The Crown's Obsession

Music Recommendation: Fracture by Stephan Moccio

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Madeline and Calhoun sat in the room. He looked at her while she stared at the ground, feeling his gaze on her. When she finally decided to meet his eye, she saw him offer her a smile.

"Are you going to pick up the box?" he asked her. She opened her mouth only to close it. Nodding her head, she stood up and went to fetch the small box that was on the ground. Madeline couldn't believe that Calhoun had asked James to make a garter for her and James had done it.

With the box in her hand, Madeline was ready to go to her room when she heard Calhoun question her, "Where are you going?"

Madeline turned around to see Calhoun stand up from the couch, "To my room. I will try it there," she answered to him. Calhoun walked towards her, taking the box from her hand and said,

"How will I know if it fits you or not. I need to see how it looks," Calhoun's red eyes moved up to look into her brown eyes, his words direct and straightforward. Her cheeks tinted pink, and she wanted to break away the gaze from him, but she couldn't.

Believing it was good to be frank, and straight forward like him, Madeline tried to put her thoughts in a sentence, "Milord-"

"Calhoun," he corrected her, his eyes calmly looking at her, "I noticed that you switch back and forth between my name and addressing me 'milord'. I prefer you call me by my name. I am sure you are already aware of it." A faint smile formed on her lips.

Madeline doubted if she would ever come to meet someone like Calhoun in her life. Someone who knew what he wanted and chased it unashamedly, "Calhoun," his name came as a whisper.

Hearing this, Calhoun took a step closer, "Are you trying to seduce me, Maddie?" he asked, raising one of his brows to see her shake her head, "Why are you whispering my name?" he whispered to tease her.

When Calhoun spoke to her like that, Madeline felt like he was back to his teasing self. It made it difficult for her to keep a straight head in front of him, and he noticed it. Gulping quickly, Madeline started to speak before Calhoun would begin to spin her head,

"Calhoun, we need some boundaries," she said to him. Calhoun tilted his head to the side.

"What for?"

"I-You, you cannot see me until marriage," she said, meeting his eyes anxiously, "You cannot tease me."

Calhoun continued to have an oblivious look on him, "I don't know what you are speaking about. I don't think I have seen you. Rather I must say you were seeing me yesterday."

"What?" she blinked at him.

Calhoun's smile slowly and steadily broadened over his lips, "No need to be shy with me, sweet. I know where your eyes were lingering yesterday before you left my room," he said, raising his hand to only hover over her face but not touch it and it came back to his side. He was holding back himself from kissing her. Calhoun wanted Madeline to yearn for his touch. The spark had already been ignited, and he was waiting for it to be set ablaze. He opened the lid of the box in which the garter laid.

Madeline's eyes fell on the piece of clothing that Calhoun held in his large hand, his long fingers running through the material. It was just like the way he had ordered it to be made. Made of astel pale pink made of satin with white frills around it with a design that looked delicate.

"I am impressed," commented Calhoun, "I cannot wait to see you in the wedding gown. Let's hope it comes to the castle quickly. Go and sit on the couch," he coaxed her. The smile on his lips died down as he continued to look at the garter.

Madeline ran her tongue over her bottom lip. Her mouth suddenly felt dry along with her lips. They were in the seating room, a place where people kept walking back and forth in front of the door, which was now open.

"Here?" she asked him. Calhoun raised his gaze to look at her, and he nodded his head with a hum. Madeline wasn't sure about this place. The gallery was located in the corner where not many came to pass by, and she had agreed to be his muse. Knowing Calhoun, her eyes darted to look at the door.

Before she knew it, the door closed by itself without anyone going to push or pull it. Her eyes widened, and she turned back to look at Calhoun with a surprised look on her face.

"It should be alright now," said Calhoun, waiting for her to take a seat on the plush couch.

Madeline made her way back to the couch and sat down. Both her feet closely touched each other. She realised her words of trying to be straight forward had in the end, ended up with her sitting on the couch now.

As if feeling her gaze on him, Calhoun said, "We are playing with boundaries, Maddie.

You looked like a scared little kitten, placing walls of boundaries. Of course, it didn't work well."

"No man ever kisses or touches a woman before marriage," she said to him, her words were soft. Calhoun took note of how Madeline's thoughts were turning much more calmer without being in haste like before.

He knelt on the ground on one knee in front of her, "That would be very incorrect now, my dear. There are many who indulge themselves in adultery which is not spoken out loud in public, but it happens in secrecy," Calhoun looked up at Madeline who stared back with her whole attention on him, "People do things and hide it. I do things and accept it," he gave her a charming smile.

He did have a point there, thought Madeline to herself.

"I also know you are not used to it. Therefore, I have been...slow?" he asked, testing the word, "Would you rather have a man who pounces on you on the day of your wedding night like an animal? Without paying heed if you are ready or not on that day?" he questioned her, "If you go and ask some of the married women, be it lower or higher class, you will find stories in there."

Madeline pursed her lips. She knew what Calhoun was speaking about.

"Were we speaking about the same boundaries?" Calhoun asked her. By his words, Madeline wondered if that is what he was doing—trying to ease her without pouncing on her. Was the big bad wolf patient without eating her up? It did seem so, "Don't be shy, Madeline. You will be my wife and I, your husband. You don't have to hold back or feel embarrassed about anything."

"I am not used to it," she replied to him. His presence was affecting her and she didn't know how to put it in words.

"We'll take it slow. One step at a time," he assured her, "Leave it to me," he grinned, and Madeline wondered why he wasn't this nice in the beginning. Which one was the real Calhoun Hawthrone? Was it all of them, the different colours of the King, "May I?" asked Calhoun, his hand moved to the bottom hem of her dress.

Calhoun was right that they were going to marry each other in a span of a few days. It would have been a different matter if it was a man who was only using her to jilt her on the day of the wedding. She stared back into Calhoun's eyes that were liquid red to look at her.

Madeline finally nodded her head. She placed her hands on either side of where she sat now. She observed Calhoun fold the hem of her dress from the bottom, rolling it neatly until he reached her thigh. It took all her strength not to bolt away from the room. Madeline felt her head-turning dizzy, and she quickly blinked her eyes to keep herself in the room.

"We'll need to change all of them. I prefer the new one," she heard Calhoun murmur. With the permission already given, Calhoun pulled the already worn garter that was completely white from her thigh to slide it down her leg.

All the while, Madeline felt her heart beating loudly in her chest.

Calhoun didn't look at her or leave another remark about her face that had turned red. Instead, at first, he took hold of the new garter to check the elasticity and then helped it up her ankle to her knee before pushing it up her thigh that fit her thigh snugly.

With Calhoun still in front of her, Madeline wondered if the King would ever do something like this, sit in this position in front of anyone else. Would a man go down to sit on his knee, on the ground?

Madeline didn't know in the past few days how many other subtle things she had not noticed because of Calhoun's pushy and domineering behaviour. Now she not only noticed it but also felt it, and she was left speechless.

She looked down at her exposed thigh. It was a pretty looking garter that made one think of wanting to touch it. She had never worn such pretty things. She and her sister used to wear items of clothing that her family could afford.

"Is it too tight?" she heard Calhoun ask her.

Madeline shook her head, "No. It's comfortable."