“Yes, but it was never official. The firstborn is supposed to inherit the throne, but I was very sickly and was never treated as such. When they found out I had no magic, my father rejected me and sent me to a ruined castle to die.”
“The soldiers who brought you said your father loved you, that you were his beloved daughter.”
“I never was. The day he sent me here, he even said he hoped Your Majesty would kill me, though not in those exact words.”
Abril continued washing Alessandro’s back and moved up to his shoulders. He grabbed her hand and said, “I was very rude to you on our wedding day. I’m sorry.”
“I am the daughter of your enemy. I am surprised His Majesty let me live. You don’t have to apologize.”
“I didn’t know any of that.”
“His Majesty had no way of knowing, so don’t worry about it.” Abril said.
Alessandro deeply regretted how he had been treating the princess. Her life had been full of hardship, and marrying him hadn’t changed that. If anything, it had continued.
Alessandro asked Abril to leave the bathroom so he could finish bathing. When he came out, he found her trying to take off her dress. He approached her, helped her take it off, and asked, “Whatare you doing?”
“Changing my clothes?”
“I can see that, but why didn’t you call one of the maids to help you?”
“I don’t like depending on others for everything.”
“Even so, your wound hasn’t healed completely. Don’t do it yourself.”
Abril was left with only a light slip. Alessandro lowered his hands to the hem of the dress, his fingers brushing against her bare skin. Abril blushed.
“Now you’re ashamed to be seen naked? Wasn’t it you who told me a while ago to be proud of my body?”
“I don’t mind Your Majesty seeing me, but being touched by you is embarrassing.”
“You’re very strange, princess.”
“Abril,” she said.
“What?” He asked.
“My name is Abril.”
“I know that.”
“I thought you didn’t, since Your Majesty always calls me princess.”
“You don’t call me by my name either, even though I’ve asked you to.”
“It’s not the same.”
“It seems the same to me. If you don’t want me to call you princess, then don’t call me Your Majesty. I’ll call you by your name if you do the same.”
“Promise?” Abril asked excitedly.
“Yes, I promise.”
“Okay, Alessandro.”
“Abril,” he said.
“Yes?”
“I’m just saying your name. You don’t have to answer,” Alessandro said, laughing.
Abril was embarrassed. Her face flushed red. In Alessandro’s eyes, she looked adorable. He put his arm around her waist and placed his hand on the back of her neck. His lips descended and met hers in a kiss. His lips were warm, sweet, and tender. He gave her small kisses at first and gradually deepened the kiss, exploring her mouth with his tongue. He sucked her lips and gave them a little nibble as if he wanted to eat them. The kiss was too much for Abril. Her legs felt weak, and she felt like she would fall if she didn’t hold on. She clung to Alessandro’s robe and gasped his name, a plea for him to stop.
“Alessandro.” She called with a faint voice.
But that didn’t make him stop. On the contrary, it made him want more. The hand he had on her waist began to slowly descend from her hips to her buttocks. Abril wasn’t comfortable with that kind of touch and said, “Alessandro, please stop.”
Alessandro stopped because Abril’s voice was trembling. He seemed to be scaring her. He pulled away from her because if he didn’t, he would end up losing control. He said, “I’ve gotten hot. I’m going to take another bath. Finish getting changed.”
Alessandro had gotten carried away, forgetting that Abril hadn’t fully recovered. They couldn’t go any further than kissing, but for a moment he wished they could. He wished he could touch her body, feel her skin, hear her sweet moans of pleasure. Alessandro wondered when he had started having these thoughts.
He stayed in the bathtub for a long time until he was able to calm down. When he returned to the room, Abril was already in bed. She was awake but pretended to be asleep. It was obvious to Alessandro that she was faking, but he didn’t say anything. He laid down next to her and turned off the lights. He thought he wouldn’t be able to sleep, but he fell asleep quickly. That always happened when he was with Abril.
The next day he woke up first. He went to train with the soldiers until he was exhausted and then went back to his office to continue his work.
During the afternoon, Alessandro saw Abril walking in the garden, but that day she wasn’t alone. Cassian was accompanying her. As they walked, she smiled at Cassian. For some reason, that bothered him. It made him feel uncomfortable. He closed the curtains and set to work, but he couldn’t concentrate.
When night fell, Alessandro went to the dining room. He always had dinner with his brother.
When he arrived in the dining room, he saw Abril sitting next to Cassian. He was saying something that made her laugh. Alessandro couldn’t hear what it was.
At that moment, Alessandro realized that Abril laughed more when she was with Cassian than with him. It made him have mixed feelings towards his brother.
When Cassian saw his brother arrive, he said, “I told the princess that she could have dinner with us. I hope there is no problem with it?”
“No, in fact, you can have dinner with us from now on if you want, Abril.”
“Thank you, Alessandro,” Abril said.
Cassian realized that they had started calling each other by their first names. He wondered since when the two of them had become so close.
When dinner was over, Alessandro helped Abril up and asked, “How’s your wound? Has it been hurting?”
“No, I walked slowly today and sat down to rest several times, but on a bench, not on the ground. I’m fine. The doctor also came and said, I’m doing very well, that soon I’ll be able to go back to my normal life, although I can’t exert myself yet.”
“That’s good. You’ll be able to continue your magic lessons soon.”
Alessandro said goodbye to his brother, and as they walked, he continued talking to Abril.
“Do I really have to continue with my magic lessons?”
“Yes.”
“But it’s useless.”
“We’ve already talked about this several times, Abril.”
“I know, but…”
“Then let’s leave it at that.”
As he watched them leave, Cassian felt uncomfortable.
A few months ago, he had been the closest to the princess, the one who understood her best, but at some point, that had changed, and his brother had taken his place.
He laughed when he realized what he was thinking. In reality, that had always been his brother’s place since he was her husband.
Cassian hadn’t been aware of his feelings until that moment. He liked the princess, and it wasn’t a friendly one but a romantic one. He didn’t know how or when, but he had fallen in love with Abril.
Cassian clenched his hands into fists. She was the first woman he had fallen in love with, but it was impossible. She was his brother’s wife.
Cassian paced back and forth in his room. He still couldn’t believe he had fallen in love with Abril. This was the first time he had ever felt this way, and he didn’t know what to do with those feelings.. He couldn’t tell the princess he loved her because she was his brother’s wife, but Cassian couldn’t help but wonder what she would say about it, what she would say if she found out he was in love with her.
That night, Cassian could hardly sleep. He had spent the whole night thinking about the princess, and when he finally managed to fall asleep, he dreamed about her. He dreamed that he had confessed his feelings for the princess to his brother and saw a look of pain in his eyes. His brother felt hurt, that he had betrayed him.
When Cassian woke up, he was clear about one thing. He would never tell his brother how he felt about the princess. It was something he would keep as a secret to himself.
That afternoon, Cassian had arranged to meet Abril in the garden for a walk. As he walked through the halls of the palace, he ran into Duke Vampel. He approached him and greeted him, “Good afternoon, Prince Cassian.”
“Good afternoon, duke.” He replied.
Cassian was in a hurry. He was going to ignore the duke and go on his way, but the duke stepped in his path and said, “I would like to speak with you for a moment, if I may.”
“I’m rather busy at the moment. I have something important to do.”
“I won’t take up much of your time, Prince. Just a moment.” He replied.
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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