I opened my eyes to see rays of sunlight coming through the curtains. I rubbed my eyes and looked at my surroundings. But today, I felt somewhat different.
"Good morning, princess Alicia." Tricia greeted me. "This is the first time you have slept in. You must have felt tired yesterday night. Or you must have felt more secure since you have a new bodyguard." She said as she grinned.
"What time is it?" I asked.
"It's eleven o'clock, princess." Tricia replied.
"What?!" when I said this I suddenly felt awake. This was the first time that I had slept in sleeping in the palace. "I missed my whole morning routine." I said.
I thought grandpa Robert was gonna scold me now.
"Don't worry princess. It was Lord Robert who ordered me to not wake you up. It was the first time you had slept so soundly so he didn't want to interfere with your sleep." Tricia said with a smile. She had started preparing my clothes for the day.
"But I still feel kinda embarrassed." I said. But then I suddenly noticed the clothes Tricia was holding. "Whose clothes are those?" I asked. "They look rather new." I said.
"Lord Robert brought these in today for you to wear today. Lord Robert said that he had scheduled horseback riding lessons for you today this afternoon." Tricia replied.
"Horseback riding? Me?" I asked.
"That's what Lord Robert said." Tricia said.
I thought I would never be able to learn horseback riding. Even my sisters weren't able to learn horseback riding. It was because they were being trained to be a young lady.
But I was happy to know that I was at least getting to know something. I smiled at myself.
After taking a nice and refreshing bath and changing my clothes, I went downstairs. Since I had skipped my breakfast, I had to have my lunch early.
"Good morning, my princess." Leon greeted me. Leon was standing at the door of the dining room. He gave me a slight bow.
"Good morning, Leon." I greeted him back.
Leon was wearing a white t-shirt, long black pants, and boots. His wavy brown hair would move a little as the breeze came. It would look like the waves of the ocean. Seeing his smile just made me blush. When he came by my side, I felt somewhat better.
"I am sorry that I woke up late today. This was the first time I slept in." I felt bad for some reason. I was sure he was waiting for me. Grandpa had given him some instructions about my studies. Grandpa told me Leon would be in charge of my studies now.
"It's okay, princess." Lord Robert specifically told me to not disturb you as it was rare for you to wake up so late.
"That is true. I do not know what caused me to sleep in today." I said.
"Maybe you do feel better when I am by your side." Leon said with a smile.
I looked at him, wondering if he was joking or not. His smile was rather addictive. I ended up smiling with him too.
"I'm joking princess." Leon said at last.
"Hahaha. I thought so too." I said as I laughed with him.
Then suddenly, my stomach grumbled. There was a wave of silence between me and Leon for a while now. I felt embarrassed. I felt my cheeks turning red.
"I'm so sorry." I said in embarrassment. What has gotten into me today? This isn't how a princess should be. These thoughts were spiraling in my mind.
"Hahaha, I am happy that you feel better with me by your side princess." Leon burst out laughing. Then he took my hands and slowly pulled them down. He looked at me directly in the eyes. "I want to know the real you and not the third princess of Ethiopia." Leon said as he brushed the hair coming on my face.
His eyes were deeply focused on me. His yellow eyes were just mesmerizing. They were as bright as the sun. I could feel like I could see through them. I felt my heart racing as I blushed.