Chapter 1

Juniper, a rebellious princess, follows her deceased boyfriend into the underworld. Little did she know that she would become one of the candidates to marry the Underworld Prince.

Now, she must compete against 20 women from various worlds for the hand of a man she doesn't even want. This is a nightmare...

Luckily, her grandmother has sent her an assistant — a ghost wolf! But in reality, he is a ghost boy...

Juniper's adventures in the underworld and her entanglements with these boys will lead her to places she never imagined. Where will her journey take her?

Chapter 0001

Soldiers carry two caskets ahead of me into the Goddess’s temple, but I only keep my eyes fastened on the one that holds the body of the only man I’ve ever loved.

The only man I’ve ever kissed, even. I was supposed to marry him today.

The wolf in my soul raises her snout to the sky and gives a long, desperate howl.

“Juniper? Sweetheart, are you…are you all right?” my mom whispers, stepping close to my side in the long parade of people, taking my hand and giving it a squeeze. She keeps her voice low. She’s the Queen, after all, and I’m a Princess. People are watching.

Mom’s eyes move anxiously over my drawn face and then over the wedding gown that I’m wearing, which I’ve dyed black. She gave me a simple grey dress to wear to today’s state funeral for the two young Cadets who were recently killed in battle. When I’d shown up wearing this instead, my entire family had stared at me in shock.

Of course, I don’t expect them to understand – how could they?

Redman Blythe and I were engaged in secret, after all.

God, how ironic is it that the enemy killed him only days before he was supposed to steal me away from the palace and this royal life that I hate?

That the day we were supposed to be married, we bury him instead?

“Junie?” mom says, tugging on my hand and drawing my attention back to her as tears well on my lashes, threatening to slip down my cheeks. She frowns at me, confused and desperate to help, as we follow the coffins into the Goddess’s temple. “Do you…want to take a minute?”

Mom gestures towards a little alcove set aside for private prayers and I nod, stepping towards it, not wanting the press to get pictures of the royal family’s youngest Princess sobbing her eyes out. Mom murmurs something about coming with me, but I beg her to let me have just a minute alone.

I glance at my mom over my shoulder as I rush to the alcove. Dad and my brother Mark likewise stand with her, looking after me with worry, and I do my best to give them a smile – especially my wonderful mom, who is so good to me. But I fail, my lips trembling as I turn away.

I sit down hard on one of the cushioned benches, burying my head in my hands, my shoulders shaking as I sob, the tears again rushing down my cheeks. The news of Blythe’s death in battle a few days ago took me by total shock – because he shouldn’t have even been there. He was just a Cadet at Alpha Academy – still in training.

But the war has grown so dire they called even the least trained warriors to the front.

And then he died, and my world fell to pieces.

Blythe – I never thought I’d fall in love, but he completely swept me off my feet. He was just so wonderful – so tall, and handsome, and funny, and just like me he didn’t care about any of the trappings of royal life.

He was going to save me from it. Take me away in secret, marry me so my family no longer had any grounds to pull me back to my old life.

We were going to be so happy, live by our own rules.

And now I’m here, all alone.

My wolf presses herself warm against my heart, trying to give me hope, and I sniff hard, sitting up straight and wiping my wrist across my face because I am so, so sick of crying. I shake my head against my grief, gritting my teeth, hating it - hating the entire universe for taking him away from me, wishing desperately that there was something I could do to fix it.

“Anything,” I say, my words resonating deep in my throat. “I would do anything to fix this – to bring Redman Blythe back into my life.” And even as I shut my eyes, snapping my head to the side with the fervency of my wish, I know with a wild desperation that it’s true – that I’d burn worlds to the ground to have him again in my arms.

A cold breeze blows through the room and my eyes widen when my alcove grows suddenly dim, the noise and music of the funeral becoming hushed, indistinct. I gasp, my breath coming short in my throat when I realize that while the Temple itself is still full of rich winter daylight…

My alcove is shrouded in darkness.

“Anything, Princess?”

I jump nearly out of my skin as I turn towards the dark purr of a voice, my eyes fastening in sudden terror on the hooded man standing suddenly before me. The wind blows the edges of his dark cloak, his face cast so deeply in shadow that I cannot see his eyes.

“Wh-what?” I gasp.

“You’re perfectly dressed for an Underworld wedding,” he continues, his voice silky and low. “Didn’t you know that, when you chose a black wedding gown”

“What are you talking about?” I can’t tear my eyes away from this mysterious figure, from the way his mouth quirks up in a wicked smile.

“The God of Death has heard your prayer,” the man says. “He wishes to make you an offer.”

I just stare, my lips parting, hope blooming darkly in my chest.

“Come with me,” the man says, holding out a hand. “We will bring you to your Underworld groom. And in exchange,” his smirk deepens, “we offer you the chance to bring your lover back to life. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” I breathe, climbing suddenly to my feet and moving towards this man. “Yes, I would do anything to bring him back to life!”

“Then come,” he says, laughing low reaching his hand a little closer. “Let us make a bargain.”

I reach for the man’s hand, desperate to leap at this chance, but by wolf nips at my soul, bidding me to be cautious. I hesitate before my fingers touch this man’s palm, glancing back towards the room where I see my mother frowning, starting towards me.

“What – what are the terms of the bargain?” I whisper, anxious, whipping my head back to the man.

The corner of his pale lips turns up in a smirk. “I thought you’d do anything, Princess Juniper Sinclair.”

I glare at this man, fierce, not willing to play. “I will not make a fool’s bargain,” I snap. “You want me to go to the Underworld and get married? And then I have…have a chance to bring Redman Blythe back to life?”

The hooded man gives a simple shrug. “It is just a little game we’d have you play; the God of Death likes to be kept entertained. If you win, you will be granted a wish for anything in the world – including the plucking of a soul from the underworld and returning it to life. If you lose,” he shrugs, “you lose.”

I begin to pant and my wolf turns an anxious circle in my soul as we realize that he’s offering too much. Marry Blythe in the Underworld and then play some game to win his life back? There has to be a catch…but still – if there’s a chance that I can save him?

“What if I lose?” I whisper, terrified. “How do I know this isn’t rigged?”

“My Lord grows impatient,” the man growls, wind whipping again through the room as he holds his hand out closer to me. “My Lord offers no false bargains. Accept the terms now or the offer disappears. Forever.”

“Juniper?” I hear my mother call, her voice strangely muffled as she draws close to the alcove.

I gasp, knowing that my only chance is now.

If there’s a chance to get Blythe back? I have to take it.

I grit my teeth, shoving my hand hard against the man’s palm. “Deal,” I snap, fierce and determined to save my love if I can. No matter what the cost.

The hooded man laughs, tugging me close to his body and wrapping his arms around me.

“Juniper, no!” my mother screams, bursting into the darkness, reaching for me.

But it’s too late.

In a sudden rush of wind and shadows, I’m gone.

Chapter 0002

My breath pants from my lips as the wind and darkness rips around us. We only travel for a few terrifying moments before my feet hit hard against stone and light returns to the world, however dim.

I groan in horror at what I see – at the black sky that stretches for miles in all directions over the black marble terrace on which I stand. A sky lit purple at the horizon, with not a single star in the heavens. But three moons hang low and heavy in the darkness – one round and huge and orange, the others smaller but equally bleak.

“Where…where are we?” I breathe, terrified.

“You are in the Underworld,” says my captor, grinning at my shock and surprise. “What did you expect?”

I just pant, staring at him, completely overwhelmed. This can’t be real.

I shake myself, though, remembering my purpose. “Take me to Redman Blythe,” I order, lifting my chin like the Princess I am. “I want to see my groom.”

“Your groom?” the man says, leaning forward towards me with a wicked grin. “Little Princess, that boy is not your groom. You came to the Underworld to compete for the honor of marrying Prince Orion, son of the God of Death.” He gives a mocking little bow. “It is a great honor to be a candidate in my master’s game.”

“What?” I breathe, horrified and confused at once. “T-the Prince? A game!?”

The man laughs at me, straightening from his bow. “I was quite clear, Princess – it’s not my fault if you didn’t listen closely. You have come to the Underworld to be wed –“

“To marry my fiancé!” I burst out, livid. “Redman Blythe! Who is…is dead, who is here! Why the hell would I come to the Underworld to marry someone I don’t even know!?”

“You came,” the man snaps, “to compete with twenty other women drawn from the distances of time and space to be the Prince’s bride. What you do with the prize given at the end – should you win – is none of my concern. Though,” he tilts his head to the side here, crossing his arms.

“It would be rather traitorous and ironic for you to marry the Prince and then use the wish he gives you as his wedding gift to restore your lover to life. Not to mention a waste, as you’ll live here. Forever.”

I stare at this man in shock for a single moment before I bare my teeth. “This was a trick.”

The man just laughs and shakes his head, truly entertained at my rage.

“No trick,” he says, “just twenty girls, each…unique in their lineage, their abilities. Twenty weeks shall pass, with one girl eliminated each week. And at the end, one bride for the Prince – to rule over the Underworld at his side. And, of course, to produce heirs and continue the master’s dark lineage.”

I snarl at the idea that I’m expected to compete for the honor of being broodmare for some boy in his horrible place.

“I did not,” I seethe, stepping towards him and lifting my chin to renew my glare, “come here to play some ridiculous Bachelor of Death nonsense! You will take home right now!”

“I will take you nowhere,” the man growls, closing the distance between us in a single step and snagging me by the chin. “You have agreed to the terms and you will play. A girl does not make a bargain with the God of Death and simply walk away from it because she decides, too late, that she does not like the terms.”

I stare at this man in shock as I suddenly realize that I have made a terrible, foolish, rash mistake.

And may have paid with my life for the chance to save Blythe.

“Am I dead?” I whisper.

“No, child,” he purrs, stroking one finger along my jaw. “You are very much alive. Precisely as he wants you.”

I stare up at this man, shocked and terrified. My wolf howls desperately in my soul.

The man takes his hand from my face and takes a step away, sighing as if he’s bored. “Tomorrow evening you go to the Palace for the Opening Consort Selection Ceremony, where you will meet the God of Death and the Prince of the Underworld. Try to remember,” he sneers, “that this is a great honor and thousands would kill to take your place –“

“Let them!” I burst out, casting a hand to the side.

He snarls, sharp, cutting me off. “Clothing will be sent for you. Wear it. Do not disgrace yourself.”

He turns then and strides across the wide and luxurious bedroom attached to the terrace, heading for the door.

“Please!” I call, gathering my gown into my hands and stumbling a few frantic steps after him. “Are you – are you just going to leave me here!?”

He flicks his eyes up to me. “The God of Death again hears your prayer,” he murmurs, “and does not wish you to be lonely and afraid. He has given you permission to visit Nightgate, where the other mortals dwell.”

“What?” I whisper. “Where is that?”

My mouth falls open when I discover that we’re in…a tavern. I stare around in shock at the patrons who gather moodily around tables and the worn bar, their conversations lit only by low flickering candles.

The man steps away from me. “Call for me when you’re ready to leave.”

“What?” I gasp, spinning towards me.

He just gives me that foul smirk and disappears.

I turn back to the room, suddenly feeling…incredibly awkward.

But I set my jaw, lifting my chin and looking around, determined to get answers.

I stride over to the bar, pulling myself up onto a stool and looking around for the bartender, figuring that’s as good a place as any to start. I bite my lip, my mind whirring over everything that’s happened in the past hour, let alone the past week, the past few months.

“Well,” says a voice to my left. I glance over at the man on the stool next to me and do a double-take as he pushes a hood away from his face, revealing silky brown hair and rich coffee-colored eyes that scan me from head to foot. “You’re a bit…overdressed for a place like this.”

But I don’t have any words, my lips just parting slightly as I take in what can only be described as…

The most handsome man I have ever seen in my entire life.

Chapter 0003

I jump and blush when the bartender clears his throat, because I’d been so busy staring at the tall, broad-shouldered stranger that I didn’t even notice that the bartender arrived.

“All right, little lady,” the bartender says, smirking at me and leaning against the bar. “What’ll it be?”

“Um,” I say, ”I’ll have a glass of white wine?”

“There’s no wine here, missy,” the bartender says with a sigh, leaning forward towards me. “There are no grapes. What, newly arrived from an earth dimension?”

I just stare at him because…what’s an earth dimension?

The bartender smirks at me and shakes his head, glancing back at my neighbor. “She must be brand spanking new.” The stranger hums in agreement.

I scowl a little, folding my hands in my lap, embarrassed. “Well, what can I have?”

“Liquor,” the man says, giving me a nod. “Or, what the locals call beer but…” he grimaces and leans towards me. “If it’s your first day in the underworld you’ll want to…avoid that.”

“Okay,” I say, straightening my shoulders. “I’ll have…whatever you recommend.”

The bartender nods and produces a short glass. He sloshes some clear liquid into it from a cloudy bottle, pushing it towards me before he walks away.

“To your first day,” the stranger says, lifting his glass towards me.

I turn towards the stranger, curious, studying his face as I lift my glass and clink it against his. My eyes eagerly move over the sharp line of his jaw, his high cheekbones, his dark, slightly glowering brows…

But then I blush, remembering that I’m here in the Underworld to find my fiancé and bring him back to life. Not to ogle strangers.

“Bottoms up,” the stranger murmurs, smirking a bit at my pink cheeks. I do as he does, lifting the glass to my mouth and tossing the liquor back –

But I gasp immediately as the liquor absolutely singes its way down my throat. I sputter and choke, spilling the rest of the glass down my front in my desperation to get it away from me as I cough and hack so hard I see stars, trying desperately to draw breath.

“Whoa, girl!” the stranger says, patting me on the back with one hand as the other goes to my shoulder, keeping me on my stool.

Red-faced and still coughing into my fist, I glance up at him, both embarrassed and pissed. “What the hell is this!?” I rasp, gesturing towards my now-empty glass.

“It’s shadowroot liquor,” the man says, and I scowl again when I see him smirking. “Pretty much the only thing that grows here.”

“And you didn’t think to warn me?” I gasp more air down, starting to feel my head spin.

“Didn’t think you wanted to be warned,” he murmurs, signaling the bartender to refill his glass. “After all, a girl who sits at the bar in a black wedding gown but no groom in sight seems like she’s kind of…on a mission.”

I sigh sharply through my nose, looking down at my dress, now covered in sticky liquor. “Don’t get me started.”

“Don’t need to,” the stranger says as the bartender makes his way over. “I already know. You’re one of the Prince’s twenty brides, aren’t you?”

I whip my head up to stare at stranger in complete shock as he orders two more glasses of liquor, requesting that the bartender add some cherries to mine to make it more palatable. The bartender hesitates, glancing at me, but the stranger just waves a hand.

“How…” I whisper, my words coming back to me as the handsome stranger turns his attention back to me. “How the hell did you know that?”

“We don’t get a lot of new people here,” he murmurs, looking around the bar at the collection of particularly dull and despondent patrons. “And suddenly a bride shows up, alone, the day before the Ceremony?” He shrugs like it wasn’t much of a puzzle.

“Well,” I say slowly, looking askance at the drink the bartender puts before me, which is now the color of a garnet, a few cherries sunk at the bottom.

Eagerly I begin and find that my tongue is looser than I thought it would be. I spill everything out to this strange man, who lets me talk unimpeded. I tell him all of my great lost love, who died in the war – of wearing this dress to Blythe’s funeral, even though no one understood that I’m half widow half bride – of rashly accepting this horrible deal so I can save him – of finding myself here in the Underworld, of all terrible places.

“So, I was tricked!” I say, gesturing wide with the hand that now holds my half-full glass of cherries and liquor. The handsome stranger smirks, reaching out to catch my wrist so I don’t splash it everywhere. I frown as I look at his hand, and then at the drink because…when did I pick that up?

And when did I drink it?

“You were tricked?” he murmurs, putting me back on track.

I turn towards him with a frown.

“And what do you think of this Prince?” he asks, leaning against the bar and raising a brow at me. “No interest in marrying him?”

“Obviously not,” I say, appalled at the idea. “One, because I love my boyfriend, and two,” I swallow hard, suddenly parched, “what kind of loser needs his dad to organize a game so he can get married?”

The stranger huffs out a laugh, his eyes narrowing.

“Seriously he must be like, deeply ugly, in the face,” I say, gesturing towards my own face as I take a sip from my drink. “And boring and stupid with a bad personality. I mean, what kind of pathetic man has to trick twenty girls into a competition for the dubious honor of having his kids!?”

The stranger grins at me, a dark and cunning expression. “So, then you definitely don’t want to marry the Prince?”

“If I wasn’t tied to this stupid deal,” I whisper, leaning towards him and shaking my head, surprised to find that my words are more than slightly slurred, “and the fact that I gotta win to get the wish at the end…I’d run away screaming! I’d rather die than marry that idiot, whoever he is.”

“Well,” the man says, leaning a bit closer now, giving me a smile that shows all of his teeth. “You’re in the Underworld now, aren’t you? Perhaps that can be arranged.”

**

“Okay, little girl,” the bartender says with a sigh, shaking his head at me. “Time for you to get home and sleep this off.”

I wipe roughly at my face with the back of my hand and nearly falling off my stool.The man disappears. “What happened?”

“Shadowroot is about six to eight times stronger than whatever you were drinking on Earth, little lady,” the bartender says, giving me a sad smile. “You gotta watch yourself down here.”

“Hey, who was that guy?” I ask, wrinkling my nose at the bartender and leaning close. “He was cute.”

“Oh, sugar,” the bartender says, leaning forward to pat me on my cheek. “You don’t want to know.”

Chapter 0004

I groan when I wake up in the morning, immediately clutching my pounding head and rolling over in the blankets that are spread beneath me on the bathroom floor.

I pant a little, working my sticky tongue in my mouth, desperate for some water – but god, every time I move it’s agony –

I moan, disgusted with myself and in absolute physical agony. My wolf gives a sad little yip, laying prone in my soul.

A few minutes pass as I clean myself up, brushing my teeth with a toothbrush I find by the sink and guzzling down a few glasses of water. That done, I allow myself to sink back down to the floor, staring up at the black marble ceiling, wondering what the hell I’m supposed to do next.

God, things have gotten very bad very fast, haven’t they?

I mean, I don’t regret coming to save Blythe and I’m still determined to do it, but even if I do win the Prince’s hand and get the wish, I’ll just be sending Blythe back to life when I’m stuck here.

How does that solve anything?

I press my eyes shut, feeling sick and alone and overwhelmed.

I miss my mother with a sudden urgency that surprises me as I remember her face, the fear on it when she saw me make the deal and disappear. Because my family will be frantic now and even if I did want to leave royal life – I never wanted to hurt them.

As I think mournfully of my mother, who I know would do anything to help me right now, I remember quite suddenly that temple I was taken from isn’t dedicated to just any Goddess – it’s to my grandmother, the woman responsible for blessing my mom with her healing magic.

That lineage has got to be good for something, right?

“Um,” I say, sitting up and feeling awkward as I call out to the air around me. “Grandma?”

I look around, feeling foolish when there’s no response from the Goddess, who hasn’t exactly been present in my life. But then I press my eyes shut, thinking that there’s no real harm in a little prayer. “Um, I’m…all alone here and kind of in a sticky situation. I know that you’re busy but…if there’s anything you can do to help me?”

I hold my breath for a second, but when silence reigns I just sigh and lay down on the ground, disappointed and exhausted. My head still pounds so I keep my eyes shut, letting my mind turn over my problems while my body rests.

I start a little at the sound of a windchime tinkling in the air, thinking that’s a bit of a strange accessory for the Underworld. But I let it slip out of my mind, yawning, letting my eyes drift open and turning my head back towards the ceiling.

But the ceiling isn’t there.

No, instead, I find myself staring up into a huge pair of eyes staring curiously down into mine.

I shriek in terror, skittering away from the gigantic blue wolf standing with his muzzle just inches from my face.

He flinches too, leaping back as I scurry to the wall of the bathroom, pressing my back up against it. Panting with fear, I stare at him, completely shocked – because how the hell did a wolf get in here!?

But as he stares back at me I realize that he’s not snarling or even moving towards me. And he’s also not even…real.

My mouth falls open as I peer closer and realize that the wolf is…transparent, and blue, the visible lines of his body and his fur traced out in shining blue and white light. That he’s also a little bit…sparkly. “What…what are you!?”

The wolf lifts one huge paw, moving towards me, and I shriek again, my hands flying out to protect myself.

The wolf jumps at the sound, freezing, and then, hesitating, takes a step back.

We stare at each other for a long time before he sits. And then he lays down, resting his face on his paws with a sigh. I turn my head at him, my face twisting in confusion because…can wolves sigh?

He turns his head, looking away towards the door and I suddenly notice that he has – of all bizarre things – a blue ribbon around his neck.

And attached to it…a note.

Slowly, I force myself to inch towards the wolf, terrified. But he just watches me come, making no move. Keeping an eye on his muzzle, surely filled with razor-sharp teeth, I reach for the ribbon. My fingers pass right through the wolf’s fur where I touch it as if it’s just light and air.

But the ribbon is solid. I untie it, sliding the note off of his neck and into my hands.

Then, fascinated, I plop down on the floor next to the wolf, unfolding the little note and reading it with wide eyes. He lifts his head, likewise interested, peering at the script.

A gift for my granddaughter.

I turn the note over, looking for more but…there’s nothing.

“You’re for me?” I whisper, a little awed, looking up at the wolf.

He huffs, rolling his eyes, but makes no protest.

Cheer and hope fill me and I bite my lip, grinning at my wolf. “Please don’t bite me,” I whisper, leaning forward towards him.

He huffs again, turning his face away like he thinks it’s a stupid request. I hesitate but then stretch my fingers out, trying to stroke his fur. And while I feel the barest tingle on my skin, my fingertips again pass through him as if through air. My own wolf peers at this strange ghost before us, frustrated when she can’t get a whiff of his scent because, of course, it doesn’t exist.

I take a deep breath, grinning at my weird present, getting to my feet and suddenly feeling much better. It can’t mean nothing, right, that the Goddess heard my prayer and listened?

Perhaps things are looking up.

Quite suddenly I want a bath - to be clean and fresh. Once that’s done I’ll figure out what this wolf can do and come up with a plan.

I turn towards the corner of the room where a huge tub sits – nearly the size of a pool and built into the open wall of the terrace. I sigh happily, infused with hope, stepping towards the tub and flipping on the taps to fill it. Then I reach for the laces at the back of my dress.

A nervous whine sounds behind me and my inner wolf turns towards it, curious. But I concentrate on unlacing my gown, which slips down over my shoulders.

“Um!” The word rings out behind me, incredibly anxious.

My eyes flare wide as I spin towards the sound, my jaw dropping open when I see not the ghost wolf standing in the bathroom behind me where I left him.

But, in his place – likewise shining blue and transparent – a boy.

A boy!

I gasp, clutching my dress to my chest, appalled.

“Please,” he says, holding out a hand and grimacing. “You…you might not want to do that.”

Chapter 0005

“Who the hell are you!?” I shout, horrified, stumbling back.

“I’m – I’m the wolf!” the boy sputters, gesturing at his tall, lanky form which is indeed made up of the same shining blue and white light as the wolf.

“You’re a guy!?” I gasp, appalled.

“I…yeah?” he responds, giving an awkward shrug. “I’m…sorry?”

I glance down at my loosened dress and my temper slips its lead. “You asshole!” I snap, striding forward and swatting a hand at him, enraged. “Why didn’t you tell me you’re really a boy before I started to get undressed!? God, you creep –“

He gasps as my hand passes through his incorporeal body, his eyes flaring wide.

“Hey!” he snaps, glaring at me. “I did tell you! And you aren’t even undressed, you just started –“

“You could have told me earlier!” I shout, smacking again even though it doesn’t do anything. “You could have announced it when you first showed up! Ew, I petted you! You –“

“Hey!” he snarls, taking a step towards me and glaring down into my face, his own temper flaring. “I’m new to all of this too! If I’d known I could shift into my human form, obviously I would have done it sooner!”

Something about this makes me pause. “You – you didn’t know?”

“No,” he snaps, standing straight and sketching an ironic bow my way. “Newly dead, your highness – first five minutes as a ghost. So, please forgive me if I also don’t know what the hell is going on!”

“You’re…dead? You’re a ghost?” I ask, my voice a whisper, my eyes moving up and down his body.

He’s tall – almost as tall as my dad and my brothers, but much slimmer than them. And not a boy, I realize, though his features are boyish. No, he’s older than me, somewhere in his twenties. Still, he’s handsome, with dark hair that falls into his face and a long, straight nose. As I look at him, tilting my head to the side, I can’t help but think that it’s rather a shame that he’s dead.

And then my heart sinks as I realize that he had the same fate as Blythe - that they’re both just two young men dead way before their time. Grief sinks in me and I sigh, looking up into the boy’s face, all the anger and vigor going out of me at once.

“Well, who the hell are you?” I grumble, working hard to rekindle my anger so I don’t cry anymore.

“I’m Anton,” he says, his smile softening as he takes in the emotions passing over my face, the grief I’m feeling for him, the confusion for myself. Anton presses a hand to his chest and dips his head. “At your service, highness.”

I sigh, studying him, wishing quite vehemently that neither of us was here in this horrible place. “I’m sorry that you died, Anton.” I say the words very quietly, hoping he takes them as earnestly as I mean them.

Slowly, Anton lifts his eyes to mine. “It was for a good cause, highness,” he says. “I wouldn’t take back the act that made me lose my life.”

I turn my head at him, curious, but when he drops his eyes and looks away, grief sweeping over his features, I let him have his space. Perhaps, later, when it’s not so fresh, he’ll tell me about it.

“How do you know who I am?” I ask.

“What?” He turns his face back to me, confused.

“You called me Juniper,” I say, straightening my shoulders. “How do you know my name? Did my grandmother tell you?”

The ghost boy just stares at me for a long moment. Too long.

I narrow my eyes at him further, my lips pressing tight together, my anger starting to coil again. I mean, is he another trick? Was he not sent by my grandmother, but by someone else eager to see me fail?

“Juniper,” the ghost boy says, his face bursting into a grin. “I mean, to begin, you’re a princess – you’re basically a celebrity. How could I not know who you are?”

I go still for a second but then my shoulders slump in embarrassment. Because of course he’s right. Everyone in Moon Valley – maybe our entire world – knows who I am. A blush flushes across my cheeks and his smile widens.

“But also…yeah,” he shrugs. “Your Grandmother told me she was sending me to you.”

“Really?” I ask, stepping closer, staring up at him. “What happened?”

“Um,” he glances down at me with a little grimace. “Can you like…not be as undressed as you are while we have this conversation?”

I gasp, glancing down at myself, bursting into another blush as I realize that I am kind of just clutching a piece of fabric to my chest. “Oh, go away,” I snarl, shoving at his shoulder and then stumbling a little as – of course – my hand passes right through him.

Anton laughs at me again goodheartedly, stepping away as I straighten up, grinning when he sees my blush deepen. “Listen, I’d love to let you have your privacy, but I don’t think I can go away.”

“What?” I ask, clutching the dress a little tighter.

“Um, I’m like…tied to you, Juniper,” he says with a shrug. “Even when you went a quarter of the way across the room, I felt like…a tug, pulling me with you\. And when you start to go further, it gets…scary. Like if I don’t follow you I’m going to disappear.”

I just gape at him, horrified at the idea that he could just disappear but also…kind of appalled that I apparently can’t be alone anymore.

“How long is the…tether?” I ask, searching for a better word.

“Like a few feet?” he says, grimacing. “I mean, we can experiment with it but,” he shrugs. “I’d prefer not to puff away to dust. I’ve already died once recently. Not trying to…repeat the experience.”

My heart sinks at the joke. Anton tries hard for a smile, but that falls away too.

“Okay,” I say with a sigh, looking longingly at the bath as the taps stop automatically, very much wanting to climb into it.

“Look, I’ll turn around,” he says. “I’ll even like…hum? If you want? So I can’t hear anything?”

I whip my head back to him with a frown. “Why would it matter if you heard something?”

“I don’t know,” he says, his eyes going wide as he spreads his hands out in front of him, “I don’t know what girls do in baths –“

“Oh my god, Anton,” I cry, scowling at him as I storm to the side of the tub.

“You are making this way dirtier than it needs to be, Juniper!” he shouts after me. “I didn’t mean anything like that – I was just being nice, trying to give you privacy –“

“Around, Anton!” I snap, turning to glare at him and twirling my finger in a circle, indicating that he should do the same. “Pets must be obedient, after all. And silent.”

Anton stares at me for a long moment, clearly appalled at being referred to as my pet.

But I just grin at him, a little wicked, and he blinks once before he huffs a low laugh, his face breaking into a smile. “Yes, your highness,” he says, dipping into a mocking little bow with his hands spread wide at his sides.

Chapter 0006

And then, to my distinct pleasure, he sighs and turns around.

“Good boy,” I murmur, making him laugh and shake his head again as I drop my wedding dress to the ground.

The moment I get into the bath, I take a deep breath and duck underneath the steamy water, sinking all the way down to the depths until my ass hits the bottom.

Because I still haven’t found my fiancé, and I’m apparently competing to marry another man, and my grandmother has sent me a pet ghost to…what?

Help me out?

I run out of air before I come up with any answers and push myself to the surface, breathing in deeply and pushing the long strands of my dark hair back from my face.

“You alive in there?” Anton asks, his voice terribly dry.

“Are you?” I return, snappier than I probably mean to be.

But to my surprise and pleasure, he laughs.

“All right,” he says on a sigh. “I walked into that. You were just…under there for a long time.”

“So, fill me in,” I say as I find a lemongrass-scented bar of soap and pull into the bath with me. “What did my grandma say?”

“She said that I’m supposed to be your…” Anton sighs and shakes his head, letting it hang a little. “Your handmaid.”

“My handmaid!?” I burst out laughing, grinning towards the back of Anton’s head.

“Listen, don’t get me started,” he murmurs. “Apparently it’s a loophole – royalty are, historically, allowed to bring the dead spirits of their handmaidens to help serve them in their afterlife. She said to tell you that she heard your prayer and this was the best that she could do.”

A little smile comes to my lips as I listen, because I was feeling very, very alone just a little bit ago. But knowing that my grandmother has an eye on me and is sending me aid? Honestly, it helps more than I thought it could.

“So, what’s your like…job?” I ask, glancing over at his glowing blue form.

He laughs, I think a little rueful. “Your idea is as good as mine, kid. I’m just supposed to help. What do you need help with?”

I purse my lips, considering, flicking my eyes over to him. “How do I know I can trust you?” I ask, suspicious. Honestly, after last night, my willingness to trust strangers I meet in the underworld is very, very low.

Anton just laughs and stars to turn, making me squeak in horror and dip my head lower into the bath so that just my eyes peer over the edge.

“Oh for heaven’s sake, Juniper, I can’t see anything –“

“Seriously!? I ask you how I can trust you and you immediately betray my trust by trying to sneak a peak!?”

“Sneak a…a peak?” he asks, crossings his arms and fighting his grin. “You seriously think that’s my priority right now?”

I just narrow my eyes and glance around, noting that the sides of the pool-like tub are indeed quite high. I give up my offended stance and lift my chin higher, letting him see the frown on my mouth. “How do I know I can trust you, ghost boy?”

He just smirks at me. “You can’t know for sure. You should just do it.”

“What!?”

“Just do it,” he says, laughing a little. “Trust me. I’m trustworthy.”

“Which is exactly what an underworld minion would say,” I murmur, suspicious.

“Nah, I’m cool,” Anton sighs, brushing my suspicion off like it can’t possibly matter. “But come on – fill me in. What is this thing I’m sent to help you with? Surely you’re not just hanging out in the underworld for the luxurious bathing facilities.”

I smirk a little, my wolf turning happily in my soul and giving me a little nudge, urging me to trust him. So I sigh and give into it, trusting her and considering that what I’ve got to say is basically public knowledge at this point.

“I’m kind of in a competition.”

He raises an eyebrow at me.“What happens if you lose?”

I wrinkle my nose in distaste. “I think I…die.”

His mouth drops open.

“I mean, it’s unclear!” I shout out, glaring at him over the edge of the tub.

Anton groans, turning away and covering his face with his palms. “Juniper!”

“What!?”

“How the hell did you get involved in this!?”

“I kind of…agreed to it! By accident! I mean, they completely tricked me, but there’s a really good prize at the end!”

Anton turns back to me, his face quite stern and serious, and listens carefully while I fill him in on the rules of the competition and the details of the powerful wish given to the victor at the end – powerful enough to bring a soul back from the dead. His expression turns completely at this, distracted, his mind at work. Quietly, while he considers the details of this stupid deal I got trapped into, I finish washing myself, feeling much fresher as the minutes tick past.

“Listen here, Sinclair,” Anton says, and I jump a little when I turn and see him kneeling by the side of the tub, close enough to meet me eye-to-eye but not high enough to peer over the edge and spy on me.

Still, my eyes go wide and my breath stops, because this is the closest I’ve ever been to a guy without any of my clothes on. Blythe and I never got that far.

And, I mean, Anton’s a ghost but…he’s still a boy.

He smirks, his eyes traveling over my face, sensing my anxiety.

“What?” I snap, splashing him with the bathwater, making him laugh as the water droplets move right through him.

“What’s your plan for that wish?” he asks, turning his head to the side.

I go quite still, because even if my wolf has decided to trust Anton, I’m still wary yet. “I’m not sure I’m ready to divulge that information, ghost boy.”

He shrugs. “Fine. But do you think you can work me into it?”

I move a little closer to him despite myself, folding my fingers over the edge of the tub and looking curiously into his face. “What do you mean?”

“Whatever the wish is,” he says, holding my gaze steadily. “When you win it, do you think you could find a way to wish me back to life alongside whatever else it is you’re wishing for?”

I turn my head as I stare back at him, considering it. “I honestly don’t know, Anton.”

“Well, if I offered to go along with your grandmother’s plan and help you out with this weird wedding competition, would you be willing to try? If it were possible?”

The corners of my lips turn up. “Don’t you kind of have to help me anyway, handmaid?”

A silent little laugh shakes his shoulders, making my smile deepen. “I don’t have to do anything,” he says, sounding quite profligate indeed. “I can just lay around in the underworld, lounging uselessly. Heckling you from the sidelines.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” I hiss.

He just grins. “Try me, Princess.”

“Fine,” I say, grinning back at him, meaning it. “I swear it, on my family name. If I can use the wish to bring you back alongside my other intentions, I’ll do it. Gladly.”

“Then we’ve got a deal,” he says, holding out his hand. I reach for it instantly, intending to give him a nice hearty shake.

But, of course, my hand moves right through his.

“Good enough,” Anton says, seating himself more comfortably on the floor and lounging back, leaning his weight on his palms. “So, tell me – who’s this guy you’re trying to marry?”

“I know he’s the Prince of the Underworld,” I say, “We find out more tonight, though – I have to go to the Palace for the Selection Ceremony.“