When he finally turned back and came to join her, Cessilia was still frowning at his side of the bed.

“What is it...? Do you want me to change the bedding?” he frowned.

“I d-don’t like it,” she muttered. “You’ve s-slept with other women here...”

“I haven’t.”

Cessilia frowned as he lay next to her, facing her in the bed. They were just a few inches away from each other, but Ashen didn’t try to get any closer, sticking to his side of the bed as if he was worried about crossing some invisible border. He chuckled, facing her. In the darkness behind the bed’s curtains, he looked even more mysterious, while his white hair had golden reflections from the fire.

“I’ve... had sex with many women, but not in this bed. I can’t stand sleeping with someone else in the same room... unless it’s that thirteen-year-old girl who’d sneak into my bed under the cover of night.”

It took Cessilia a short while to realize, and a faint smile appeared on her face. She moved her body, confidently laying against him, and Ashen laid out his arm for her with a sigh. He wrapped her in his embrace, rubbing his cheek against her hair.

“You haven’t changed much,” he muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, Cessilia had a faint smile on, and closed her eyes, feeling a bit better now.

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter 12

Cessilia woke up very slowly to the feeling of someone caressing her arm. Gentle fingers brushed back and forth over her skin, so faintly it was like the wind’s soft caress. She smiled and closed her eyes again for a few seconds. She felt good... Her body was still somewhat heavy from everything that happened the previous night, her throat a bit sore and the skin around her eyes a bit dry, but she felt fine. The warm blanket covering her lower body was a perfect balance with the soft, gentle breeze on her skin. She let out a faint breath, opening her eyes again, and turned around to face him. Ashen was seated against the bed’s headboard, looking wide awake already, his white hair prettily covering his bare shoulders. From the lighting in the room, still a bit dim, it ought to be quite early.

“...Good morning,” he muttered with a smile.

“G-good morning… How c-come you’re already awake?” she asked, frowning.

The King sighed and looked away.

“...I think I’m being kept in check.”

Cessilia frowned and turned her head to the window, where his eyes were staring. She realized it was later in the day than she had thought, but the window was obstructed by a dragon’s head. The large, dark scales that blocked most of the lighting of the room had tricked her. The big red eye looking around, Krai let out a grunt. Next to her, Ashen frowned while glaring back.

“Seriously...”

Unable to hold it anymore, Cessilia giggled and rolled back on the bed to hide her laugh in the pillow. Krai acting like a chaperone and watching the King in his own bed was so incredibly funny. Just imagining how long those two had been staring at each other while she slept peacefully, Cessilia just couldn’t stop herself.

“...I love the sound of your laugh.”

Those words calmed her down a little. After a second, Cessilia felt Ashen’s shadow over her and his body. She stopped laughing, her heartbeat accelerating a little. He left a kiss on her shoulder, sending delicious, warm chills down her spine. His hand gently caressed her arm, and she felt his body against her, his torso against her back, and his lower half against her butt...

“Do you feel better?” he asked in a whisper.

“Yes...”

She could feel his hot breath against her neck, his fingers moving her chestnut curls out of the way, and soon after, he left more kisses against her skin. Cessilia blushed a bit, feeling her own body react with delight to this. Not only that, but she could feel Ashen’s body reacting to her too...

An upset growl made them both jump.

“K-Krai!” Cessilia protested, sitting up. “G-go hunt now!”

The dragon growled back, upset, but the Princess kept staring at it.

“I am g-good. Now g-go!”

With a high-pitched growl and a loud ruckus against the stone wall, the dragon finally disappeared from their sight, probably flying away to hunt its breakfast. Next to her, Ashen sighed, lying back down on the bed and closing his eyes.

“I never thought I’d get cock-blocked by a dragon...”

Cessilia chuckled a bit, but used their positions to enjoy the view of his exposed body... Now that the sunlight was filling the room, and he was lying down on the bed, she could see more clearly the lines of his body, making her feel hot all over again. The White King really was a warrior, and underneath all his scars, there was a muscular, very attractive body for her to look at. Those scars were covering a lot of the god-like body, though, and each time she saw them, her heart felt a little sad. Cessilia leaned over, and despite feeling a bit shy, she put one of her curls behind her ear and leaned to kiss one of his scars. Ashen shivered underneath her, very faintly, but the King kept his eyes resolutely closed. After a hesitation, Cessilia decided to do it again, picking a different one. This time again, the King’s body very visibly reacted to it.

“Cessilia, stop.”

“Why? You d-don’t like it?”

He groaned, covering his eyes with his arms.

“I watched you sleep for two hours trying to hold back my desire for you. If you do this now, I really won’t be able to hold myself back anymore. So please... don’t make it harder than it already is.”

Goosebumps appeared on her skin from hearing that. She blushed a bit, and, after trying to lick her dry lips, Cessilia caressed the scar she had just kissed with her fingers.

“M-maybe I... d-don’t want you t-to hold yourself back.”

The King lowered his arms and opened his eyes wide to stare at her, making Cessilia feel so intimidated again. He sat up, facing her from very up close all of a sudden. His dark eyes looked so confused, she couldn’t decipher his thoughts as he stared at her silently for a few seconds. Then, his hand gently caressed her cheek, and he took a deep breath in, staring at her with that very serious expression.

Then, very slowly, he put a gentle, demure kiss on her lips. While she enjoyed his tenderness, Cessilia was left confused. When their lips parted, she stared at him, a bit at a loss. He looked much calmer now, caressing her cheek and keeping that gentle gaze on her.

“Ashen?”

“Not today, my princess,” he muttered.

“B-But...”

“Trust me, it’s not that I don’t want to,” he said to reassure her, caressing her skin once more. “It’s just... I love you, Cessilia. I love you like I don’t think I’ll ever be able to love anyone in this life. I want to treat you like what you are, the most important and precious person in my life.”

“I’m n-not th-that fragile,” she retorted.

“I know, Cessi,” he chuckled, “but you’re probably still injured and not fully recovered from last night, and... and frankly speaking, I don’t think I would be able to be gentle with you if we had sex now. I just... want to wait until it’s perfect, alright?”

However, Cessilia wasn’t happy with that response. She pushed him away from her cheek with the back of her hand, a bit annoyed, glaring at him with her fierce green eyes.

“You d-don’t want to have s-sex with m-me b-but you t-told me about all th-those many other women you s-slept with already. I hate b-being the only one you c-can’t have sex with! I’m not a g-girl anymore, and I am f-fine! D-do I have t-to be the only one t-to wait?”

Ashen sighed, shaking his head.

“I’m the only one who deserves to wait,” he said. “I wouldn’t think twice about sleeping with another woman because, as cold-hearted as that makes me, I don’t care about them. I don’t care about them as I do about you, and that’s exactly why I just... I can’t bring myself to do it with you. I don’t want to just have sex with you, Cessilia, I want to properly make love to you. It is not the same thing. You’re the only woman I want to make love to.”

“B-but...”