High above the imperial gardens, the afternoon sun cast a warm, golden glow over the stone balustrade, but the air on the high private balcony felt like ice.
Adrian sat comfortably in his cushioned armchair, draped in soft silk furs.
Beside him, Sora rested on a wide divan, equally comfortable beneath a light velvet blanket. A silver tray sat between them, filled with sliced sweet fruits, small pastries, and two steaming cups of floral tea.
Both heavily pregnant, they bathed in the sun, simply conversing over their pregnancies. Adrian had invited Sora over himself, hoping to ease even a little bit of his worries while Cassian was absent to take care of him.
Adrian's stomach was noticeably rounder now under his loose robes, carrying the steady, growing warmth of the new life within him.
"I am glad that you accepted my invite to share tea, Sora."
He slowly rubbed his rounded stomach with one hand.
"No, I am the one who is glad for your invite. I really needed some air to catch my breath a little."
"By the way, your little one seems to be growing quickly," Sora said with a gentle smile.
Adrian smiled back faintly.
"Too quickly," Adrian replied softly. "Some mornings I wake up and wonder how my clothes are still fitting me."
Sora chuckled.
"I know the feeling."
Adrian picked up his teacup, taking a slow sip.
"You've been resting properly, haven't you?"
"I have."
"Good."
Sora smiled.
"You sound like Cassian right now."
Adrian's expression softened.
"I suppose I learned from him."
For a moment, neither spoke, enjoying the calm breeze.
Then Adrian's eyes drifted down toward the lower courtyard.
And his expression changed.
There, near the stone arches, stood Thoris. The towering warrior was holding two heavy wooden crates of supplies he had brought in from the city. Beside Thoris stood a young, attractive palace maid holding a basket of fresh linen. She was looking up at him, smiling brightly and laughing at something he had said as she stepped closer to help him adjust his load. Thoris nodded at her, his broad face relaxed, letting out a low rumble of a quiet laugh as he walked alongside her down the stone pathway.
Compared to the other maids Adrian had spotted him with, he seemed particularly closer to this specific maid.
They always walked together. She always leaned in towards him during their conversations, chatting animatedly, and Thoris listened, walking at her pace, their shoulders almost rubbing together.
Lately, young maidservants and passing noblewomen often offered him polite greetings or asked for help lifting heavy crates, and Thoris no longer cut them off with curt, icy words. He offered calm, deep-voiced nods and even allowed faint, courteous curves to touch the corners of his lips. He let the palace staff whisper and smile as he passed.
It was a delicate, dangerous game that got to Adrian's nerves very well.
Suddenly, Thoris glanced up toward the balcony where Adrian was relaxing with Sora.
A subtle smirk played on Thoris's lips.
'He wants to keep me on a short leash,' Thoris thought, his amber eyes gleaming with a quiet, dark satisfaction as he kept them glued on Adrian while carrying his load down the gallery.
'He wants to mark his territory. If jealousy is the only flame strong enough to burn through the icy walls he built between us... then I will fuel the fire until he burns me alive.'
On the balcony, Adrian's hand froze.
*CRACK!*
A sharp, distinct fracture split down the side of the delicate porcelain mug. Hot tea leaked onto Adrian's slender fingers, but he didn't even flinch. His eyes only narrowed into dark, lethal slits, fixed entirely on the maid laughing at Thoris's side.
A dark, suffocating possessiveness—far uglier and more violent than anything he had felt before—churned deep within his chest.
He had noticed how that young blonde maid from the lower kitchens seemed to conveniently cross Thoris's path during his afternoon errands almost everyday. He also saw how a noble lady-in-waiting had stopped Thoris to ask for directions, lingering to admire his broad shoulders framed by his dark servant tunic. And worst of all, he saw how Thoris—his former captor, his husband-servant and the father of his child—did not immediately turn his back and walk away as he had been explicitly commanded.
Every subtle smile Thoris offered to another person felt like a sharp, hot blade sliding directly into Adrian's chest.
'That bastard!' Adrian thought, his heart hammering in his ribs as his blood began to boil.
'Just after I clearly warned him to keep his distance from these women, he still dares?! He is mine, isn't he?! Just how dare he brazenly flirt with these maids in my own residence while I'm heavily pregnant with his child?!'
His jaw tightened in pure fury.
'Every breath he takes, every word he speaks, every inch of his body belongs to me. How dare she look at him like that? And how dare he laugh with her like they have known each other for long?!'
He slammed the cracked mug onto the silver tray. The loud rattle startled the guard standing at the balcony door.
Sora slowly looked at Adrian, then down at Thoris, and then back at Adrian. A small, knowing smile appeared behind Sora's teacup as he trailed his eyes to where Adrian was glaring. He had a very good idea of what was going through Adrian's mind at that moment.
And Sora quietly set his cup down.
"Adrian, thank you for spending time with me today," Sora said gently. "I truly needed some relaxation before heading back to the forest."
That finally snapped Adrian back to his senses.
Adrian blinked, turning his head.
"Sora... oh, yes, yes. Any time, brother-in-law. We should actually do this more often."
Sora nodded, placing his lightness back into his posture.
"In that case, it is time for me to go take a rest. Adrian, let's do this again another time."
"I would love that."
Sora smiled, and Adrian rose from his chair to hug him warmly before they parted ways.
Sora took his leave with his attendants, but the moment the balcony was quiet again, Adrian turned to take a final glance below at the courtyard.
Thoris and the maid had already disappeared beneath the stone arches.
Adrian's silk robes swished violently as he retreated into the shadows of his private room, his mind racing with boiling anger.
'That bastard. I'll teach him a lesson he will never forget.'
*****
Evening fell over Edrath, painting the sky in deep shades of violet and bruised red.
Dinner came and went. The sun sank completely behind the mountains, and the palace lanterns were lit one by one.
Yet, Thoris did not return to the private chambers.
Adrian sat on the edge of the vast bed in the dimly lit room, his chest heaving with every shallow breath. The image of the maid leaning into Thoris, the thought of them walking around the grounds together getting to know each other, replayed in his mind over and over again like poison.
He felt his blood boil with pure, unadulterated jealousy.
'He is late again.'
Was he with her? Was he entertaining another woman while making his master wait? The thought made Adrian hiss through his teeth, his fingers digging into the plush velvet sheets.
"Sevval,"
Adrian's cold, sharp voice cut through the quiet room.
The middle-aged butler stepped out from the shadowed corner, bowing respectfully.
"Yes, Your Highness?"
"Where is he? My servant," Adrian hissed out, his voice dripping with venom. "Why is he not in my room?"
"He was assigned to help clear the eastern storehouses after his city errand, My Lord," Sevval answered smoothly, though his sharp green eyes caught the dangerous storm brewing in the prince's expression.
"But he should be finishing now."
"Bring him here," Adrian commanded, his blue eyes flashing with a terrifying, unpredictable light.
"Now."
"As you wish, Your Highness."
Sevval bowed and quietly stepped out.
Ten minutes later, the heavy oak doors pushed open.
Thoris stepped inside, wiping dust from his broad forearms. The moment he crossed the threshold, he felt the suffocating, heavy tension in the air. He instantly lowered his head, closing the doors quietly behind him.
"Your Highness..." Thoris spoke softly, taking a step toward the bed.
"Forgive me for being late. The head steward asked for assistance with the heavy cargo, and—"
"Shut the door and lock it," Adrian interrupted, his voice eerily calm, though his breathing was dangerously fast.
Thoris paused, but immediately obeyed, turning the heavy iron key in the lock with a distinct click.
And when Thoris turned back around, Adrian was already standing.
He marched across the room, stopping directly in front of the massive warrior. The faint curve of his pregnant belly pressed lightly against his loose robes, but his face carried the absolute, sharp fury of an imperial tyrant.
"Who was she?" Adrian demanded softly, his voice a lethal, trembling whisper.
Thoris blinked, looking down at him.
"Who...?"
"The maid in the lower courtyard!" Adrian snapped, raising his hand and slamming his palm firmly against Thoris's broad chest, forcing the heavy man back against the locked oak door. "The one you were walking with! The one you were making laugh while I sat on the balcony watching you like a fool!"
Thoris's eyes widened in utter shock as he realized what had driven Adrian into this wild, fiery state.
"Adrian, she was only—"
"I don't care what she was doing!" Adrian hissed, tears of pure, furious possessiveness welling in his eyes as he grabbed the front of Thoris's linen tunic, pulling the towering brute down until their faces were inches apart.
"I warned you, didn't I?! You are my servant, Thoris! You belong to me! Your eyes, your mouth, your hands—everything you are belongs to me entirely!"
"And if I catch you entertaining another woman—if you so much as smile at another person again—I will have her dragged from this palace, and I will chain you to the foot of my bed so you can never look at anyone else!... I mean it this time!"
Silence heavy enough to shatter stone.
Thoris looked down at the fierce, beautiful prince clutching his tunic. He saw the wild blush on Adrian's cheeks, the furious tears in his eyes, and the deep, possessive territorial instinct burning bright within him.
Instead of anger, instead of pride, a deep, intoxicating heat surged through Thoris's veins.
'Oh?... Why am I liking this right now?'
Without a word, Thoris reached up, his massive, warm hands cupping Adrian's flushed face with overwhelming intensity. He pressed his forehead against Adrian's, his deep, gravelly breath brushing against the prince's parted lips.
"There is no one else but you, My Lord," Thoris rasped softly. "There has never been anyone else. I don't see her. I don't see anyone in this entire cursed empire except for you."
Adrian's breath hitched, his small hands tightening in Thoris's tunic as the raw truth of the warrior's words washed over his boiling blood.
'But if it's jealousy that brings you closer to me, then should I just nudge a little bit more?' Thoris thought, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
Adrian pulled his head back slightly, trying to regain his composure despite his burning cheeks.
"Good to know that you still remember where your loyalty should lie," Adrian muttered, his voice still trembling slightly. "Now go back to your duties."
Thoris looked down at him, his gaze dark and heavy.
"Is that all? Can't I stay a little bit longer?"
"Thoris, leave."
Thoris let out a soft sigh before nodding faintly.
"As you command, My Lord."
He unlocked the door and stepped out into the dark hallway.
As the door clicked shut behind him, Thoris stood in the corridor for a moment, his hand resting on the wood.
'Once again, I won't be able to touch him,' Thoris thought, a quiet smile touching his face in the dark.
'In the end... should I just continue making him jealous for him to actually keep me locked up in his chambers?'
*****