"Do you have any siblings Roshan?" Rasmus asked as they took a walk in the castle.
"No," Roshan replied.
"Then you probably don't know how I feel."
"How do you feel?" Roshan asked even though he already knew since he could read his thoughts.
"My sisters are all I have. I have raised them, educated them, protected them, provided for them and in return, they gave me a reason to live. Now, both of them are leaving." He paused.
Rasmus had a difficult time letting go of his sisters.
"I want them to be in good hands. Yes, being a king and ruling over big lands feels good but I would leave it all for my sisters. So if anyone ever hurts them, I'll look for them whatever they hide." He continued.
Roshan nodded.
"Klara is not as tough as she looks. Her toughness is only a shield. She has been through a lot and seen a lot that she shouldn't have seen. She keeps it all inside and hides it with her tough attitude but on the inside, she is a kind soul. Someone who can't sleep in peace if she has done something bad. She even escaped home just to help those she thought she had wronged." He chuckled. " She is very stubborn."
Roshan already knew all this. "She is." He agreed. "She agreed to marry me with one condition."
Rasmus came to a halt. "What is the condition?"
"To visit you once every month."
Rasmus was shocked. When a woman left her family she never came back home. That was a disgrace to her husband's family.
"I can't believe it. I'll speak to her." He said.
"No need. I already agreed to her condition."
Now Rasmus seemed even more surprised. "Why?"
"Why not? Who made those stupid rules anyway? If people can make rules they can break them as well and create some new ones more suitable for them. I don't follow rules I don't like." Roshan said.
Rasmus nodded impressed. He was thinking of doing the same thing. He was a king after all so he should abandon rules he didn't like set new ones. Ones that society would slowly accept and changes would take place eventually.
"This is Klara's quarters. Here is the dining room. I'll let you two have dinner alone while I accompany your father. I am sure you want to discuss a few things with each other."
Rasmus motioned for him to go inside. Roshan had to admit that Klara's brother was openminded. He liked that about him. Helping him as a king would not be a bad idea.
Roshan got seated at the table and waited for Klara once Rasmus left. A few servants were setting the table when Klara arrived.
They still had to pretend like they didn't know each other since servants were present and they could spread gossip.
Roshan stood up from his seat. Walking over he pulled the chair out for her. After she got seated he went to his seat and sat down. The butler served them food and poured them drinks and then all the servants stood at the corner of the room, pretending not to see or hear anything.
They had already spoken earlier but only for a very short while, and about the one condition, it was all a lie. He knew she would want to meet her brother at least once every month so he lied about it.
"So My Lady. Tell me about yourself. I am very curious." He said picking up a fork and a knife.
"Well as you can see, if you are not blind of course. I am extremely beautiful, charming, smart and…isn't that enough?" She asked straightening her shoulders.
He knew she was playing with him but he could see the servant struggling to keep a straight face at her comments. They probably thought that she was shallow.
Roshan manipulated the servent to forget what they heard, leave and close the door after behind them.
Klara was about to pick a carrot with her fork when the servants suddenly began to move. Why were they leaving? As they left they closed the door to the dining room leaving her locked inside, alone with Roshan.
She turned to him to ask if he manipulated them but he was not sitting on his seat. She looked around wondering where he disappeared when she suddenly felt warm strong hands on her shoulders.
"What did you think of my surprise?" He asked standing behind her.
Klara tried to think straight despite his hands slowly crawling to her neck. "I liked it. But you should have told me. Don't you know how flustered I was?"
"I know. " He said removing the hair away from her neck. Leaning down he pressed his lips to her neck making all the feelings from last night come alive. Suddenly she imagined him scooping her up in his arms and taking her to bed. She abandoned the thought quickly.
"I can't believe my brother agreed to this easily." She said.
"He cares for you a lot. I told him that I would let you visit him every month."
Klara stood up and turned to him. "Would you really let me do that?"
He grabbed her face between his hands. "I would do and give you anything you ask for."
Klara wrapped her arms around him. "Thank you."
He hugged her back holding her tight. "I can't wait to take you home." He spoke next to her ear.
Klara's heart skipped a beat. The thought of this man taking her home brought a fluttering feeling to her stomach.
"Tonight I'll be visiting Lucian. " He began. "Do you maybe want to come with me and meet Hazel?"
Lucian. She hadn't seen him since the day she helped him escape and she wasn't sure if she wanted to see him now. On the other hand, she really wanted to see Hazel.
"I'll think about it." She said.
And she did. She thought about it carefully the whole evening. Yes, she loved Lucian once but not anymore. So there was no reason to avoid him. Now her heart belonged to someone else.
Once she made up her mind she dressed nicely and waited for Roshan.
"So I see you are going." He said when he came.
She nodded. "Yes."
"Good. Now come here." He opened his arms widely.
Klara shook her head with a smile as she made her way into his arms and wrapped her own around him. As usual in the blink of an eye, she found herself somewhere else.
From the interior design, Klara could tell they were inside a castle. While looking around the clicking sound of footsteps caught her attention. She turned to where the sound came from and found Lucian walking from a distance.
Klara's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't prepared herself to meet him yet. Her hands began to sweat and she looked down afraid as he came closer.
"Klara?" His voice was just like she remembered and she couldn't help but lookup. He seemed surprised. His gaze shifted between her and Roshan. "How come you are here? Do you know each other?"
Klara just stared at him for a moment, taking in his appearance and making sure he was alright. She had believed he was dead after all, but he seemed just fine. More than fine actually. He seemed more… she couldn't put it into words. Something just seemed different about him. And of course, his long flawless hair was gone. Now it was shorter and fell just beneath his shoulders but it didn't make him any less good-looking.
"She is my wife to be," Roshan said shortly wrapping one arm around her shoulder. For some reason, she felt strange having the man she used to live in front of her and the one she loves now next to her. A situation she never thought would occur.
Lucian nodded thoughtfully but didn't reveal what he was thinking. Klara just kept her mouth shut. She didn't know what to say and Lucian didn't ask any further questions. He just led the way to the parlor and then ordered a servant to bring Hazel.
"So...can I ask how you two met?" Lucian asked breaking the awkward silence in the room.
"She ended up in my home while saving your wife," Roshan said emphasizing the last part as if to remind him.
Lucian turned to Klara. "Hazel told me everything. I never thanked you for helping her."
"You don't have too." Klara cut off. "Since Hazel and I are friends now." She grimaced at the word friends. She couldn't believe she said that.
Why did she say it when she didn't even know what the word meant since she never had any friends.
"Then thank you for being her friend. She could use one." He said.
Just then Hazel came into the room. She looked around until her gaze fell on Klara. Klara stood up slowly from her seat, not sure why. She looked at Hazel who smiled widely at her before crossing the distancing between them and wrapping her arms around her.
Klara stiffened but then hugged her back loosely not sure how to respond.
Lucian and Roshan gave each other a look.
"I am glad you came," Hazel said as they let go of each other.
"Me too."