Celestia | A fantasy romance

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Alessia
I'd gotten halfway across the hallway when I realized I was in nothing but a towel. And it had taken all but one wide eyed look from the prince for me to understand that.

I ran back and quickly got dressed into one of the gowns the king had brought me, humiliation colouring my face a bright red. How did I always manage to embarrass myself in the most creative of ways? Stepping out of the dressing room, I strut back into my chambers, only to find him waiting for me. Again.

"So,” His lips twitched, “would really not have realised that you were...uh—not dressed appropriately—had I not-"

"Yeah can we pretend that never happened?" I shot him a glare but he just smiled back at me mischievously. I ignored the smug look on his face and gathered my hair up into a bun. Trying not to think about how insufferable his smile is.

I had to look like I wasn't scared of him, like it didn't matter to me that I was alone with him in a room, even as my fingers shook when I lifted them to secure a pin in place. So I didn't spare him a single glance while I got ready and sprayed on some perfume.

"Are you even going to be done by tonight?" He asked but there was no hint of frustration in his voice. It sounded more like an attempt to strike a conversation. Something about the niceness he shows annoys me to no end.

"You seem to be having a great time watching me from there, so why bother complaining?" I smiled at him and he smiled back, getting up from where he sat on my bed.

I watched him stalk towards me through the mirror, my eyes snagging on his long legs, only turning around when he got too close. "What on the gods do you think you're doing-"
His face dipped, inches from mine, the smile instantly vanishing. "If only you weren't..." He trailed off, his eyes dropping down to my lips, his own parting slightly.

I couldn't respond, couldn't move, as his fingers trailed along my back. Thousands of words crowded my mind. Thousands of questions. Why didn't he finish that sentence?

If only you weren't what?
Fucking my father? Such a whore? So damn easy?

"..so foolish." He finished, his fingers pulling up the zipper of my dress. "You didn't even realize it was open."

He strode out the room the next moment, and I just stood there, frozen and stunned.  My entire body started shaking when his footsteps weren't audible anymore. It took me more than a few moments to master my body and will it to stop shaking, but i managed to do an okay job at it as I strode out my room, holding my chin up high.

Ash showed me around the grounds as promised, and thankfully there were no more awkward...incidents.
We'd just finished visiting the library when the clock struck 8 in the night, and I realized how much time I spent with him today. This boy is an easy talker, he never runs out of things to say. Today, I learned about the 6 powerful dragon clans that ruled this realm before Yazilla had to be made in order to save all kinds of life on earth. The Rihma, Ninyel, Yera’ah, Nahra, and Linsah. Apparently, the creation of yazilla resulted in the extinction of all of them because it took every single drop of magic—from every single dragon—to make a being as powerful as the Yazilla.

Ash stopped talking for a while and my fingers trailed along the railing of the stairs we descended.
"To the gardens next?" He asked and I nodded before following him through plenty of hallways and rooms. Hallways and hallways we passed, endless rooms and offices blurring past as Ash just walked and walked and walked, and I practically had to sprint to keep up with his pace.

"Wait!" I gasped, halting to catch a breath but he didn't even spare me a glance. What the fuck?
"What kind of garden is so deep inside the-" I began, but he shot me a look that said shut the fuck up, and I only silently cursed him before following with a scowl on my face.