The King's Lover
Chapter 82: Perfect Timing

Chapter 82: Perfect Timing

"I don’t understand," Rose said with a puzzled look on her face.

She had no idea what was going to happen. Lady Delphine had been nothing but nice to her, but there was still the thirty thousand gold pieces she would have to pay, and they both knew she couldn’t. She was at a loss, but she also knew there was no way Lady Delphine would waive such an exorbitant price.

"Come, let’s move to a more comfortable seat. We have lots to discuss."

Lady Delphine stood to her feet and walked around to where Rose sat. She stretched out her hand to pull Rose to her feet. Lady Delphine paused suddenly, admiring Rose’s slender arm.

"Is somethin’ wrong?" Rose asked fearfully.

"On the contrary," Lady Delphine said and gently pulled her toward the chairs.

Rose followed after her without another word, unsure of what to do or say.

"Have a seat," Lady Delphine gestured to one of the empty chairs and reluctantly let go of Rose.

Rose nodded and dropped into the chair. She placed her palms closer to her abdomen, her shoulders slightly hunched. Lady Delphine noticed this immediately, and she scrunched up her nose in displeasure. feeNovelFire

"No," she said and marched to Rose, moving her hands from her stomach to her legs and raising her shoulders. "I warned you about slouching."

Rose was shocked by her reaction, but she recovered quickly and nodded, acting appropriately.

"Keep your knees together," Lady Delphine said as she walked to her seat. It was a longer chair piled with pillows, and she wasted no time in getting comfortable.

Rose closed her knees so quickly that it made a loud noise as they locked together. Lady Delphine simply smiled at the sound, but she didn’t say a word about it.

"News of your disappearance has reached my ears. Well, not an official announcement, but rumors spread fast, and it would have spread faster, but apparently, the crown prince didn’t think you could escape from the castle."

"Escape?" Rose asked in horror. "I was kidnapped."

Lady Delphine turned to look at her. "Escape is what I heard."

"I didn’t escape," Rose reiterated.

"I know," Lady Delphine said with a sad tone. "I bought you." However, she knew Rose must have a hard time with people believing her, so even though she had clearly been there, Rose still felt the need to try to convince her.

Rose nodded. "Does that mean that’s what the crown prince thinks?" Rose asked.

Lady Delphine slowly nodded her head. "I am afraid so."

"I can’t go back to the castle," Rose suddenly blurted out. There was fear in her eyes as she spoke.

Lady Delphine gave her a sad look. "I’m afraid there is no other option."

Rose covered her face with her palms. This was something she didn’t want to think about, but she knew it would lead to this. She would be sent back into the crown prince’s hands. For a moment, she had entertained the idea of being able to escape him, but that was clearly not the case.

She heard movement, and then a gentle hand fell on her shoulder. "I am sorry," Lady Delphine said. "However, there aren’t a lot of options. I can’t keep you here, and you wouldn’t want to stay here either."

"I can stay here," Rose said and lifted her face, her eyes covered in tears. .com

Lady Delphine gave her a look that said she didn’t believe Rose’s words, but then her face softened. "You can’t. Cleaning isn’t the only thing you’d be required to do. That won’t bring me any money, and it certainly won’t pay the bill I have racked up on your behalf."

Rose’s face paled as she realized what Lady Delphine was talking about. She brought her palms to her mouth to keep them from falling open.

"You can’t, isn’t that right?" Lady Delphine replied, her voice slowly turning stern. "As much as I want to baby you, you have to snap out of it! Tch!"

A knock drew their attention to the door, and Lady Delphine sighed. She took a deep breath. After all these years, you’d think she was proud of her job, but the look in Rose’s eyes had made her lose it for a moment. She was used to being judged—or so she thought.

"Perfect timing," she mumbled. "Come in."

The door opened, and Esme walked in with a bright look on her face until she registered the situation, and her face paled.

"Lady Delphine," she said, somehow still remembering to curtsy. "What happened to Rose?"

"Esme, could you please tell Rose how many men you slept with last night?"

"Oh," she simply said and glanced at Rose. "Three."

"And that was only because one of her regulars paid for the rest of the night. On average, the number ranks up to five, and that’s nothing compared to Kali."

Esme shook her head immediately. "I could never compare to Kali, my lady. I don’t know how she does it, but no man lasts longer than the time it takes me to shower. I’ve told her to tell me her tricks, but she simply says she learned from the best and it’s my fault for not picking up the skills you taught us. She can be a little cruel sometimes." However, there was no hatred or malice in Esme’s words as she said this, and it was clear she admired both Kali and Lady Delphine.

"You also have skill yourself, Esme," Lady Delphine praised. "No one has more regular customers than you."

This time Esme actually looked flustered. "Why all the questions?" Esme asked, changing the subject then her eyes slowly widened. "Is she going to be one of the girls?"

Lady Delphine shook her head. "No, this one doesn’t have the stomach for it."

"I didn’t when I first arrived," Esme said. "But I promise it gets easier, and Lady Delphine treats us so well. All of us owe her our lives. Some she bought, others she rescued, and none of the men dare hurt us—they know better."

"No need for all that, Esme. Besides, even if she suddenly could, a certain person wouldn’t allow it. Now, clear the dishes and get me my pipe."

"Yes, my lady," Esme said and quickly set off to do as Lady Delphine had requested.