Building an Empire [M/M]

Chapter Eight

Imma go straight to bed and have some blessed, blessed sleep after posting this.

I wrote most of this while I was tired, so I apologise for all typo errors you will find... >.>

Alexander’s POV

“Okay, so when I make this sign,” Siobhan made a discreet gesture with his hand, “you say; no.” He had been trying to teach me this all day and I had no idea why. He wasn’t trying to teach me a ‘yes-gesture’ either, only the no. I had yet to actually do it. Siobhan looked at me with hopeful eyes and made the gesture. I blinked back at him and bit back a smile as he sighed and started explaining it all over.

I stopped listening to him and instead focused on what he was wearing. Because it wasn’t the usual shirt and breeches. No, he was wearing very loose pants that cascaded down his legs in folds and over that a long jacket/shirt thingy made of a thicker material with simple embroidery down the sides. Both of the pieces were a deep red. If I had to compare it with something it would have to be the Indian dhoti, but even that wasn’t quite an exact comparison. And on another note, why was it even red? I thought everybody was wearing black because we were in mourning over some general.

My attendant entered with a demanding knock and shooed Siobhan out with a glare. “If I have to get Lady Alexander ready before tonight we have to get started now, so out,” she huffed. I could see that Siobhan was trying to hold in a laugh as the woman who was barely half his height barked at him.

“Now Lady Alexander, let’s get you ready,” she turned and said to me when Siobhan had finally left.

Three hours later - three fucking hours - she finally left with a satisfied look on her face from a job well done. My scalp was prickling from all the pulling she’d done on my hair, and I didn’t dare touch my face for fear that my hand would come away full of make-up powder stuff. Tonight had to big. Nervousness clenched my stomach as I wondered what role I was expected to play.

A silent creak was the only thing that alerted me to Siobhan’s presence. The man was surprisingly silent when he walked for a man of his size. I did hear the sudden inhale of air though. I turned to see that Siobhan was staring at me with wide eyes. His eyes going up and down, and up and down. I guess she did something right. It was almost worth suffering through all that prepping just to see Siobhan’s reaction.

The next time Siobhan’s eyes made their way to my face, I deliberately let the tip of my tongue peek out to lick my lips. His ears immediately turned red and he looked down at his feet. How could I not have noticed these reactions before? I had to be losing my grip.

“We should get going, Alex,” Siobhan said, having gotten his facial expression under control so that he now looked serious and professional. Opening the door, he escorted me out. We went down lots and lots of hallways - I was beginning to think that most of this castle was made up of them - and I began to see more and more people. And the closer we go to our destination, the more voices and laughter I could hear. We’re going to a party. The realization finally dawned on me and I mentally facepalmed myself for not having thought of that immediately.