The King's Lover-Chapter 498: Not Subtle

Caius was doing his best to stay still, but he was failing. He planned to put her at ease with dinner, and after she had her fill of food and drinks, he planned to tell her about how he felt and ask her once again to marry him.

But he wasn’t being careful or calm or collected, and despite wanting to make her comfortable, he found himself in her personal space more often than he needed to be. It was hard not to touch her.

He didn’t have to grab her by the waist, and he could have easily accepted her curtsey, but as soon as she walked through the doors, Caius wanted her in his arms.

She was beautiful and with her hair raised and her exposed neck, Caius couldn’t stop staring. He wanted to get rid of the scarf as soon as she walked in so he could get a proper view.

He was also distracted by her tender bewilderment mixed with a slight amusement that pleased him. She was shocked but not offended by his gesture.

He had truly wanted this to be an invitation. He didn’t want her to be here if she didn’t want to be, and if she had declined his request, he would have invited her to join him for breakfast, then lunch, then dinner again. He was willing to ask as many times as it would take to get her to accept his invitation.

"I am here because I want to be."

Rose only said it once, but it echoed in his head more times than he could count, and he could feel the warmth spread all across his body. It wasn’t the exact answer he wanted, but it was pretty close.

Caius had thought about all his cousin had said. He knew he couldn’t pretend that things would just fall into place if he alone set them. Rose had told him not to make decisions about her without confirming if she wanted to or not.

Caius sighed. He truly didn’t want to lose her, and he had felt so good when she said she accepted because she wanted to dine with him. He could only imagine how happy he would feel when she accepted his proposal.

He was too close to her again, he knew, but he didn’t want to step away. He would rather pull her into his arms, but he would have to suffice with being close enough to touch her.

"It pleases me greatly," Caius said.

Rose nodded and turned away to look at him. It was hard to hold his gaze. Caius wasn’t being subtle in the slightest. She could see his eagerness when she looked up at him, and it annoyed her that she was getting pulled in.

"May I take your scarf?" Caius was already reaching for it before she could stop him.

He didn’t care about the scarf. If she wanted to keep it on, she could. Though he would be sad about her keeping it on, it was really just an excuse to touch her without being conspicuous.

"Sure," she said with a shrug and allowed him to reach for it.

Caius leaned closer as he carefully pulled the scarf off her shoulder. He let his fingers lightly graze her, feeling the warmth and softness of her skin. Caius knew he couldn’t linger, no matter how tempted he was.

He pulled his hand away, took the black scarf, and stretched out his hand on the other side. Rose’s face showed surprise as a servant appeared out of the darkness. She didn’t even realize they weren’t alone. The servant took the scarf and stepped back.

"Shall we?" Caius asked, drawing her attention back to him.

Rose blinked and nodded. He didn’t offer his hand, and Rose was grateful for that. They walked side by side and made their way to the dining table.

Caius’s hands twitched under the mantle as they walked. He didn’t offer his hand because he knew he wouldn’t want to let her go when it was time to, so he best kept his distance. Besides, there was a high chance he would pull her into his lap, and Caius wasn’t sure Rose would be pleased about that.

The servant was quick to pull back her seat and adjust it just right so she could sit comfortably. Caius was already seated, and he was watching her. The servant poured some wine into her cup, and Rose watched the liquid fill the cup while she could feel Caius’s gaze on her.

She took a sip of the wine after her cup was filled, wondering if it would help with her nerves. Rose didn’t feel any different as she put the cup down. She took a deep breath and began to eat.

"Did you see your father? How did it go?" Caius asked as she put a bite into her mouth.

Rose didn’t answer right away. She wanted to keep Caius waiting, and at the same time, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to have a casual conversation. She feared that would put him at ease.

She knew he was trying to get her to say yes, and she could admit that she was pleasantly surprised by his gesture, but this wasn’t nearly close, and she needed to keep reminding herself about that.

She was getting swayed too easily.

Caius didn’t seem impatient as she took her time to respond. Instead, he quietly waited for her to speak in her own time. Finally, when she could no longer stall, Rose had to speak.

"It went well. Father got a job," Rose said the last part with pride.

"That’s wonderful."

"Yes. One of Lady Delphine’s clients requested a wolf carving, and they are willing to pay fifty gold coins for it. I am sure Father didn’t want to seem like a burden to Lady Delphine and would love to help them any way he can, especially financially."

"He doesn’t have to worry about that. I already made plans to make sure..." Caius let the rest of his words trail off. Rose didn’t like what he was saying; her deep frown was enough indication.

"It is not the same thing," she said with a sigh. "No one wants someone else to take care of them while they sit around doing nothing."

"I didn’t mean that—"

"I know what you meant,Your Majesty," she replied coldly and resumed eating.

They had only just sat down, and somehow things weren’t going as smoothly as before. Caius feared that he might ruin things, or perhaps he had already ruined them too much to be fixed.

He didn’t realize how intense this fear was until now.