The three women didn’t look like sisters at all. In fact, they couldn’t be any more different than a bear from a badger.

The woman on the left had a permanent scowl etched on her face as she took him in. Her long blonde hair was braided back from her face in typical southern fashion. She was pretty for a human. Her skin sun kissed with curves that most women would kill for. Judging from her attire, she was used to flashing off her assets to get her way with men and judging from her personality, she was good at it. She must be the oldest.

The youngest, apparent by her lack of ability to stay still, was fidgeting with the lace on her dress. Her brown hair was pulled up into a simple bun on top of her head, which seemed to suit her well. She was petite and cute for a human child, but much too young for his tastes.

The third daughter stood against the bookcase that encompassed the walls of the room. She had an old leather cover open in her hands, flipping through the pages as though she was bored. This left a sour taste in the back of his throat. Her long, dark chestnut colored, curly hair hung freely down her back with only a few locks framing her face pinned back. She was tall and willowy, almost flat chested which made him instantly uninterested. Her figure was definitely displeasing to him, resembling no more than a bag of bones beneath the heavy petticoats and dress.

Out of everyone in the room, the woman that was too busy observing the book in her possession was the only one who did not acknowledge his entrance, let alone greet him. The other two sisters at least had the decency to greet him properly and curtsy, whereas she barely flinched, let alone acknowledged him.

King Lional clearly recognized this grievance by clearing his throat. Judging by the woman's reactions, this was a typical response to her behavior. She looked up from the pages of the book, her eyes slowly meeting his. She looked neither impressed or disgusted, only impassive, not allowing him to get a single read on her. She snapped the book shut loudly and returned it to its rightful place on the shelf before turning to him and curtsying, all the while keeping eye contact with him the entire time.

“Your Highness,” she said slowly, her voice as smooth as butter almost mocking him.

Alexi nearly left the room that very instant, recognizing the cadence of her voice. The one he felt an attraction to through the door. This simple, plain woman couldn’t have been it.

King Alexander looked bored and eager to move things along as he stood up from his seat.

“Princesses of Celia, I would like to formally introduce you to my son, Prince Alexi of Leon,” King Alexander announced to the room.

The three women lined up before him, gracing him with a curtsy once again.

“Prince Alexi, it is good to see you again,” King Lional spoke. “Please allow me to introduce my daughters. Princess Margaret, Princess Evelyn, and Princess Justine.”

The three women were in order by age. The only thing that connected them as sisters was their eyes. Each containing the royal trait of light blue eyes.

Alexi approached the woman slowly, like a hunter stalking its prey. He approached the busty blonde first. She looked revolted at his attentions and stunk of loathing. The eldest clearly held the humans inherited disgust of vampires, making her unsuitable to be his consort, but in good fun he smiled, flashing his fangs and ran his tongue over the point of them slowly. The princess looked as though she might faint at the sight.

He moved on from the eldest, down the line to the youngest. The princess named Justine was a ball of energy, dying to be released. She was young and pretty but much too young for him. It was bad enough he was over two hundred years her senior, but the fact that she had barely come of age left her an unsuitable choice.

Finally, he came back around to the middle daughter, the one whose eyes trailed him throughout the room, following his every move. She was nowhere close to his tastes the way Genevieve was, but then again he didn’t need the human for carnal pleasure, only as a figure to stand by his side during state affairs and formal events. Out of the three, she was the most boring and that was exactly what he needed.

Alexi closed the distance between them, eyeing the tall brunette carefully. Even though she was tall for her sex, he still towered over her, forcing her to raise her chin to keep his gaze. Up close, her eyes were brighter than he realized. A bright teal that only got lighter with gray flecks dotting around the iris.

Most humans he had the displeasure of meeting, could never hold his gaze for long. His harsh golden glare mixed with pale skin and vampire fangs, always made the weaker race nervous and flighty, their natural instincts screaming at them to run, but not this woman. She held his stare with her own without a hint of fear or disgust, but rather quiet boredom.

Alexi couldn’t help but chuckle at the human woman.

“You’ll make for an interesting consort,” Alexi purred at her.