A Kingdom of Tales (Kingdom of Avenlea #1)

Chapter 14

I wake to the sound of a knock at the door. Who the hell is knocking in the middle of the night? I try to get up and that's when I notice the position we're in.

Miles has his arm over my middle. My face heats at the thought of having moved in the middle of the night towards him, but thankfully that's not the case. It seems like Miles is the one who schooched over to my side of the bed. My heart is lodged in my throat.

I try to peel his arm off of me gently, as to not wake him up. That plan backfires when he lets out a groan and pulls me even closer. Gods, his hold got even tighter.

"Miles." I whisper. He doesn't move an inch.

I move his arm with more force this time. It does the trick, and he lets me go.

I move tentatively to the door, angry at someone interrupting my sleep. The knocks get more urgent.

"Yes." I snap at the person behind the door when I open it.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I thought you were awake."

It's Marilla. I rub my eyes. What is she doing, knocking on our door this late? I voice my question out loud, my grogginess making me blunt.

"Late? Whatever do you mean?" I must look confused because she elaborates. "It's midday. You missed breakfast."

"What do you mean we missed breakfast?" I stutter. I look back at Miles' sleepy form and then turn back to her. I'd slept through the whole night and half the day? "What do you need?"

Color rises up her cheeks when she notices Miles behind me, still sleeping. "I'm sorry. It must be a bad time. I'll see you later."

Reality dawns, and I realise what she must be thinking. My cheeks heat. I grab her arm before she leaves. "What do you need?" I ask it more kindly this time.

"I just needed advice. I want to ask Sage out, but I don't know how to do it..."

"Give me a few minutes to get dressed, and I'll be right with you." I smile.

"Of course, I'll wait here."

I give her another small smile before closing the door. I quickly change into a dress and brush my teeth and hair. Gods, I look like a mess.

By the time I leave the bathroom, Miles is awake and sitting on the bed, waiting for me. "How long have you been awake?" I ask.

"Just over an hour." He replies sneakily. An hour? That means he was awake when I woke up... He seems to know the question brewing in my head because he continues. "Yes. I was awake."

He's unapologetic, making me smile. Gods, how long has it been since I smiled this much?

"You wouldn't let me out!" I laughed.

"I would never let you leave my arms if I could."

I ignore his last sentence because any reply would probably get me in trouble. I stuff my other clothes in my bag to wash later. We don't have a machine here, but I'm sure I'll come up with something.

I feel Miles creep up behind me. He pulls me up. "What did Marilla want?"

"You could hear us?"

"Not everything, just your voices."

"She wanted me to give her advice so that she could ask Sage out." I sigh when he pulls me into his arms. It's like last night changed his entire personality. He's definitely more touchy.

"That's great. We can get started on the plan earlier. I'll go talk to Sage."

We hug for a minute, just enjoying each other's embrace, before I pull away. "I should go. She's waiting for me."

"Alright, sweetheart. See you at lunch?" He asks. The nickname used to annoy me, but now I like it a lot more, especially when he pairs it with a kiss, which he does a moment later.

He brushes his lips against mine, dragging a moan out of me. Unfortunately, the kiss doesn't last long. I pull away, remembering Marilla. I already miss his mouth on mine.

I leave the room with swollen lips and the biggest smile on my face. Marilla notices me and offers me her arm. We walk towards her room.

As soon as we're in her room, she speaks. "I've been thinking all day yesterday. I do think this risk is worth it. Even if we lose our friendship forever."

She looks much more confident in herself than she's been since I met her. "Then what do you need my advice for?" I ask confused.

"I want you to help me choose an outfit. I want him to not take his eyes off me all night. There's a party tonight on the cruise."

She guides me to her wardrobe. Gods, for someone so shy, she sure has a lot of short dresses. My eyes narrow at the perfect one.

It's red, glittery, and short, though not short enough to be provocative. The dark shade of red matches her complexion perfectly. She'll look marvelous in it.

I hand her the dress and order her to change into it.

When she walks out of the bathroom, she has my jaw on the floor. She looks stunning. No one with functioning eyes will be able to take his eyes off of her.

"It's perfect." I tell her.

"Do you think he will like it?"

"He will love it."

"Well, let's choose a dress for you as well."

It's a good thing we're almost the same size; the dress we chose for me fits me like a glove.

It's an elegant, off-shoulder green dress with a slit running down the left side. It's gorgeous. I pick a pair of gold heels to match.

"James' jaw will hit the floor when he sees you." She chuckles.

I sure hope so.