The King's Arrangement (BTS X Reader)

Chapter 6

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I was heading towards the kitchen to see Jin when I bumped into Mina coming in from the gardens. I eyed her with revulsion written across my features. Her hair was disheveled, her lips were swollen, and she had a very pronounced mark on her collarbone, visible due to the low cut shirt she was wearing. I shook my head. I couldn't believe that Soobin continued his illicit affair and in the royal gardens! If they had been seen, it could have been disastrous for the royal family and caused distrust amongst the people.

She eyed me suspiciously then flounced off in the opposite direction. I shuddered at the brief encounter. The woman absolutely disgusted me. Her lewd behavior with Soobin, her ill-mannered treatment of the staff, but mostly her blatant disrespect for the princess. I hated that she treated the love of my life so poorly.

I was still fuming from what I had seen when I stepped into the kitchen. Jin was standing at the counter, preparing a piecrust, but turned at my approach.

"My friend!" he said, hugging me. "I'm so glad you made time to see me today."

I looked down at the flour streaked across my shirt and rolled my eyes. "Really Jin?" I brushed the flour off and smiled at him in false displeasure.

"The princess came to see me after breakfast," Jin said carefully, watching my expression. "She complimented me on the crepes and asked who requested them." Jin laughed as my eyes widened in horror. "Don't worry. I did not tell her."

I sighed in relief. "Thank you for that. I don't want her to know," I said.

Jin looked at me with a serious expression on his face. "I think you should tell her how you feel."

I shook my head emphatically. "I can't," I replied. "She's a married woman."

Jin patted my shoulder then went back to rolling out his piecrusts. "She's married to the wrong man. You and I both know it. He doesn't love her and she doesn't love him."

"And he's still seeing the Duke's daughter," I said, watching Jin's reaction.

His normally happy face darkened in anger and he slammed his rolling pin on the counter, the noise reverberating through the kitchen. "That dirty son of a ..." he stopped, took a deep breath and tried to reign in his anger. "The princess does not deserve this."

I nodded and crossed my arms. "I agree, but unfortunately there is nothing I can do," I said, regret in my voice. In just over a week, Soobin would be crowned king, making YN his queen. I was fearful of the changes that would take place in the palace, but hoped YN would be able to influence him in some aspects.

I spent a few more minutes with Jin before excusing myself from the kitchen. I headed down the hallway towards the conference room when I noticed the princess heading into the palace library. I noticed over the last several months that it was one of her favorite places besides the garden. She spent many hours in there, curled up in an armchair with a book in her hands. I watched her now as she ran a slender hand over the spines of the books. My pants tightened at the sight since it reminded me of the way she would stroke a lover.

The princess smiled as she chose a book then settled down in an armchair. Her lady's maid, Emira, stepped into the room, offering to bring her tea. The princess smiled and laughed, agreeing to let the young woman wait on her. The friendship between the two made my heart soft. The princess had known Emira for many years and treated the woman like a friend, rather than a servant. It was just another example of her endearing and sweet demeanor.

YN:

As Emira left the room, I looked up to see a handsome man hesitating at the doorway. I smiled at him, waving him into the room. He had always been so kind to me during my time at the palace and was exceptionally handsome.

"Is everything alright?" I asked him.

He smiled and ran a hand through his hair. "Yes of course. I just wanted to see if you needed anything," he replied.

I shook my head in denial. "No, but thank you for asking. I am quite alright," I replied.

"Very well then," he said. "Enjoy your book." He turned to leave the room, but then hesitated and turned back. He walked across the room and stopped at a shelf. He reached up and pulled a book from the shelf. It had a tattered brown cover and gold writing. He handed the book to me and I reached up to take it from him.

As my fingers brushed his, I felt a jolt through me as though I had been electrocuted. I felt my face get hot and quickly pulled my hand back, taking the book with me.

"This is one of my favorites," he said, his voice soft. I studied his face but he showed no reaction from the brush of our hands against each other. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I must have imagined it.

"I will be more than willing to read it," I replied. "Thank you for sharing it with me."

He smiled once again then turned and left the room. I sat there for a moment wondering about the feeling that had come over me. I saw him all the time. He was always kind and polite, but he had never made me feel that way before.

I set the book on the small table next to the chair just as Emira came in with my tea. She brought the small cart to a stop in front of me. There was a lovely china teapot with two matching cups and saucers. On the small plate, there was a selection of tiny pastries, compliments of Chef Jin. Emira poured the tea into our cups, adding sugar to mine just the way I liked it before fixing her own.

Emira sat in the chair next to me then pointed to the book. "New book?" she asked. "I've never seen you read that one."

I looked over at the book and shrugged. "It was a recommendation," I said simply.

Emira gave me a strange smile and nodded her head. "Ahh. Yes of course," she replied.

As I sipped my tea, I looked around the palace library. It was one of my favorite places in the palace besides the oriental garden. It was immense and had more books than I could ever dream of reading. At the far end was a large fireplace with a several comfortable chairs in front of it. I had spent many evenings there during the early spring when I arrived. The staircases in each corner led to the upper floors and I loved to roam the stacks, exploring and looking for the perfect book.

The gentleman in charge of the palace accounting, Namjoon, had heard of my love of the library. He had given me several recommendations of wonderful books and we had spent many hours sitting in the chairs having deep discussions of what we had read. The man was a dear and an absolute pleasure to talk to. He was incredibly smart and his insight into some of the discussions fascinated me. I had not seen Namjoon in several days. He had been sent to a distant kingdom for business to purchase several horses, along with the lead hostler, Kai. The sweet nature of the two men reminded me of the handsome man who just made my heart flutter and my cheeks feel hot.

"Is everything alright?" Emira asked. "Are you feeling ill?"

I turned to her quickly. "Of course not. Just thinking about this beautiful library," I replied.

Emira shrugged, but her eyes told another story. "Whatever you say," she replied, a knowing smile on her face.