n

n

n

"I don't see the reason to ask such a question. The answer doesn't concern you,

" John replied before he began to eat as nothing had happened.

nThe maid turned her nose up at his response and Roselyn stifled a laugh.

nAfter finishing to eat John handed the letter over to Rose so that she could read it.

n

"It's next week,

" Roselyn exclaimed.

n

"People will ask why we didn't marry before Abigail and Victor and there'll probably be Lord David.

"

nThe lady scoffed as those things slipped through her mind. And now she was concerned about David.

n

"Do you think Lord David will try to hinder their wedding?

" she asked concerned.

n

"He won't, don't worry.

" John smiled at her. He pointed at the old maid, who was staring at them from afar.

"I would be more concerned about her. Why is she so obsessed over you?

" he asked sarcastically, but the lady shrugged.

n

"She dislikes me, I have done nothing to her.

"

n

"She dislikes not only you, but she also dislikes the entire humanity,

" John commented. His tone was serious, and surely he knew the maid enough to say such a thing.

n

"However, now that we know Abigail and Lord Victor's wedding date we can set our date for the wedding too,

" John said and the lady smiled. He wanted to marry her even if they broke the strict rules of the contract.

n

"Yes, we shall,

" she replied, seeing him share another smile. He leaned closer to her, and she expected him to say some amorous sentence.

nJohn's eyes sparkled and from his mouth escaped a whisper,

"I can't wait to do things that only married couples can do.

" The smirk in his voice made the lady blush.

nHis smirk intensified staring at her pale cheek turn red like tomatoes. Was he fooling her? or he meant that? Roselyn wondered, but when she wanted to ask what was the meaning behind his statement, he was already walking away.

nThe girl took a long breath; she knew almost nothing about that kind of activities and she doubted she could ask the guy from the Inferno's pub.

nWho could she ask to?

nAbigail! Her sister was going to wed just like her so maybe she shared her same concerns and they could exchange their bits of knowledge.

nShe will talk to her about that during her wedding ceremony.

nRoselyn walked to her room, but when she went to open the door she found it was already opened. The old maid was inside, standing with her arms folded and looking at her upside down.

n

"What are you doing here?

" Roselyn asked, not expecting to find the maid there, after jolting at the sight.

n

"I wanted to nicely suggest you annulling this deplorable agreement and leave the castle.

" She said, her suggestion didn't surprise Roselyn who tried not to roll her eyes to the sky.

n

"I won't do it so live with it,

" she replied, frowning her eyebrows.

n

"You must loathe yourself to torture yourself like this,

" she commented. Her tone of voice annoyed Roselyn, and she felt like she hit the last bit of patience she managed to hold.

n

"You know nothing about me and you're not in a place to ask that,

" Roselyn spat, but the maid took a step forward her and murmured,

"you're digging your own grave by deluding yourself he could return your affection.

"

n

"I've had enough!

" Roselyn said, spreading her arms and walking toward the opposite direction, heading to the side of John's castle.

nShe knocked on the door, feeling her blood boiling through her veins and her stomach being upside down for the anger.

nWhen John opened the door Roselyn was red with anger and her voice came out, clearly upset.

"I've had enough with the old maid. You have to do something.

"

n

"What happened?

" he asked, caressing her back to calm her down. Roselyn took a slow breath and after a brief pause, she spoke,

"she came into my room and said you will never ...

" She shook her head before finishing her sentence to change her approach.

n

"She always has a bad thing to say in my regards and as soon as I am alone she judges me.

" Her voice came out shaky. Roselyn felt like eventually, she would have lost her mind if she didn't speak to him about her.

nMaybe she shall have done it by herself but she felt enough vulnerable recently and didn't want to end up in the clutches of that bald maid.

n

"Follow me,

" John said. He rushed toward the hall and was looking around in search of something.

nWhen John widened his eyes, the girl followed his gaze when it fell on the old maid.

nJohn reached for the maid in a steady walk and glowered at her. The maid looked down as she probably imagined what the lady told him and remained silent.

n

"You're lucky. If it wasn't for the long and devoted service you did to my family for years, I would have killed you. But I'll save you and give you the possibility to leave,

" he said, his eyebrows have frowned while his forehead creased and his tone of voice was severe.

nFor the first time, the maid looked vulnerable and miserable. Her eyes filled with tears and she bowed her head not to be seen in that state.

n

"L-l-leave?

" She stumbled, and the King gave a quick nod.

n

"Now.

" He added. His facial expression didn't express any emotions and his voice was still severe.

nA tear ran down her face, she quickly wiped it off walking away probably to her room to pack before leaving.

nRoselyn didn't feel guilty. The maid irritated her enough and gave her a tough time for all the time she spent there. Deeply down she thought she deserved it.

n

"Are you fine?

" King John asked, noticing Roselyn's quietness. She glanced up at him and offered a huge smile. The girl hugged him tightly, melting into his embrace.

n

"Thank you..

" She whispered as she felt way more relieved now.

n