The King's Lover-Chapter 389: Feel Normal

Rose slept surprisingly well, despite what the Crown Prince told her last night. She woke up entangled in his arms, and for the first time, she thought that maybe it wasn’t a bad thing. She knew she couldn’t do anything about his past, but perhaps in some weird way, the future could be better. She didn’t think for them but at least for him.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," Rose said.

There was no point in not saying it. There was a high chance the Crown Prince was already awake, and she didn’t want him to accuse her of pretending to be asleep again. And maybe, in some way without being fully aware of it, she wanted to be nicer to him. It was hard not to take pity on his plight.

"Good morning, Rose," he replied as he ran a hand through his hair. His voice sounded dry.

He wasn’t calling her ’little lady’ anymore. It was hard not to notice, nor did he tease her about calling him ’castle boy.’ However, Rose knew better than to expect things to always remain the same with the Crown Prince.

She sat upright and stretched her hands. It was hard to explain, but she felt a little lighter. Rose didn’t want to attribute it to what happened last night. It couldn’t have been that; she wasn’t the Crown Prince, who needed such things to be less cranky.

She started to get out of bed, aware that the Crown Prince was watching her. "Did you sleep well, Your Majesty?" she asked as she stood in front of him.

As soon as the question left her lips, Rose nearly smacked herself. Why did she care if he had, and why did she feel the need to start a conversation?

"You could say that," Caius said, lifting his right hand to show that the bandages had come undone. They barely hung onto his wrist, and as he lifted it, they fell to the bed.

Rose instantly panicked, her eyes widening in horror. Lord Paul wasn’t in the castle anymore; they couldn’t afford any complications with his hand. But contrary to her reaction, the Crown Prince seemed calm about it.

"Should I ask Lord Thomas to call a physician?" she asked.

Caius lifted his gaze to look at her, catching her expression. "You don’t have to look so worried; my hand is practically healed. I just need to change the bandages."

Rose wasn’t convinced, but she didn’t want to look like she was overreacting while the Crown Prince looked calm and unbothered. This situation reminded her of the night before.

"Okay, Your Majesty," she reluctantly said.

"Would you be kind enough to help me with that?" Caius asked.

"Kind enough?" Rose blurted out in shock. Realizing what she had said, she quickly nodded her head. "Yes, Your Majesty. Please forgive that."

"Good. Paul left some tools behind. I’ll have the servants bring them here."

After the servants had gotten them ready for the day and breakfast was served, the Crown Prince finally let her wrap the fresh bandages around his palm.

He sat on the bed while she sat across from him, a servant beside her ready to hand over whatever she might need. Rose didn’t understand why Caius wouldn’t get a physician—that was the thing to do—but she knew better than to suggest it.

She applied the ointment to his palm, careful not to apply any pressure. His hand felt very warm, and Rose realized that she easily lost herself while tracing it.

When she finally snapped out of it, she looked up to see Caius smirking as he watched her. Rose entertained the idea of slamming down on his hand, but only for a moment, before she turned to the servant, who immediately handed her a fresh bandage.

Rose wasn’t exactly sure what she should do, but she could recall the pattern of the old bandage, so she did her best to replicate it, slowly wrapping it around his wrist. She made sure it wasn’t too tight while also ensuring it wasn’t too loose, so it wouldn’t fall off.

"I am done, Your Majesty," she said with a small nod.

Caius lifted his hand and stared at it. "Better than Paul’s," he commented.

Rose didn’t buy it for one moment; there was no way she was better than a physician. She didn’t know why he had chased Paul away again, but she wouldn’t be surprised if it was so she would have to help him some more.

Rose didn’t get the Crown Prince’s reasoning, and she had stopped trying to understand it. Right now, she was doing her best to wait until he was married. They couldn’t stay in Castle Catherine forever, and as much as she hated the capital, they had to return to reality.

Rose didn’t know when this marriage would happen and no one spoke anything about it but with the King’s ailing health and everything that was going on, she doubted it would be long.

"Would you like to eat now?"

Caius glanced at the table and then at Rose. "I don’t see why not."

She nodded and stood to her feet. He followed after her, walking a little too closely behind. They sat down, and the servants moved quickly, dishing out meals and pouring drinks.

This routine was almost starting to feel normal, and Rose didn’t like it. At first, she had been a little embarrassed, but now, like a mother diligently attending to a child, there wasn’t a hint of embarrassment in her movements. She fed him and wiped his mouth when needed.

What was more concerning was how Caius seemed happy to receive all this. The only thing he did was drink water with his left hand; he looked very content to have her feed him.

After breakfast was done, Rose started her round of lessons again. This time, Caius was a different person in comparison to the one who had accepted everything she handed to him during mealtime.

However, Rose couldn’t be angry, as she could very well see she was getting better. Recognizing letters of the script and familiar words was easy. Writing, on the other hand, still needed some more work, but she knew all she had left to do was practice, practice, and practice.