The Nun and King

Chapter 19

The warmth her lips provides consumes me and I inhale softly, picking up her scent of berry and pine. Not wanting to be overbearing, I pull back as swiftly as I initiated our kiss and examine her face, searching for a clue as to how she may have felt about it. Her eyes flutter open and fixate on mine before drifting down to my lips. She unconsciously likes her own and turns back towards the fire, the orange hue deepening her red cheeks.

Tilting my head to the side in a shrug, I lean back down on my elbow and return my focus to the flames myself. "I hope I didn't cross any lines," I offer, unsure of how she feels about my forwardness.

She gives her head a slight shake and I notice she attempts to hide a smile. "You didn't. It was nice," she answers gently before turning to me. "That was my first kiss, you know."

Grinning, I push myself up and sit up, scooting next to her to where our arms rest against the others. "What an honor," I tell her, "To be the first kiss of the most beautiful woman that has ever walked this earth? They need to carve that somewhere on my tombstone."

She giggles and rolls her eyes, "Lying is a sin Thomas. I thought we covered that on day one of our journey." Biting her lower lip, she steals a glance at me and shakes her head.

Claire is unmistakingly a beautiful girl—inside and out—and that fact that she cannot see that makes her more attractive—at least to me. "I'm not lying," I state. "Back home in Paevia, you'd have men parading around your door step every hour of the day begging for your hand I'd bet. I'd be one of them," I add with a wink.

She gives her head another shake. "You know, there is more to life than just women or shining your armor," she chastises.

Deciding to take her bait, I lean forward and brush off some mud from my boot. "There is? Like what?" I ask, flicking the clump away into the night.

Scoffing, she playfully gives me a nudge and changes the subject. "Do you have a church in Paevia? I've never heard you talk about one."

Shaking my head, I rest my elbows on my knees and with my right hand I grip my left wrist in an attempt to get comfortable. "No actually. A few decades ago there was a small group that worshiped the weather and spoke of gods living in the clouds but it died out when their members did. My grandfather lent them a small building to practice but it fell into disrepair. I think it's serves as a home to various beggars now."

"Hm," she hums. "Do you think that there could be one day?" She glances at me sideways out of curiosity, awaiting my answer.

Shrugging, I lean forward and pull up some grass before tearing the blades apart mindlessly. "I don't see why there couldn't be. If I—" I begin before correcting myself. "When I become king I'll be sure to remind Paevia of their freedom to practice what they please and to come forward if they'd like a formal place to worship—including a church."

She offers me a soft smile and returns her attention to the fire. "So there are Christians in Paevia then," she asks though it sounds more like a statement.

Collecting more blades of grass, I nod. "I'm aware of a few. They live in the outskirts of Paevia so I don't know much about them but who knows, maybe soon we'll have more," I say with a smirk.

"Meaning?" she asks, lowering her voice an octane. If I didn't know any better I'd say she is trying to flirt with me.

"Well," I begin and toss the ripped shreds of grass to my left. "There's no telling what new citizens we may acquire. The world is slowly changing, people are becoming more nomadic. Then there's the whole situation with my brother and Beth Ann to contend with," I answer. "Who is to say that a few won't follow her footsteps?"