The Maid and the Monarch

Chapter 5: Absolute Obedience

Sometimes you fall for the farmer's daughter because she is cute, and because the low-cut dresses she wears make your head feel fuzzy. Sometimes you sneak out late at night to meet her, kissing under the old oak in the moonlight. Sometimes you steal away for an hour or two to have a quick romp in the barn. Sometimes you love people quickly.

And sometimes, you hide a parcel of false evidence in the folds of your apron, you knock quietly on the door of the most powerful man in the Andan kingdom--nervous in the knowledge that a night beyond your darkest expectations waits for you on the other side, and you try not think about the literal treason you are about to attempt.

That moment before the door opens and you come face-to-face with everything you fear and desire? That moment is anything but quick.

"Eve!" Prince Leon smiled and stepped aside to allow me further into his chambers. "I've been thinking about you."

A fire crackled in the sitting room fireplace. The door to his study was closed, but the one to his bedroom had been left conspicuously open. My heart beat loudly in my ears.

"Of course, sir, I am honored." I curtsied to hide my trembling. "You wanted to see me?"

Prince Leon snorted. "Yes, I wanted to see you."

I clasped and unclasped my hands. Did he expect me to do something? Was I supposed to start things? The parcel of evidence seemed to burn in my apron pocket.

Prince Leon prowled around me, tracing a hand at first along my shoulder, and then under my chin. He lifted my face to look into his. Close as we were, I could scarcely breathe.

"You are a singularly striking woman," he said, "truly beautiful."

"I am?" That felt dumb. Then I hastily added, "Sir."

Prince Leon laughed. He had a rich laugh, and a smile that lit up his face. Quick as it came, his good cheer left, and he was brooding once again. He turned away from me.

"Take off your clothes."

The order was so sudden, I didn't have time to process it before the Imperative took over my body. I removed the apron. My hands undid the ties on my skirt and let it drop to the floor. I lifted my black blouse over my head, my dark hair fell loose around my shoulders. Clothed now in only my slip and black stockings, I forced my hands to stop moving. They shook.

Prince Leon, who had silently watched the whole process, arched an eyebrow at my sudden stop. The thought of being naked before his piercing eyes filled me with nervous excitement. I badly wanted to continue disrobing, but something still felt wrong.

"Stop. If you want to that badly, I suppose." Prince Leon's new order broke down his previous. I took a long breath, suddenly very aware of how thin my slip was, how the fabric felt on my skin.

The prince drew closer to me, his hands hovering near my hips. "Why are you resisting?" he asked, "do you not want me?"

And I did, in that moment, even without the Imperative. Close as he was to touching me, my body ached for that moment of contact and all that would follow. I wanted to pull his shirt open, slide my hands over his chest.

"You can't actually resist the Imperative," the Prince sounded almost bored as he spoke, "not forever, anyways. We can't even contradict each other's orders for more than a few hours."

I thought about the evidence tucked beneath my clothes on the floor. Distract him, the twins had said.

"Do you want me to give in, sir?" I asked, looking up at him with the widest eyes I could muster.

Prince Leon seemed taken aback by the question. He leaned in to me, allowing his hands to run up my back. Electricity seemed to dance under my skin where his fingers touched me. His breath on my neck, he whispered, "no one ever asks what I want."

Gently, he began to kiss my neck, slowly working his way up from my collar to my ear. I let out a light moan of pleasure.

"And what is it that you want?" I asked between breaths.

Prince Leon pulled away, his sapphire eyes meeting mine.

"You," he rumbled.

In a show of easy strength, he pushed me against the wall, hands firm on my waist. I hooked my arms around his neck and found his mouth with mine. He grew hard against me and pulled my slip high enough to get himself between my bare thighs. Only his trousers separated us now.

"Say you want me too," he growled between kisses.

The Imperative took my mouth away. "You want me too," I said.

He swore in frustration, then corrected himself, "Can you say you want me too?"

Did I want him? Of course I wanted him. "Yes," I gasped, "yes, I want you. I want you."

If anything, these words seemed to have a greater effect on him than his Imperative did on me. He lifted me by my waist and carried me across the room, his mouth moving fast and intent along my collarbone.

And then we were in his bed, the sheets warm and soft beneath my back, his body on mine. He fumbled with the buckle of his belt, while I ran a hand over the muscles of his chest. Distract him, they had told me. That didn't mean I couldn't have fun.

I pulled myself up, enjoying the way it surprised and threw him off balance. Again, his lips found mine and his hands worked their way to my chest.

BANG BANG BANG.

Prince Leon pulled away.

BANG BANG BANG.

Someone was hammering on the door to his chambers. Someone who couldn't shout; a guard, probably.

"Son of a--" Prince Leon swore violently, pushing off of me and stomping back out into the sitting room. I followed, scurrying to grab my clothes off the floor.

Prince Leon yanked the door open and started shouting obscenities at the poor guard on the other side. The guard frantically signed, (Fire! Fire! A fire in your sister's tower!)

I felt around in my clothes for the package of evidence. This was perfect, I could plant it while Leon dealt with--

"Get back to your room." Prince Leon snapped at me. "I have to deal with this."

The Imperative took over. Prior to this, the prince had implied desire with his orders. This was nothing but force. Like a puppet with its strings pulled taught, I marched back to my room half-naked.

Once my door was shut, I yelled some obscenities of my own, kicking my bed in frustration. I sank to the floor. What was I even doing? Nothing about tonight felt like me. It had to be the Imperative messing with my mind, right? I tried several deep breaths, forcing myself to calm down.

I didn't like Prince Leon. I hated him. Hated him enough to...sleep with him, apparently. And now the twins would be furious with me. How was I supposed to plant the evidence?

My eyes fell on the strange book, still lying on the floor by my bed. I glanced at the mirror. That was a risky idea; I didn't even know if the passages connected to Prince Leon's rooms. But there wasn't any harm in exploring, was there?