Royally Bounded

Chapter 26

Clara

Hayden and I leaned against the bedframe in silence, the duvet covering our bodies. He ran his fingers down the side of my arm while my arm circled around his waist. He had his lips pressed to my forehead, caressing my skin in a sweet matter. It was unusual for his nature, but my heart warmed at his gesture that caused an unbreakable smile to my lips.

"Did you and Arnaldo always had a competition with each other?" I suddenly broke the silence, wondering about their history.

"He started it," he muttered, drawing circles over my arm. "When I was fifteen, he came to Bruchester with King Marco. Our fathers wanted us to have a small archery battle. When I beat him, he didn't like how I was better."

"It's only a small competition," I told him. "Arnaldo should have some sportsmanship."

Hayden let out a small scoff. "Sportsmanship? He treats every single thing as a battle, even the path to being a king."

I quieted down, recalling how Arnaldo had never been a true gentleman. Compared to Hayden, his greed controlled his mind, and he would do whatever to have the position.

"Why does he have to marry for the throne?" I questioned, tilting my head to look at him. "I thought you don't have to be married to be a king."

"The citizens are very critical. They don't believe in a ruler who doesn't have a family. It shows that he is incapable of handling personal matters, let alone an entire country," he answered.

I nodded. I still had to understand the rules for both countries. Both Nascadia and Verdeniao were similar in terms of tradition, and it was clear that the royals were against each other even if they were alliances.

The Romano family didn't attend the coronation. King Joseph was still annoyed with what Hayden did, and not to mention, my husband punched his son in the face. The paparazzies had already written terrible news about the alliance, and it wasn't looking good for our country.

"What are you going to do now?" I wondered, hoping that he could settle the alliance instead of making it worst. "The fact that they didn't come to the coronation, it is destroying Nascadia."

"As if I care," he spat, tightening his arm around my waist. "The alliance started from our grandfathers. It's not my business. When King Marco took over, it was clear he wanted to take Nascadia because our country is better in terms of economy and future. Verdeniao has issues, but he hides them. He thinks everyone is stupid. I'm not going to be his fucking slave. I still haven't went after Arnaldo for what he did tonight."

"Just be careful, Hayden. I don't want to have you use violence against him every time."

He rolled his eyes, licking his lips attractively. "You can forget it."

I narrowed my eyes at him and huffed with frustration. I could feel his eyes glued to my movements as I pulled away from his arms. I lowered down to sleep on my side, my back facing him.

The spot shifted beside me, and he instantly wrapped his strong arm around my waist, pulling me towards his solid chest. His hot breaths fanned over my neck. A smile crept on my lips again when he started kissing my neck possessively.

"It tickles," I laughed, shifting in his embrace as he buried his face into the crook of my neck.

He turned me over to lay on my back as he rested on his forearm. My fingers brushed over the gauze over his bicep. My chest ached at how he was injured because he had to deal with Arnaldo who had no sympathy for anyone. I despised Arnaldo for hurting Hayden.

"Still sore?" He murmured, brushing the hair from my forehead.

I shook my head, my fingers running down his arm. I suddenly giggled as I recalled what my mother told me about my first time.