Bowstrings & Velvet (Spellbound #1)

Chapter 17: This Morning

While no one could say he skipped off to his meetings in the mornings happily, Felix usually had no problem leaving the royal quarters to do so. This morning was different. This morning he had to leave his sleeping wife and child in a bed he had been allowed to share with them. It shouldn't have been as momentous of an occasion as it was, but he couldn't quite shake the feeling that something had changed in his and Shae's relationship last night. Hopefully for the better.

She had kissed him. A slight smile touched his lips. Without her wits addled by poison. This was a momentous occasion indeed. With a last look at the two sleeping bodies in the bed, he crept out of the room and closed the door behind him as quietly as he could, wanting to allow them to sleep in for as long as possible. Shae was doing a lot better, but definitely not fully recovered and still fatigued easily, and Mio must be tired after his night terrors.

A King's Guard nodded in greeting as Felix crossed the sitting room to enter his own bedchambers. Normally they stayed in the hallway but after the attack on Shae, they kept additional guards everywhere, including the shared sitting room when no one was in it. After quickly washing up and changing his clothes, he returned to the sitting room to deal with the correspondence he had failed to finish last night. At first, he had struggled to concentrate while he could hear the sounds of Shae bathing. Knowing that she was wet and naked behind that screen had been maddening, and he had reread most sentences two or three times. Then there had been the kiss...

The memory alone stirred his body, and he forced himself to focus on the letters. If he kept thinking about the feeling of Shae in his arms, he would get nothing done. The council members were already complaining that he had been distracted the last few days. Certainly, they were concerned about the open attack on their queen, but they were equally determined to get their own kingdoms' errands heard. Then there were the imminent Championship Games that were now a mere week away from starting. Most of the preparations were completed, but even so, there was a lot of logistics—not to mention politics—involved in hosting competitors and ambassadors from each kingdom. Some of the kingdoms' rulers were even planning to attend.

This Championship was a big deal. It was the first one in over a decade, and he was determined to see it succeed. They all needed to feel some unity after the ordeals of the past years. Something some friendly competition and evenings of feasting and celebrations would hopefully promote.

With so much to do, he really should join the council early, but he didn't want to waste the progress he'd had with his wife. Having an idea, he gave the King's Guard some orders to relay before settling back into an upholstered chair with his letters. He was usually awake early, and today was no exception. The first rays of the sun were only just hinting at the horizon. The royal chambers had the best view of the castle, with its windows facing the ocean. As the castle sat on the top of a hill, the sounds of the waking city below were muted, but one could see the fishermen and sailors in the harbour getting ready for the day. Like Felix, their days were simply too busy to linger in bed. Not that he didn't sometimes dream of lingering in bed with his wife. He groaned. This wasn't going well. Focus!

He picked up a letter from the Envoy stationed in the Kingdom of Breoch and forced himself to focus on the words. The more he read, the easier it was to concentrate, and he continued even as servants came in to prepare the room. The sun was properly over the horizon when the door to Shae's bedchamber opened and his wife and son entered the sitting room.

Shae stopped short as she caught sight of him, a puzzled look on her face. It didn't surprise him. This might be the first time he was still here when she woke up. He had not been the best husband. But he also had not believed she wanted him to be a good husband. All this time, he had assumed she wanted as little to do with him as possible, and he still somewhat believed that. However, she had kissed him... and he would be damned if he didn't at least try to salvage this travesty of a marriage.