"I'm sorry milord, I stepped on my dress." She apologized with her head glued on the floor.
She lifted her face to look at him when she did not receive any reply only to realize that the man was now shirtless reaviling his perfectly toned body which did not have too much muscles but much enough to attract a woman. His slacks hanging loosely on his waist and when Rose realized that she was staring, she quickly bowed her head.
"Your bath is ready, milord." This time she lifted her head and not because of lack of response from the king but because his reply shocked her.
"Alright then place that back and help me with the bath. You should not keep the king waiting." He added when he saw her hesitation.
The girl's little action made him want to poke her more so that he could see more of her reactions but he chose not to. Her cheeks and nose had started to turn red partly due to embarrassment and partly because she was on the verge of catching a cold. When she walked towards the shelf where the soaps were kept, she leaned against the wall for sometime in hope that the king would come to realize that she was not the person for the job but the king who seemed like he was currently enjoying her plight called her.
"Roselyne, are you waiting for the water to get cold."
When she heard him, she took the bathing cloth that was placed next to the soaps and headed back where she found that the man was already inside the bathtub with his head that rested at one side on the edge.
Her head was getting lighter with each second that passed. Mastering her courage, she walked gingerly towards the tub. She could only see his shoulders which were not completely immersed in water while the rest of his body was hidden by the soap bubbles.
"Is this better or should I change the position?" Came the king's question who had turned his head over his shoulder and was currently looking up at the girl. Why don't you change your mind instead. She answered internally before saying,
"It is okay." With her reply the king turned back to stare at the wall that was right in front of him. With a sigh, she took the basin that was next to the tub that was also filled with warm water and poured it on his jet black hair and added some soap. Once she placed them back, she put her slightly shaky hands on his head and started to gently run her fingers through his hair. Grabbing the opportunity, she said
"Milord." When he hummed in response, she asked.
"Is it too much to ask if I said I wanted to go back from where I came from."
It was the question that he had not answered when they were in the carriage and he was not sure if he would answer her yet.
"Are you trying to soothe me to sleep, Roselyne? Because its really working."
That was not the answer she was looking for. Adding more pressure on his head, she decided not to give up. She wanted to go back to her aunt and cousin.
"I want to go back." This time, her tone was low as she tried to press on what the king had decided to ignore. She would not give up that easily.
When the king heard her yearning voice, as if she had not been home for decades, he straightened his back and her hands which were still on his head slipped back onto her side waiting for him to tell her something positive.
"Yes it is too much to ask Roselyne. And let me give you an advice that I don't usually give to many. If you ever try to step out of those gates, trust me little lady. It won't be good for you, or those people you call your family. Now go ahead with your work."
His words were calm just like the first time she had heard him speak and she could tell that that was not an empty threat because the air in the room had turned chilly. Rose was not stupid enough to press the matter again because she did not know what would happen if she tried to continue the conversation. Putting her thoughts in the back of her mind, she proceeded with her work.
Once she was done washing his hair, Lucas who had noticed how nervous she was, sent her away and Rose who was glad to step out of the room did not hesitate to leave.
When Rose finally got out of his room, she took a deep breath and released it with a sigh of relief. The dark clouds that had covered the sky at the time of noon were now replaced by white cumulus clouds and a sun which was not hot enough to warm the place was far at the end of horizon which gave out dark orange rays that hit the side of her face when she walked through the large corridors.
She did not go back to her room and instead walked back to the kitchen where the servants were still busy with their work.
Seeing Stella at the corner of the kitchen busy crushing something she couldn't clearly see, she walked to where the girl was. "Do you need any help with that?"
Stella who had not noticed her presence turned abruptly. "Im almost done. Maybe you should help me with the next task." She stated while turning at the direction where there were peas filled in a clay pot.
Once Stella was done with the work that she was doing earlier, she handed over the bowl to a man who seemed to be in his forties and walked up to Rose who was busy shelling the peas. "Where did the butler take you?"
Stella who couldn't keep her curiosity to herself asked as she took a handful of peas and started to shell. "The king had asked for me." Came her curt reply and Stella who saw that kitchen was not the right place to speak said.
"I think we will have something to speak about at night." With that, both girls continued with their work silently until they were done.