Chapter 14

Some of the hay was still in bales while other piles were spread throughout the loft, which didn’t run the entire length of the barn but was still large. She found a bale with a perfect view of the cloudless sky out the large window and spread her lavender skirts to one side so that there was room for Dullen to sit next to her.

“The sky is a lovely shade of blue today, don’t you think?” she asked, noticing a warmth radiating from his leg which was just a few inches from hers. “I love it when it’s a deep blue, like a pool of water, as it is today.”

“It is beautiful,” he agreed. “But your eyes are the loveliest shade of blue I’ve ever seen.”

Her first reaction was to blush, perhaps to look away, but instead, Kit raised an eyebrow at him and let a slow smile spread across her face. The effect it had on him was what she’d hoped for. His breathing hitched, and perspiration began to form at his hairline. “How long did you work in the stables, Dullen?” She said, her voice slow, spreading his name out over a few syllables. She leaned in slightly so that he could see her interest.

“Uh… about five years.” His thinking was growing clouded, a phenomenon Kit found quite intriguing. “My mother was able to procure the position for me. She’s in the service of Lady Prinda.”

“I see.” Kit was familiar with one of the lesser noblewomen who lived in the nearby province of Killmont. “Lady Prinda is a favorite of my mother’s. She visits often.”

“Yes, and my mother often accompanies the lady. One time, I came with her, and Lady Prinda was kind enough to ask the stable master to give me work.”

“That was very thoughtful of her.” Every word Kit spoke, she laced with sugar, her eyes narrowed slightly, and she studied his reaction, finding the resulting fever induction both fascinating and titillating.

Dullen ran the tip of his tongue along his bottom lip. “You smell wonderful, my Princess. Is that… lavender?”

“It is. And honey.”

“I very much like it.”

Part of her thought perhaps she should take a whiff of him and compliment it, but she knew what she would not be smelling, so she didn’t bother. “Thank you.”

He shifted in his seat a few times, and Kit felt slightly guilty for being such a tease, particularly since he seemed like a nice young man. She raised her hand and rested in on his bicep, surprised to feel the muscle there was larger than she had imagined. A stirring rose up inside of her unexpectedly. He turned and looked her in the eyes, and as she parted her lips to speak, he thrust his tongue into her mouth.

Kit was caught off guard, and for a moment, she wanted to push him away from her, but the feel of his smooth tongue against hers, the way he probed into her mouth, was soothing in a way she hadn’t expected. It wasn’t the same as kissing Eli had been so many years ago, but she realized nothing would ever be the same, and she found herself kissing Dullen back.

Her hand slid up his arm to his shoulder, and his encircled her waist, pulling her closer as his tongue continued to explore every inch of her mouth. She ran her hand up his neck, tangling her fingers in the hair at the back as his thumbs inched higher up the front of her dress. Her thoughts became fuzzy as he continued to kiss her, and then his thumb ran over the thin material of her bodice, sending a shiver down her spine as he made contact with her breast through the satin and other layers.

Dullen pulled back slightly, as if he were trying to gauge whether or not this new touch was acceptable. Kit felt her nipples harden, a sensation she’d never noticed before, and when he brushed his hand back over her breast again, she leaned in to him. Encouraged, the guard moved closer, pressing his hands against both of her breasts now, his tongue exploring the flesh of her neck. Kit let out a small groan. She was beginning to understand why it was called pleasuring.

“Princess, perhaps we should go somewhere else,” he whispered into her ear, his left hand lingering on her chest while the other went back to encircling her waist. “I believe I hear the stable boys below. ‘It would be a shame to be interrupted.”

Dullen’s request brought Kit swiftly back to herself, and she scooted away from him, her hand reaching up and plucking his away from her. While her Exploration had started, those nervous flutters inside of her were sounding an alarm, and she knew she wasn’t ready to invite Dullen, or anyone, back to her special pleasuring chambers just yet. “Perhaps another time,” she said, watching his face fall. “I’m afraid I have other matters I must attend to just now.”

Though his face looked pained, the young man nodded. “Yes, of course, Your Majesty. I hope that I have not offended you.”

“No, not at all,” she assured him, widening her smile. He wasn’t the most muscular or most handsome man she’d ever laid eyes on, but there was something about his unassuming personality that put her at ease, and for a first experience of this nature, she thought it was a good one.

But it needed to end. For now. She stood, and he jumped to his feet, his nerves causing him to momentarily forget he was also a member of her guard. “I should exit before you, my Princess, so that you do not slip and fall down the ladder.”

While Kit certainly didn’t think she was all that clumsy, she allowed him to go first and then carefully picked her way down each rung of the ladder. When she got to the bottom, he took her hand to help her with the last few steps. A glance around told her that the stable boys were hard at work, and should she have let matters progress in the loft, they likely would’ve been interrupted. Dullen was a wise young man.

“Thank you for showing me the loft,” she said loudly enough that anyone standing around who may have wondered what they were doing would assume it was a tour.

“You’re quite welcome, my Princess,” Dullen replied, bowing. “And should you ever wish to see it again….”

She knew what he was getting at, and it had nothing to do with the loft. A warmth radiated up her cheeks as she nodded. “You shall be the first to know.” Kit smiled at him, though she felt slightly embarrassed and the butterflies in her gullet were relentless. She turned quickly on the heel of her boot and headed back toward the castle, hoping she would have a few moments to talk to her ladies. Isla and Avinia should be able to offer some insight on her handling of the situation, and she hoped they would be proud of her for acting so early on in her Exploration, rather than waiting for weeks or months looking for just the right young man as she’d feared she might, as Isla had three years ago when it had been her turn.