Page 47

Alarm jolted me, shaking off the remnants of sleep. I slipped from under his arm, somehow managing not to fall off the bed in the process. I grabbed a nightshirt from the trunk at the foot of the bed and put it on belatedly.

Salas groaned softly, hugging my pillow instead of me. Sprawled like that, his massive body took more than half of my spacious bed. Yet he didn’t look threatening. Almost a child-like serenity settled over his face. Mussed overnight, his hair fell over his forehead, and I resisted the urge to brush it away for him.

Tenderness warmed my chest. I realized I hadn’t even fed him last night. Our dinner sat untouched on the table by the couch. The spreads and sauces might’ve gone bad overnight, but fruit should still be good.

With a platter of sliced oranges, grapes, and cut-up fresh pineapple, I padded back to the bed.

Salas stirred. His thick, dark eyelashes fluttered open. It took him a moment to gather his bearings as he stared at the silk pillow in his arms. Then he seemed to remember where he was.

“Morning, Princess.” He grinned, falling back into the pillows.

I could get used to seeing this smile every morning, and I didn’t think I’d ever grow tired of that greeting.

“Morning.” I sat on the bed and placed the fruit platter on the blanket between us. “I should probably ring for a real breakfast, with coffee and stuff.” I wondered why I hadn’t done so already, but deep inside, I knew the reason.

Salas and I had no past and no future together. All we had was the present, so I tried to stretch every moment we had, trying to keep it free from any interruptions.

“It’s early.” Salas rubbed his eyes, hiding a yawn. “When do you usually get up?”

“Six. That’s when the maids come to help me get dressed. But I’m often awake before that.”

At least I woke up in time to have breakfast with my parents this morning.

I popped a grape into my mouth, then took a segment of peeled orange from the plate and offered it to Salas. Instead of taking it from me with his fingers, he lifted his head and took it from my hand with his lips, then tossed his head back onto the pillow, chewing with a blissful smile on his face.

“Am I to feed you now?” I narrowed my eyes at such audacity. His happy expression made it hard to be upset with him in earnest, however.

“Mhm,” he hummed. “Spoil me, Princess.”

Humor shone in his eyes. He squinted in the sunshine, rising on his elbow as I sat on my knees at his side. The shroud of his initial gloomy indifference had slid aside, allowing me to see theother side of Salas—the happy, easy-going side that loved fruit and sunshine.

Smiling, I picked up another piece of orange and brought it to his mouth. He took it from me again, lightly brushing his lips against the tips of my fingers.

“Good?” I asked, suddenly unable to tear my eyes away from his lips.

“Excellent.” He grinned. “Best breakfast ever.”

I ate another grape, then fed one to him.

Rising on his arm, he brought his face closer to mine.

“Why do you get up so early? You’re a princess. You can sleep in whenever you want, can’t you?”

“Well, I have a country to run. The queen has shifted many of her responsibilities to me over the years, getting me ready to accept the crown from her one day.”

“Can’t the country run on its own for a day? What’s the worst that can happen?”

A lot of things could happen, some with potentially dire consequences for Rorrim. I had another council meeting this morning. Then, the head of the city guards was to deliver her report to the queen, for which I had to be present. The ambassador lunch came after that and another formal dinner tonight. My failure to meet with the foreign dignitaries could be taken as an insult to their queens, which in turn could lead to an international conflict.

I picked up another grape and brought it to his mouth again. Feeding him somehow proved more fun than eating myself. “My job comes with no days off.”

“Then, you’re long overdue for one.” He accepted the grape. “Come on, Princess, spend the day with me—”

I stuffed a piece of pineapple into his mouth, cutting off his words of temptation, but that didn't stop me from feeling tempted. The prospect of spending an entire day with Salas,not caring about the time passing by, was too enticing to refuse outright.

We could talk all we wanted, eat breakfast, and laugh loudly the way I never dared in polite company. I had no idea what we could talk about the whole day.

Did we have enough in common to have a conversation that long?