Page 76 of The Fifth Life of Alicia
I screamed, jolting around to look at the owner of the voice. My elbow slipped in my panic, and the loss of my balance sent me tumbling to the floor with the blanket wrapped around me. “What the—”
“I must say, of all the greetings you could have offered me, this is by far the most amusing one.”
Ugh.
It washim.
“What are you doing coming in here while I was sleeping? Are you a pervert?” I untangled myself from the blanket and hauled myself to my feet. “And that’s my desk!”
Kalon’s lips pulled into a small smirk that made his purple-gold eyes spark with amusement. “I’m aware. I’m borrowing it.”
“But… my work!” I reached out a hand before stopping. “My system,” I whimpered.
“System? You called that mess a system?” He raised his dark eyebrows. “That was chaos.”
“It was organised chaos,” I mumbled. “I knew where everything was.”
“If you say so.” The bastard leant back in my chair and linked his fingers. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
Ahem.
Right.
Ididneed to greet him properly.
I pulled out my skirt and curtseyed. “Welcome back to the castle, Your Highness.”
“Thank you. Now…” He tapped his cheek.
I stilled, mid-curtsey. “Excuse me?”
“Isn’t a kiss on the cheek how one greets their fiancé?”
“Then perhaps you should find a fiancé willing to greet you in such a manner,” I said flatly, straightening my spine. “Engaged or not, we’re little more than strangers, and I’m not in the habit of being intimate with strangers.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” He stood up and walked around the desk. “Shall we get to know each other a little better then?”
I scratched beneath my ear, looking away. “Must we?”
“It will make for a much happier married life if we do.” Kalon stopped in front of me, and the amusement in his purple eyes made the gold flecks somehow shine brighter. “Shall we try it?”
“Maybe another time.” I patted his arm and walked past him. “What did you do to my work?”
“I organised it. You can thank me later.” He sat on the couch I’d just been sleeping on and got comfortable, resting his arm across the back of it. His black hair swept down in front of his eyes, and there was just enough buttons undone on his white shirt that I could peek at his toned physique.
There was definitely a six-pack under there. Nobody who had shoulders and pecs like his had a beer belly.
Goddamn it, why was he so handsome?
“I doubt it, Your Highness,” I replied, moving his work out of my way.
“Your Highness? There’s no need for such formalities between us, Alicia. You’re my fiancée.”
So you keep saying.
“Then how should I address you?”
He pursed his lips in thought. “Kalon will do.”
