Memory of You

Chapter Thirty Three: Before It All Fades To Black

Chapter Thirty Three: Before It All Fades To Black

Waking up with Alexandra in his arms, resting her head against his chest, Nicholas enjoyed the early morning peace and serenity surrounding them. Stroking her hair, he reveled holding her close to him.

Having been back for a few days, things had quickly become normal. Their friends had, typically, teased them about the library lock up.

Hearing her stir, Nicholas looked down to see Alexandra's eyes flutter open. The hazel depths beamed up at him, holding warmth and love.

"Good morning, gorgeous." He smiled, kissing her.

"Morning, handsome." She replied, nuzzling against him. "What time is it?"

Glancing over at his desk, he saw the clock.

"A little after six."

"Amazing, Nick...how is it that whenever I'm with you, I wake up earlier than I need to?" Alexandra teased, as she poked him.

"I have that effect on people." He grinned, earning a push for his cheek. Holding her tightly, he smirked. "Lex, you know you're the only one I would ever wake up before the crack of dawn."

"That's probably true." She said, snickering, before giving him a kiss.

Basking in the early morning light, the two allowed a comfortable silence to settle over them. Turning to face her, Nicholas brushed the hair away from her eyes.

"What's your day like?" Nicholas asked, caressing her face.

"Meeting with the Medical Association, and then a nice long audience with the town of Diacard. Thankfully, I don't have any meetings with any of the houses." She said, referring to their parliament. "What about you?"

"Mainly I'll be working in the kitchen today. Mark and Valek asked me to join them for lunch, and with no house meetings I'm pretty much free."

"I'll be done before dinner...maybe we can do something together?" Alexandra asked hopefully.

"Of course. Maybe we can go the Chef's lodgings and eat outside? I'll ask Mark." He would be looking forward to spending time with her. Three months of not seeing her had been punishing enough, if it was up to him, he would keep her in his arms for as long as he could.

Since they were both awake, he thought they could enjoy the morning before everyone else woke up.

"Want to go down and make breakfast? It'll only be us in the kitchen."

"Okay!" She agreed happily.

Getting dressed himself, before waiting for her; Nicholas strolled into the kitchen hand in hand with Alexandra. Deciding to make cupcakes much to the Queen's pleasure, Nicholas divided their tasks before setting off to look for the ingredients.

"Chocolate icing! You know me so well!" Alexandra chirped as he handed her a bowl with the chocolate and icing sugar.

Mixing the batter, he watched as she munched on the chocolate when she thought he wasn't watching her, a smile growing on his lips. Setting aside the icing, after putting the batter into muffin cups and into the over, Nicholas walked over to where Alexandra stood by the counter, licking the last of the icing on her spoon.

Standing behind her, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. It would be a long day before he'd finally see her for dinner, he thought, leaning forward so his cheek touched hers. Feeling her lean back against him, her head resting against his shoulder, he kissed her cheek. He couldn't have been any happier than when he was with her.