Working For The Prince (BxB)✔

Chapter 26 - Not The Rumor He was Expecting

Leaving was a somber occasion as Asher packed up his neglected traveling gear and prepared his horse. He then rode into the snow, promising to return as soon as possible with news about the rumors.

As he traveled, Asher's mind was concocting alternate ways to help Leon get out of this situation.

He wondered if it was possible to bribe Ebony into breaking the spell, then figured the Prince had already attempted that, considering the massive amount of gold he was sitting on.

Then he thought about hiring a different witch to break it, or cast a counter curse. Unfortunately he didn't know of any magic users personally, and it would definitely take more time to find a witch or wizard than a bride.

If only love wasn't in the equation.

How do people find out they're in love anyways? Do they wake up one day and realize it? Or does it happen slowly over time? And can it happen regardless of gender...?

Asher blushed as he finally allowed himself to explore that question.

He'd gotten to know Leon much better now. When they first met, the Prince didn't seem to want to have anything to do with anyone, and had even scoffed and told Asher to sleep in the stables. He was cold and uncaring, yet, the longer Asher stuck around, the kinder he became.

In their private conversations, Leon revealed a lot of sensitive information about himself that Asher didn't think he'd divulge to just anyone, and he'd even listened to the servant prattle on about his plans for the future.

Then there were their more intimate moments where they did things that he knew he'd never be willing to do with anyone else, but did that mean he was in love with the beast?

Asher had never felt strongly for anyone before. Nor had he ever been curious like he was with Leon. It would be nice if he could confirm what these feelings were.

The problem would be what he would do afterwards. If the servant really was in love with Leon, would he honestly be happy seeing him with someone else?

Shaking his head, Asher tried to shoo away his selfish thoughts. He needed to focus on one thing at a time, starting with the rumors.

His grandmother was more than happy to see him return, though his grandfather tossed a rolling pin at his head as he argued that the servant was taking too many vacation days and warned that he may get fired again.

Asher dodged successfully and explained that he was sent out to retrieve information, but that wasn't enough to stop his grandfather from nagging him about his poor choice in sources. The village was secluded from most of the kingdom, so very little information ever circulated here. The old man wouldn't hear it when Asher said that that was the point, and stomped back to the kitchens.

Since he was in a hurry, the servant didn't bother unpacking when he tied his horse up and began hunting down the local gossips.

Theo would have been his first choice since she was extremely talkative, though he wasn't sure how accurate her information would be and decided he'd seek her out later if he couldn't find anyone else. His next choice would have been his grandmother, but he didn't want to drag his family into this mess and decided against it. 

It was late and the sun was starting to set, so there weren't many people out aside from those who liked to spend their evenings at the tavern. Asher had always chosen to avoid that place since Cas and his gang frequented that area, but since he was in a hurry, he decided to risk it and slunk inside, sticking to the walls and pricking his hears to nearby conversations.

A couple of the nearby farmers discussed a mischievous goat while a barmaid wandered around with a platter of mugs, handing them out to crowded tables as she was waved down. The place wasn't in full swing yet, so Asher wasn't too overwhelmed, but he still decided he'd rather talk to the woman than any of the potentially drunk customers.