King Lucien ordered that Danika's dinner be brought to his bedroom, just like he did every evening. He knew she had a loss of appetite, so he wanted to make sure she ate properly.
They ate in silence. Afterward, the maids came in and took the plates away.
“Is your back still hurting?” he asked with a furrowed brow when he saw her hitting her upper back continuously.
She nodded, still hitting her upper back with her fist, but it was a futile attempt because her fist couldn't reach the spots that were hurting.
The king got up from his dining chair, walked towards Danika, then urged her to her feet with his hand on her shoulder. Then he led her to the bed. “I will call Angie to come and apply acupuncture again—”
“It's already late at night, my king. He needn't make such a journey at this time of the night because of a backache that only relieves occasionally. I'll be fine,” she responded, sitting down obediently at the spot he wanted her to.
“Zariel.” His hand held her fist to stop her from beating her back.
The door opened, and the guard rushed inside. “Yes, Your Highness.”
“Tell the cook to boil water and have the maids bring it to my chambers once it's hot. Tell Baski to go out to the stream—I do not say the river; she should go down to the stream and fetch me a bowl of cold water from the side facing north,” he commanded without taking his eyes away from Danika.
“As you wish, Your Majesty!” The guard turned and hurried out of the door.
“Undress,” he directed her.
She didn't understand why he'd give those commands, but she did as he asked anyway. Pulling to her feet, she took off her clothes.
He helped her get rid of the corset and untied the rope that held her petticoat together. Then he pulled the clothing down her shoulders, but he didn't take it off completely. He freed her breasts and back and allowed the clothing to bunch in her middle. He urged her to climb the bed, then climbed in behind her.
“I read from one of the parchments that hot and cold water can help alleviate back pains,” he revealed, his eyes inspecting her back.
Danika was barely able to follow the conversation because of the insistent pain in her back—and the feel of his hands on her.
He was looming over her from behind. His hand touched and probed some areas of her back, searching for the focus zones. She winced when he touched a part at the center of her back. Then she winced again at another part, then another and another.
Then she felt his mouth on her back. “I read in one of the parchments that backaches occur when the baby is developing healthily.” His hand circled her belly and rubbed softly. “When the baby is developing, the uterus is expanding, which puts pressure on your blood vessels, the nerves in the pelvis, and your back.”
She practically melted into him, her hand resting on his and on her belly. She listened to his words, more than surprised that he had taken enough time to read so much about her condition. No wonder he always knew the things to do. He always suggested new types of food to Baski, saying it would be good for her.
Her cheeks flamed. No wonder he knew the positions to lay her whenever he wanted to make love to her.
“What is going through your mind?” His deep voice reverberated on her shoulder where his head was pressed.
“N-nothing,” she snapped her mouth shut.
“Mm.”
Silence descended afterwards. She pulled closer to him, her eyes closed to revel in his moment. It was beautiful. Apart from the times he was making love to her, this was the most intimate he had held her in the past two weeks. It was almost like he was trying to withdraw himself from her.
As if he heard her thoughts, he pulled away from her, severing all contact completely. He got up from the bed, his face stoic.
Danika suddenly felt bereft. Empty. Vulnerable. She reached for the straps of her petticoat to slide her arms into them when a knock came at the door. It caused her to pause.
The king glanced at her state of undress and at the door. He walked to the door and pulled it open. A pause.
Then he stepped away from the door and allowed whoever was there enter into his chambers.
Baski hurried in, carrying a bowl of water and a towel. Following the king’s instructions, she dropped it on the bedside table before she left the room.
That was when he moved away from his position. Going towards the bedside table, he climbed in behind her again. The ruffles of clothes made her look behind her. He folded his evening garment to his bare arms. He folded them up to his shoulders before he reached for the towel and dipped it into the cold water.
“Your hair, Danika,” he said, breaking the silence.
Reaching for the wild mess that is her hair, she pushed them all out through her right shoulder, causing the mass to cover her right breast completely and fall to her belly. At the first press of cold water, she gasped at the unexpected chilling feeling. But a few seconds later, she enjoyed the ministration because it diverted her mind from the pains those spots produced before.
By the time he was done pressing the cold water, the hot water had arrived too. He repeated the same process. Indeed, the pains began abating slowly.
She reveled in the intimacy of having King Lucien take care of her like that. But even as her pains were decreasing, the dreadful sinking feeling in her gut would not abate.
He was withdrawing from her. Without a single change at all in his demure or his attitude towards her, he was withdrawing from her. And she had no idea what to do about it. The helplessness would be the death of her.