“So, if I give you permission, will you call me by my name?”
“I suppose so.”
“Alessandro.” He said.
“What?”
“My name is Alessandro, so call me by my name from now on.”
Abril responded timidly, “Alright, Alessandro.”
He smiled and said, “I like that better. Then he gave her a gentle kiss on her lips, making her blush.
Abril didn’t understand the king. He was stern but also sweet, which confused her.
Alessandro returned the book to her and said, “When I speak to you, don’t ignore me. I don’t like it.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” she replied.
Alessandro got comfortable and slipped into bed. He felt something strange moving under the blankets. He caught it and pulled it out from under the sheets. It was a fox.
“What’s this?” he questioned.
“It’s a fox, Koda, my pet.”
“And what is this ball of fur doing in my bed?”
“He is used to sleeping with me. It’s a habit.”
Alessandro left him on the floor and said, “I don’t want it in my bed.”
“But can he stay?”
“Yes, but don’t let him get on my bed.
“Alright.”
“It’s late, let’s sleep.”
Abril rested her head on the pillow and said, “Thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me?”
“For letting Koda stay with me.”
“I told you I would give you what you wanted.”
“Yes, but can I ask, why?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why does Your Majesty wish to please my wishes? I don’t understand.”
“I don’t need a reason to do it, and it’s Alessandro,” he replied.
“What?”
“We agreed that you would call me by my name.”
Alessandro stretched out his hand and gently stroked her hair and said, “Why can’t you accept
A gentle summer breeze what I give you without questioning it?”
“Because I’ve never received kindness from anyone.”
Alessandro kissed her and said, “Anyone in your place will take what I give, without questioning anything.”
“I would like to do that too, but I can’t help but think that all this will come at a cost, and I think I’m afraid of getting used to what you give me. Because I don’t know how long this will last. I’ve been alone all my life, and I’ve gotten used to loneliness. I don’t want to get used to this, to Your Majesty’s care, to your concern, only for the day to come when I’ll be back to the way I was before, forgotten in some corner of the palace.”
“That won’t happen. I’ve told you many times.”
Alessandro hugged her and said, “Stop thinking about the past and live in the now, since that’s what we have right now.”
Although the king told her that, Abril couldn’t help but be afraid of what would come.
A month later, Abril’s wound had improved a lot, and with the arrival of summer, her desire to go outside had grown stronger.
That night, when Alessandro returned to the room, Abril waited for him standing on the balcony, enjoying the soft, cool summer breeze that relieved the suffocating heat of the room.
Since the heat had begun, Abril did this every night.
The first thing Alessandro did when he entered was ask, “What are you doing on the balcony again?”
“It’s hot. I was cooling off.”
Alessandro used his wind magic to cool the room and said, “Come in, I’ve already cooled the room.”
Abril entered. Alessandro saw Koda sleeping on the bed. He lowered him and asked, “What is this animal doing on the bed again?”
Abril took him in her arms and said, “He loves to sleep there.”
Abril stroked Koda’s back. Alessandro took off his shirt. Since the heat had begun, he had been sleeping half-naked. At first, Abril had been calm, but when they slept, he used to hug her, and it made her feel ashamed.
She stared at him and said, “Your Majesty said I could ask for whatever I wanted, right?”
“That’s right. Do you want something?”
“Can I leave this room? I’m well now. I’d like to be able to go out and take a walk in the garden.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Abril lowered her head and said, “I understand.”
She never insisted. Once Alessandro gave a refusal, she just accepted what he said without complaint. In the end, he felt a little bad and said, “It’s not that I’m forbidding you from going out, it’s just that I don’t want you to strain yourself until you’re fully recovered.”
“Yes, I suppose I will have to wait until I recover to go back to my house.”
Alessandro had not yet dared to tell the princess that she could not return to that house, that she had to stay in the main palace. In the end, he thought it would be better to let her out and make her forget about going back to that house.
“In the afternoon,” Alessandro said.
“What?”
“Tomorrow you can go out for a while in the afternoon, but don’t overdo it.”
Abril’s eyes shone with genuine emotion, and she asked, “Can I really go out?”
“Yes.”
Abril released Koda, gave Alessandro a hug, and said, “Thank you so much, Your Majesty.”
Alessandro sighed heavily and said, “You still don’t call me by my name.”
“It’s just that I’m not used to it yet.”
“You should at least try. Lately, you haven’t.”
“Yes, I’ll try.”
That night, Abril slept with a smile on her face. She was very excited. After more than two months, she could leave that room.
The next day, she woke up early. She was looking for the clothes she would wear when Alessandro woke up and asked her, “What are you doing up so early?”
“I couldn’t sleep, so I’m looking for what I’m going to wear.” She replied excitedly.
Alessandro could see genuine excitement in Abril’s eyes. She looked like a little girl. He got up and said, “Go back to bed, it’s still very early, and you’re not going out until it’s afternoon. Your wound hasn’t healed completely yet.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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