The King’s Lover

Rose gripped the reins of her horse a little too tightly as the gates of Edenville appeared in view. Her throat closed, and she knew it wasn't because of the cold.

The night before, they had arrived at Stonegate pretty late and only pushed on through the cold because Thomas wouldn't even let them take a break. By the time they arrived at Stonegate, Rose was so exhausted she didn't eat dinner before falling asleep.

The next morning, she was woken up with a hot meal before sunrise, and not long after they had changed horses and set out from Stonegate.

Rose did notice she got a better reception this time and was even given a room, but she was too exhausted and cold to think too much about it. She would have been fine sleeping anywhere as long as it had warmth and a bed she could lie on.

The journey to Edenville had been quiet. Rose had been too tense to say anything. Her entire attention was on the journey. It didn't bother her that they didn't take a break until after noon. She felt like she could go on forever because any moment now she would be home.

Right now, she was looking at the wooden gates as her horse galloped forward. It hadn't changed, except for the snow that covered everything. Rose caught a glimpse of the well that started it all and she rushed for the gates, she didn't even have any thoughts about the well.

Rose's horse jumped over the wooden gates. It was never much of a gate in the first place and was more to show that this was the entrance to Edenville than anything else.

She heard a voice say slow down but Rose didn't understand the meaning. She urged the horse to ride even faster as she got into the town. Rose rode deeper into town, scaring the few folks on the roads as they rushed out of the way.

It didn't take long for the whispers to start passing through the town.

"Isn't tha Rose? Tha daugt'er of the wood maker?"

"Rose came wit strange men," another whispered.

The sun hadn't set just yet, and if it wasn't so cold, the streets would have been even more crowded with children playing and families sitting outside their houses. However, Rose's arrival was enough to drag them out into the cold.

Paul and the rest of the men could barely keep up with Rose, but Thomas never lost sight of her. He rushed after her as she sped through the streets, passing buildings and taking several turns as she made her way home, and even though he could easily overtake her, he never did.

Rose could make out her little cottage as soon as she came into her street. Sounds of windows and doors opening could be heard, and soon voices reached her ears as people pointed and called her name.

Her cottage was on the edge of the street just behind Emma's house. She could see the roof of Emma's house from the front of her own. Her house stood the same; the only difference was the snow.

Rose pulled on her reins with enough strength to bend the horse's neck backward. The horse didn't make a full stop before she jumped off it, nearly ripping her foot off as she removed it from the stirrup.

However, Rose didn't feel the pain because the front door was slowly opening and her father was stepping out, his shoulders slightly bent and a look of confusion clouding his face.

Rose felt her heart slam against her chest. It was beating so loudly it echoed in her ears. She was running before she even thought about it, screaming at the top of her lungs, "Fat'er."

Vallyn's expression quickly changed from confusion to shock and then to an expression that was filled with nothing but pure happiness. The corners of his eyes wrinkled, and he smiled brighter than snow reflected sunlight.

He opened his arms, and Rose slammed into him as though catapulted, but the older man didn't move an inch at the force she used to hug him. Rather, he closed his arms around her and hugged Rose really tight.

"Rose," he whispered, his voice heavy with emotion.

"Fat'er," Rose cried as she buried her face into his chest, her eyes filled with tears. "I am home, Fat'er."

"Welcome 'ome, Rose."

Thomas didn't get off his horse as he watched Rose hug her father in front of the small house. He could hear her sniffles as she clung tightly to him, not wanting to let go.

Suddenly, her father lifted his head and looked up at Thomas. The old man's expression darkened for a moment, but as though forcing himself, his expression slowly returned to normal. Still holding onto Rose, he attempted to bow.

This movement alerted Rose, and she slowly raised her head to see what the issue was. She turned to see Lord Thomas standing on a horse a few feet away. Her neighbors were loitering around, but because of Thomas they didn't dare approach.

She also noticed Lord Paul and the other men were missing. Did she ride too fast that they couldn't keep up? Rose's eyes widened in panic.

"Fat'er, this is Lord Thomas. He is a noble and a knight of the crown prince's personal army," Rose quickly explained to ease the awkward air and not anger Thomas any further.

"Lord T'omas, t'ank ye for bringin' my daug'ter 'ome safely," Vallyn said with a lower bow this time as Rose stood to the side.

Thomas squinted his eyes and turned his horse so it faced the direction they had just come. "I will get Paul," he said and rode off.

Rose nodded as she watched him ride off. Lord Paul would eventually find his way; the town wasn't big and anyone could point him in the direction of her house. Rose immediately assumed Thomas was giving her some privacy with her family, and she was grateful.

"Mot'er," she called as she looked up at her father.

He turned to look at her with a sad expression, and Rose felt her heart drop. Her father looked like he had aged at least five years, even though it had only been a few months since she last saw him.

"Inside. I am sure your mot'er would be so 'appy to see you."