Unclad Lusciousness

Hector woke up slowly, his eyes taking their time before he could fully open them. The sunlight filled the room beautifully, casting Queen Elvira's already beautiful eyes under an exquisite flow, so much so that Hector, for the very first time, felt his heart skip. He could not deny, she was perfection in itself.

Her hand was till intertwined in his, the warmth spreading to his feet from his hand. He swallowed and slowly let go of her, facing a little resistance as she stirred. He waited for her to relax first, before removing her hand again. This time, she caved in, and he slowly got out of bed.

After washing his face, he headed out of the chamber towards the grand halls. The maids were setting the dining ready for breakfast, and covering the dishes.

"Excuse me," He said to one of them. She turned, and immediately bowed.

"Your majesty."

He'd almost forgotten he was the Queen's husband. "I want to make a dish for the Queen. She is still asleep, you see."

The maid looked a bit surprised. "Your majesty, we do not want the open fire we cook with to scorch your majestic face. Please tell us what you want..."

Hector shook his head. "My face will be fine. And it will be just one stuffed chicken. If you want, you could help me set the ingredients while I watch, but I will do the main cooking myself."

The maid nodded, knowing arguing was a sign of disrespect. "Yes, your majesty."

He followed towards the large cooking place and they all bowed, all refraining from looking at him..it had completely skipped his mind that he was, in fact, half unclad. It did not feel too different, since he mostly worked like that, back when he as a servant.

The maid arranged all the ingredients for a stuffed chicken. He got to work on his own, while the maids stood behind after fully dressing up the table. They bowed their heads to the floor. The king's body was not for servants too see.

While he let the chicken roast over the open fire, he turned to one of the maids. "Are there..any grapes here?"

She bowed again. "Yes, your majesty." She brought them, washed thoroughly in a basin. He brought a small dish and filled the grapes in them, then put in a fill of sweet milk.

"I will serve this with the cereal." he said to himself, a smile of satisfaction on his lips.

Just as he turned to the dining table, Queen Elvira emerged. She had woken up alone, and seeing his coat still where she had kept it last night, she had thought he would still be in the chambers. But he was not.

She went down, and came face to face with him in front of the dining table, holding up a tray of garnished stuffed chicken, and a bowl of grapes.

"Your...Elvira. Good morning to you." He said, a little nervously. This was not exactly how he had intended to be seen.

"Hector. You are..."

He raised his brows in anticipation as she trailed off, her eyes sweeping over his body. She looked over his shoulders and the maids bowed again, sweat from both the kitchen and the Queen's dominating presence filling their hairline.

"Is something wrong, your highness?"

"Why are you unclad?" She asked, her eyes thinning. Her teeth gritted a little, and he moved away a little. The maids took a hint and scurried away.

"Your highness, I...I was...."

"You are a king, Hector. You are a king. Your body is not for just anyone, not anyone!"

He moved back a little, his breath hitching and he let go of the plates he had held. She had never yelled at him, and even though he had seen her do it to others, he did not know it would be so scary.

Her eyes widened as the silver plates clattered to the floor. He was looking at her a little disbelievingly, his chest heaving with his ruined surprise.

"Your highness...I was just..." He looked down at his feet, everything he had worked for were on the floor in a mess. "I just...wanted to cook for you. I felt like I was not doing enough and..and ...." He lowered his head. "I apologize. I will not do it again."

He looked up at her one last time, then walked away, towards the chamber.

Queen Elvira blinked a little, feeling her anger deflate. She looked at the mess on the floor, and swallowed. She had not intended to yell, but...

She took in a deep breath and turned away.

When she went in, his jacket was no longer on the stand, and he was not in the chamber either.

"Hector?" She called, hoping he was probably in the bath house. He was not when she checked.

She went down towards his chamber, but he was not there either.

"Are you looking for his majesty?"

She turned towards the maid who had spoken. She did not look at her face, since it was lowered.

"Who are you?"

"A Maid, your highness. My name is Thea."

"Where is?" She asked, not caring or registering the name.

"I saw him going to the river, your highness."

Without another word, Queen Elvira ran towards the exit, her gown in her hand. Hector was standing by the bank of the river, his coat fixed around him, his hand clasped behind him. His shoulders were slumped, and his head lowered.

"Hector?"

He raised his head, but did not say a word. She walked closer to him.

"Hector?"

"Shh...I am counting ripples."

Her brows furrowed. "Ripples?"

He nodded. "I wanted to know how many ripples it would take for me to be able to go back. But you came instead."

"Were you hoping that I would not find you?"

He turned to her and nodded honestly. "I was hoping you would wait in there."

She swallowed, and walked closer, not minding that her feet went into the water, along with the hems of her large skirt.

"Hector...let me apologize..."

"I understand," he said with a small smile. "I was reckless."

"I should not have yelled. It just...the thought of you going unclad in front of so many women with that luscious body is..." His eyes widened a little and she turned away. "Annoying."

His brows furrowed in amusement and he snickered a little. "You are quite...beyond expectations, Elvira. I do not think I will get to see a time when I get to completely understand all of you."

His gaze lingered as she met his eyes and she set her lips in a straight defiant line.

"Then, you will have to stay with me that long. Since you said you could never..."

He laughed again and turned to her. "There is no need for that, Elvira."

"Why is that?"

He shrugged. "I would have regretted it had I not agreed to marry you."