and I are trying to find common ground and the next, everything was in ashes. How could I hope to solve anything when I was so confused?

"Dimka?" Tasha shook my arm lightly, looking worried.

Smiling at her concern, I tried to reassure her and concentrate on having a decent conversation with one of my closest friends.

I'd been a really long time since I'd seen Tasha.

Despite our countries being rivals, we'd become friends in one of the many meetings we'd been to on a global platform. She was genuine and honest and knew her brother, the king of Yavana, was wrong in his stance against Russovia. She was similar to Rose in being temperamental and standing up for herself but she was all grace and manners while Rose only grudgingly put on a mask of politeness. Besides, that fire that always seemed to burn within Rose were mere sparks seen seldom in Tasha.

It was wrong to compare two great women like that but these days, Rose was pretty much always in my thoughts and it wasn't easy to not compare her with her peers like Tasha.

"You seem really distracted," Tasha noted softly, making me sigh. "What is it, Dimka?"

I wanted to tell her, I did but-

My attention was drawn to Rose across the hall. She was making her way into the terrace bordering the hall and Adrian was close behind her. As I watched, he placed his hand on her back to lead her out.

I'd had enough.

I needed to speak to her, to find out what Adrian was to her.

I didn't like their closeness and I didn't trust him at all.

Especially not around my betrothed.

"I'll catch you later, okay?" I told Tasha, handing her my champagne flute and leaving before she could reply.


Rose

My heart raced, my fingers twisting together in frustration.

This was hell.

What on earth was going on between Dimitri and Tasha and why was I so bothered by it?

All I kept seeing were her fingers on him, massaging his arm, grasping his hand-

Ugh! I needed to get a grip…

Is this what jealousy felt like?

I felt a sudden pang of sympathy to anyone and everyone who'd ever lived through this feeling.

It was agony!

My mind helpfully interjected various pictures of Dimitri and Tasha together with newspaper articles I'd read about how Tasha was Dimitri's closest friend and probably more...

One article went on to note that they had transparent chemistry and would make a beautiful couple.

Another article bet its readers that they were hooking up but keeping it a secret to avoid media attention. Yet another had speculated about their babies.

Why did I have to read it? It had been weeks ago- when the betrothal was first announced. I'd been reading everything I could to form an opinion about my betrothed.

No, looking at the media reports had been a wrong idea!

At that time, any news of Dimitri and Tasha was just a minor annoyance, contributing to my ever growing argument against the betrothal.

But now-?

After that near kiss on the waterfalls? After those thousand moments we'd spent together?

But he couldn't care less, could he? No, all that earlier "Rose, we need to talk" was bullshit! He probably wanted to yell at me some more-

"Rose?"

Startled, I whipped around to see Adrian by my side, observing me keenly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, emerald eyes lit up in concern.

I looked away from him and around the small balcony I'd escaped to. At the moment, it was conveniently empty.

"I'm fine," I told Adrian, my response automatic.

He shook his head. "No, you're not."

I looked at him silently for a moment before asking, "What would you do if your betrothed broke a promise she made to you?"

Adrian frowned. "Did Belikov break a promise he-"

I held up a hand to silence him. "Answer the question, Adrian."

Adrian cocked his head a little, observing me keenly. "I suppose I'd ask her why."

"That's it!" I exclaimed, gesturing violently. "You would ask why. Damn it! Anyone would ask why."

"Rose, what's-?"

"You wouldn't treat her like crap, would you?" I asked him beseechingly.

He looked a little surprised but answered nonetheless. "No, of course not."

I exhaled, looking at him with a smile. "You're a good man, Adrian Ivashkov."

He laughed, finding some sort of amusement in my frank confession.

Adrian was good. He cared for me, unlike others I knew.

He actually wanted me.

Why couldn't I just want him back? Life would have been so much easier.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Adrian whispered, much closer to me than he'd been before.

I shook my head slowly, looking into his emerald eyes.

For some reason, those emerald orbs seemed to represent an easy life. Calm, nice, sweet life.

So unlike the turbulent dark eyes that were as deep and mysterious as the ocean. A life of turbulence as rough as the sea…

Adrian raised his hand to gently tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.

I looked at him contemplatively, my mind still on Dimitri. It was only when he dipped his head that I came to my senses.

He'd been about to kiss me!

"Adrian!" I hissed, stepping back.

Adrian looked at me with a defeated expression. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking-"

I looked at me for a moment before exhaling harshly. "It's okay. I shouldn't have...I know how you feel and-"

"-and that's not how you feel," he finished morosely.

I looked at him sadly. "I wish I did."

Adrian frowned suddenly. "What on earth is going on between you and Belikov? I've never seen you like this before."

My eyes stung as I turned away. "Too much, Adrian. Too much."

Adrian was quiet for a moment, no doubt thinking over the small things I'd told him and piercing it all together.

"You broke some kinda promise you made," Adrian started. "-and he's pissed at you for that."

I nodded.

Adrian whistled lowly. "Wow. Belikov doesn't get pissed easy."

I laughed hollowly. "You're telling me."

Adrian dragged a hand through his hair. "I don't know what to say, Rose. Despite everything, that man is my king. A good one at that. I hate him for taking you away but-"

"But what?"

"-but you clearly like each other." Adrian finished.

I snorted in surprise. "He hates me."

To my surprise, Adrian simply shook his head. "He doesn't. His eyes were on you the entire evening-"

"His eyes were on Natasha!" I exclaimed, a little too loudly.

Clapping a hand over my mouth in the very next moment, I glanced around to see if anyone had heard me.

Nope, the balcony was still deserted.

"So, that's what's this is about." Adrian looked like he'd solved a great mystery. "You're jealous!"

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are." Adrian grinned widely. "Which is foolish of you but you are jealous."

"No, I-" I trailed off as another part of his sentence registered in my head. "Wait, foolish? Did you see that woman?"

"She has nothing on you," Adrian said seriously. "Belikov knows that."

"So you say."

"So everyone says. It's known that he's never had an interest in Tasha."

"I'd read stuff that claim the contrary."

Adrian scoffed. "The media is crazy. You believe them over me, the person who's seen them together more than you have? Russovian citizen here, remember?"

I wanted to believe him, I did but I knew I needed to hear Dimitri tell me that himself.

"That's not the only problem," I told Adrian. "We had a huge fight and now, we're barely speaking."

"You'll work it out," Adrian said confidently. "You'll see."

Just then, the door to the balcony opened and my distant uncle and aunt walked inside. They looked at us in confusion so I introduced them to Adrian and subtly encouraged the latter to walk away.

He did but not before giving me a thumbs up.

Soon, the children of said uncle and aunt joined us and once again, I went back to playing hostess. More people tricked in steadily and more forced conversations happened.

When I finally got a quiet moment to myself, my mind reverted back to Dimitri.

Always Dimitri.

Speak of the devil! A hand closed around my arm suddenly and pulled me around.

Dimitri.

Why was it that when I was brooding over my problems, the source of all those problems was the one to interrupt me?

I hadn't expected Dimitri to come looking for me, not when he was so busy flirting with Tasha. But there he was, his face betraying nothing as he stood before me. But I could almost sense his agitation.

He was not pleased.

"Do you have a moment?" he asked, as if he had not just pulled me around to talk.

I looked around at the guests lingering around the terrace; some of them were already looking at us curiously.

I smiled at them apologetically and turned back to Dimitri. "I don't think this is the time or place for any sort of conversation, Dimitri."

"Isn't it overdue?" he asked with a sardonic tint to his words.

My hackles raised.

"Whose fault is that?" I sniped.

"If I say mine, can we talk?" Dimitri retorted. Had he always been so sarcastic?

"I don't like you right now." I said childishly as Dimitri grasped my arm again and led me into the hall.

"Let's find your parents and excuse ourselves," he said and I loosened my arm from his grip.

"Why would you think that they'll let us go?" I asked him, knowing how my mother would react.

"We had a big day tomorrow," Dimitri stated as his eyes scanned the hall. He started marching in the direction of my parents who stood talking to a mixed group of people from both the countries.

"So?" Again, I couldn't bring myself to resort to politeness.

"So," he said, mimicking my tone. "We need rest. Hence, we're leaving."

I watched, stupefied as he smoothly extracted permission for my parents and then from his mother. They seemed to buy his excuse; hook, line and sinker.

"You're good," I admitted grudgingly as we started to walk out of the hall.

But we stopped the very next moment when Neal's voice was heard over the microphone: "Ladies and gentlemen, may I please have your attention? Dinner's being served in the Nishala hall that's adjacent to this one. Please proceed to the hall through the door to your left."

People started moving in the direction Neal had indicated. But he wasn't done with his announcement. "We've arranged a little surprise for everyone below thirty-five."

Mom frowned at him. Catching her eyes, he grinned smugly: "There's no need to worry, we're not hosting an orgy...even though I did want to throw one."

Some people laughed as Neal winked.

"What does he have planned?" Dimitri asked me.

I shrugged simply. "I have no idea. Neal's spontaneous like that."

Neal interrupted our discussion. "Everyone older than thirty five, kindly proceed to Nishala hall."

Dimitri and I stepped out of the way as people started making their way out. Dad shot me a questioning look as he guided some people to the door. I shrugged again because I really didn't know what was going on.

When the hall cleared and only the youth remained, Neal's grin became positively gleeful. "How do you guys feel about having our own little party?"

There was a massive uproar as everyone cheered.

I clapped happily, delighted at this turn of events. Not only had it been ages since I'd last attended a decent party, Neal's idea was also getting me away from Dimitri's snippy mood. What right did he have to be snippy, anyway?

As I expected, Dimitri did not look pleased.

"Do we have to?" he asked me.

"What are you, forty?" I snapped. "Learn to enjoy for once."

Dimitri shot me an unimpressed look.

"You have one hour," Neal said, holding up his watch. "Eat your dinner, change your dress and get ready to paaartay!"

I whopped, grinning at some of my cousins who stood nearby.

"Rose, Dimitri." Neal called through the mike. "You're the guests of honor so yes, your presence is kinda necessary, Dimitri."

The people who knew him laughed when Dimitri sighed in exasperation.

"Chop, chop, people! Move along now." Neal gestured to the door. "Come back in an hour."

Dimitri turned on his heel and left abruptly, muttering under his breath.

Fun time indeed.

Smirking, I walked over to Viktoria. "Make sure your brother shows up." I told her strictly. "And please tell him to not wear one of those stupid formal suits. It's a party for God's sake."

Viktoria giggled. "I'll try, Rose. I'll try."

"That's all I ask. See you later."

When she left, I made my way over to Neal.

"When did you plan all this?" I demanded, watching as he directed a team of cleaners to spruce the place up.

"Ages ago," Neal confessed, motioning over to another group of smartly dressed people who'd just arrived. "Look, I need to go help them jazz this place up. Don't worry, okay? I have it all handled. Just concentrate on having fun."

I grinned, giving him a quick hug. "Thank you! I'll see you in an hour."


AN: So, it's party time with a jealous, pissed off Dimitri and equally frustrated Rose; she seems to think this party would actually be enjoyable. Do you agree with her? :p

I'm very, very excited for you all to read the next chapter! I don't think I've ever written such a- well, I should probably keep it a surprise ;)

Thanks for reading! :)

P.S: As for the Neal love, thank you but I've borrowed a lot from Neal Caffrey's personality from White Collar. Credits to the creators of Neal ;)

P.P.S: I know Tasha is a controversial character. However, I've never been a fan of painting her in a bad light from the start because that's not how she was in VA. She was kind, funny and a badass before LS. While I do hate her for being so flirty and handsy with Dimitri in Frostbite and then for what she did in LS, I wanted to stick to canon in her case :)

P.P.P.S (Does it even exist?!): For all those interested, check out the song "Nahin samne tu" of the old bollywood movie Taal. The video is a little ridiculous but the music is what I use to get in the mood for this story :)