CH13
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By the time Tsuneo was back in bed, my face was still burning. Maya was ecstatic to see me, embracing me despite how filthy I was. I hid the bag of gold in the closet and let Maya run a bath in Tsuneo’s bathroom. She hadn’t brought clothes with her, but I didn’t ask. None of the clothes
were mine anyway.
Instead, my mind kept turning back to the fact that I was naked in his bathroom, and he was in the other room. I put up a privacy spell on the bathroom door, but it didn’t make me think about it any less.
That will be thest time you thank me, wife.
The steam stung my eyes, blurring my reflection on the polished surface of the walls.
“Takes a certain sort of man to bathe in a mirrored bathroom,” I mused.
“All the bathing chambers are like this. Even yours has changed. It’s a good omen.”
I sank into the hot water as my stomach filled with butterflies, remembering the deep, velvety
sound of his voice. I should still be upset, but it was <b>hard </b>to gather the anger together. He’d
apologized sincerely. The look in his eyes when he apologized was so different than when he’d
looked ready to kill me earlier.
“Maya.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?” She paused, rolling up her sleeves.
“This queen thing…<b>What </b>exactly does it mean?”
“Every king needs a queen,” she said.
“For children?”
Sheughed. “It’s very rare that <b>the </b>queen gives birth to the king’s heir.”
1 frowned and looked up at her. “<b>What</b>?”
“It’s just too great of a <b>risk</b>. The king usually has a few concubines.”
J frowned. “Tsuneo has concubines<b>?</b>”
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She blinked, grabbing the washcloth and pouring soap onto it. She smiled warmly.
“You’ve learned his name… While you were in the human realm?”
I shook my head. “Doctor Shang.”
She hummed and shrugged before starting to wash my back.
“What’s that mean?
“He’s… a bit entric.”
1 cocked an eyebrow. “entric?”
“Well, he’s not married. He turned down all candidates… Some say he’s… unnaturally attached to the crown prince.”
I blinked andughed. “People think that he’s in love with Tsuneo?”
“Well, in so many words.”
I scoffed. “No,” I smirked. “Do people think the crown prince has feelings for him?”
“No one would ever dream of it.”
The look on her face said she was lying, and I couldn’t help butugh. I could imagine them both. cringing at the thought. I was
ing to have fun with that when his father came. She finished washing my back. I washed the rest of me, and I leaned back to let her wash my
Maya finished washing my hair and pouted. “You cut your hair again.”
hair.
“Sue me.”
I’d always hated it long. It got in the way; I woke up with it in my mouth, and the thick waves always tangled past a certain length.
Maya sighed. “But all the hair ornaments will go to waste.”
“You <b>can </b><b>have </b>them.”
“Your Majesty, don’t joke like that.”
“I mean it.”
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I got out of the bath, much warmer <b>and </b>more rxed. I grabbed the towel and pushed ab through my hair. I looked myself in the mirror and frowned. I looked almost the same as always, but there was something that had changed. I didn’t know if it was in my eyes or something else,
but it didn’t matter.
Maya came up behind me with a bright smile and a blood–red and gold robe covered in images of a dragon.
“Seems… a bit much.”
“You are staying in His Majesty’s chambers, and after your escape earlier, you’ll need to make a
statement.”
I scoffed. “ying politics like a noble. Just what I wanted….”
I shrugged and let her put me in it. It wasn’t nearly as heavy as all theyers I’d had on before.
“I take it back. This is much better.”
Sheughed. “The queen’s clothes are more ornamented, but you’re in the crown prince’s chambers as his wife, so you’re wearing his clothes.”
My face heated, thinking of the look in Tsuneo’s eyes when he’d called me wife. She tied the robe. shut with a long golden cord and put a circlet of gold on my head. I supposed she couldn’t just let me not wear jewelry.
I sighed and walked out of the bathroom, wondering how Tsuneo could manage to just lie there for hours without actually falling asleep. I settled into the seat at the writing desk and took a deep breath. The walls trembled. I felt their approach in a way I couldn’t exin. There was more than just his father. Among them was <b>at </b>least one woman. I had a feeling I knew who it was. The heavy footsteps echoed at the back of my mind, and I reclined, taking a deep breath. I nced into the bedroom. On a whim, I grabbed my sword and held it in myp.
Then, the doors swung open<b>, </b>revealing the group. The old man, Tsuneo’s father, was in front. We <b>met </b>gazes. He flushed, and before he could speak, I narrowed my eyes<b>. </b>
“Do you make it a habit of entering my husband’s room without knocking?”
His eyes bulged, and the door swung closed in his face. Maya gasped. She looked at me with wide eyes. They tried the door again, and I smiled. How had he managed to keep it a secret all this time with people just barging in?
When a knock sounded on the door, I willed the door open. His father looked like he couldn’t
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disapprove <b>any </b>more than he already did. The Elders looked spooked, as did Keiji. Ari looked furious. We were off to a good start.
Tsuneo’s father strode in. His stern gaze held a potent mix of anger and disbelief. Keiji didn’t have the flirtatious look on his face from earlier. Ari’s <b>eyes </b>were sharp and ring at me. She looked like she wanted to rip the robe off of me. Completing the entourage were the Imperial Elders, staring at me in shock.
His father cleared his throat, the sound booming through the chamber.
“How did you get back without being seen?”
I leaned on my hand, giving him the best condescending smile I could.
“I was told that you had a queen yourself. I think you know the answer.” I met his gaze head–on. lounging in my seat with my hand resting on my sword. “And I wasn’t exactly offered a choice ining here. I was brought against my will. Do you expect a kidnapping victim to stay put when given the chance to escape?
A collective gasp rippled through the room.
“Against your will?” Ari growled. “You aren’t worthy of the-”
I threaded the gold rope through my fingers and sighed. “The gateway seemed to think differently. Doe in. It’s rude to stand in <b>the </b>doorway.
I took a deep breath and braced myself for the game ahead. She flushed and stomped inside. One of the Elders closed the door. Ari headed toward the bedroom, and I willed the bedroom door to close and lock before she reached the door. The Elders gasped, and his father’s eyes widened and turned glossy. I could see the yearning and longing in his eyes<b>. </b>
Ari whirled around on me, baring her teeth at me. How dare you try to keep me from him!”
Chapter Comments
Parker
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I wish that there was some indication of who says things sometimes… it doesn’t fit that Morgan’s saying this herself, but I can’t be sure who is, because if it was Tsuneo, how
Tammy Bunder
Oh poor Ari… you dont know who you are up against!!!
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