ROME
After he got his mind in order, he stepped out of the tub donning a fresh pair of loose silk breeches in the shade of blue he preferred and a decadent silk robe in the same shade of blue with silver embroidery along the hem and sleeves.
He stepped out of the bathing chamber, shutting the door behind him and walking into his bed chamber proper, staring at the space Erika’s belongings used to occupy. He had ordered a long sofa be placed there so he could lounge to read when he had the time for it.
The smooth leather called to him not but he didn’t want to tract water on his lush carpets. He rubbed a small towel through his hair to remove the excess moisture but before he could move to indulge in his favorite pastime, the shape of a person sprawled on his large bed took him off guard.
Who would dare?
Before he could utter a word, the person stood up coming to fall at his feet, hair spilling in a glittering pool that was familiar to him.
“Oh, Rome. Please forgive me.” His ex-wife cried kissing his feet.
Disgust rose in his belly as he looked down at her.
How the hell had she gotten into his room?
Where were his guards?
Someone was going to be in a lot of trouble come morning.
“How the hell did you get in here?” He asked, pulling his feet from her hand.
“Rome, please give me another chance. I have nowhere else to go.” She begged still on her knees.
So she wasn’t even sorry, just desperate.
“It’s Your Majesty to you now, Erika.” He warned taking a step backward so she didn’t touch him again, “Leave now or I’ll have the guards escort you out and I promise, they won’t be gentle. But I guess that won’t be a problem since you’ve always liked being taken roughly.”
“Please forgive me, Rome. We were in love once, weren’t we? We’ve loved each other for ten years. Please don’t let this little thing tear us apart.” She cried crawling to meet him.
Rome looked on in disgust as tears welled up in her big baby eyes he had fallen for but knew better than to fall for her gimmicks. She really was a despicable thing. Although if he was being honest, she did look different; the youthful glow in her eyes had dimmed and her hair was haphazardly packed into a bun.
He shook his head, well aware that Erika was a master at manipulation to get what she wanted.
He was surprised that he didn’t even feel anger seeing her, only disgust that set a foul acid taste in mouth.
“Don’t test me, Erika.” He warned hands on the bell pull for the guards.
“Please…” She crawled to him, holding on to his feet, “Please, give me another chance. We were in lo–”
Rome kicked her away before she could finish the one statement that irked him. She landed on her butt looking more surprised than hurt.
“There’s no use reminding me. You should have reminded yourself before you fucked Chester on our bed.” He spat, “I loved you in a way I had never loved anyone before Erika! I loved you so much that I ignored how horrible you truly were.”
The only reason why he had cut her father some slack was that he loved her. It pained him to remember how much he had tolerated because of her.
“Please Rome, I’m not safe anywhere. My father is threatening to kill me and I know he’ll do it if he finds me.” She begged unrelenting.
“Do you know how much I wanted to kill you myself? Your father would be doing me a favor by killing you.”
Erika was taken aback. In the past, her begging would have moved him but now he seemed determined to hate her. She had decided to try the one trick she knew he couldn’t resist but it seemed she had lost her hold on him. He wasn’t budging.
“Once I call the guards, you will be thrown out of here. By here, I mean Hanaerum. Your father’s influence wouldn’t save you. You will be disgraced. The disgrace that you truly deserve. So I suggest you walk out of here on your own two legs while you still can.”
She continued sobbing. “I truly loved you, Rome. I only cheated because you were never there. You were always busy with Hanaerum, Bale… With war and slave matters. When you became king I started seeing you around less.” She sniffed and continued rambling, “I needed an heir. Terrible things were being said about me. They called me barren, Rome. Barren. I was pressured and made a mistake. I fucked Chester. After that, he blackmailed me. I didn’t want to do it, Rome. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I knew the council members were furious at you because of the slave rule. I didn’t want to compound your stress.”
The king rolled his eyes. He trusted Erika to indirectly blame him for her infidelity. Her ramblings made no sense to him. “You’re rambling, Erika. Nothing makes sense.” He ran a hand through his hair. “That’s all in the past. You did it over and over. Leave!”
Erika knew that she was done. Rome wasn’t going to budge. “Please, give me one more chance. I’ll tell you everything my father is planning to hurt you. I’ll tell you everything!” Erika was desperate.
“I don’t care, Erika.” He went towards the door, “I’m leaving to catch my breath. When I get back here, I don’t want to see you. If I do, you will be banished from Hanaerum.” With that, Rome left the room.
His peaceful night had been interrupted by Erika. He couldn’t believe she had had the guts to sneak into his room to grovel.
Did she take him for a fool?
There was no way in hell that he would forgive her for what she did to him. She had broken his heart into tiny pieces and since then, he had slowly begun to put the pieces back together.
Instead of going through his main chamber doors, he went through the door leading to a balcony that also connected his and Elora’s chambers. He hadn’t thought his plan through but decided to go along with it wondering if his new mistress would be outside.
He slowed his steps as he crossed into Elora’s balcony, her alluring aura alerting him of her presence before he even spotted her. Dressed in a baby blue silk night gown that fell loosely to frame her body, revealing the places she dipped and swelled, she looked divine in the moon light as if she were the goddess herself.
The light wind blowing raised the hem of the short dress, revealing creamy thighs that had his mouth going dry. A small book was clutched in her dainty hand, forgotten as she looked over the city below glittering golden with multiple fires, rose-colored lips opening slightly as if she’d been enchanted by the beautiful city.