We stood there for a long time, lost in each other's embrace before Athan broke away from the hug. He smiled down at me and took my hand in his, his eyes glinting like that of a young man who had found a toy.
"So, do you want to have breakfast, my lady?"
My stomach flipped at that smile, the one that took away my breath. I blushed at his words, covering my face. Athan was making me feel things I didn't know were possible. I'd never felt this attraction for someone else, never wished to hear someone compliment me.
With him, it was different. I wanted to hear him tell me how beautiful he thought I was, even though he might be lying about it.
After breakfast, he took me on a tour around the palace before he showed me a bathroom and asked me to have a bath. My cheeks coloured at that, and I had to sniff my armpits to be certain I wasn't smelling.
After my bath, I put on the robe he brought and tied the golden belt around it. The robe smelled like lavender and when I asked, he told me he washed it with a scented soup. It was the most comfortable clothes ever.
We took another walk around the garden before he took ne back to the kitchen to prepare lunch.
"Where else are you taking me to?" I batted my eyelashes at him after having lunch. Just like he promised, lunch was different from breakfast. It seemed the old man got some ingredients because I had bread and eggs. I didn't know how he did it, but the bread was brown and crispy and the eggs were so delicious, I didn't feel embarrassed asking for a second serving.
Just like he had always done, he watched me eat with a smile.
"Don't you eat?" I blurted out, frowning. I had tried not to think about how odd it was that he always watched me eat without doing the same, but it was impossible. I figured he didn't eat yesterday because he wasn't hungry, but what of this morning? He tasted nothing, not even water.
The smile on his gacs faltered for just a millisecond before it returned. If I wasn't looking at him, I wouldn't have believed it happened.
"I do. It's just that I ate before I came over to look for you." He reached over and placed his hand on mine, still smiling. "You don't have to worry about me, darling. Just have your meal, okay?"
I nodded, but still not convinced. He was acting odd, and I knew there was more to my question than the response he gave, else he wouldn't have looked that uncomfortable.
"Is there a specific thing you would like to have for dinner? Anything you miss back home?" He asked, trying to get my mind off the question I asked.
"Not at all." I took another bite of the bread, loving how crispy it was. Should Athan ever decide he didn't wish to play king anymore, he could always get a job as a chef. The villagers would patronize him, I know they would.
"I guess I will make what I have in mind, then?"
"Yeah, you can." I polished off the rest of the bread and slid the plate over to him. "Thank you for lunch, Athan. It was the best. You have such magical hands. If I didn't know you, I wouldn't have believed you are a king."
"Thanks." He got up and took the plate to the sink before he returned to the table. "I'm glad I have someone to cook for. It's not easy staying alone all day without meeting anyone."
For the first time since I met him, he had this distant look. It felt like he had a shroud of darkness around him, trying to smoulder him.
"What happened to your kingdom?"
"My kingdom?" He peered up at the question, frowning. "What happened to it?"
"When I walked past the village to this place, it was deserted. We didn't meet anyone on our way here, and I thought —"
"Oh. They must have gone out to farm." He forced a smile, one that didn't reach his eyes. The sadness was still there, though not pronounced, but enough for me to see through it.
"They went to farm? In the blizzard? It's snowing out there, you know?"
"I do." Nodding, he got up from the table and offered his hand to me. "Let's take a walk in the garden. It will help your meal digest."
"Why are you avoiding my question?" I asked, instead of taking his offered hand. "What's going on with your village? Where do you go each night and why does your ...? Okay, you said he's not your brother. Why does Ethan only appear at night? What of the other women before me? What happened to them? I need to fucking know!" Nothing was making sense.
He flinched at my scream. Letting out a sigh, he dropped his outstretched hand to the side. "You don't have to go to the garden if you don't want to. We can go to the throne room instead, though there isn't much to see there. We can —"
"What are you hiding?" I got up from the chair. "Why are you avoiding my question? What's going on?"
I wasn't afraid, didn't feel any dread creeping up my skin despite the feeling there was more to Athan and his kingdom than I would ever know. I stepped over to him and reached out to touch him, only to pause midair. I clenched my fist and dropped it back at my side.
He stared down at me, his golden eyes looking deep into my eyes before he let out a sigh. "I just don't enjoy talking about my village, that's all. There's nothing going on. Like I said before, the villagers must have gone to the farm, or to hunt. I just don't know what they do in their leisure. As for the other women…" He glanced up at the ceiling before peering down at me. "I can't tell where they are. Ethanasios should know since he was the one they came for, not me. And he only appears at night because that's what we agreed on. I rule by the day, and he rules at night. That's the way it has been since we… For a long time."
"You rule by the day? Who exactly are you ruling in this empty castle? I haven't seen you go out, and I sure as hell would hear it if people came in. What are you —"
"Just drop the questions already, Sera. Some things are better left the way they were." He stared down at me, and for a second, it felt like Ethan was looking at me.