The King's Lover-Chapter 466: A Little Gift

Rose had tears in her eyes by the time Caius finally let her go, but not until she had apologized for calling him an old dog. It had simply been an honest mistake that she regretted immediately.

The sides of her neck were sore, and she kept rubbing them to soothe the pain while Caius stared at her with glee, happy at his work. She was standing feet away from the bed as she glared at him.

Rose knew better than to come close, else she risked being tortured again. As soon as he had let her go, Rose had fled away from the bed. She stopped rubbing her neck, letting her hands fall to her sides.

She walked towards the mirror on the dresser, intending to see the extent of the damage. She leaned forward over the dresser, sliding the chair into the space underneath the table so she could get a closer look.

Rose’s mouth fell open as she stared at her neck. "Your Majesty!" she cried in horror.

She did feel how sore her neck was, but she didn’t imagine it would be this bad. There were at least ten dark red spots on her neck.

"Are those teeth marks?" she asked in the same stupefied horror as she leaned closer to the mirror.

"A little gift from me," he said.

Rose jerked as he touched her; she hadn’t heard him approach, and she had been distracted by the marks on her skin to notice him in the mirror.

"Gift?" she asked and turned to face him. "I look as though a swarm of bees has attacked me."

"Did you just call me a bee?" Caius asked with more amusement than annoyance.

Rose could see the glee in his eyes; he was far too excited to enact another round of punishment. "No, Your Majesty, I was merely describing the marks."

"Marks caused by me."

At least he was willing to admit it. However, before she could scold him further, Rose realized her mistake as Caius placed his hands on the top of the dresser, on either side of her, locking her in place.

He was too close for comfort, and Rose’s first instinct was to bend and slide underneath one of his hands, but Caius anticipated that, and as soon as she tried to move, he closed the gap and she had to lean back lest her head lie on his chest.

Rose cleared her throat and tried to look brave. "Your Majesty," she called and raised her head to look at his face. His look of delight annoyed her. He was clearly having fun at her expense.

"Yes, Rose?" he said and leaned forward.

Rose couldn’t lean back any further lest she risked breaking the mirror. "Why am I confined?"

"Hmm," he said, and his eyes glanced at her neck. "Do you not recall calling me a bee?"

"I did no such thing," Rose explained; she was infuriated but she couldn’t show it. Caius would willingly leave more marks on her skin. What he got out of it, she couldn’t understand.

"Perhaps you need reminding," his voice sounded thicker, and he ran a tongue over her neck as he spoke.

Rose could recognize that tone anywhere, and she immediately started to wonder where her maids were and what was taking them so long. If she knew anything about Caius, he wouldn’t mind going at it on her dresser.

Rose nearly smacked herself at the image of her legs around him while the dresser shook with enough force to break the mirror appeared in her mind. Why was she imagining that?

Caius’s face appeared in view with a sly smirk, as though he could sense what she was thinking. He lifted a hand to her face, and Rose didn’t hesitate; as soon as there was a gap, she slipped away.

Caius laughed and turned to face her. He didn’t leave the dresser; rather, he rested his hands on it as he faced her. This gesture made his muscles tighten, and Rose could see the outline more clearly. She forced herself to look away, but it was too late—Caius had caught her.

She turned her back to him before he could say anything. "You should leave, Your Majesty. My maids will be here soon."

"I’m not against a show," he stated.

Rose gasped and turned to look at him in horror but was immediately distracted by his shirtlessness. It didn’t help that earlier he had been teasing her, and she knew he was turned on. She could see it and had felt it when he was pressed up against her while confining her to the dresser, but Rose was pretending otherwise.

"You don’t seem completely against the idea," he added, enjoying the conflicted look on her face.

Rose shook her head in horror. She was spending too much time in his presence and was slowly becoming like him. Besides, shouldn’t he be too sad for that? As soon as she thought about it, Rose knew it was the opposite.

"I have no idea what Your Majesty is talking about," Rose said and turned her head, more for her own sake. She needed to stop looking at him.

"If you say so," he said with a knowing look and pushed himself off the dresser. He walked towards Rose, and she half expected him to touch her, but he simply picked up his shirt and, without looking at her, walked towards the wardrobe.

Rose didn’t like the disappointing feeling she felt. He had done what she wanted, but somehow she didn’t like that he hadn’t pestered more and had given in too easily.

Suddenly, Caius turned as he got to the wardrobe and smirked at her. "I will see you tonight."

Rose could feel herself start to smile, but she immediately stopped herself. "No, I’ll need a few days to heal."

"I meant lessons, Rose," he said with a sly grin. "Just what were you thinking?"

Before she could reply, the wardrobe shut and he was gone. Rose stood there staring at the wardrobe as she wondered what was coming over her. She didn’t snap out of it until she heard a knock. Her maids were here.