The lord heard a pleased gasp from Alfie, which was followed by excited laughter. He flicked his gaze to Alfie's flushed face, and when he noted the bright smile, he felt his heart swell with pleasure.
Wanting to show Alfie as much of Acaedien City as possible from an aerial view, he directed Ernie to fly over the bustling metropolitan where the citizens went about their daily routine.
Alfie laughed with delight at the wonderful sight she beheld, taking everything in—the busy market where countless citizens of many different natures and manners were hustling about, selling and buying goods, the many elegant carriages travelling along the neatly paved roads with traffic lights at almost every intersection, the school children outside playing, housewives hanging out clothing, retired residents tending to their small backyard gardens, and many more. As they passed the school children, Alfie waved at them, and they in turn waved back hyperactively. One elderly person with rabbit ears stared up at them, wide-eyed in surprise as Ernie whooshed past his balcony.
From high up in the sky, the capital city of Acaedien was beautiful, with buildings stretching far and wide and even farther up the hills beyond. To the west resided the palace, which stood grand and majestic. Half hugging the city was a range of lush mountains, some elegant in shape while others had curves and waves and ridges.
It was an hour later when Felix directed the winged lion toward a great hill behind the palace, where fields of green grass with daisies and marigolds bloomed endlessly... and beyond. There, the winged lion descended and landed smoothly. Felix got down from the beast and then helped Alfie, who said, "That was fun, Felix."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it." Then he whistled and commanded the winged lion to start flying again. Ernie did, gladly and with speed, and raced off into the distance. Then the beast ascended again to the sky where it flew around above a couple of times before heading away and disappearing from sight.
Alfie watched, and a moment later when she realized the winged lion wasn't returning, she said, "Is Ernie coming back?"
Felix said lazily, as he grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms, "He will soon."
Alfie was pleasantly surprise to find herself in Felix's arms and turned her attention to him. "My lord?"
Felix cupped her small chin in his hand and said, "It seems I haven't been receiving my morning kisses, Alfie. How will you rectify this?"
Alfie cocked her head to one side with a raised brow. She said, "It's not my fault you're not getting any, Felix. Besides, there seems to be no progress at all where the you-help-me-find-my-way-home is concerned."
He chuckled. "Feisty, aren't we?"
She poked at his hard chest as she said, "So? How are we going to do this? You helping me to find my way home."
He tightened his arms around her and said, "It can't be helped that there's no progress. First, I have no idea where your home is, and secondly, this is the first time we've spent time together since returning to the palace."
Alfie put on a sour face. She said, "That's true." She cast her eyes down immediately, which worried Felix.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
She said, "I'll tell you where I'm from when I'm ready. When I know it's safe for me to do so."
Felix nudged her face up so that he could look into her eyes. "When it's safe for you to do so?" He sounded perplexed.
She nodded. "I don't think now is a good time, Felix. I mean, I don't feel like it's the right time. As a matter of fact, I have no idea where I am or if it's even possible for me to return home."
Felix said, "You're in Acaedien, darling. That's where you are. All you need to do is tell me which kingdom you're from, and I'll arrange for transportation."
Alfie shook her head. "It's not that easy, Felix." She sighed. "As I said, I'll tell you once I'm very sure that I'm safe and that I understand my situation. I'm currently working hard on figuring it out. Lord Noah's library is very helpful. There are so many books there, you know, on almost every subject under the sun, so to speak."
Felix said, "You know I'm here to help if you need any."
Alfie nodded. "I know that. Thank you, my Lord Felix."
Suddenly, Felix leaned toward her until their faces were inches apart. He said darkly, "Noah's library... Have you been spending quite a bit of time there?"
Alfie nodded. "Only yesterday afternoon and this morning, before you came." She smiled, pleased. "But I've found so many books that I'm interested in already."
Felix asked, "And has Noah been... hassling you?"
Alfie looked confused for a moment and then shook her head. "No, Lord Noah has been very kind. Not only has he allowed me to use his library as if it's my home and take the books out to read, but he also gives up his very important time to explain things to me that I don't understand."
"You've been spending quite a bit of time with him?"
Alfie nodded. "He was teaching me. Brenna was there as well."
The fact that Brenna had been there put Felix at ease a little. Of course, he came to realize that he couldn't afford to slack off where Alfie was concerned.
He expertly and cunningly changed the subject and said, "I would like that morning kiss now, Alfie."
Alfie chuckled. She said, "But it's not morning anymore, Felix."
"Doesn't matter," he said, and he surprised her by claiming her lips with his.
She was soft and warm, and Felix felt quite intoxicated tasting Alfie's sweet lips. Thus, the lord continued to seductively kiss those sensual lips and even went so far as to lick the flesh with his tongue.
Alfie groaned softly in his arms. When he coaxed her lips to part for him, she did, and he eagerly plunged his tongue into her mouth, where he started to wildly and passionately kiss her.
It wasn't long before he felt the slender body of Alfie quivering delicately in his arms, and Felix tightened his hold on her. When he finally terminated the kiss, Alfie collapsed against his chest.
Breathlessly, Alfie looked up at him in a daze. Her eyes were bright, cheeks flushed, and her lips swollen, red and glistening.
Felix felt his heart skip a beat, and the exotic sight of Alfie looking so damn seductive nearly brought him to his knees.
He was fucking turned on.
He felt the heat and the thrill of sexual pleasure coursing and pulsating in his body, and his cock responded in the most primal way.
Because he couldn't help himself, Felix roughly claimed her lips again and began to hungrily devour her, sucking at her pure qi as well as kissing her senseless.
He fervently stroked his tongue in her mouth, exploring every small part of her until she was breathless. When he finally pulled back, he noted that she was shaking. It was only then that Felix realized he had gone too far. Not only was he kissing the life out of Alfie, but he was sucking the youth's pure qi as well.
He hugged her tightly and said softly, "I'm sorry, Alfie. I... I lost myself... I..."
Alfie could only nod her head in understanding. She said, her voice shaking, "Should we return?"
Felix agreed. He needed to clear his head, and spending more time with Alfie would only further complicate things. He needed to calm the sexual beast within him that threatened to break free and devour adorable Alfie until it was spent and satisfied.
Controlling his carnal desires, Felix gently released Alfie from his arms and then whistled loudly. A moment later, Ernie returned.