The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 53: A Little Persuasion

Penny jumped, startled when she looked up just to see a huge man towering over her, his expression as dark as charcoal, the dark ring under his eyes to match. Due to their height difference, she felt as though she was coming face to face with a minotaur who was about to crunch down on her bones as breakfast.

She squealed, nearly dropping her newly bought bread if it hadn’t been for her quick reflexes.

"Sir...?" she muttered, shrinking in on herself when Orion’s gaze hardened.

"Orion," Elowyn said, quickly getting up from her seat and coming over to where they were. She placed a hand on his shoulder, the purple stone at her chest glowing softly. Only then did Orion back off a little, but it wasn’t much to speak of. "Give the poor girl some room to breathe."

Orion said nothing, his jaw tightly clenched as he patiently waited for Penny’s reply. However, what the girl next said quickly had his hands balled into fists once more.

"I am sorry, Sir, but I am not sure," she said, her eyes flickering left and right. Then, she gestured out of the window with a half-hearted smile. "Wow, would you look at the time! Breakfast is nearly over. I got to run. Goodbye!"

She barely threw a ’thank you’ over her shoulder to the innkeeper before she was gone.

However, just because she had disappeared didn’t mean that Orion had run out of options. He shrugged out of Elowyn’s hold and stormed over to the innkeeper, both his palms pressed flat against the counter as he glowered at the poor man.

"Which inn is that girl working at?"

***

"So you see?" Soleia said, her hands gripping the table a little harder than what was natural. "It’s really just all a misunderstanding."

"Of course, My Lady," Penny said, nodding. "Don’t you worry about that. My lips are sealed, and my eyes have seen nothing."

Soleia could only weakly laugh, slumping back in her seat. Good heavens. There was no way she could ever prove her innocence. This teenager surely didn’t believe a single word she was speaking right now.

Rafael watched with amusement, chewing on the soft bread that was served at the small dining hall. While waiting for Penny to return, they had already washed themselves and changed into a fresh set of clothing. The room they had stayed in for the night had also been vacated.

During this time, Soleia had also worn The Pleasant Inn’s dining hall carpet down to its last threads with the amount of pacing she did. When Penny returned, she had all but pounced on her to explain what had happened this morning.

It was adorable to watch. Rafael couldn’t help but chuckle the moment Soleia sat down.

"What’s so funny?" Soleia roughly huffed. Her eyes were hooded over as she leaned against the chair’s backrest, her body almost sliding off. There was none of the royal elegance that was ironed into her since birth. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

"Nothing," Rafael said, shrugging his shoulders. He peered at Penny, who had rushed off the moment Soleia set her free. She disappeared into the room they stayed in last night, a fresh set of linens in hand. "I just find Your Highness absolutely adorable."

"How wonderful," Soleia deadpanned. "You find joy in my misery."

"There is nothing to be miserable about, Princess," Rafael said. "Like you said, tongues will wag no matter what you do. But there can be other methods to make sure the wagging remains minimal."

He dusted the remaining crumbs off his fingers before digging into his pockets, pulling out a single gold coin. Holding it up, Rafael grinned at her. Soleia’s eyes widened when she took note of the shimmery coin held between his fingers.

"How did you―"

Just then, Penny came down. In her hands were the dirty linens that were used last night in a laundry basket.

"Miss Penny?" he called out. "Could you come here for a moment please?"

"One moment please!" Penny replied. She hastily put down the basket in the back rooms before tottering over, wiping her hands on her apron. "Is there anything I can help with, Sir?"

"Here," Ralph said. "For your troubles."

With that said, he pressed the gold coin into Penny’s hands. The girl’s eyes widened into the size of saucers as she stared at the money.

One gold coin! This could feed her family for months! It was more money than she had ever dealt with before.

"T-This...!" Penny stuttered, "N-No, I can’t! This is too much money!" She hurriedly returned the gold coin. "Besides, you’ve already paid for your stay."

"It’s a tip," Ralph said, gently pushing her hand back when Penny tried to shove him back the gold coin. "For your hospitality. Frankly, we were considering the stables when you offered us a room here. Judging by the amount of snow out there, we would’ve been frozen to death if not for you."

"I..." Penny trailed off. She wanted — needed — the money, of course she did. But this wasn’t right.

"Or you could consider it as a thanks for understanding our terrible predicament," he said, his gaze flickering to the stairs momentarily.

Penny’s gaze followed his, and understanding quickly filled her. Now free of guilt, she gladly took the coin and nodded, holding the money to her chest.

"Of course," she said. "There’s nothing to misunderstand."

"Good," Ralph said, leaning back. Penny smiled brightly at him, bowed, and then left them alone.

As soon as he was gone, Rafael picked up a slice of hard cheese that Penny had left out for them. He was just about to nibble on it when his ears pricked to attention. But it was too late, for the next thing he knew, a hand was placed on his shoulder, causing him to jolt.

"There you are," Orion said, causing Soleia and Ralph to turn around and stare at him in a mixture of surprise and horror. "I have been looking everywhere for you two."