As the day progressed, the formal, rigid atmosphere between the Crown Prince and his Holy Knight completely fell apart into something borderline foolish.
At first, they truly intended to behave themselves, especially in public. They were supposed to be attending diplomatic briefings with the Emperor and discussing the return journey to Edrath, standing where they were expected to stand and answering every question with perfect, cool courtesy. Cassian remained the elegant Crown Prince of Edrath, while Lucien remained the disciplined Hero of the Empire.
At least... that was the plan.
But the problem was that neither of them could stay away from the other for very long. The formal distance they maintained in front of others dissolved the second they stepped out of sight, replaced by a sweet, dangerous euphoria that neither of them could fight off.
Whenever one meeting ended and everyone began walking toward the next hall, Lucien somehow always managed to fall into step right beside Cassian. And whenever the nobles stopped to admire paintings of the Madurai tribe, the two of them quietly disappeared for a minute or two and no one questioned it. After all, Lucien was officially assigned to protect the Crown Prince. And only they knew that his 'protective duties' had become rather questionable.
"Your Highness."
Cassian looked sideways as they walked down a quiet stone corridor, heading to the private hall of Chieftain Tamil Madurai.
"Yes, Sir Arden?"
"There is another hallway ahead."
"So?"
"It appears.... somehow suspicious."
Cassian raised an eyebrow, stopping in his tracks.
"Suspicious?"
"Yes, and perhaps we should inspect it," Lucien said, his face a picture of absolute, solemn duty.
"Don't you also think so?"
Cassian stared at him for several seconds before a soft, helpless smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
"Sir Arden....You are a terrible liar."
Lucien remained perfectly serious, stepping closer as he looked down at Cassian without even breaking a smile.
"My Lord, I take my duties very seriously."
"You most certainly do not."
Before Cassian could turn and continue walking, Lucien caught his wrist with a gentle, unyielding grip and pulled him back, closer that Cassian softly bumped against his chest.
"This inspection won't take long My Prince."
"Sir Arden..." Cassian tried to sound stern, though his cheeks were already warming. "We are expected in the Chieftain's hall."
"We still have time."
"You counted?, how?"
"I always count. Just follow me and I will show you just how I counted."
With one smooth tug, Lucien guided him around the corner and behind one of the massive stone pillars lining the hallway. Cassian let out a breathless laugh as his back met the cold stone wall, his icy demeanor completely shattering.
"You truly have become impossible to deal with overnight," Cassian whispered, his hands instinctively coming up to rest against Lucien's broad chest.
"And whose fault is that?" Lucien asked, slumping his frame to shield Cassian in front of him.
"It is my own fault, apparently."
Cassian lightly bumped his shoulder against Lucien's armor. Stepping on his toes to place his lips on Lucien's and kissed him.
But it wasn't for long until Lucien spun him around and pulled down his pants slightly enough for him to be able to nudge himself in between his butt cheeks.
Cassian didn't complain at all or nor did he try to fight him off. With the Sacred Nectar residue still in effect in his system, he was actually yearning for even more than what he was already getting from Lucien.
A few moments later.
Their "inspection" led them into the palace's old library.
The grand room was completely empty. Sunlight streamed through the tall, arched windows, filling the quiet space with a warm, golden glow and lighting up rows upon rows of old books.
Cassian had barely stepped inside before Lucien reached for his hand again, pulling him deep into a secluded aisle between two heavy wooden bookshelves.
"Once again you planned this," Cassian accused softly, though there was no real anger in his voice.
Lucien put on an innocent face, his hands sliding naturally around Cassian's waist.
"I merely wished to make sure the library was secure."
"For diplomatic reasons?"
"For personal reasons."
Cassian laughed quietly, the sound of his voice light and free.
"I can't believe this is coming from the strict, terrifying Holy Knight everyone fears."
"That shouldn't apply to you."
Lucien smiled—a rare, incredibly gentle smile that almost no one else in the Empire ever got to see. For a moment, the playful teasing faded, and they simply stood close together, enjoying the quiet warmth between them.
Cassian looked up into Lucien's focused eyes, his fingers tangling into the silver short hair at the nape of Lucien's neck.
"Sir Arden... we are in the middle of the Madurai palace. We have become completely reckless. And If someone finds us–..."
"Then let them look," Lucien hummed smoothly, leaning down so his lips brushed the sensitive skin just below Cassian's ear. "It's not like they would dare go around spreading rumors about the Crown Prince's love life."
Cassian gasped softly as Lucien pressed a deep, lingering kiss right over a fading mark near his collarbone and a soft whimper escaped his lips.
"Or,"
Lucien whispered against his skin, his breath hot and sweet.
"—we could just let the whole world know who you truly belong to now."
Cassian flushed a bright, burning red, leaning into the touch despite himself.
"You have become entirely shameless Lucien Arden."
"So I've been told."
"You used to lecture me about proper conduct."
"I did."
"And now?"
Lucien pulled back just enough to look into Cassian's crimson eyes, his gaze filled with a fierce, tender devotion.
"Now... I find myself forgetting my own advice whenever you are near."
Cassian felt a sudden, powerful wave of warmth spread through his chest. He lowered his gaze with a small, embarrassed smile.
"...That is so unfair."
"Why?"
"Because I don't know how to argue with that."
"You don't have to."
Cassian sighed, leaning his forehead lightly against Lucien's chest. Before looking up, to tease him again.
"The Hero of the Empire has fallen."
Lucien chuckled softly, his arms tightening possessively around Cassian's waist.
"I fell hard a long time ago my Lord."
"Oh?"
Those simple words and that charming raspy voice made Cassian's heart skip a beat. While Lucien's thumbs lightly traced the fabric at Cassian's hips.
"Cassian..."
"Lucien..."
Cassian whispered back as Lucien gave him a reassuring, warm smile, leaning down to rest his forehead against Cassian's.
"I want you all to myself once more."
"Then have me."
Cassian nodded slowly, closing his eyes to savor the steady thrum of Lucien's heartbeat beneath his palms.
Their foreheads rested together in the quiet library for a long, peaceful moment as they shared an unbreakable quiet.
"But later, for now we should really return. Or else my father will send a search party for us soon."
Lucien nodded.
"Alright, let's do that. I can wait for later as much as you want me to."
Although they said that, neither of them moved an inch.
"...You are not planning to get off me, are you?"
"I was waiting for you to push me off."
"Rather, I was waiting for you to get off me, too."
Suddenly they both broke into a quiet laugh at the exact same time. Cassian rubbed his forehead, blushing all over again.
"We are hopeless Lucien."
"A little."
"No," Cassian corrected with a bright, beautiful grin that made Lucien's chest swell.
"We are completely hopeless."
Lucien leaned down and stole one last, deep, lingering kiss that left them both breathless before finally letting him go.
When they finally returned to the council chamber, the meeting had already been underway for quite some time. Emperor Cedric looked up from the large military map spread across the heavy oak table, his brows raised.
"Oh there you are."
Cassian instantly composed himself, smoothing down his formal tunic and sliding his hands behind his back, adopting his most perfect, regal posture.
"My apologies, Father. We took a wrong turn."
Lucien stepped forward, standing half a pace behind the prince with absolute, unshakeable confidence.
"I tried ensuring by all means His Highness remained safe. I detected an unusual presence near the eastern wing."
Several older ministers nodded without a single shred of doubt.
"Ah, very diligent, Sir Arden."
"Indeed, one can never be too careful in foreign territories."
Only Elias, standing near the back with a stack of trade scrolls, quietly lowered his head to hide a deeply anused scowl.
'A wrong turn they say...' Elias thought, shaking his head slightly.
'Today alone, that is the fourth wrong turn.'
He glanced toward the pair. Cassian was carefully staring straight ahead, avoiding Lucien's eyes while his ears remained faintly pink. Lucien stood perfectly straight, looking as stern and dangerous as ever. If someone didn't know them, they would believe every single word out of the knight's mouth.
Elias sighed inwardly.
'His Highness used to avoid Sir Arden every chance he got. Now I have the opposite problem.'
'At this rate... I'm going to have to start assigning guards just to stop these two from getting 'lost' within every hour.'
Still, as Elias watched Cassian quietly bite back a happy smile, he couldn't help but feel a wave of genuine worry.
'I smell trouble looming just around the corner. Should I just retire early as his personal Butler before I totally regret it later?'
*****