Page 25 of #Resort Love
“No,” Samian sighed. “Fortunately, nothing has happened yet. But I would also like to apologize for canceling our lesson.How was the rest of your day? Did you read the books I gave you?”
Plastering a smile on my face, I laughed nervously. “It was nice. I had a chance to explore the palace while expertly avoiding Arianna and her crew of unhinged busy bodies,” I said, hoping he wouldn’t notice how I avoided his second question. “I also found my way back to my roomwithoutgetting lost.”
“However did you manage that one?” Samian laughed, the corners of his eyes crinkling.
The change in his voice and the lightness of his laugh made my heart swell. I pulled my arm away and opened the top book and pulled out my map. Handing it to Samian, his smile grew wide while he studied it.
He handed me my map, and we continued our walk. “I guess I should let you lead us to the library then. But,” he paused, tapping on a section of the page that had a lousy drawing of a dragon statue, “you should probably keep away from that area as much as possible if you’re trying to avoid Arianna and her band of followers.”
Nodding, I thanked him while I took out a pen to jot that down.
The rest of our walk felt relaxed. I described everything I saw yesterday, Samian oohing and aahing like he had never been around the palace before. It was silly, but my heart felt light for the first time in days. Samian’s stiffness had eased by the time we made our way up the stairs, but when we turned toward our study area, Samian quietly let out a curse. His body went rigid beside me. Surprised, I looked to our table, only to find Ambrose leaning against it. The books that were piled in neat stacks yesterday were thrown about the table while Ambrose thumbed through one of them, his face set in a mask of casual boredom.
Hearing us step closer to the table, Ambrose lifted his head, a wide smile brightening his face. His hair was styled back, and those dark blue eyes twinkled.
“Ah,” Ambrose said, closing the book with a soft thud. “Right on time. Are you ready, my dear Sybil?”
I sucked in a breath, my face blanching. He said that he had appointments this morning, which would have given me enough time to tell Samian about our meeting and today’s plans. However, here he was, bright and early. Mortification bled through my entire being.
Samian took a sharp breath, pulling me closer to his side. “Ready for what?” he asked flatly.
Ambrose tilted his head and studied Samian for a moment, as if he were questioning whether to answer him or not. “Sybil and I have a date today,” Ambrose finally answered, smiling wickedly as if to taunt him.
Samian whipped his head toward me, my cheeks flushing when I met his gaze. Anger flashed across his face; his eyes filled with something close to suspicion. Tightness crept its way up my throat, and I swallowed thickly, not understanding the meaning of that heated look.
“Ambrose thought it would be a good idea to show me around the city today,” I said, my voice soft and timid. “It would give us a chance to get to know each other better.” Even though I was just repeating the words Ambrose had said to me yesterday, they felt thick as I said them.
Samian searched my face, slipping into his mask of indifference. My stomach twisted at the cold dimness in his eyes before he turned back to Ambrose, disregarding me entirely. “We have a very busy day today. Sybil cannot afford to miss her lessons.”
Waving a dismissive hand, Ambrose chuckled while he sauntered over to us, his body tense as if ready for a fight. “Ibelieve, Samian, that our sweet Sybil will be fine missing one lesson. And it’s not like you had that same sentiment yesterday, when you missed the rest of her lesson to laze around in your room, right?”
Samian’s jaw clenched, a low threatening growl rumbling from his chest, and I couldn't help the fear that skirted down my back. Ambrose stepped closer, his hand grabbing onto Samian’s shoulder and tightening. “Sybil and I will be leaving now. You’re dismissed for the rest of the day. Why don’t you go back to your room to continue whatever you were doing yesterday? Understood?”
A tense moment passed before Samian looked away, his jaw clenching. Ambrose smiled, tapping his hand on Samian’s cheek and laughing as if the strained bubble surrounding them had never existed.
“Great,” Ambrose said, turning his attention to me. Sweeping his gaze over me, his face softened, though his eyes still resembled those of a predator hungrily eyeing its prey. I shivered at the thought. “I’ve been looking forward to this all morning, my dear. So much, in fact, that I canceled all my meetings so we could spend more time together.”
Ambrose offered me his hand, but I glanced at Samian, unease making my chest tight. Samian stood unnaturally still; the line of his jaw was hard, and his hands were balled into tight fists. Ambrose cleared his throat, a hint to not keep him waiting any longer. Samian gave me a sidelong glance, tipped his head in a slight nod, and took my books. Taking a deep breath, I warily took Ambrose’s hand, trying not to let the disappointment I felt show on my face.
Tightening his grip, Ambrose swung me around, twirling me as if we were in the middle of a dance, making me gasp. Tension made my movements awkward, and another deeplaugh rumbled through Ambrose’s chest as he turned back to Samian, giving him a wink before guiding us to the stairs. I fought against the urge to look back, too afraid of what I would find if I did, so I kept my eyes forward and swallowed down the acid that rose in my throat.
Taking my arm and looping it through his, Ambrose led us through the palace, waving and smiling to all the women who passed us. My body felt heavy with an irritation that grew with every long sigh that escaped from their lips. Ambrose seemed to enjoy the attention, though. He softly chuckled to himself before shifting his focus to the next set of ladies, their gazes sharpening on where my hand rested on his arm.
After passing the fifth group of women, my patience began to wane when Ambrose finally turned his attention to me. “So, I heard you had quite the day yesterday. Going to the medical wing, seeing the library, exploring all the nooks and crannies of the palace. Tell me, did you find anything interesting?”
His tone was light and playful, like he was prodding me to spill all my secrets. But my mind could only focus on one thing—how did he know? “Are you having me followed?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. I tried to keep my tone just as light, but I couldn’t stop the hint of suspicion that wove through my words.
“Gods, no,” Ambrose laughed, his dazzling smile growing wide. “Though there are a few busybodies that love to fill me in on anything I might have missed. Speaking of those busybodies, I would like to apologize on behalf of Arianna. After our meeting yesterday, I heard about your time with her in the dining hall. I know she can be a bit difficult; however, with time, I’m sure you’ll become fast friends.”
Ambrose kept his face solemn, but there was a lightness in his tone that made my jaw clench. He made it sound like ourtimein the dining hall was just a little argument. Like a childish antic. But the memory of how adamant Arianna had been in her abuse crossed through my mind. Her cold blue eyes gleamed with joy while her wretched laugh rang through the dining hall. She knew all about how I lost my job and how Liam kicked me out. I bristled at the flashback. I felt like I was just a joke between her and Ambrose. Did they laugh about how incapable I was? The thought set me on edge.
Ambrose’s eyebrow rose, and I realized he was still waiting for me to respond. Pushing aside my uneasiness, I shook my head. “I’m not sure about that.”
Ambrose watched me thoughtfully for a moment before saying, “I know it may be difficult to see, but she does mean well. She is fiercely protective of those she cares for. I hope you can understand that and give her the benefit of the doubt.”
Something in Ambrose’s eyes made me hesitant to disagree with him, joking or not. A cool feeling prickled through me, but quickly soothed into a quiet understanding as I thought about how I could have reacted. My temper had always gotten the best out of me, especially in moments like the dining hall. That hot rage took over so easily that I would often react before I knew what I was doing or even saying.
“I’ll try to get along with her,” I said softly, looking away.
