A Kingdom of Tales

Chapter 13

"So... Does that hug from earlier mean you forgive me?" Miles pouts. He's sitting on the bed watching me do pushups.

I decide to ignore his question and ask one of my own instead. "I've never seen you workout. Didn't you say you were training to join the King's Guard?"

"I've never had to train as hard as the other soldiers, but I'll train with you, if you'd like."

I wipe the sweat off my brow. "Yeah, that would be nice." I say earnestly. I've been training on my own for a while now, and it does get boring.

"Why don't we spar?" I propose.

"That's a great idea. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you, sweetheart." He smirks.

I rearrange the blanket on the floor. I position myself in the sparring stance Bash taught me while Miles stretches. I'll make him eat his words.

As soon as he steps on the blanket, he finds himself on his back. "Need a hand, sweetheart?" I mock.

"I haven't warmed up yet. That's all." He cracks his neck and takes a fighting stance.

I fight the way Bash taught me, favoring offense. A punch to the stomach, a kick to the side—even a tackle—work to my advantage. He never sees them coming. He'd probably assumed I was a helpless girl in need of pointers.

A few minutes later, we're lying next to each other on the floor. I got him on his back at least ten times; I'd lost count. He leans over me, close enough that I can feel his breath on my mouth. Gods, I want to close the distance between us.

"I guess you'll have to train with me every morning, then." I say with a smile.

"Yeah. I suppose I will." He laughs despite the exhaustion in his eyes.

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"It's a two day journey from the harbor we will land at to Edessa's capital. It's the shortest route to Avenlea, but we shouldn't risk it. Getting that close to the Emperor is a disaster waiting to happen. No. We should move through the south of Edessa and keep our distance. It'll be safer that way." He points out the route he suggests on the map.

We're sitting face to face on the bed; both of us are cross legged. We're both exhausted from the sparring from earlier, though I'd never admit it. He recovered fast earlier and managed to knock me on my back a few times. Even powerless, he's strong; that's probably why the King chose him for this mission.

"Why not north?" I ask.

"There are whispers of a prison in the north of Edessa; they say if you're caught near there, you'll never leave. The warden is famous for his love of cutting off prisoners fingers."

I shudder. "Alright, then to the south it is." I very much enjoy having a full set of fingers. At least if we're caught nearer to the capital, they'll give me a clean death. Even if they make a spectacle of it.

"I'll protect you with my life, Jas. I hope you know that." The mood had turned so serious.

"I'd wager that I'll be the one protecting you, Miles." I say to ease the tension that has grown thick.

"How about we agree to protect each other? My pride has taken enough hits for the day." He gives me a wounded, pouty face. It looks so ridiculous that I laugh loudly.

"But wounding your pride is so fun." I chuckle. I reach for my bag to grab my dagger and place it at his neck. "Come on, Miles. Fight me."

He rises from his position, pushing against the knife. It breaks his skin, leaving a drop of blood to rush out. This catches me by surprise, making me move backwards.

He takes the dagger and flips it so that it's now against my neck. I narrow my eyes into slits. It's only then that I realise what position we are in. It's the same position as earlier. How is it that we ended up in this position twice in one day?

He's lying on top of me, carefully keeping his weight off of me so as not to crush me. My gaze subconsciously moves to his lips. I quickly move it away, hoping he hadn't noticed. Then he bites into his lower lip softly, and any control I had fades into nothing.

I pull him down, crushing our lips together. He doesn't hesitate to kiss me back, pulling me closer.

I flip us so that he's the one on his back, the dagger forgotten on the floor. I lean in for another kiss. Gods, my first kiss. It feels incredible. Why hadn't we done this before?

I nibble on his lower lip as he had earlier. He tastes like sunshine. That's the only word for it. It's addictive, and I can't get enough.

On closer inspection, he tastes like the honey he added to his tarts for dinner. I've never been a sweet person, but I could definitely get behind this.

"Oh Gods. You taste so sweet... I want more." I murmur against his lips. Going for a third kiss. He has me delirious.

"My turn." He flips us over again, taking the initiative this time around. I've never been one to be bossed around like this, but Gods do I want him to say that again.

I muster up the strength to put an end to our kiss. We can't go further than this, even if I so desperately want to. I lay my forehead against his, breathing heavily.

"Is it weird that I'm glad I finally got you breathing heavily?" He laughs. I smile harder than I have before.

I stand up, pulling him with me. "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep."

"Yeah. Me too. Goodnight, Jas." He fluffs up his pillow and lays his head on it on the floor.

"That's not happening. Get up." I tell him. He looks confused, so I elaborate. "You're sleeping on the bed."

"Where will you sleep then? I won't let you sleep on the floor." He says. Gods, he's so slow.

"No, idiot. We're both sleeping on the bed. It's big enough for three people; I doubt we'll have any problems."

"No. Absolutely not. That would be inappropriate—"

I cut him off before he could finish that sentence. "You just had your tongue down my throat, and you're worried about sleeping in the same bed?" I tease.

"Alright. Fine. You do have a point."

I pick up his pillow and blanket and spread them on the bed. We lay next to each other. He puts himself as far away from me as possible. I try not to feel insulted.

It's the first time in two years that I've gotten a full night's sleep.