Lola delicately set down her cutlery, her gaze rising to meet the emperor's. A flicker of curiosity danced in her eyes.
"What is it, Lola?" Xander asked, his voice low and measured.
She studied him for a moment. "Why do I get the sense that you're… concerned about me?" she asked, arching a brow. "I distinctly recall you warning me not to expect you to fight the ladies of the court on my behalf."
He leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on hers. "I can't help it," he said with disarming honesty. "If it's you."
A soft scoff escaped her lips as she cut a piece of meat. "What a tease," she replied, feigning disinterest, though the subtle rise of colour in her cheeks betrayed her amusement.
Xander chuckled, his expression warm. Neither noticed the pair of eyes watching them from the shadows, a gaze sharpened by envy, concealed behind a veil of leaves and silence.
Elsewhere in the palace, Ava walked through the corridor with quiet steps. The morning air was calm until a muffled sound drew her attention toward the old storage room. It was breathy, erratic… almost distressed.
Concerned, she pushed the door open.
And froze.
There, against the wall, was Lord Gabriel Flynn, his hands gripping a maid's hips as he drove into her, the maid moaning shamelessly. Ava's breath caught in her throat, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Gabriel looked up and met her gaze, but instead of guilt, a wicked smirk formed on his lips. His pace didn't slow, in fact, it quickened.
"Well?" he said mockingly. "Care to join us? If not, do be useful and shut the door on your way out."
Ava turned and fled, her face aflame with mortification.
Not long after, Gabriel withdrew from the maid, annoyance etched across his face.
"My lord," she whispered breathlessly, trying to pull him back. "We're not yet done."
He barely looked at her. "I am," he said coldly, adjusting his trousers and brushing past her without another word.
The maid stood there alone dishevelled and discarded.
Later that morning, the emperor and Lola walked beneath the private canopy of wisteria vines behind the palace walls. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, warming their path as they strolled side by side.
"Your Highness," Lola began, her tone teasing, "are you, by any chance, attempting to make me fall in love with you?"
Xander smirked, his eyes alight. "And if I were?"
"Is it already working?" he added with a tilt of his head.
Lola fought a laugh, her lips twitching. "Sorry to disappoint you, my lord, but you have failed quite miserably."
He chuckled, the sound rich and warm. She joined him, their laughter echoing softly through the garden.
"Is it truly so dreadful for you to love me, Lady Cavendish?" he asked, his voice softer now, almost vulnerable.
"It is very dreadful, my lord," she said with mock severity.
"How dreadful, exactly?"