Chapter 21
It is pitch black in my room. How long was I asleep for?
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My stomach growls loudly as I fumble to find the lightswitch on the bedside table.
Goddess, I am starvingt-
Right… I skipped lunch and now, the clock on the bedside table reads 23:45.
Did I really sleep through dinner?
I
I am ravenous, I need food as soon as possible.
Creeping out of bed, I slowly open my door. It isn’t till I see the two guards waiting for me that I realize that Ethan has tightened security for me.
ismile at the guards and begin to walk down the hall towards the kitchens. After a few steps, I hear the heavy footsteps of the men behind me. Of course they would be following me.
In silence, we arrive at the kitchen. The light is already on. I begin to wonder if there is a chef that is constantly on shift in the slight chance that someone should request food and am surprised to see Ethan standing alone in front
of the stove.
“I figured you must be hungry,” he replies without turning around,
“How did you know?” I joke as I take a seat at the kitchen island.
He doesn’t answer, instead turns around with a plate in one hand and a small frying pan in the other.
“Here.” He sets the plate in front of me and then serves me a cheese omelet from the pan. Then he whips back around and replaces the frying pan with two slices of toast that he places beside the omelet.
“Eat,” he orders as he takes a slice of toast for himself.
I close my mouth that has been hanging open. What’s going on here? The king…is cooking for me?!
He raises an eyebrow at me, and I immediately lower my head and take a small bite of food.
“Um… The flavor
out a small moan.
Ethan chuckles.
of the cheese and the texture of the eggs mesh so perfectly together that I can’t help myself, I let
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“This is amazing!” My bites of food become larger.
Ethan looks on in amusement. “Is this your first time eating real food?” he jokes.
Haugh and then choke a little on the toast.
“Take it slow. Have some water.” He hands me a glass that I happily take from him. Then, before I knew it, he has began to lightly pat my back.
“Thank you,” I say betweens sips of water and try to joke to ease the tension, “You keep saving me.”
He’s so close, it’s hard to focus. He always has ways to surprise me.
“I’ll always save you.”
Oh, why do I like the sound of that?
I steal a glance of him, realizing that he has been watching me the entire time.
My face is even hotter. He looks amused with himself almost as if he is playing a little game with me, I just don’t know what the game is or what the rules are.
“Can I help you?” I finally ask after a few painfully long moments.
*I’ve never seen anyone eat that fast before in my life,” he jokes, but when he looks me in the eye, it doesn’t sound like a joke anymore. “It’s almost like you are eating for two people.”
My heart stops.
Does he know?
There’s no way, it’s only been a few weeks. I try my best to pull up a smile, but I don’t know how successful I am.
He leans in, and his voice low but soothing. “Ariella.”
“Yes?” I swallow hard.
If he asks if I’m pregnant, what should I say?
“Don’t be so nervous. I don’t bite,” he chuckles again, “Now, tell me, is there anything else I should know?”
I take in a long breath and quickly shake my head.
“Really?” he asks as he leans even closer. His gaze fixes on me and his voice low and soothing, lowering my guard. “How is everyone treating you here? Apart from that bastard, of course.”
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When his piercing eyes are on me, my brain goes into a daze for a moment. I answer without thinking, “Every has been so nice, as you know, except for Marcus, and-”
I swallow the rest of my sentence. I swear I didn’t mean to tattle about Cassandra. I’m not going to be a drama
queen.
It’s all his fault! Damn handsome man! He surely knows what his face can do to women.
“And?” He arches a brow.
“And Lady Lilith, of course! They are now together, now that I rejected Marcus, I bet she’ll retaliate on his behal
“That’s all?”
“That’s all!” I say as firmly as I can manage.
To avoid his intense gaze, I stand up and take my plate, but he grabs it from my hand and drops it into the sink: he says, “They’ll take care of the washing.”
“If the King can cook, then I can wash my own dishes.”
“Except, if the triples find out I’m making their precious sister scrub plates, Ibet I would have a hard time convincing them to let you stay. Now, let me walk you back to your room.”
Without waiting for my answer, he places his hand on the small of my back and gently leads me out of the kitche
A jolt of electricity rushes through my body, radiating from his hand. What’s happening to my body? Goddess knows I am trying so hard to play it cool.
He gives me a gentle push. My brain short circuits and I place one foot in front of the other and do my best to not stumble over my feet.
His hand has to drop eventually. It can’t possibly stay the long walk back to my room. Why does it feel like everything is happening in slow motion?
Keep it together, Ariella, get a grip!
Finally, Ethan drops his hand from my back and stops walking. I take a small step away from him but he gently pulls me back. His gorgeous but demanding eyes lock on my face again. “I’m glad everyone has been nice to you, as they should.”
I nod, not sure why he brings up this topic again.
“Sorry that Marcus and Cassandra bothered you,” he says, his eyes sincere.
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“Not your fault.” Our gazes lock, and I sigh, “you’ve done everything you can to defend me already.”
Hold on, what did I just say?
He smirks, “So it’s Cassandra, huh?”
Damn it! I fell for his trick again!
I turn my attention to an oil painting on the wall. “This is a lovely portrait. Is it one of your relatives?”
Ethan stands behind me, his warm breath on the back of my neck. Goosebumps climb up my arms and I shiver. I fight the urge to look behind me so I pour all of my will power into studying the picture.
“Obviously,” he whispers.
I shift my weight and straighten my head. I pinch the inside of my left palm with my right hand to distract myself from his scent that is flooding all of my senses. I can’t think straight. I’m thinking about his hands and his breath and i really need to focus.
“Going forward, Ariella,” he purrs, “I need you to be open with me. There’s no need to hide anything.”
Oh, he knows what he is doing. He takes the back of his finger and slowly drags it down the back of my arm. Against all my hard work, I squirm.
This has to be the baby hormones causing this response to him. It has to be.
“I don’t want to start anything,” I finally give in to his persistence, “She is your family after all.”
He raises my head with a finger under my chin so I am looking at him. To my surprise, he says apologetically, “I’m sorry if she’s been bothering you.”
Why does he apologize for Cassandra? I’ve never seen him apologize for anything before. Is Cassandra really so special to him?
I can’t deny it, but that thought makes me a bit…upset. Sourness rises inside me and I can’t help it any more. I
have to ask.
“Ethan, who on earth is Cassandra?”
“My stepsister,” he answers without hesitation.
“But she told me she’s your fiancee, Is it true?”
He pauses for a moment and my heart sinks.
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Chapter 21
After what feels like an eternity, he finally says, “The situation is…” He searches for the word. “…delicate. here.”
He doesn’t say goodbye or anything more. He simply walks down the hall as if nothing has just happene
My eyes widen. What the hell does that mean?