Chereads / THE EMPEROR'S BRIDE / Chapter 25 - 23: GIDEON

Chapter 25 - 23: GIDEON

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...23...

GIDEON💗

She watched him as he selected a white shirt that had gold embroidery around most of its edges. It was very pretty. Her eyes were glued on his thick smooth back, admiring his muscles and the sexy contours. He pulled the shirt on then, covering the lovely sight. She found herself groaned inwardly in disappointment. Oh bother! He buttoned it up -turning to her with acutely alert eyes-leaving the three top buttons of the shirt open to leave enough skin for her to feast her hungry fleshly eyes. He flung a white cape with the same kind of embroidery over his shoulders and tied it neatly like a pro. He went to get a comb and she wondered why he didn't have someone to help him do these things, after all he was an emperor, he should have. He picked the comb up and slowly combed his long dark hair. He was ready when he dropped the comb and turned to her. He smiled at her.

'I shall return to you soon my sweet Rose,' he assured her. She said nothing to him. He came to her then and took her head in his palms. He leaned forward and planted a light kiss on her forehead. 'Stay well for me Jagi,' he said to her against the skin of her forehead. He pulled back then and stared at her. She kept mute, not knowing what to say, already beginning to terribly miss him even before he was gone. He removed his hands from her face and kept them to himself. 'Won't you say something to me Mine?' he asked her. She shook her head. He shrugged slightly at her answer and stepped back. 'Don't miss me too much Rose. Goodbye then my sweet.' He walked out of the dressing room. She didn't follow him. He was headed towards the bedroom door when he heard her come out of the dressing room.

'Gideon,' she called. Her voice halted him. He whirled around to her. She had just addressed him by name, something he had asked her to do ever since she woke up from that deep sleep in his empire. He had so gotten used to her calling him beast that he had never brought it up again, ever. He was genuinely pleased to hear her call him that, his name.

'Yes sweet Rose?' he answered her with a one of a kind grin that made her heart skip two beats.

'Goodbye,' she wished him with a small wave. He nodded at her farewell. She had never been good at this. He smiled at her in acknowledgement.

'Take care of yourself,' he told her. She nodded at his words. Then, suddenly, he turned and left the hugr bedroom. The spacey place instantly felt bone chilling empty to her. She sat down on the bed and sighed loudly. She would really miss him she thought with a sigh. That meant only one thing, she was in this more deeper than she had initially thought. She heard someone giggle on the other side of the bedroom door. She stood and went to the door to check it out. She found Xiera there, laughing at something in the small book that she was reading.

'My Lady,' Xiera greeted, getting to her feet in the speed of light and offering a slight bow to her.

'Where is Vura?' she asked the warrior who was busy tucking the book into her pocket. She suspected that it was an erotica. Otherwise, why would the warrior try to hide it so desperately? She smiled.

'She just left with the Emperor. She must have gone to say goodbye to her twin, the emperor's aide,' she informed her mistress referring to Cora. 'She would soon be back My Lady,' she assured her.

'Alright,' she answered.

'Do you need anything My Lady?' Xiera asked her.

'No,' she said turning away.

'Okay My Lady,' Xiera said again with another bow. She opened the door and was about to go in when she changed her mind. She turned back to Xiera who was still standing there, looking at her mistress. 'My Lady?' she asked her.

'Please get me Hyeera. I would like to have a bath now and retire to bed since I have already had dinner,' she informed her aide with a small sigh.

'Alright My Lady, I will do just that though I think that it is kind of too early to retire to bed,' Xiera shared her opinion with her. She nodded. It was indeed true.

'That is somewhat true Warrior Xiera, but I am worn out,' she said to her aide. 'I really need to sleep.'

'Do not worry My Lady. I will quickly see to that this instant.'

'Thank you Xiera.'

'You are welcome My Lady. You just go in and wait for me,' she told her with a smile. She nodded and did that after watching Xiera leave to do so.

When the knock came on the bedroom door, she thought it was Xiera back to tell her that Hyeera was on her way or currently with her. She sat up in bed and looked towards the bedroom door.

'Come in,' she said. The door opened and someone she hadn't expected came in. It was only the emperor's aide, Cora.

'My Lady,' Cora greeted her with a slight bow. She wondered why the warrior was there. Had the Emperor changed his mind and now wanted to take her with him? Well, she really doubted that.

'Cora?' was her reply.

'Please permit me to intrude into your privacy My Lady,' she asked of her. She raised a brow at the request.

'What is it Cora?' she inquired with confused but curious eyes. The lady straightened up then and looked at her with that her stolid face.

'I need to pack up a bag for the emperor My Lady,' she told her. 'I am in charge of his luggage.'

'Would that be all?' she asked her as disappointment draped her from head to toe without mercy.

'Yes My Lady.'

'Then go ahead,' she said. 'I am not stopping you from doing so,' she informed her with a faint smile.

'Thank you My Lady,' she said with another slight bow. She really hated those bows. She was a nobody. Why were they all always bowing to her? Wasn't it tiring to them all because it was definitely tiring to her?

'You are welcome,' she answered despite the thoughts going around in her head. She watched Cora go into the dressing room. Hyeera came in then with four maids who prepared her a warm bath. She went to stand at the door of his dressing room, silently watching Cora pack him clothes. The lady was already done with packing up the clothes before her warm bath was ready. The warrior thanked her once more when she was done and made to leave.

'Cora,' she called. The warrior turned to her at the sound of her name.

'Yes My Lady?' she answered.

'Wait for a bit,' she said going to the emperor's writing table. She took a sheet of paper from his stack of papers and went in search of one of the pencil she had thrown to the other side of the room. She gathered a few and went back to the writing table. One of the maids instantly brought the rest to the table. She stood at the table and wrote on the clean sheet of paper. She folded the paper into two and then into two again. Then, she went to the warrior and handed it to her. 'Please take care of him Cora,' she said with a small smile.

'Of course I will do so with all pleasure My Lady,' Cora assured her.

'That is good,' she said to her with a smile. 'Go well!' she wished. The warrior thanked her once more, bowed to her and then finally left the bedroom. She sighed softly, staring at the door until Hyeera informed her that her bath was ready.

'Your bath might run cold My Lady,' Hyeera told her when she didn't move after a few minutes of being told.

'Thank you Hyeera. I will do so.' She began to take off her clothes. They all excused themselves then except Hyeera and allowed her to be. She went to the bathroom when she was done with taking off her clothes, leaving Hyeera standing there, wondering why her lady looked so forlorn with a lost look in her pretty green eyes. She climbed into the lemon scented waters and sighed.

The bath reminded her of him. He always ever smelt like coconut and lemon -cocolemon. That enticing combination that never seized to titillate her five senses. She was in the bath for a long while, soaking in the water only, reminiscing on so many things that definitely involved him. She finally got herself to bath after a long time, scrubbing her body with half her mind with her and the other on the way to follow the emperor. She was out of the bath after a little bit.

When she came out of the bathroom and into her own dressing room, she discovered that Hyeera had already laid out her night clothes for her. She helped her with her body lotion and essential oils. She then helped her put on her night clothes. She also put her hair up in a night bonnet. After everything, they left the dressing room and walked into the bedroom.

'Thank you Hyeera,' she said to the maid with tired eyes. But, the tiredness didn't come from lack of sleep. It was from something else, disturbance.

'No problem My Lady. Have a good night rest My Lady,' she wished her mistress with a smile on her face.

'Good night to you too Hyeera. Dream of wonderful things while you sleep,' she said to her in return. Hyeera bowed slightly.

'Thank you My Lady.'

'You are welcome,' she replied and climbed into bed. Hyeera helped tuck her into the bed covers.

'Rest well My Lady,' she said. She saw her mistress nod lazily. 'Shall I put out the lights as I go out?' she asked her mistress in a light voice as she turned and made for the bedroom door.

'Yes you can.'

'Alright My Lady.' Hyeera put out the lights and left the bedroom, leaving her Lady to go to sleep. But, she didn't sleep right away, could not do so no matter how hard she tried. Though she never really knew when the beast came to bed or when he left, she still missed him being in the bed, their bed. Oh, she was really sick! She turned on her side severally, trying to conjure sleep. But, the element had chosen to be far from her. It refused to come to her no matter how hard she willed it to do so. She sighed as she eventually sat up in bed, realizing that she had to clear her head if she really wished to sleep a wink. She looked around the dark bedroom.

To clear her head, where on earth shall she start from? Where shall she begin in the matter of clearing her head? There was so much to think about. There was the fact that he had attested to wanting her. There was also the fact that he really was trying to protect her from something, trying hard to keep her hidden for her own good. There was also the fact that he acknowledged her memories. She remembered him saying "You remember that" when she had informed him that she had clearly remembered being stabbing with a knife. Now that she thought about it, something wasn't right. He said he hadn't stabbed her at all. If he hadn't -that is if she chose to believe him- then who had done so? She was debating on this because she knew that it was true. She had been stabbed. Also, he had said nothing on the topic of her remembering how he had abducted her when she was kind of drunk on drugged liquor. She remembered sparring with him, defending herself as best as she could but still losing to him despite it all.

She remembered that much clearly than the memory of running away from him. That one was very vague in her head, kind of blurry. She remembered fire burning all around She remembered someone screaming her name. She remembered fear coursing through her body. She remembered running and running with the kind of fear that the beast evoked in her whenever he was angry at her. This was the reason that she had said she was running away from him. It was because she recognized that fear, and not because she saw him -for he was not in that memory. She also remembered calling someone's name quite faintly. It had sounded like Trevor. It was the name of her lover, the one she could vaguely remember, she knew. She remembered the weird feeling that she had had when she had called that name. She couldn't actually pinpoint the feeling. But she was certain that there was a feeling of discouragement and disappointment amongst it. She sighed and lay down in bed, her head upon her soft pillow. She didn't even realize it, but she went into a deep sleep in a few seconds. She must have successfully cleared her head.

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...OmaPhinaPhire🔥