Malia’s POV
Ronan had faster reflexes than me of course. He dodged. He needn’t have. Because somehow I ended up tripping over my feet and landed on the floor.
I remained on the floor and muttered an unladylike word. Thankfully I wasn’t hurt. Ronan came to where I was sprawled on the floor and bent over me.
“Are you okay?” He asked. I looked up at him and saw that he was trying so hard not to laugh.
“I’m going to kill you and go to hell,” I muttered under my breath.
He saw the intention in my eyes and moved as far away from me as possible as I got to my feet.
I chased him around the room till I ran out of breath and plopped down on the floor. Ronan still looked like he could go at it for hours. He had barely broken a sweat.
He grinned at me and I glared at him.
“That was fun,” he said.
“Son of a bitch,” I murmured.
“My mom would be offended,” he replied with a smirk.
I ignored him and focused on slowing down my heartbeat to normalcy.
The sweat made my T-shirt cling to my skin which also meant that the outline of my breasts was on display.
Slowly but surely, his gaze travelled to my chest and stayed there.
“Eyes up here you pervert,” I scowled.
He grinned. “They’re exactly where they need to be,” he said.
I rolled my eyes and lifted myself off the ground. “I’m not going to waste another breath on you,” I said walking towards the bathroom.
“You just did,” he murmured.
I ignored him. This time, I grabbed a towel before entering the bathroom. I didn’t want a repeat of what had happened the other day.
I took my precious time to shower and clean my mouth, knowing that Ronan was still going to be waiting for me anyway.
I exited the bathroom and sure enough he was still there lying comfortably on my bed and scrolling through his phone.
He looked up as I got out and his gaze travelled down my form. I thought I saw a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
“I was hoping you’d forget the towel,” he said with a smile.
“You wish. Once bitten twice shy. I’m never coming out of that bathroom without a towel until I find the keys to this damn door,” I declared.
He grinned in a way that made me think I wasn’t going to find the keys in a very long while.
I scoffed and walked to my closet. I tried to towel my hair dry as much as I could before using the hair dryer.
I donned a simple off-the-shoulder, knee-length, summer dress and walked out of the closet.
To my surprise and delight, breakfast had already been brought up to my room and Ronan was happily munching away on a piece of french toast.
“How ungentlemanly of you,” I remarked.
He arched an eyebrow.
“You couldn’t even wait for me to finish before starting to eat,” I explained.
He rolled his eyes. “I was starving and you were hell-bent on spending an eternity in your closet.”
I scoffed at his exaggeration and began slathering peanut butter on a piece of toast.
Ronan arched an eyebrow but said nothing.
“What? A female needs to eat her fats,” I defended.
“I didn’t say anything,” he said.
“Your expression did,” I replied.
He sighed in resignation and focused on his meal.
“Was it Penelope who brought the breakfast?” I asked.
He took a sip of his milk. “I don’t know who Penelope is, but if you’re referring to an amber-eyed brunette, then yes.”
It was definitely Penelope. My heart sank for her. He didn’t even know her name.
“Is there something wrong?” He asked, noticing my sudden change in countenance.
I shook my head and gave him a small smile.
The look on his face told me he didn’t believe me. “Is she a new friend?” He asked.
My countenance brightened. “I think so. We had a midnight snack together in the kitchen.”
He nodded. “I see.”
He reached for a piece of my toast and I smacked his hand. Maybe a little too hard. I was very protective of my food.
“Ow, that hurt,” he exclaimed.
“Stop exaggerating. I barely touched you,” I said.
He arched his eyebrows. “So what if you had?”
I shrugged. “Don’t come near my food. You had yours and you gobbled it all up like a little thief.”
He rolled his eyes at my comparison.
“Finish up quickly so I can show you to the library. I have to be somewhere as soon as possible,” he said.
“I’m going to savour my food, Ronan. So you can leave now. I can find the library myself,” I replied.
He scoffed. “Indeed.”
“Do not underestimate me, Ronan Hawkins,” I said.
“I wouldn’t dare,” he replied with an amused expression.
He tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for me to be done with my meal.
I deliberately ate more slowly than I usually would and he knew it.
He muttered something that sounded suspiciously like ‘immature’ under his breath.
I finished my meal at last and smiled at him as I licked my lips.
“Finally,” he murmured as his eyes followed the movement of my tongue.
I rose and dusted the crumbs from my dress.
“Shall we?” He asked, getting to his feet and offering me his arm.
I wrapped my arm around his and together we walked out of my room and down the hallway.
“We’re going to pass by my newly redesigned quarters. Would you like to see what it looks like inside?” He asked. “I’m sure you must be curious.”
I chuckled. “Why does that sound like a trick to lure me into your bed?” I asked.
“Oh, I wouldn’t do anything you wouldn’t want me to do,” he said with a mischievous grin.
I shrugged. “Whatever. I’m curious anyway. How often do you redesign your room? I asked.
“As often as I want. It’s one of the perks of being a royal,” he replied smugly.
“Pride looks good on you,” I commented with a smirk.
“Of course it does,” he grinned.
We got to his wing and I gasped in shock when we walked in.