"…and speaking of you aching for a bath. Why are you moving around so stiffly, Daughter? Are you in some kind of pain?"
Celia flinched at the king's words, spoken so casually.
He'd agreed to dismiss her. She'd bowed farewell and was making her way out of his apartments. She'd nearly escaped.
But then he had to go and ask her that. Why?
It wasn't a casual question. Celia had realised many moons ago that despite being indolent, King Aron was an observant man. There wasn't much that missed his attention.
Except when he deliberately turned a blind eye to those things he'd rather not see, the problems he'd rather not deal with. He did that quite often and it wasn't a quality she admired in a ruler.
Now, however, he'd noticed her. She couldn't refuse to answer him. "Just a little sore and tired from a few days of horseback travel, Sire." she said with a pleasant smile, her muscles locked in a painful spasm. "I'm afraid I've fallen out of practice from being in the saddle."
