The Rivalry

The Rivalry Chapter 16

He stood up and walked over to his trousers. His taught muscles showed easily through the tanned skin of his back. I kept watching as he bent over to dig in the pocket of his trousers and found the necklace. He turned around and my eyes roamed again to his chest and his abdomen, his muscles were very defined and his arms were cut and strapping. I couldn't help but blush as it lit an unfathomable fire in my veins.

"Here, it seems appropriate that you have one of your own, the last one I gave you was my mother's," he chuckled lightly as he handed what was now a ring to me.

I turned the ring over in my hands. He had taken the emerald from the necklace and set it in a small silver band. It was gorgeous. I slipped it onto the third finger of my left hand, as was appropriate. I couldn't help but smile as I examined the ring on my finger, a perfect fit.

"Do you like it?" I heard his voice from beside me. I looked up and smiled at him.

"Very much so, thank you. It's very beautiful."

"I am pleased that you like it," he said, as he lifted my hand up and kissed my knuckles. He lowered my hand from his mouth but he did not release it, he gently ran his thumb along my slender hand. I tried not to think of the power that those hands held and the lives they had taken. I tried to just think of him as a man, an ally, and my loyal king.

"Would you like to go see the town now?" I asked. "Shelisaere completely surrounds the palace outside the walls on the east, west, and south. The market is in the south, in the middle of it all," I said as I opened the door for Vivian, I heard her knock a second before. She wouldn't be waking me up in the mornings any longer, but I still needed her to help me dress.

"Good morning Vivian." I smiled warmly at her.

"Good morning My Lady," she said back and her voice caught in her throat when she saw Grant, standing there, his broad shoulders and sculpted chest bare.

"G-Good morning Your Highness, how do you do?" She asked timidly.

"I am very well, thank you. And how are you this morning?" he asked. She was obviously surprised with his kindness. That would be the case with most of the people. Everybody had heard nothing but negative things about him and it was jarring to see him be so kind and pleasant. I smiled inwardly, enjoying the moment.

"Well, thank you." She smiled. She wouldn't be so nervous next time, now that she knew he wasn't going to try to slay her when she walked in the door.

"Alright Vivian, I'm ready," I said as I ushered her towards the powder room. A few moments later she was pinning my hair up and tightening my dress. It was a deep blue one, it was a very nice one, but it wasn't as delicate as the one I wore last night.

I stepped out the door and saw Grant pulling his shirt over his head and he turned to face me.

"You're going to need more clothes to keep here aren't you?" I said. "We'll go see Mira." I smiled, imagining the bossy short woman measuring Grant.

"This is fine for now," he said.

"Yes, but you'll need some anyways, to keep here. Now is as good a time as any." I smiled and walked out the door, knowing he would follow.

As I walked through the palace, I pointed to different hallways and doors telling him what rooms they were or where they led to. He nodded and tried to follow along, he would remember them all with time.

I walked up to Mira's door, knocked, and entered promptly. I entered to see her fluttering around, testing different fabric colors with each other.

"Oh, hello Lynnae, what brings you here?" she smiled at me, and then Grant. She was a stout bossy woman and she wasn't going to let Grant know she was afraid of him, if she even was.