After defeating Agrona, Arthur Leywin finally comes back to a Dicathen that is finally in a time of peace. But divides between the races, and the need for political discourse with a new continent means there is a lot of work ahead for the young lanc...
"I'm sorry, Princess. I didn't think there was anybody here with you."
The man glanced at Arthur and then at Tessia's arms wrapped around him.
She slanted Arthur a smile that made him want to melt into puddles at her feet, then glanced back at the man. "Lord Alden, this is Arthur Leywin, an old friend of mine. We were just catching up. I haven't seen him for a long time. I know you mentioned that you would love to meet him."
They were friends, right? Then why did hearing Tessia call him one feel like a knife blade plunged into his heart?
"Arthur Leywin!" the man said with an admiring glance. He came forward and Tessia dropped Arthur's arms as she slowly extricated herself from his embrace. Arthur suddenly felt like crying, feeling the loss of her warmth.
Still smiling, she turned to Arthur. In a soft voice, she said, "Arthur, Lord Alden would love to talk to you about your exploits during the war. He's working with the Earthborn Institute on improving their training. Do you think you guys could talk about it?"
He looked at the lord's face, firmly staring at him, his eyes away from Tessia's face. That's good, at least. He would rather the man look at him than gaze at Tessia with that look of admiration he was starting to hate. Seriously, it was like every single guy was entranced by her or something!
She meanwhile, had nodded at him and her eyes were pleading with him to take the hint.
"Uh, sure," he said, although, in his heart, he really wanted to talk to her instead.
Art, I need you. Her words echoed in his mind. Tess needed his help with this, and he would be damned if he didn't.
"Lord Alden," he said as he extended a hand in greeting.
The smile she turned on Arthur was blinding. He struggled to maintain a professional demeanor, a goofy smile and blush threatening to take over.
Lord Alden was shaking his hand, soon launching into an enthusiastic description of fighting tactics from Darv. Arthur kept up the conversation as the three of them stood on the balcony.
Soon, Aya came to find them as she paused at the entrance to the balcony. Gone was her trademark seductive charm, which was replaced by an efficient professional demeanor. "Princess, Lord Iron from Darv wishes to speak with you."
Tessia nodded at the lance before touching both men's arms and excused herself.
"I will be right back," she said before walking away. Her voice was calm, but she was still shaking inside.
God, he'd felt so good when she'd wrapped her arms around him. The warmth of him, his solid, steady presence so calming. All the while she had done it, she'd kept a refrain in her head: He's a friend. He's a friend. Just a friend.
Repeating the phrase like a mantra had helped her keep her cool, to keep thinking clearly about the mission, but she was still honest enough to admit that she had enjoyed every single minute of it. Even as she'd died with the embarrassment of it all, knowing it was so out of character for her, she'd continued to shamelessly press herself against his body. Tessia was only glad the darkness had hidden her uneasiness.
But it was one memory she could keep in her heart.
She hadn't expected to, but she'd loved Arthur's scent as she'd breathed him in. And she'd noticed the way he'd unconsciously tightened his arms around her waist when Lord Alden had approached them and had started speaking. It had taken all her willpower to keep up the act, to keep smiling at him when all she'd wanted to do was lay her cheek against his chest and just ask him to continue holding her.
But she was still working, and she had kept her head. Lord Alden was one of the people she needed to cultivate a friendship with. Not only did the man have strong connections within Darv, he also had a good relationships with others across the continent. He was also incredibly intelligent, being the main professor at the Earthborn Institute on all things related to tactics and strategies. Tessia needed him, potentially as support for Elenoir's future.
Luckily, he was also an admirer of Arthur's, which was why Tessia had purposefully encouraged both of them to talk. As she'd suspected, Alden's interest in her was fleeting. She'd watched with satisfaction as his admiration for her died when he'd seen the way Arthur's arms had been around her body. But Alden's interest in Arthur was still in full force. Tessia noted the two were still active in conversation as she looked at them one more time before heading back for continued talks with the others assembled.
Her childhood friend was truly something else.
Ups! Tento obrázek porušuje naše pokyny k obsahu. Před publikováním ho, prosím, buď odstraň, nebo nahraď jiným.
