~LAYLA~
I stood in front of the antique mirror in the Blue Room the next day, adjusting my cream-colored dress. I had chosen it carefully. It was elegant, expensive, and distinctly modern. I wasn't going downstairs to play dress-up in their world; I was going down there as myself.
"You look ready for I don't know…?" Axel said, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist. He smelled of a mix of my shampoo, which he had stolen in the bathroom, and his cologne.
"Well, we ended up having dinner alone last night. I feel like breakfast would be different," I admitted, leaning back into him. "A hostile different."
"Just remember," Axel murmured into my ear, "you've faced worse than a few snobby aristocrats. You took down a crime syndicate and definitely can handle breakfast."
I smiled, turning to kiss him. "Let's go get some coffee before I start throwing antiques."
