How To Tame An Empress (BOOK I)

Chapter 9- Forms of Entertainment

***

"Darling," I called, grabbing her attention.

"Yes..." She hummed, too concentrated on the flowers she was watering to look at me. And here I thought that my jealousy ended with human beings but yet, here I find myself being jealous of these plants.

"You are getting bored, aren't you?" She paused with her watering to look at me.

"Is it truly that obvious?" She sighed, running a hand through her hair and I nodded my head, taking a step closer to her and helping in brushing her hair away.

"Well, I can't help it. I'm not allowed to leave the palace walls and while it is a beautiful palace, I haven't seen the outside world for five months. And here I thought, my parents, were the overprotective ones that sheltered me too much. And I am also the same child that said she would grow up to be an explorer,"

"An explorer?" I raised a brow, being able to imagine that in perfect light.

"Yes, an explorer. Although, I threw that dream away long before I decided to marry you... But anyway, why are you asking me something so obvious all of a sudden?" She reminded me of why I was here in the first place.

"I was thinking to leave the palace walls tomorrow," I said in a monotone voice as if talking about the nice Roman weather.

A long, very long, silence followed my statement and my once calm face morphed into a grin as I laughed at my wife who hasn't looked this bewildered since the first time I proposed to her out of nowhere.

"Are you serious? You are not joking with me, are you? Because if you are then I'll slap you," She stepped forward, clutching onto my chest as I continued to laugh at her, somehow managing to shake my head at her words.

"I was getting bored too, doing nothing but work every day. So, to have some fun I was thinking of visiting an amphitheatre tomorrow,"

"An amphitheatre?" She asked, raising a brow and I nodded my head once more, surprised by her sudden crestfallen face. What? All Romans loved watching gladiators fight, including me. But then again, my wife wasn't exactly an ordinary woman.

"What is it?" I decided to ask her.

"Huh... Oh, it's nothing. I've visited an amphitheatre before, once when I was younger with Julius and my parents... And I thought it was fun... Until one of the men died," She frowned at the memory and I sighed, smiling at her as I ruffled her hair.

"What?" She asked, holding onto my hand that rested on her head and moved it away to interlock our hands together. Putting the can that she was using to water the plants down, we both moved to walk around the large expanse of land together.

"I don't think I have appreciated how beautiful you are," I mumbled more to myself rather than her or anyone else for that matter.

"You tell me that I am beautiful every day. When it comes to calling me beautiful, no one has you beat," She laughed and I laughed with her, not at all surprised by that fact, just as it should be.

"I'm not talking about physical appearance, flower... Not once in my life have I met a woman so wild and yet so gentle. Of course, my attraction to you may have started with your beauty, but I can now confidently say that there are other aspects of you that I find much more beautiful," I paused in my steps to look at her, placing a hand on her cheek as I kissed her forehead.

"Who knew that the Emperor could be such a poet?" She chuckled, kissing my cheek.

"Only for his one and only Empress," I whispered to her, kissing her cheek and she laughed.