A Crown of Thorns

Mint & Cinnamon

Ryan's POV

"Give me back my husband!"

"I don't want to go back to you Rye." Andy frowns walking into the side of an unfamiliar face. "I don't love you. I love him."

"What do you mean..." l stutter walking forward in the weird hazy room.

"He wasn't good for you Ryan. He made you soft." My mother's voice echos as I look at her.

"What are you talking about. I need him. He loves me!"

"I could never love someone as broken as you Ryan." Andy's words are like poison. My heart not wanting to believe it.

"Take care if them Ryan." My father walks up next to my mother.

"I'm dreaming. You...you died father."

"We're all dead Rye." My eyes shoot towards Andy's voice. "And it's because of you."

"No!" I jolt awake. My breath is heavy as I look around the room. I try to calm myself down listening to Andy's slow breaths. It didn't help much, that dream was a little too intense for my liking. I didn't have very many nightmares, they only seemed to show up when I had a lot on my mind.

I decide to finally just get up for the day, although the sun wasn't even awake yet. I quietly shuffle my feet until they touch the cold
floor, careful not to wake up Andy.

I've come to learn he's a pretty deep sleeper, but he was easy to wake up if you absolutely had to. I always tried to attack him with butterfly kisses, so that I didn't get punched or told off. All his anger and sass coming out when someone messed with his so called beauty sleep.

I thought about going out to watch the sunrise, but I seemed to have the worst hangover headache of a life time. So, Instead I found myself helping the servants warm up water for a bath. They gave me sympathetic smiles as I helped. Yet I couldn't tell if it was because I had just lost my father, or if they weren't used to royalty helping.

When I was younger, and not feeling good, I would take a bath. Warm water filled with mint leaves and a floating cinnamon stick candle. The mint made sense, but the candle not so much. My grandma always said something about it soothing the soul, or whatever that means. At this point I was just hoping it might help my headache.

"Rye?"

I turn to face a tired eyed Andy standing in the doorway.

"That's all your majesty. Did you need anything else?" The servant girl smiles softly, Handing me the small brown specked candle.

"That will be all. Thank you." She curtsies walking toward the door doing the same action for Andy before closing the door behind her.

"I couldn't sleep.." I mumble lighting the candle. I then slowly pull off my shirt.

Andy just hums watching me carefully. His bottom lip tucked tightly between his teeth. I could feel the sexual tension start to set in, but I didn't feel good enough to do anything about it. My body being mentally and physically drained. Even though I didn't show it, my father passing was actually affecting me.

"I'm not having sex with you right now, so can you stop looking at me like that?" I chuckle slipping my pants off and sitting in the water. The warm feeling easing my slightly upset stomach. My entire body relaxing as I look back at Andy. His cheeks are flushed to a bright red making him look even more adorable than he normally was.

"I-I wasn't...I didn't look..I wasn't looking at you like that."

"Mmhmm." I smirk moving the mint leaves round the candle with my index finger. A very tense silence goes by. Andy unapologetically staring at me from the door way.