You call it madness,
But I call it love.
—Don Byas
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
Theo exited the room and saw Leon standing outside waiting for him.
"We have him in a cell as you instructed, My King. What should we do next?" he asked knowing well that Ken wasn't going to be let off the hook after the trick he pulled off just a few hours ago.
He had dug his grave by himself and was now going to be buried in it.
"I'll have to think of a suitable punishment. I can't kill him off so easily after what he did to her." Theo clenched his jaw remembering how bloody her back looked after he removed the dress.
His eyes lit up abruptly and Leon gulped wondering what was going on in the devil's head. The smirk on his face only made him wary and shudder to think what he would do to the man who tried to take the lady away.
"Do the same as what I did when Walter was brought in. It seems to be an appropriate retribution for what he did. For now, until I think of something better. Make sure he doesn't die though."
Leon bowed his head and turning upon his heels, walked away with an eager smile on his face.
This would be fun!
It had only been three months since the King had dealt with Walter. Walter Gladwin had been assigned as a guard in the castle and was known for being competent in his job. Leon had talked to him a few times and had started noticing some suspicious behavior; like how he vanished for a few days before returning and telling that his mother had been sick or how he went to visit his friends in a distant village.
He had informed Theodore of his doubts and had been ordered to keep an eye on the guard. After a few weeks of close observation, the mask had fallen and Leon found that he was a spy from the neighboring Kingdom of Derkov.
King Asher and Theo did not have a relationship that could be called friendly. If the two were put in the same room, it would take minutes for one to throw a wine glass at the other. In this matter, Theo enjoyed aggravating him while he remained calm and composed throughout the gathering. It was only Asher's reputation that got tainted showing that he had a worse temper than Theo and had even worse control over it.
The spy, Walter was caught and thrown into a cell. The evidence Leon had collected was valid and trustable. There was no doubt that Walter had been collecting private information and sending it to King Asher. The knowledge he had attained was nothing of importance since Theo was always cautious of everyone around him. There were things that the King hadn't told him even after years of working together by his side.
The King had personally come to hand out the punishment. He still remembered the day vividly in his mind. Theo had tried a new method of torture on him by carving small cuts on the man's skin making him bleed throughout his whole body until his last breath.
He recalled the screams that had escaped Walter's mouth as he yelled and begged for mercy. Mercy was not a word in the King's dictionary. He never forgave anybody after they harmed what was his. After Walter had told them everything, the King had let him bleed to death slowly and painfully. The guards were shown the corpse as a warning for the future and he could still see it hanging from the cell's ceiling with absolutely no blood in his body left.
Ken had messed with the wrong man this time.
—
Eva stepped out on the carpet, placing her bare feet on the soft material. Her silver hair was wet and clung to her neck, wetting her nightgown in the process. Her eyes caught Theo who was standing near the balcony and looking out in the night sky.
Just as he heard the door close, his head turned around to see Eva standing awkwardly on the carpet with her hands folded in front of her.
Fuck.
"Uh, I will be going to sleep now," she spoke, unable to endure his penetrating gaze any longer.
He did not respond. Instead, his eyes grew darker and a strange feeling pervaded the air—it was heavy, heated, and spiced. It made her chest feel tight, restricting her breath.
"You have to eat first." His voice was deep and sultry.
Eva's brain short-circuited. He was coming close. Too close. No, he stopped at a distance. Thank god...
She was about to refuse, saying that she didn't have an appetite but her stomach was quick to betray her and grumble in response to his words.
Eva blushed, feeling embarrassed. She didn't have any option other than agreeing to his order.
"Okay," said Eva, and her eyes shifted to the bed where a tray was placed filled with all sorts of things she had only seen but never had the pleasure to taste. There was only one serving of everything and she looked at him in question.
"Are you not going to eat?" she asked and cursed herself for speaking in a whisper. Why was her voice so low? He might think that she was planning to indicate something!
"I will be fine. Watching you eat is enough," he answered without a smile on his face. There was a pause after which he opened his mouth to speak again.
"Can I dry your hair?" he asked and Eva's lips parted in surprise.
Okay, she wasn't expecting that. True, it would be hard to eat with her wet hair sticking to her face every now and then. But it will be considered torture to herself if she let him touch her hair and dry it.
It would involve close contact and she shivered slightly thinking about what the result could be.
Seeing him wait patiently for her answer, Eva hesitantly nodded and crawled onto the bed, sitting in front of the tray. Theo smiled to himself as he went to grab a towel and approached her, taking his position on the bed behind her.
Feeling the mattress bend behind her, Eva unconsciously straightened her back and tried her best to focus on the delicious meal in front of her.
Not saying that there isn't a delicious meal behind her too...
'Shut up!' her mind scolded and Eva shook her head to get rid of the sinful thoughts that were clogging up her mind.
Just as she stabbed at the steak with her knife, she felt a warm hand in her hair, the towel very softly patting her wet strands and occasionally parting her locks away from each other.
It was not as bad as she thought it would be. Eva felt the head massage to be relaxing as she tried her best to prevent leaning into his touch further. Her main focus had drifted away from the food to the man sitting behind her, drying her hair with extreme gentleness she had not thought him capable of.
Soon, Eva was placing the last piece of vegetable in her mouth and the plate was left with only a few crumbs that had escaped her mouth while eating. The hand movements behind her slowed down to an incredibly unhurried pace and Eva wondered whether her hair had dried up by now or not? It should be, he had been patting it for about half an hour now.
"I am finished eating," she spoke and felt his hand pause and the movements ceased immediately.
"The maid will come to collect the tray soon. Would you like me to comb your hair?" he asked and Eva forced herself not to turn her neck and look back.
Yes. Maybe. No. I don't know. "You don't have to burden yourself-"
"Who said anything about a burden?" he spoke and Eva couldn't help but shift in her place to look behind. Theo smirked, but the humor didn't touch his gaze—no, his gaze burned.
The King of Xandria reached out and touched her face, drawing a finger across her cheek. "Okay," she mumbled but he heard her clearly enough.
Getting up from his position, he picked the tray up with a satisfied look on his face as he glanced at the empty plate. Setting the tray on a table, he picked up a brush from the vanity and resumed to take his previous place.
The teeth of the brush lightly brushed past her hair strands, grazing the roots gently. After brushing a layer, he ran his hand over the combed part and Eva caressed her hands to remove the traces of goosebumps that had appeared throughout her bare body parts.
"Tell me about your childhood," requested Theo, and Eva abruptly turned around, sitting in front of him, face to face.
She was shocked by his sudden demand and wondered why he was asking about her past. Her curious gaze must have betrayed her as he replied to her unspoken question,
"I want to know more about you." His words sent a warm wave of comfort through her body as she endeavored not to feel too cozy with his words.
"There is not much to know about me."
He studied her, quiet for a moment. "Then tell me whatever there is to tell. I'll listen."
Eva exhaled softly before parting her lips to start speaking.