Chapter 143

Chapter 143 Feelings for a sick man Doris knocked hesitantly. Two guards eyed her as she approached his room, but said nothing. She wasn’t sure if they recognized her or not-she wasn’t even in her uniform yet. It was exhausting to even consider having to step back into her old role. Would they put her at the library? Perhaps she should talk to William about it when he felt better.

William didn’t respond when she knocked again, louder this time. If his guards weren’t at the door, she would have thought he wasn’t inside.

“Will – Prince William? It’s Doris.” She said through the door. Her cheeks reddened when his guards gave her another strange look when she almost called him William. A bit of shuffling came through on the other side before the door was pulled open. He looked disheveled and his room was a mess as if he had thrown everything around inside.

“You should go, I’m not in the mood.” He grumbled. Doris had to fight the itch to brush his messy hair out of his eyes. “I want to be alone.”

“Are you okay? I can go prepare something for you, or if you’d like some tea-”

“Don’t do that. Stop acting like you have to serve me every second of the day.” He gripped her arm and yanked her inside before he slammed the door.

She stumbled in and straightened herself with a breath. “I was just trying to help—”

“It doesn’t help. I don’t want you to act like my maid right now!” He shouted and kicked a fallen pot out of his way. It shattered into a million pieces. “And don’t you fucking dare offer to clean this room.”

“Prince William, I’m not trying to—“

William stopped where he was and turned to face her slowly. “Say that again.”

“I’m not trying to,“

“No, not that, the bit before it.” He stepped closer to her, she had to hold her breath for a second.

“Prince William?”

“Why are you calling me that again? You never had a problem calling Daniel his name without his title.”

William said bitterly. Jealousy seeped through his tone even though she hadn’t talked to Daniel since before they left.

Was he actually angry with her?

“We‘re back at the palace, I thought you would have wanted me to refer to you as a prince especially in front of other people. I didn’t want to cause a scandal.”

William gripped her chin harshly and forced her to look up at him. “I’ll tell you what I want. I don’t want you to call me that anymore.”

“Okay. I won’t.” Doris whispered. His eyes lingered on her mouth before he let her go. “Do you want me to go with you when you visit your father?” She asked after she took a moment to regain her composure.

Why did his rough side always make her shiver? William shook his head.

“No. That’s something I have to do alone when I can handle it.” He admitted. She softened a little. Even though she knew he was suffering, she didn’t expect him to be transparent. “He must despise me for leaving when he had fallen sick.”

“That can’t be true. He knew why you left, he even sent his best men with you to make sure you came back in one piece.” Doris said gently. He sat on the edge of the bed and put his head in his hands. She lightly placed her hand on his shoulder and sat next to him. “I saw the way he talked with you before he left. He cares a lot about you even if he won’t admit it.”

William snorted at that as if the very idea of his father caring about him was absurdly ridiculous.

“What if the Luna Queen is responsible for this too? What if she caught wind of my plans and wants her son already on the throne?” William fisted his hands in his lap. “She probably wants my father to die so Martin can take his place.”

“If she killed the king, there would be a huge investigation. Especially after what happened to your mother.” Doris brushed his hair back. It had gotten a little longer on their journey and her stomach turned when she realized that she noticed these sort of things about him.

“He’s still my father. Despite all he’s done to damage me, he’s still my father even if he doesn’t care.”

William said so quietly, she had to lean closer to hear him.

William suddenly stood and went into his closet. Doris glanced around the mess of the room and part of her wanted to hurry up and clean it all before he got back, but the other half wanted him to call another maid to do it. He was right, it would be weird for her to be his maid again after all the nights they shared. All the quiet moments and passionate embraces.

No wonder he sent the maids that fell from him away. Would he do the same to her? Or allow her freedom when he was ready to cut her loose? She swore to herself she wouldn’t fall into his web, but now she felt so tangled-she didn’t know if she wanted to get out. 2 When he came out again, he no longer had any hint of rogue attire on him. He was dressed head to toe in finery meant for a prince. A dark grey suit with gold embroidered along the hem. His hair was brushed back neatly and no longer did he have a hint of roguish stubble on his face.

“I’m going to see him. I’ll shove that bitch out a window if she tries to stop me.”

Doris quickly stood and straightened his clothes for him. Her fingers almost dared her to mess up his perfect look to be the one she craved, but it was not the time to want him to be anything but what he wanted to be.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to accompany you? I wouldn’t mind staying all night with you.” Doris said gently.

William shook his head and took her hands to lower them off him. “No. I need to speak with him myself. I don’t want anyone else there, not a soul.” 2 Doris nodded and smiled sadly at him. She leaned up on her toes to kiss his cheek. “I’ll be in my old rooms when you need me.”

“You don’t have to stay there. You can stay here.”

“I don’t know if that would be a wise idea. Melody is still around here somewhere, I’m sure she will come running the second she realizes you’re here.” William made a face at Doris’s words as if he’d forgotten all about her. “Besides, I want to see how my friend is doing.” 2 “Right.” William sighed and brushed past her. With one last glance, he left her alone to his disastrous room. Just outside the door, she heard William speak to his guards. “I’ll new two maids from the servants quarters to come clean my room. Don’t ask the one in there.” 1 Out in the hallways, things felt a little different. It was as if she wasn’t really there but her body was. She recognized almost every step in this palace, but now it felt as if she was unwelcome.

The mood felt off, people stared at her as they passed but said nothing. no one greeted her, even the other maids that she had known for years pretended they didn’t see her. It should have made her feel upset or unsettled, but she couldn’t bring herself to care anymore. 1 There was once a time that she would have ran to her room and cried over being ignored by her former friends-that part of her was gone.

Doris rounded the corner and started heading to the other side of the palace where she shared her room with Beth. Briefly, she wondered if her friend was even still here. It felt like ages ago since they said goodbye-and when William made sure Beth’s fate was tied to her own by making her stay.

Doris clenched her hands into fists at the reminder. Inside, there was a constant battle. She wanted to scream at him for all the things he ever did wrong, but the other half of her wanted to erase all of those memories and fall into him like he was the perfect man. There was no sense of peace.

“Ah, Doris!” A voice called down the hallway. Doris quickly turned to see a guard she didn’t recognize coming towards her. “Yes?”

“Prince Martin heard you returned from your journey. He’s waiting in the library to see you.” 2 “Me? Oh,” Doris glanced down at her ruined clothes from the trip. “I’m not suitable at the moment, do I have time to change?”

“Unfortunately not. He wanted you to come right away.”