Chapter 6
For a few days after the tournament things are rough for me. I cannot stop thinking about Mikhail and what we did. I mean I cannot remember what we did that night entirely but I cannot stop thinking of a single moment when we were in that bath together. In fact the thing that bothers me the most is how much I find myself wishing I had not stopped him at all. Maybe it is because of this that I keep punishing myself and I can think of no worse punishment than having to be next to him and have him kiss me without being able to know how I feel about it and whether it is alright for us to do more.
So instead of torturing myself further I start to avoid Mikhail again. In fact I find myself purposely isolating myself completely. I start to spend more time away from the castle and even though I spend a lot of time at the lake; no one bothers to look for me there. It seems almost too easy to waste my time away.
A fortnight has passed now since the tournament and I still have no idea what to do about Mikhail. I strip off my clothes and jump into the water hoping to clear my head. It isn’t until I hear another splash of the water that I realize I have been followed. When we both surface I am not entirely surprised to see Mikhail in the water with me. All that I wonder is why it took him so long to come find me.
I wait for him to speak as I stay up to my neck in the water so I cannot be seen even though I am sure we are both naked. “Are you still mad at me?” He asks me slowly looking right at me. I try to think of an honest answer before I speak.
“I am not mad. Just maybe a bit confused.” I tell him carefully watching my words. He nods at me trying to make sense of it as well.
“Do you still want me to stay?” He asks me now and despite my words before I am unsure what to tell him now.
“I do not know what I want anymore.” I tell him almost with a little chuckle at myself.
“Maybe I can help. Talk to me about it and we’ll see what I can do.” He offers and I think about it for a few seconds. It cannot hurt I guess.
“I find myself liking touching you and you touching me. It scares me a bit how much I like it.” I tell him not sure how else to put it. He just smiles at me though letting me think for a while before he responds.
“So you kicked me out before because you were… surprised at your own reaction?” He asks me pausing at one point in his sentence. Still I just take a deep breath and then nod to him. “Is it such a bad thing to like what we were doing?” He asks me now and I can tell it is not because he wants me to like it but just that he wants to know.
“I just do not know. I did not expect to feel that way I guess.” I tell him slowly still trying to figure it all out myself.
“You did not expect to feel that way about another man?” He ventures cautiously like he is unsure. I think about it for a few minutes but he is right and I find myself slowly nodding to him. I pull back a bit from the middle of the lake to a shallower portion that is only up to my waist. Mikhail moves even closer to the beach sitting down in the water so that it only covers his lap. “You know you cannot just hide out here all the time.” He tells me changing the topic slightly but I think I know what he is really getting at.
“I know, I just cannot stay there looking at you and wondering what I am supposed to do.” I tell him as I move to sit next to him.
“Then how about I make you a deal? We will go as slow or as fast as you want with this, as long as you actually make an attempt. Also including that I can kiss you whenever I want.” He tells me with a bit of a smirk but I have to think that maybe I should just get this over with and stop fighting him about all of it.
“So you will not do anything more than kiss me unless I want you to?” I ask him just to be sure but I have to wonder if I am stalling as I try to think of an answer. He nods to me slowly watching as I come to my decision. “Okay.” I finally say softly and Mikhail’s smile seems to cover his whole face. Then he leans in towards me like he is going to kiss me now. I quickly place my hand on his chest. “Just do not be naked around me any more and if you some how are naked around me then do not kiss me.” I tell him quickly as my heart beats faster because I am so aware of how easily kissing him right now could lead into something more. He just smirks at me though and backs up slightly from me.
“All right but I am going to kiss you.” He tells me and I know he means it. I grin slightly at him but I am not really motivated to go get dressed now. “You cannot stay in here forever anyway.” He says still smiling and I laugh a little at what he means. I stand up trying not to watch and see if he is looking when I walk back to the middle of the lake and splash water towards him. He laughs and splashes the water back towards me, standing up as well. I back up as he moves closer both of us getting deeper in the water until he grabs my shoulders and shoves me down into it.
We keep pushing and pulling each other under the water and neither of us seems to be able to stop laughing. Then as he pulls me under again I find him pulling me to him and kissing me despite my words. I kiss him back too swept up to bother pulling away. Then he pulls back instead not smirking at all this time or looking in my eyes. “Sorry.” He tells me now and I just nod to him.
“Maybe we should just get dressed now.” I tell him softly even though I know that means he might kiss me again I think I might be okay with it. He grins again and walks back to where our horses are by our clothes. I watch him pull a towel from his saddlebag and dry off.
“Come on.” He tells me and I put it together that he must have known I was coming here when he followed me. I get out of the water and he wordlessly tosses the towel at me and I dry off as well. He dresses while I dry off then I grab my clothes putting them back on as well. Instead of waiting for him to kiss me now that we are both dressed I grab his arm and kiss him instead. For the first time it seems like I have surprised him; I take my time and kiss him deeply before pulling away. “That was nice.” He tells me with a smile and I find myself grinning back as well.
“Maybe it will not be that bad to be kissing more often then.” I tell him with a little smirk of my own. He grins and kisses me again. I moan a little as his hand slides down my back right by my butt yet not quite touching it. Mikhail starts to pull away and I slide my arm around him keeping him there and kissing him again. My heart starts beating really fast and I know that I want to do more than this with Mikhail. I slide my hand the last few inches down and grab his butt through his trousers.
Mikhail very vocally reacts moaning into the kiss as I tentatively massage the muscles under my hand. His hand moves now too, grabbing my bottom as well and I fight the surprise that I like it too. My hips move forward finding friction against his and I cannot help the slight thrust I make without trying. His hips thrust against mine fitting perfectly and I can feel how hard he is as well. His hand stays on my butt though and it helps a little with the unease about him touching me. I move my hips forward again rubbing up against him and I feel like maybe this isn’t enough friction.
“Mikhail,” I say his name lightly trying to think of what to say exactly. “I want you to touch me.” I say not sure even what I mean entirely by it but I still want him to. He kisses my lips again and he moves his hand from my back to my groin. His hand very gently undoes the flap in front and pulls out my erection. My heart is beating really fast and I cannot take my eyes off of his hand. I start breathing really shallow and fast not able to feel like I am breathing at all.
“Calm down.” He whispers in my ear. “It’s okay to want this.” His voice eases me slightly and I find my grip has tightened on his butt. I loosen my grip and kiss him again relaxing into the kiss enough to enjoy him gently pumping his fist up and down my body. “You can touch me if you want.” He says lightly even though I can tell he really wants me to. I move my hand around and start to undo his trousers as well. My hand wraps around him and I know I am shaking so I do not even attempt to pull him out I just keep my hand in his pants. His hand tugs on my flesh making me moan slightly before I take a deep breath and move my hand again slightly.
“Kiss me.” I tell him trying to calm down enough to enjoy what is going on with my body. Mikhail kisses me softly now and his hand goes a bit faster stroking me harder. I tighten my own grip and pull on him as well. I move my hand faster and my lips as well so when Mikhail speeds up it does not take much for me to feel like I am about to come. I keep kissing Mikhail but then I can not control the thrust of my hips as he pulls so hard that I orgasm. Mikhail follows shortly after me coming into my hand still inside of his trousers.
For a moment we both fight to get our breath not saying anything about what just happened. Then Mikhail kisses my lips once more very lightly and looks in my eyes. “Are you okay?” He asks me lightly and I know that we both expect me to be freaking out right now but I just feel too relaxed to even bother. I nod to him slowly backing up and redoing my trousers regardless of the fluid still on them. He fixes his clothing as well then leads me by the arm over to some rocks to sit on. “I am glad that just happened. It was nice to do something with you when you were not drunk.” He tells me with a slight smirk but the reference just reminds me again that he never told me what all did happen that time.
“What happened then?” I ask knowing now might be the easiest time for me to face it. He smiles more sincerely at me now.
“The same thing that just happened now expect you just kept massaging my butt.” He says and I have to admit that it seems funny to me that even when I was completely drunk I did not want to touch more than that. Still I just nod to him, then he says something else that while I know it should not surprise it still does a little. “I still want to try to have sex with you before we are wed.” He tells me lightly and I find my self instantly noticing that that means some time in the next two and a half moons. It is a reminder that I do not have much time left of our engagement and soon we will be married.
“I still am unsure about that.” I tell him honestly as despite how he tries to reassure me it still seems like that would hurt too much to be enjoyable. He just looks at me as if wanting for a better answer so I say as much to him. “I just cannot see how it could be enjoyable.” I say trying to keep it simple, yet he just smiles wider at me.
“You liked what we just did right? Just trust me you will like having sex with me.” He says obviously trying not to laugh a little but it just makes me laugh instead.
“No, I mean I do not know how you could enjoy it. It seems like it would hurt too much.” I tell him and he seems to understand now.
“Are you completely set in your mind about you having to be inside of me, or are you okay with trying with me inside of you?” He asks me and I cannot hide the shock on my face at all as I have not considered this. I never thought he might actually want to do that to me. I do not even know what to say.
“I guess I never thought about it.” I tell him because I still do not know what I think about it. “Why do you ask?” I say unsure if he means it or not.
“I think it might be a way for me to reassure you that it does not hurt that bad. I do not mean actual sex unless you want it. I just mean that maybe you can let me show you.” He tells me and I really do not know what to say to that. He starts laughing now and it just makes me feel worse. “I am sorry I did not mean to make you uncomfortable. I probably should not have brought it up.” He says with a slight grin. Although I am not really interested in his offer I do understand how he could come up with it.
“I will think about it.” I tell him and he just smiles at me now not saying a word. For a few moments we both stay quiet and it seems awkward after what we just talked about. “Maybe we should go back now.” I say softly to him as I head to our horses. Before I get a chance to mount my horse though, Mikhail grabs a hold of my arm.
“I do not want you to feel awkward because of this. Forget I mentioned it okay.” He says and I just smile at him and nod. All the same I really do mean to think about it. I smile at him and then kiss him once more lightly on the lips. “All right let’s head back then.” He tells me with a smile and I nod and mount up.
The ride back is quiet between us and it gives me too much time to think about what just happened and what it means for us. Despite my pleading for him to slow down it was me who was pushing it this time. I wanted everything that just happened and Mikhail just calmly guided me through it letting me lead. It all just felt so good and I can see now why Mikhail is so tempted to get into these situations with me when it feels like that. I just cannot be as angry with him for pushing so much now when I want to push a bit myself.
I remember when I first asked Mikhail why he would want to have sex with me and maybe he meant it when he said that it feels so much better than just coming. I can imagine how having something hot and tight around me would feel really good. Now that he has mentioned it though, I wonder even more how it must feel to be on the other side. I guess I just never will know unless I really do take him up on it.
When we get back home I go to my rooms and at seeing Charles I tell him to run my bath and leave. I just need to clean myself and I do not want him to say anything about the seed on my leathers or on a bit of my skin right by groin. I scrub the skin roughly even as I think that Mikhail must be worse off since he was still inside of his trousers when he came. When I finish cleaning I get dressed in nicer soft linen clothes and hesitate for a moment before knocking on the door that leads to Mikhail’s chambers from mine.
I am shaken for a moment when the person who opens the door is Mikhail’s manservant rather than the man himself. All the same I talk quickly. “Please ask Mikhail to join me for dinner in a candle mark, in northern dining room.” I tell him and he just smiles at me as he answers.
“Yes, Your Highness.” Then he slowly closes the door between us. I decide then that I really have absented myself from the royal politics too much as of late. I head to the room that over the years has become my study and find Charles there. I look him over for a few moments and despite our past relations he treats me almost as all the other servants who do not know me do. He does not even meet my eyes anymore.
“Have I done something to displease you?” I ask him remembering now more so how Mikhail warned me before that he liked me. Charles briefly looks up for a moment then lowers his gaze immediately as he answers me.
“No, Your Highness.” He tells me and just hearing him addressing me properly makes me realize how I must have been pushing him away as much as everyone else the last fortnight.
“Charles, please get me small accounts under current dispute.” I tell him and he just nods and goes to get them even though I am quite sure that someone else has been taking care of them in my lapse. The first paper he hands me is already being worked on with small clear handwriting all over it. The matter is practically solved already in a way that I most likely would never have thought of.
A boy stole from a farm and whoever is working on the matter is suggesting that the boy work on the farm to pay off his debt. “Who was working on these accounts?” I ask Charles as I look over the other papers he handed me and find more of the same handwriting. I look up at Charles when he still does not answer and he still will not meet my gaze.
“Prince Mikhail has.” He tells me softly and it makes a lot of sense really. I keep reading through the papers and I get a sense of the man even more. His solutions are original seem like they would work in a very ironic way. I tell Charles to arrange for my dinner with Mikhail while I pour over the documents reading everything that Mikhail wrote on the disputes. By the time that I am supposed to meet with Mikhail I have read all of the current papers and a few older ones as well. I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised with how he was been handling things in my absence so I leave it all as it is.
Charles interrupts me softly when the time comes and I let him lead to the dining hall in the northern wing. Mikhail is already in the room sitting calmly at the table and sipping wine. I smile at him glad that he decided to join me. Mikhail again dismisses our help without a thought and I just smile and join him at the table. “Thank you for joining me.” I tell him with a slight smile as I think about what we did before.
“Thank you for inviting me, it’s nice to see you still want to be around me considering what just happened.” He says with a grin. I just nod to him not wanting to discuss that too much right now especially with how the servants are likely to hear us still.
“I would also like to thank you for looking after my duties for me while I have been out.” I say trying to sidestep the matter as to why I have not been helping. He just smiles at me for a second but I keep talking before he gets a chance to. “You did very well with them and I think that if you want you can continue to do them.” I tell him because his answers to the problems seem to be working better then most of mine.
“What are you going to do then? “ He asks me with a slight smile. I take a drink of my wine stalling slightly before answering his question.
“I will find something. Do not worry I am not saying it so I stay away like I was.” I tell him and he just laughs slightly. “Really I do not mind.” I tell him and he smiles and nods to me.
“Okay.” He says with a smile and then we both eat silently for a few moments. “Just do me a favor and stay around this time.” He tells me and he is not smiling as much this time.
“I doubt I have much of a choice in any of that. Since you can just kiss me anytime you want and remind me.” I say it as a joke yet he just smiles widely seeming to believe me almost.
“Maybe I should remind you more often then.” He tells me with a smirk and I just smile back at him. We stay quiet again but then when we are served dessert Mikhail moves to be right next to me and scoops up a spoonful of whipped cream putting it right on his tongue and then he moves in to kiss me. I move into the kiss wrapping my tongue around his and enjoying the taste of the sweet cream on lips. I moan and kiss him deeper as I slide my hand on to his leg. Mikhail pulls back from the kiss and just smiles at me. “I like eating with you we should do this more often. Maybe it will give us a chance to get to know each other better.” He says with a smile and I half wonder if he really does want to get to know me better or if he just wants to get me to sleep with him quicker. The moment I think it though I know it is dumb to assume something like that.
“Yes, we should eat together more often.” I tell him attempting to keep the smile on my face.
So instead of torturing myself further I start to avoid Mikhail again. In fact I find myself purposely isolating myself completely. I start to spend more time away from the castle and even though I spend a lot of time at the lake; no one bothers to look for me there. It seems almost too easy to waste my time away.
A fortnight has passed now since the tournament and I still have no idea what to do about Mikhail. I strip off my clothes and jump into the water hoping to clear my head. It isn’t until I hear another splash of the water that I realize I have been followed. When we both surface I am not entirely surprised to see Mikhail in the water with me. All that I wonder is why it took him so long to come find me.
I wait for him to speak as I stay up to my neck in the water so I cannot be seen even though I am sure we are both naked. “Are you still mad at me?” He asks me slowly looking right at me. I try to think of an honest answer before I speak.
“I am not mad. Just maybe a bit confused.” I tell him carefully watching my words. He nods at me trying to make sense of it as well.
“Do you still want me to stay?” He asks me now and despite my words before I am unsure what to tell him now.
“I do not know what I want anymore.” I tell him almost with a little chuckle at myself.
“Maybe I can help. Talk to me about it and we’ll see what I can do.” He offers and I think about it for a few seconds. It cannot hurt I guess.
“I find myself liking touching you and you touching me. It scares me a bit how much I like it.” I tell him not sure how else to put it. He just smiles at me though letting me think for a while before he responds.
“So you kicked me out before because you were… surprised at your own reaction?” He asks me pausing at one point in his sentence. Still I just take a deep breath and then nod to him. “Is it such a bad thing to like what we were doing?” He asks me now and I can tell it is not because he wants me to like it but just that he wants to know.
“I just do not know. I did not expect to feel that way I guess.” I tell him slowly still trying to figure it all out myself.
“You did not expect to feel that way about another man?” He ventures cautiously like he is unsure. I think about it for a few minutes but he is right and I find myself slowly nodding to him. I pull back a bit from the middle of the lake to a shallower portion that is only up to my waist. Mikhail moves even closer to the beach sitting down in the water so that it only covers his lap. “You know you cannot just hide out here all the time.” He tells me changing the topic slightly but I think I know what he is really getting at.
“I know, I just cannot stay there looking at you and wondering what I am supposed to do.” I tell him as I move to sit next to him.
“Then how about I make you a deal? We will go as slow or as fast as you want with this, as long as you actually make an attempt. Also including that I can kiss you whenever I want.” He tells me with a bit of a smirk but I have to think that maybe I should just get this over with and stop fighting him about all of it.
“So you will not do anything more than kiss me unless I want you to?” I ask him just to be sure but I have to wonder if I am stalling as I try to think of an answer. He nods to me slowly watching as I come to my decision. “Okay.” I finally say softly and Mikhail’s smile seems to cover his whole face. Then he leans in towards me like he is going to kiss me now. I quickly place my hand on his chest. “Just do not be naked around me any more and if you some how are naked around me then do not kiss me.” I tell him quickly as my heart beats faster because I am so aware of how easily kissing him right now could lead into something more. He just smirks at me though and backs up slightly from me.
“All right but I am going to kiss you.” He tells me and I know he means it. I grin slightly at him but I am not really motivated to go get dressed now. “You cannot stay in here forever anyway.” He says still smiling and I laugh a little at what he means. I stand up trying not to watch and see if he is looking when I walk back to the middle of the lake and splash water towards him. He laughs and splashes the water back towards me, standing up as well. I back up as he moves closer both of us getting deeper in the water until he grabs my shoulders and shoves me down into it.
We keep pushing and pulling each other under the water and neither of us seems to be able to stop laughing. Then as he pulls me under again I find him pulling me to him and kissing me despite my words. I kiss him back too swept up to bother pulling away. Then he pulls back instead not smirking at all this time or looking in my eyes. “Sorry.” He tells me now and I just nod to him.
“Maybe we should just get dressed now.” I tell him softly even though I know that means he might kiss me again I think I might be okay with it. He grins again and walks back to where our horses are by our clothes. I watch him pull a towel from his saddlebag and dry off.
“Come on.” He tells me and I put it together that he must have known I was coming here when he followed me. I get out of the water and he wordlessly tosses the towel at me and I dry off as well. He dresses while I dry off then I grab my clothes putting them back on as well. Instead of waiting for him to kiss me now that we are both dressed I grab his arm and kiss him instead. For the first time it seems like I have surprised him; I take my time and kiss him deeply before pulling away. “That was nice.” He tells me with a smile and I find myself grinning back as well.
“Maybe it will not be that bad to be kissing more often then.” I tell him with a little smirk of my own. He grins and kisses me again. I moan a little as his hand slides down my back right by my butt yet not quite touching it. Mikhail starts to pull away and I slide my arm around him keeping him there and kissing him again. My heart starts beating really fast and I know that I want to do more than this with Mikhail. I slide my hand the last few inches down and grab his butt through his trousers.
Mikhail very vocally reacts moaning into the kiss as I tentatively massage the muscles under my hand. His hand moves now too, grabbing my bottom as well and I fight the surprise that I like it too. My hips move forward finding friction against his and I cannot help the slight thrust I make without trying. His hips thrust against mine fitting perfectly and I can feel how hard he is as well. His hand stays on my butt though and it helps a little with the unease about him touching me. I move my hips forward again rubbing up against him and I feel like maybe this isn’t enough friction.
“Mikhail,” I say his name lightly trying to think of what to say exactly. “I want you to touch me.” I say not sure even what I mean entirely by it but I still want him to. He kisses my lips again and he moves his hand from my back to my groin. His hand very gently undoes the flap in front and pulls out my erection. My heart is beating really fast and I cannot take my eyes off of his hand. I start breathing really shallow and fast not able to feel like I am breathing at all.
“Calm down.” He whispers in my ear. “It’s okay to want this.” His voice eases me slightly and I find my grip has tightened on his butt. I loosen my grip and kiss him again relaxing into the kiss enough to enjoy him gently pumping his fist up and down my body. “You can touch me if you want.” He says lightly even though I can tell he really wants me to. I move my hand around and start to undo his trousers as well. My hand wraps around him and I know I am shaking so I do not even attempt to pull him out I just keep my hand in his pants. His hand tugs on my flesh making me moan slightly before I take a deep breath and move my hand again slightly.
“Kiss me.” I tell him trying to calm down enough to enjoy what is going on with my body. Mikhail kisses me softly now and his hand goes a bit faster stroking me harder. I tighten my own grip and pull on him as well. I move my hand faster and my lips as well so when Mikhail speeds up it does not take much for me to feel like I am about to come. I keep kissing Mikhail but then I can not control the thrust of my hips as he pulls so hard that I orgasm. Mikhail follows shortly after me coming into my hand still inside of his trousers.
For a moment we both fight to get our breath not saying anything about what just happened. Then Mikhail kisses my lips once more very lightly and looks in my eyes. “Are you okay?” He asks me lightly and I know that we both expect me to be freaking out right now but I just feel too relaxed to even bother. I nod to him slowly backing up and redoing my trousers regardless of the fluid still on them. He fixes his clothing as well then leads me by the arm over to some rocks to sit on. “I am glad that just happened. It was nice to do something with you when you were not drunk.” He tells me with a slight smirk but the reference just reminds me again that he never told me what all did happen that time.
“What happened then?” I ask knowing now might be the easiest time for me to face it. He smiles more sincerely at me now.
“The same thing that just happened now expect you just kept massaging my butt.” He says and I have to admit that it seems funny to me that even when I was completely drunk I did not want to touch more than that. Still I just nod to him, then he says something else that while I know it should not surprise it still does a little. “I still want to try to have sex with you before we are wed.” He tells me lightly and I find my self instantly noticing that that means some time in the next two and a half moons. It is a reminder that I do not have much time left of our engagement and soon we will be married.
“I still am unsure about that.” I tell him honestly as despite how he tries to reassure me it still seems like that would hurt too much to be enjoyable. He just looks at me as if wanting for a better answer so I say as much to him. “I just cannot see how it could be enjoyable.” I say trying to keep it simple, yet he just smiles wider at me.
“You liked what we just did right? Just trust me you will like having sex with me.” He says obviously trying not to laugh a little but it just makes me laugh instead.
“No, I mean I do not know how you could enjoy it. It seems like it would hurt too much.” I tell him and he seems to understand now.
“Are you completely set in your mind about you having to be inside of me, or are you okay with trying with me inside of you?” He asks me and I cannot hide the shock on my face at all as I have not considered this. I never thought he might actually want to do that to me. I do not even know what to say.
“I guess I never thought about it.” I tell him because I still do not know what I think about it. “Why do you ask?” I say unsure if he means it or not.
“I think it might be a way for me to reassure you that it does not hurt that bad. I do not mean actual sex unless you want it. I just mean that maybe you can let me show you.” He tells me and I really do not know what to say to that. He starts laughing now and it just makes me feel worse. “I am sorry I did not mean to make you uncomfortable. I probably should not have brought it up.” He says with a slight grin. Although I am not really interested in his offer I do understand how he could come up with it.
“I will think about it.” I tell him and he just smiles at me now not saying a word. For a few moments we both stay quiet and it seems awkward after what we just talked about. “Maybe we should go back now.” I say softly to him as I head to our horses. Before I get a chance to mount my horse though, Mikhail grabs a hold of my arm.
“I do not want you to feel awkward because of this. Forget I mentioned it okay.” He says and I just smile at him and nod. All the same I really do mean to think about it. I smile at him and then kiss him once more lightly on the lips. “All right let’s head back then.” He tells me with a smile and I nod and mount up.
The ride back is quiet between us and it gives me too much time to think about what just happened and what it means for us. Despite my pleading for him to slow down it was me who was pushing it this time. I wanted everything that just happened and Mikhail just calmly guided me through it letting me lead. It all just felt so good and I can see now why Mikhail is so tempted to get into these situations with me when it feels like that. I just cannot be as angry with him for pushing so much now when I want to push a bit myself.
I remember when I first asked Mikhail why he would want to have sex with me and maybe he meant it when he said that it feels so much better than just coming. I can imagine how having something hot and tight around me would feel really good. Now that he has mentioned it though, I wonder even more how it must feel to be on the other side. I guess I just never will know unless I really do take him up on it.
When we get back home I go to my rooms and at seeing Charles I tell him to run my bath and leave. I just need to clean myself and I do not want him to say anything about the seed on my leathers or on a bit of my skin right by groin. I scrub the skin roughly even as I think that Mikhail must be worse off since he was still inside of his trousers when he came. When I finish cleaning I get dressed in nicer soft linen clothes and hesitate for a moment before knocking on the door that leads to Mikhail’s chambers from mine.
I am shaken for a moment when the person who opens the door is Mikhail’s manservant rather than the man himself. All the same I talk quickly. “Please ask Mikhail to join me for dinner in a candle mark, in northern dining room.” I tell him and he just smiles at me as he answers.
“Yes, Your Highness.” Then he slowly closes the door between us. I decide then that I really have absented myself from the royal politics too much as of late. I head to the room that over the years has become my study and find Charles there. I look him over for a few moments and despite our past relations he treats me almost as all the other servants who do not know me do. He does not even meet my eyes anymore.
“Have I done something to displease you?” I ask him remembering now more so how Mikhail warned me before that he liked me. Charles briefly looks up for a moment then lowers his gaze immediately as he answers me.
“No, Your Highness.” He tells me and just hearing him addressing me properly makes me realize how I must have been pushing him away as much as everyone else the last fortnight.
“Charles, please get me small accounts under current dispute.” I tell him and he just nods and goes to get them even though I am quite sure that someone else has been taking care of them in my lapse. The first paper he hands me is already being worked on with small clear handwriting all over it. The matter is practically solved already in a way that I most likely would never have thought of.
A boy stole from a farm and whoever is working on the matter is suggesting that the boy work on the farm to pay off his debt. “Who was working on these accounts?” I ask Charles as I look over the other papers he handed me and find more of the same handwriting. I look up at Charles when he still does not answer and he still will not meet my gaze.
“Prince Mikhail has.” He tells me softly and it makes a lot of sense really. I keep reading through the papers and I get a sense of the man even more. His solutions are original seem like they would work in a very ironic way. I tell Charles to arrange for my dinner with Mikhail while I pour over the documents reading everything that Mikhail wrote on the disputes. By the time that I am supposed to meet with Mikhail I have read all of the current papers and a few older ones as well. I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised with how he was been handling things in my absence so I leave it all as it is.
Charles interrupts me softly when the time comes and I let him lead to the dining hall in the northern wing. Mikhail is already in the room sitting calmly at the table and sipping wine. I smile at him glad that he decided to join me. Mikhail again dismisses our help without a thought and I just smile and join him at the table. “Thank you for joining me.” I tell him with a slight smile as I think about what we did before.
“Thank you for inviting me, it’s nice to see you still want to be around me considering what just happened.” He says with a grin. I just nod to him not wanting to discuss that too much right now especially with how the servants are likely to hear us still.
“I would also like to thank you for looking after my duties for me while I have been out.” I say trying to sidestep the matter as to why I have not been helping. He just smiles at me for a second but I keep talking before he gets a chance to. “You did very well with them and I think that if you want you can continue to do them.” I tell him because his answers to the problems seem to be working better then most of mine.
“What are you going to do then? “ He asks me with a slight smile. I take a drink of my wine stalling slightly before answering his question.
“I will find something. Do not worry I am not saying it so I stay away like I was.” I tell him and he just laughs slightly. “Really I do not mind.” I tell him and he smiles and nods to me.
“Okay.” He says with a smile and then we both eat silently for a few moments. “Just do me a favor and stay around this time.” He tells me and he is not smiling as much this time.
“I doubt I have much of a choice in any of that. Since you can just kiss me anytime you want and remind me.” I say it as a joke yet he just smiles widely seeming to believe me almost.
“Maybe I should remind you more often then.” He tells me with a smirk and I just smile back at him. We stay quiet again but then when we are served dessert Mikhail moves to be right next to me and scoops up a spoonful of whipped cream putting it right on his tongue and then he moves in to kiss me. I move into the kiss wrapping my tongue around his and enjoying the taste of the sweet cream on lips. I moan and kiss him deeper as I slide my hand on to his leg. Mikhail pulls back from the kiss and just smiles at me. “I like eating with you we should do this more often. Maybe it will give us a chance to get to know each other better.” He says with a smile and I half wonder if he really does want to get to know me better or if he just wants to get me to sleep with him quicker. The moment I think it though I know it is dumb to assume something like that.
“Yes, we should eat together more often.” I tell him attempting to keep the smile on my face.