To Kiss a King

Chapter 13

The flamboyant seamstress, Jacqueline Morg had finally left and Fiora had some time to herself. 

“Time before Rafael calls upon me..” She thought trying to fight off a bought of nervousness.

 She turned her attention to the boxes that Jacqueline had left with her. The dresses would take a few days to make and in the meantime she was left with some samples. Lifting the lid off of the first box she saw various undergarments and she  sorted through them searching for a gown to wear tonight. The first box contained nothing more than two sleeping gowns, one was a light pink and reached all the way to the ground, the other was pure white with a low neckline that made Fiora blush. 

The second box revealed a light green dress and the third box had a pale blue evening gown inside. The green dress was lighter and made for early in the day along with mid afternoon. It was perfect for strolling in a garden due to how light and airy the fabric was. 

Fiora eventually decided on the pastel blue evening gown since the sun had in fact gone down since her bath and measurements. The sleeves were trimmed with an off white delicate lace and the same lace ran across the tapered waist. The fabric was of high quality but Fiora couldn’t place it and it clung to her body. Since the dress was a sample size there was not enough room in the bust for her and she adjusted herself uncomfortably in the mirror. 

She had never worn anything this nice or for that matter form fitting. All of her dresses before had been brown or tan and had little to no shape to them. Now this gown hugged her slim waist and left not much up to the imagination. She looked refreshed and no longer the frumpy farm girl she was just this morning. Her hair was still slightly damp so she tossed it up into a loose bun on her head, letting soft curling tendrils frame her face. 

Finally the awaited knock sounded at the door and the clicking of the lock resounded off the walls. Checking her appearance in the mirror once more she hurried over to stand in front of the doorway. 

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Rafael opened the door slowly, inhaled and entered the room. Standing in front of him was possibly the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. 

“You look amazing.” Was all he managed to grumble out in awe. 

“Thank you.” Fiora replied curtly, thrown by the compliment. 

She was wearing a silk soft blue gown that pooled prettily at her feet. It synched in at her waist revealing just how small it really was. His eyes moved upwards and came to rest upon the silk stretching tightly across her generous bosom. Begrudgingly he tore his eyes away and traveled up her long slender neck noting the rise of color in her cheeks. Her hair was swept upwards away from her face and Rafael wanted nothing more than to pull the pins out. 

Still feasting upon her appearance he said “I take it Jacqueline has been here.” 

“Yes...” Fiora tore her eyes away and more color swam into her perfect complexion. “I wanted to...thank you for that.” 

Rafael took an unconscious step forwards “There is no thanks needed.” He ran a hand through his hair. He was completely loosing focus of what he had come up here to do, now he was having trouble mustering up any sort of sentence. 

"You should have the best." He finished lamely.

“I wante-” They both began the same sentence at the same time and stopped to allow the other to continue. 

“I-” They both began again. Fiora’s lips twitched as a smile threatened, Rafael grew silent realizing this was the first time he had seen her smile. 

“I wish to discuss a few things with you.” She turned serious once more. 

“That is precisely what I have come here to do.” Rafael inclined his head “Shall we sit?”