Queen Material ( Ace of Queens #1)

Chapter 9

Ch 9

Rye woke up the next morning with a dull headache. She wanted to do nothing other then hid herself in bed all day.

It was cowardly of her to hide from Xavier after last night, but she didn't have the energy to explain anything to anyone.

She buried herself deep under the covers and sighed. Flashback from last night came pouring into her mind. Xavier had carried her to her room and sat with her on the bed, until she had fallen asleep. Even after she had drifted off to sleep, Xavier lingered for a little longer and debated on sleeping on the armchair in the room. Half way through the night he returned to his bed after deciding Rye wouldn't be too happy to find him in her room in the morning.

But to Xavier's misfortune, Rye had felt a ping of disappointment when she didn't find him in the room the next morning.

Rye's mood dampened even more as sleep evaded her senses slowly. She felt truly alone, like she had the night at the hospital after the car accident. Memories of her father reading at the breakfast bar or cooking dinner crashed against her eyelids like waves at sea. She missed him dearly and couldn't help but wonder what he would have thought of Xavier.

He seemed like a gentleman, they always do at first. But he was still a beast underneath and Rye knew it wouldn't take long for that beast to show itself. She saw a glimmer of him last night before her mother had called. The way he had prowled at her like a hunter wanting to know what man Rye was talking about was exactly the type of behavior Rye wanted to avoid.

She didn't want a caveman. And all this was just some twisted lust. His feelings for her was pure animalistic. Even mindless animals matted to produce offsprings. It doesn't mean they love each other.

Rye's morning banter was interrupted when there was a knock at the door. She remained still as a young girl entered her room and pushed back the heavy curtains to drown the space in the morning sunlight.

Slowly, Rye sat up in bed and leaned back against the headboard.

"Good morning, your grace." The girl bowed.

"I am not royalty," Rye said irritated, "I am the daughter of an English Professor. Please don't call me your grace. It's bad enough when the old man does it."

To that the young girl did not respond. She waited patiently for Rye to tell her what to do.

Rye narrowed her eyes at the girl and asked, "Where is Xavier?"

"The king is attending a meeting in the garden on the south lawn."

"Good," Rye nodded. She rolled out of bed and walked over to the balcony. Stretching, she stepped into the cold February air and sighed. She closed her eyes and inhaled the fresh air deeply. She was grateful for how quiet this place was. She could hear the birds in the distance and nothing more.

Suddenly, she sensed someone watching her. Opening her eyes, she looked below the balcony to find Xavier standing in a circle with a bunch of men in dark suits. One of the men was talking and they all seem to be in a deep conversation. But not Xavier, he had his eyes locked on Rye on the balcony.

His gaze was so intense, Rye could almost feel their heat turning her face red. She quickly jumped back into the room and kicked the balcony doors closed.

"Is everything okay, your grace?" The maid asked alarmed.

"No," Rye turned to her, "You didn't tell me he was right outside my window," She hissed in a quiet voice. 

"Your room looks out onto the south lawn and garden..."

"Yeah I figured that out on my own, thank you very much." Rye jumped back into bed. After a minute when she still felt the presence of the girl in the room she popped back out from under the covers, "What is it?"