The Beauty and the Beast (1st book of Fantasy Series)

Chapter 43- Belle's POV

The rest of the day and night flew by until it was the next day, and there was a flurry of excitement and joy as if the whole kingdom knew that I was going on a date with their king.

The pack did what they could to clean the whole kingdom and prepare a meal for us, and I tried to help but was shooed away on multiple occasions because neither me nor the king were allowed to help.

I had been amused but allowed myself to be "free" for the day and not lift a finger to help them, even though I had taken care of my horse and helped with my dog.

It was strange to have people at my beck and call, even though I knew that when they were human, it would be a little more than it was now...

However, that meant that I had to love him enough to break the curse that the Moon Goddess had set on him and have him to love me in return...

I moved a hand through my hair and sighed before I shook my head and pursed my lips in annoyance, not knowing if I did love him or not.

However, he made my heart grow warm and brought a smile to my face when I thought about him. He was charming, especially now that he didn't have that anger or grief holding him down like a thick cloud covering everything in its wake, even though there was something still bothering him, and I made a mental note to ask him tonight.

There was a knock on my door, and I looked that way and slowly blinked while I stayed silent.

"Your Highness?" someone asked from the other side of the door before they knocked on the door again. "Are you in there?"

"Yes, yes, I am here," I said and nodded. I stood from the chair that I was in and cleared my throat while I walked over to the door. "I am coming."

"Oh, no, no, Your Highness, you don't have to," the person said, and I had a feeling they shook their head. "I can open the door if that is ok with you."

I bit back a small chuckle. "Are your hands full?" I asked. "Also, I am already standing and am near the door. I can get it."

"Bu-"

I opened the door before they could finish their sentence, and I saw one of the Wolves standing there with a dress in their hands. "Hi," I said, and the Wolf's eyes grew wide before they bowed. "How are you?"

The wolf, a female, instantly bowed and looked away from me. "I am good," she said, her voice barely above a whisper before she cleared her throat and shifted on her feet. "Thank you, Your Highness."

I furrowed my brows and cocked my head while I looked at her, amused and a little confused as to why she kept calling me "Your Highness." ""Your Highness?"" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question, and she nodded in confirmation. "Why are you calling me "Your Highness?""

The wolf's cheeks would have grown red if she didn't have any fur, and she shifted on her feet while she looked away from me. She cleared her throat and looked down, not able to meet my gaze. "Because you are the next in line to be queen," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "My apologies if it upsets you, You-" She caught herself before she called me "Your Highness," and I bit back a small chuckle while I shook my head.

"Belle is fine," I said, "and I do not mind you calling me, "Your Highness," but I think you might not want to do it in front of His Majesty though." I couldn't help but subconsciously call Reif by his title, even though I had been calling him Reif for the most part.

The wolf looked at me and stared at me with wide eyes. She didn't say a word, and I could tell that she was confused and wondered why I didn't want her to call me "Your Highness" in front of the king. "Is everything ok between you two?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.