Page 13 of Sumanika (The Prince’s Widowed Bride #1)

She left the chamber, and I looked at the attendee, waiting for her to explain why she had arrived. “ Kunwarsa,” she said slowly, causing me to furrow my brows. “ Yes?” I asked, and she gulped, glancing at me before speaking in a low voice, “ Princess Rashmika wants to meet you.” I nodded, acknowledging her words, and replied, “ Alright, I need to freshen up. Please call her over for lunch.” She nodded and licked her lips slightly, and I rolled my eyes, unable to believe what was happening in my life now.

I ignored her and tried to walk toward the bathroom, but she collapsed before me. My eyes widened in shock. She cried out, looking at me, yet I continued to walk into the bathroom, ignoring her.

Seriously?

After bathing and getting ready in a fresh white kurta and a long loincloth, I went to my meeting area, waiting for lunch. After some time, I heard the announcement of Rashmika ’ s arrival and stood up to welcome her. I saw her enter with a few of her attendees, all dressed in pink with dupattas on their heads.

"Greetings, Prince ," she said warmly, and I replied. "Welcome to Suryagarh,"

I walked forward and took a seat across from her on the couch.

“ How ’ s everything? Was your journey comfortable?” I asked, and she smiled, nodding.

"Of course, why would not be?" She said, guiding her attendee to step forward and place a plate on the table in the middle.

“ This is for you,” she said, and I furrowed my brows slightly.

“ What is it?” I asked, and she let out a small giggle.

“ Something that you will enjoy,” she said, and I blinked before lifting the clothes off the plate. My brows furrowed in confusion as I looked at the long, black object. It was made of iron and had a long tube of about two feet attached to a thick handle-like structure.

“ What is this?” I asked, holding it in my hand. It was heavy—heavier than the sword and spear.

“ It ’ s called a gun,” she said with a smile, and I didn ’ t know, but suddenly a suspicious thought crossed my mind.

"What does this do?" I asked, my voice filled with confusion.

"It kills," she replied, and I got up from the couch.

“ How?” I inquired.

She turned to look behind, and I glanced at the head commander stepping forward. He took the gun from me and aimed it at a tree. I saw him pull a handle, and a blast occurred, causing him to step back a little. The next thing I saw was an apple falling from the tree.

"Oh," I said, impressed, but suddenly my mind was blown. "What is this? What caused the blast?" I tried to ask, and the head commander looked at me with a slightly fearful smile.

"It is gunpowder,"

And I tried to behave incognito. “ Oh, what is that? I don ’ t know about it,”

I said, taking the gun from his hand and aiming at another apple, faking a wide, impressed, and happy smile.

“ This is imported by Mehrangarh. We buy this powder from Songarh and use it in these guns. Our army is going to use it too. What do you think about it?” he said, and I didn ’ t understand why, suddenly, just a day after the brothel incident, he was telling me about gunpowder.

That only meant one thing. Either he was right or he was just covering up for something with this.

“ Impressive! I love it, Rashmika. Thank you so much,” I said, smiling at her as she smiled back.

“ Yes, I knew you would love it,” she said. I pulled its handle, and a strong thunder ran through my body, making me shake and fumble a little.

“ Oh my goodness, it ’ s powerful,” I tried to say, making an effort to act normally, but inside I was freaking out. I knew that this ruthless commander was up to something and had grown suspicious of me. There was no way he would come with Rashmika. I mean, who would send a commander with the princess?

Well, Eklavya went too. However, we were three brothers, and we were capable of directing an army, while Mehrangarh clearly was not.

And suddenly, I remembered.

“ Where ’ s Eklavya?” I asked, glancing at Rashmika as her smile slightly faded.

“ He came with us too,” she said slowly, and I furrowed my brow.

“ Oh, so my princess has protection from two commanders,” I tried to say as I returned to my seat. She laughed softly, then looked at her commander and said, “ You can go.”

He walked away from there, and I watched as the attendees began serving us.

I spent the afternoon with her, having lunch and chatting a bit, trying hard not to give them any hints.

I didn ’ t know if Rashmika was stupid or just acting like it. I mean, the commander came here to teach me how to use the gun and make me believe they were using gunpowder for it, as if they were trying to propose a business deal here.

Smart.

Making money from both sides.

Suddenly, I turned to Rashmika and asked, "Did you hear there ’ s a rumor going around that scary noises come from the other side of the mountains?"

Her brows thinned in a line as she shook her head. “ No, I do not think so. I mean, the mountains are closer to us. If anything came from the other side of the mountains, we would know first,” she said with a soft chuckle.

“ That ’ s true,” I replied, standing up from the couch. “ You should go rest now because I need to meet my Bhaisa and take care of the feast preparations.”

She nodded and left, leaving me alone. I immediately returned to my bedroom and sat down on the couch.

I needed to find out what that big thing was. There was no way this gun could kill our army since they couldn ’ t import it in large numbers without attracting attention, and they were no saints who would show me this gun before importing it.

That only meant that these guns were just a cover-up; their firepower had more uses. Suddenly, a thought came to mind.

If a three-foot gun could shoot gunpowder to kill one person, then there could be a big gun that could shoot gunpowder in enormous quantities, which could kill many people at once. Furthermore, it would not be imported because the fishermen near the sea fall under the territory of kingdoms, and if not us, then others must have known.

I felt restless and went to meet Eklavya. After talking to him, I realized he didn ’ t know about it, but he told me that there were frequent meetings happening at the back of the Kingdom where they store war weapons.

That meant I had to go to their weapon godown once. Unwantedly, I was feeling suspicious about Rashmika too, now.

After meeting him I went to meet Ranvijay Bhaisa to look after the preparations.

I did not meet her after noon, or my mind was too stuck on that gun thing to try searching.

I couldn ’ t sleep that night; only two days remained until the grand feast. An enormous crowd of guests had arrived for the Princess ’ s naming ceremony. I worked all day alongside them to take care of the guests—welcoming them and talking to them; a few meetings took place, and by the end of the day, I felt exhausted and sleepy.

“ Shall we bring your dinner, Kunwarsa?” the attendee asked as I entered my chamber late at night. I shook my head lazily, took off my kurta, and lay on the bed.

"No, not hungry,"

My head was pounding from lack of sleep, and I sensed that something was wrong and about to happen. I was exhausted, but the scenario kept replaying in my mind.

And I couldn ’ t leave during the celebration.

I pressed my hand against my head to reduce the pulsating sensation, and suddenly, a sweet voice entered my ear.

"Kunwarsa, dinner,"

I inhaled deeply, closed my eyes, and reached out my hand to her. I knew who she was.

She approached me quietly, and I gazed at her as she gazed back.

“ Someone will see,” she said, looking at the open curtains of the entrance. I held her hand to help her sit on the bed and then stood up.

I went to draw the curtains for the bed and windows, then laid back on the bed on my chest, resting my head in her lap.

She hesitated a little at the sudden touch but gave in after a few moments. I did not know, but her embrace felt good. She was less chaotic, sorted, mature, and understanding. Needless to say, she was also caring and simple.

I had always disliked girls with big egos and unnecessary attitudes. However, she was calm and composed. She remained silent, and I wrapped one arm around her while letting my other arm fall low, reaching the floor.

The silence felt like heaven after too much noise.

“ Are you okay?” she asked slowly. I shook my head and said, “ My head hurts.”

I could feel her thighs beneath my face. She felt warm—comfortingly warm—but I sensed that she found me cold, unable to get cozy around me.

“ Should I massage your head?” she asked slowly, and I inhaled deeply. She pressed her thighs together, and I could feel it.

"If you want," I said in a slow voice. I felt her touch my head, her fingers slowly slipping into my hair and slipping.

Suddenly, my wrist brushed against her feet, and she stiffened slightly. A faint smile crossed my face as I intently took my palm closer to her feet. When my fingers contacted her toes, she rolled them, attempting to pull them away without drawing my attention.

However, it felt good to me.

I gently touched her toes, and her fingers slowed on my head. She also wasn ’ t wearing her toe rings.

As I touched the tip of her toes, once and then again, from the bigger to the smaller one, she slowly gave in.

I could sense the tension and tightness in her body. Her breathing was noticeably uneven.

"Kunwar ," She muttered in a slow voice, and I lazily hummed.

"Hmmmm,"

“ Ann, your hand,” she muttered slowly. I brought my hand even closer to her feet, touching their base, which made her feel ticklish.

She curled her feet and crossed them, and a soft chuckle escaped my lips.

But slowly, she gave in, and I kept feathering her feet while she massaged my head. Her feet were half an inch smaller than the size of my palm, which I discovered by cupping them. The soft tickling made her giggle a little.

“ Is everything okay?” she asked again slowly, and I nodded, bringing my finger closer to her ankle. My thumb grazed the bone, and I realized she wasn ’ t wearing any anklets either. I wondered how she would look once she got ready.

She was beautiful. Her eyes were deep and lovely, and her smile could brighten anyone's mood.

But I feel terrible that she rarely smiled. In four years, I had hardly seen her smile, but now I could bet she was smiling.

I took a deep breath and brought my hand closer to her calf, softly brushing my fingertips against her skin.

She tightened her thighs, and I could feel her body responding to my touch.

“ How was your day?” I asked slowly, and she replied, slightly breathless, “ As always.”

“ Like dreaming about me,” I said slowly, cupping her leg to feel its thickness.

“ Umm, no, I do not,” she muttered slowly as I lowered my hand to her toes, intertwining my fingers. She immediately grabbed my bicep, and I could feel her pressing my fingers with her toes. A smile spread across my face.

My dinner was ready to be eaten.