"Oh um, hey," she said, pulling back. "S-sorry I...I wasn't paying attention."
"Clearly," he said, smirking at her.
She didn't find his smirk that infuriating any more. She didn't feel like slapping him. In fact....it kind of turned her on.
She bit her bottom lip.
"Where are you headed?" he asked.
"I was going to the throne room. I'm hungry."
"Well, I'm afraid you missed breakfast. And lunch, for that matter. Dinner is in a few hours, though," he said, smiling now.
"Yeah," she said, "I figured I did. I'll just get something from the kitchen."
"Alright then," he said, moving to the side to let her pass.
"Where were you headed?" she asked, making no move to leave.
"I was actually going to wake you."
That made her blush a little, thinking about the ways he could have woken her up.
"What for?"
"Well...partly because it's late."
"And the other part?"
"I have to leave."
"Oh," she said, looking down at her feet. It wasn't exactly what she was hoping to hear. "Where are you going?"
"I have a few things to take care of. Something came up, and I need to be at another village tonight. I won't be back until the day after tomorrow."
"What happened?" she asked, hoping he couldn't tell how disappointed she was.
"Nothing important."
If she hadn't been so wrapped up in her disappointment at his departure, she might have questioned him.
"I'll be back soon," he said, grabbing her hand.
The feeling of his hand in hers made her whole body tingle. It felt so, so different from the other times they'd held hands. Probably because she now knew what they felt like all over her body. Not soon enough, she thought.
"And why do you say that?" he asked, a smile playing at his lips.
She was a little horrified when she realized that she'd actually said what she'd been thinking aloud.
"Oh..um.," she mumbled. She could feel the tips of her ears burning.
"Will you miss me?" he asked, moving towards her.
She backed up until she could feel the cold stone of the palace walls behind her back.
"Yes, I-I will," she said, looking up at him.
"Pretty dress," he said, placing his hands on her hips.
She thought about the hard grip he'd had on her hips the night before.
"When do you have to leave?" she asked, biting her lip again.
His eyes dropped to her mouth.
Wordlessly, he grabbed her hand and led her down the corridor in the opposite direction of the throne room. He took a left turn, and they ended up in a part of the palace she hadn't been in before.
He pushed her up against the wall and brought his lips down to hers. He kissed her hungrily as he ran his hands up her thighs, hiking her dress up to her waist. He lifted her up until she could wrap her legs around him.
She knew they didn't have long; she knew someone could walk down the hall at any minute. That didn't stop her from running a hand through his hair while the other lazily made its way down his front, stopping at his belt, pulling at it a little. She hoped he'd get the message.
She wasn't disappointed.
The cool palace wall chilled the skin on her back as he fucked her against it. His mouth went to her neck, biting it as she tried to stifle her moans.
"You-you'll leave a mark," she whispered in between gasps of air.
"Does that bother you?" he asked, "That everyone will know you're mine?"
Mine.
"N-no," she sighed as his lips moved to the flesh just above her breast. She thought about the faint bruises sprinkling her hip bones—marks left by his fingertips.
She was used to scratches and bruises. These were a different kind, though.
He bit and sucked and kissed at the flesh there while she tried not to moan too loudly. Eventually, he placed a hand over her mouth and picked up his pace until she came, and he followed.
He set her back down and gave her a long, lingering kiss full of something that she could only describe as a promise before he said goodbye and left.
She made her way to the kitchen, feeling like a completely different person.
A person who wore dresses and fucked her husband in abandoned hallways. A person who thought about how she'd enjoy her day instead of worrying about how she'd survive it.
Chapter 29
After her meal, Aria went in search of her friends. She found Brent and Martinez outside, feeding the livestock. She got the feeling that they wanted to be alone, so she asked if they'd seen Mara. After they pointed her in the right direction, Aria left to give them some privacy.
Mara was stroking a horse's mane when Aria found her in the stables.
"Hey," Mara said, "Where have you been? We missed you at breakfast. And lunch."
"Oh um, I kind of slept in late," Aria said, shrugging. She hoped that her hair covered her spotted neck.
"Long night?" Mara asked. Her tone was playful, innocent. But Aria could see the mischief in her eyes.
"Kind of," Aria said, hoping she was coming off nonchalant.
She looked away. Mara totally knew if the look in her eye was anything to go by.
"You wanna go for a ride? Or did you already go on one this morning?"
"Mara!"
"Do you wanna go? Or are you too worn out?"
"Oh my god, stop it," Aria said, rolling her eyes. But she couldn't stop the heat now crawling up her chest, her cheeks. She knew it was all in good fun and that she and Mara were close. But after Ben, Aria wasn't sure how comfortable either one of them discussed their sex lives. Or lack thereof.
"Okay, okay," Mara said, putting her hands up, "But seriously, do you want to?"
"Sure."
Aria searched the stable for the horse that Lex had said was hers. It wasn't hard to find, considering it was the only white one. The rest were all shades of brown and black.
They led the horses from the stable to a path carved in the woods. Aria wasn't sure where the trail led since the only time
