Chapter 4
Everything fell silent. The awkwardness was so thick.
Aldus landed lightly, straightening his already immaculate garb with a playful smirk. "Well, Theoden, you've got quite the eye. Red underwear? Planning to get laid a bit early, huh?"
Theoden's cheeks flushed bright red as he scrambled to pull up his pants.
I yelled, "Aldus!"
I rushed over, first checking that Theoden's goods were still safe and sound, then spun around and grabbed Aldus by the collar.
I snapped, "You heartless fiend! Are you trying to scare me to death? If my whole clan gets wiped out, I'll haunt you from the grave!"
Aldus looked down at me, his gaze cool and unreadable.
There was barely any space between us.
He didn't even try to resist, letting me clutch his expensive collar. There was a glint in his eyes that made my heart skip a beat.
"Don't worry," Aldus said. He reached out, his slender fingers gently wiping the nervous sweat from my forehead. "I told you before. If I ever wanted you dead, you'd be long gone."
"But..." He suddenly leaned in, lowering his voice so only I could hear him. "So, Theoden's unharmed down there. Were you disappointed?"
"Like I'd be disappointed!" I shot back.
Aldus chuckled and said, "Oh? I heard Ms. Furnas likes... muscle men?"
Before I could react, he grabbed my hand and guided it down, pressing it right against his firm, chiseled abs hidden beneath his royal garb.
"I'm not just a pretty face. I'm pretty muscled, too. Why don't you come over tonight and find out for yourself?" Aldus teased.
My hand stiffened up against his abs. Hot to the touch, and seriously rock hard.
Was this guy really messing with me, right in front of the whole court, with Theoden's pants still around his ankles?
"You..." I was just about to curse him out.
Theoden yanked up his pants and stormed over, looking like he was about to explode. "Take your dirty hands off her. Don't you dare touch my girl!
"Aldus, I'm gonna kill you! You said you taught me everything... but you lied!"
Oh boy. Now this was getting interesting.
Two men, one blockhead prince, one devious regent. Were they really fighting over me? Nah, this was all about their egos.
In this "almost got snipped" showdown, they were finally going head-to-head.
Gerard wanted to make sure Theoden's equipment was still fully functional, no mental scars, no physical trauma, nothing shriveled from that close call.
Uncle Gerard was the mighty king, but he went and made an even crazier call.
"Move up the wedding. It's happening on the fifteenth of this month," he declared.
He completely ignored my wails and the way Aldus's face instantly darkened.
He added, "And before the wedding, Theoden will be staying at the House of Furnas to recuperate. Officially, it's for bonding, but in reality..."
Yeah, right! It was just so Theoden could come over and try to get his confidence as a man back, with me!
The House of Furnas was buzzing with activity.
The honor guard from Crownfall Palace marched in, hauling Theoden's luggage and making quite the spectacle. Theoden, ever the stickler, insisted on staying in the same courtyard as me, right next door.
"I feel safer when I'm close to you," Theoden said.
As soon as Aldus heard about it, he got sick out of nowhere that same day. And it was a suspiciously timed sickness, too.
"Aldus is suffering from headaches, fever, and heart palpitations. He insists on coming over so Ms. Furnas can take a look at him," the butler from Aldus's manor said.
He stood at my door, practically on the verge of tears.
"Take a look at him? What am I, a vet?" I retorted.
The butler looked miserable. "Ms. Furnas, didn't you always check up on that Night Lion steed? Aldus says he's even more fragile than that horse now. He insists you're the only one who can fix him."
Unbelievable. This guy had zero shame. Was he seriously jealous of the animal now?
But what could I do? He was the regent. I couldn't say no. Grumbling, I had to let them haul him in and dump him in the west guest wing.
Well, just my luck.
With one guy on the east and one on the west, I was stuck right in the middle of House of Furnas.
My future was looking pitch black. I guessed I would enjoy the breeze.
That very first night, Theoden was already knocking on my door.
He was still in his so-called "battle gear" from earlier, his beloved boxers. He stood there at my doorway, looking all bashful and awkward.
"Aveline... I... I want to try it," Theoden stammered.
I was halfway through taking off my makeup when he said that, and my hand jerked. I almost stabbed myself in the eye. "Try what? The knife?"
"No!" Theoden shook his head so hard it looked like he was about to rattle loose.
He said, "The royal physician said I might have... uh, some performance issues, you know, after the scare. He told me I should find something to stimulate it."
"So?" I crossed my arms, giving him a look.
"So..." Theoden's face went even redder, his eyes sneaking glances into my room. "That, uh... that book you have, the '18 Savage Moves for Real Men.' Can I borrow it for a bit?"
Wait, what? That was my private collection! The only one in existence! Who the hell told him about that?
Before I could even say no, there was a soft cough from the roof.
There was Aldus, lounging on the rafters like he owned the place, a flask of wine in hand. The moonlight made his devilishly handsome face look even more irresistible.