The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 40: A Night on the Snowbanks

Rafael cleared his throat loudly. Before Soleia could stop him, Rafael cupped his mouth with his hands and straight up hollered. "Excuse me, Orion, are you busy?"

"What are you doing?" Soleia hissed, grabbing his arm in horror. Sir Ralph knew all too well they were busy!

"Making sure we have someplace warm to sleep tonight," Ralph muttered back, before marching forward to thump at the carriage door as though he was a paperboy demanding payment. Soleia was helplessly dragged forward by the strength of his body. "Orion! Pay attention to me!"

The carriage door swung open so violently Soleia was honestly surprised it did not fly off its hinges.

"What is it?" Orion barked out irritably as he stared at the both of them.

"Well, my good friend, as you can see, night has fallen," Rafael pointed out, a muscle twitching in his jaw as he brandished his free hand to gesture at the dark night sky, where the only light came from the waxing moon.

"Surely you’re not thinking of making the princess sleep on freshly fallen snow. Now that you have had your fun, it’s simply gentlemanly for both of us men to vacate the carriage and seek shelter elsewhere."

Elowyn peered out behind him, blinking owlishly at the interruption before a practiced blush covered her cheeks. She let out a little squeak and ducked behind Orion’s broad back.

"Oh my! I guess... we might have gotten too carried away," Elowyn said, her voice muffled by her hands.

Soleia closed her eyes in a bid to pray for patience and to avoid catching an eyeful of Orion’s manhood. She might have not known specifically what went on between a man and a woman behind closed doors, but clothes were often not part of the equation.

"Put on some pants, for goodness sake," Sir Ralph groaned as if agreeing with her thoughts. "Do you want your cock to freeze and fall off from the cold?" freeweɓnøvel.com

"Oops! Darling, come back and get dressed." Elowyn let out a tiny giggle and reached out to close the carriage door, blushing demurely like a maiden.

However, the top of her dress was artfully undone, revealing a vast expense of pale skin and the slightest swell of her chest. It was a sight that would have tempted any hot-blooded male, but Rafael merely scoffed and turned away in disgust.

However, he wasn’t blind to the purple crystal at her neck. That might have been the biggest piece of amethyst he had seen anyone wear around their necks, and it was possible that the entire necklace chain was lined with them.

There was the sound of rustling fabric, and Elowyn continued to speak, purposely making her voice carry so that Soleia could hear every little word. "It’s good that you are unhurt from the cold. I kept you warm earlier, but it seems like our little adventure must come to an end. The princess needs her beauty sleep."

Soleia’s eyebrow twitched.

"I don’t want to," Orion declared mulishly, like a stubborn child. "She can sleep outside for all I care. I want to stay with you, and only you. She smells foul. I do not want her sleeping here."

Soleia’s eyebrow twitched more violently, and her fingers flexed, as though they longed to wrap themselves around someone’s neck. She felt insulted twice over; once by Elowyn’s poor attempt at charity, and second from her husband’s rejection of the offer.

"You know what? We’re actually in agreement. I’d rather sleep in a snowbank than sleep in the carriage you despoiled! Who knows what diseases you might hold!" Soleia exclaimed, turning away to storm off. There had to be a cave somewhere, or she would just sleep against the horse next to the campfire.

"Princess!" Sir Ralph quickly caught up with her. "I know this is not ideal, but we don’t have many options on such short notice―"

"I would rather die of the cold and be buried in the snow for good," Soleia proclaimed, jabbing an angry finger at the carriage. "Since if I were to share space with that woman, I wouldn’t be waking up anyway."

She had no doubt Elowyn might simply suffocate her in her sleep. Or perhaps she would purposely hurt herself and make it seem that Soleia had done it, and then Orion would kill her for laying a hand on his precious woman.

Either way, all routes led to death. Soleia would definitely choose to die while looking at the peaceful serenity of a snow blanket over Elowyn’s smirking face any day.

"Besides, surely you have to have some idea about shelter," Soleia said as she crossed her arms. She tilted her head and stared at Sir Ralph with narrowed eyes. "You were perfectly willing to sleep outside with Orion mere moments ago."

"You’re not wrong..." Rafael could only sigh helplessly at Soleia’s words.

She was a sharper woman than he gave her credit for. But that boded well for their future. His future wife needed to support his fight for the throne and help him rule Raxuvia for decades after.

"But it’s not a shelter suitable for a princess like yourself. It’s only made out of ice and snow, and it’ll be cold..."

"Tell me what I have to do," Soleia said instead, her eyes lighting up with determination.

She wouldn’t be persuaded otherwise, so Rafael hastily taught her how to create a makeshift shelter out of snow, a distance away from the carriage. With his fingers exposed to the cold winds, the skin broke easily and blood flowed, allowing him to use it as a tool to shape the snow and ice.

Soleia watched on silently and cursed her own powerlessness. What good were her inventions now, when she was parted from them? In the end, she could only depend on Sir Ralph’s kindness and burden him with her own inadequacies.

Shame filled her eyes, even as she studied the new structure carefully. Maybe she could adapt it for her own use...

"It’s done!" Rafael declared cheerfully, "It’s small, but it should do the trick. After you, Princess."

The snow shelter was a tiny dome with a small entrance, and Soleia had to crawl on all fours to enter. To her surprise, it was significantly warmer inside than out, despite it being made of snow. The wind could not reach her, and she couldn’t stop the smile from growing on her face. Sir Ralph entered after her and handed her a sunstone from his pocket.

"Consider this a housewarming gift," He said. "We can’t build a fire here, but this is the next best thing."

Heat flooded her icy-cold hands so quickly that she nearly screamed in pleasure at the sensation.

Rafael chuckled. "Princess, keep making those sounds and people might suspect we’re up to something nefarious."

Soleia snapped her mouth shut, embarrassed. She settled down on the ground, and then she realized how small the dome was. It was barely big enough to fit two grown adults. If they were to lie down, they’d be sleeping side by side, pressed against each other!

It would be improper. But her eyes were drawn to Sir Ralph’s bleeding hands. He had already done so much for her. How could she in good conscience toss him outside?

"I can make another one of these structures, it’s no trouble," Rafael offered, discreetly glancing at Soleia from the corner of his eyes. Knowing her sense of propriety, she would not want to rest alone with him― unless he gave her a good reason to.

So Rafael deliberately stumbled, falling to the ground with a weary groan.

Soleia panicked as she helped him to sit up. "Sir Ralph!"

"It’s alright, I just need a bit more time to rest," Rafael said, deliberately slurring his tone of voice. "I’ll be out soon enough―"

"No, you stay here," Soleia said, a red flush heating her cheeks. "We can share."