𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐁𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐑𝐄 | ✎

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟒𝟎

"Still think I'm boring, Princess?" Alex's husky and measured voice teases me while he watches as I fix my dress and hair.

My face is already flushed red from the aftershock, but with Alex's taunting comment, my cheeks only burn brighter. "Shut up. I was only joking," I mumble quietly, trying to hide my obvious embarrassment.

I'm usually not one to get so flustered easily. With Alex, though, it's different. He's gone from being a thorn in my side to being the only person who truly makes me feel vulnerable—in a good way.

Alex holds out his arm for me to take once he finishes getting dressed up again. "Let's get out of here before someone notices."

"Right," I reply, still struggling to calm myself down. I take Alex's arm, and he leads me out of the shed. We walk quickly through the nature trails, hoping to go undetected. Eventually, we make it out of the Royal Gardens and back inside the palace.

I take a deep breath of relief once we travel down the dimly lit corridor. The only sounds we make are our footsteps echoing against the marble floor. Now that the day has passed quite a bit, it's almost sunset, which means the palace halls are mostly empty.

Since my father is an asshole, to say the least, I don't have to worry about eating dinner with my family. I almost never eat my meals with them; we only eat together if there's a special event with other guests.

My stomach rumbles quietly, and that's when I realize that I need some food. Rubbing my shoulder against Alex's arm to get his attention, I wait until he looks down at me to speak. "Can we eat? I'm hungry."

The bodyguard stops in his tracks, his head swerving around as if trying to make sure nobody's around. Suddenly, he grabs my arm and pulls me in the other direction. "Come."

His grip on my arm is almost forceful, and I struggle to keep up with his fast pace as we make our way through the palace halls. We pass many paintings and statues, and my eyes flicker to each one as I try to catch a glimpse of what they depict.

As we near the east wing of the palace, I begin to realize that Alex is taking me to the kitchen. He doesn't even need to drag me along anymore because I gain control of my footing and rush to where the food is.

I love food.

The kitchen is bustling as the chefs prepare dinner. There's smoke billowing from the oven, pots boiling on the stove, and dozens of culinary experts shuffling back and forth, preparing the meal with care.

It's noisy and hectic, but Alex and I seem to fade into the background of the busy room. The bodyguard doesn't speak to anyone, and the chefs are too occupied with their work to notice our presence.