The Tyrant's Pet

Aries glanced over her bare shoulder while Abel was planting soft kisses on it. She held the quilt to cover her chest, chuckling as his hot breaths sent a tickling sensation against her skin.

"Do you have to go that far?" he asked, raising his face. Abel rested his chin on her shoulder, hugging her from behind as they sat down in the middle of the bed.

"What do you mean?" she returned, arching a brow delicately.

The corner of his lips curled into a lopsided grin. "That Princess."

"Veronika?"

"The other one they called your opponent," he reminded her of Princess Agnes as he didn't know her name. The candidates had no importance to him because the only woman in his eyes was Aries.

"Ahh..." Aries chuckled with her lips closed, peeling her eyes away to look at the window. The curtains were settled to the side as Gertrude hadn't entered her chambers, knowing Abel was inside. "Your question is wrong, Abel. I didn't ask Princess Agnes to go that far. Thus, it is not me who had gone far."

"But you asked her to take out this other candidate."

"I did, but I didn't tell her to burn the entire storage and leave a trace of illegal substance as evidence as the caused of the fire," Aries smirked in amusement. "Princess Agnes... she's an interesting lady, isn't she?"

"Is she?" Abel gazed at her stunning side profile with admiration. "I cannot tell because you never give me a chance to look at others."

"Are you sure you hadn't looked at others?" she repeated out of plain curiosity, glancing back at him.

"Never." His answer was quick and full of certitude. "My wife is the most stunning woman my eyes had laid upon. I got so used to admiring your beauty that the rest looks like squids."

Aries burst out in laughter before she said, "you flatter me."

"I am being honest. My loyalty and sincerity and everything I can give and do for you are what I call flattering."

"True." Aries rested the side of her head against his. "I do not know what I'd do without you, Abel."

"The feeling is mutual, darling." He planted a quick side peck on her temple. "My sentiments are still the same, though. You already know I'd made sure you'll become my empress; no need to use everyone as your pawns. You're not in the Maganti Empire."

"This is not the Maganti Empire, but my brother is still unconscious." Aries didn't move and her voice was quiet, thinking about Dexter's worrying condition.

She knew vampires could sleep for a very long time; take Conan's father for instance. He had been lying unconscious in the forbidden mansion for months now, and still showed no sign of regaining his consciousness. She heard it could even last for years or decades. Worse. Centuries.

"I know you'd secure my seat," she continued. "However, I don't want this plan to be plagued by disparaging rumors. I will not sully the esteemed reputation of the House Vandran that he built all these years. My brother will wake up and hear his sister was a beloved empress, accepted by all."

Aries's eyelids drooped as her eyes softened with bitterness.

"Moreover, you had tarnished your reputation over and over again for me." She drew her head away from him, adjusting her position so she was sitting while facing him squarely. His arms around her waist remained with ease. "I want everyone to believe the emperor was fair for once, and I got the position fairly."

"Fairly... but leaving everyone no choice?" Abel cocked his head to the side, his tone humorous. "Don't get me wrong, darling. I fully support your plans, but I need to keep the conversation going to keep you here."

"When everyone had no choice, all they could do was nod and agree, don't you think?" Aries chuckled. "The people would not want someone who didn't have a clean track record, right?"

"Your track record isn't as clean as you think, darling."

"I didn't say it wasn't, but everyone sympathized with me." Aries poked the tip of his nose. "The poor Lady of the House Vandran, who just recovered from an illness was used by the emperor to attack the Marquess. As a result, she was forced to marry to another land where a revolt rose. And yet, she emerged from it alive and in one piece."

"People think you are cursed. The curse of a beautiful woman born into a powerhouse."

"Or they might think it was fate." Her eyelashes fluttered ever so beautifully, like a butterfly flapping its captivating wings. "People like all sorts of stories, darling. Some might think I was born cursed, and ought to live in misfortunes. Others might say otherwise and claim it as fate, that no matter what sickness strikes me or where I'd go, I'd return here one way or another because this place is where I belong."

"Even the most obvious romanticized stories are being bought if the narrative was executed properly and accordingly," she added with a gentle smile. "If I convinced one or two, then those two would convince another two, and it starts to multiply until the entire nation forgets other 'irrelevant' details to focus on this one."

Aries leaned her face closer. "Isn't that what you plan, Your Majesty?"

"Why... do you have to make it so hard to stop desiring you?" his voice was rasped with a tinge of hunger, leaning forward to bite her lower lips. "Make it quick, or I'm going to fetch you myself."

Aries grinned against his lips, reopening her eyes to see him draw his head back.

"I'll be quick," she said, raising the quilt over her chest as she flung her legs out of the bed. When Aries stood on the side of the bed whilst holding the quilt, its other half was still covering Abel's lap.

"Why cover yourself? I've seen everything. No need to be shy." Abel wiggled his brows playfully, holding the quilt in place.

"Fine." Aries carefully pulled the quilt away from her body, dropping it on the bed.

He whistled as she stood bare for him to enjoy her naked glory. She shook her head, smiling, before turning to pick up her nightdress and cover-up draped over the armchair.

"An hour." She stopped covering herself as he spoke, looking back at him who was still on the bed. "That's the maximum I can wait for you. After that, expect to see me picking you up... no, fucking you on the spot with or without an audience."

Aries rolled her eyes as she continued to slip her arms on the sleeve of her silk cover-up.

"Thirty minutes is the longest," she said as she sauntered off. "Don't miss me."

"I already do, though." Abel laughed, watching her leave the chambers. "I hope something happens. I would love to make love to her so everyone knows she's mine."

Abel collapsed on the bed and stared at the ceiling. It was only been three minutes since she stepped out of the chambers when he felt bored.

"I'm dying," he murmured with a dramatic sigh, thinking three minutes already felt three hours. "Should I visit Marsella and see if she was able to crawl out of the grave where I buried her?"