The King's Lover
Chapter 85: Can I Be Greedy?

Chapter 85: Can I Be Greedy?

"Does it matter? I’m sure I’ll get some payment eventually. You owe me now, and I tend to take my payment in full."

"If that is the case, can I be greedy?" Rose asked.

Lady Delphine raised a brow, clearly surprised. "You want to rake in more debts?" she asked in an amused tone.

"Why stop now?" Rose asked, wiping her tears.

Lady Delphine smiled and picked up her pipe. Noticing that the fire had gone out, she dropped it back down. "What do you want?"

"I’d like ye to teach me to speak properly—and read too," Rose said.

Lady Delphine laughed. "I am no teacher. You are asking the wrong person. Also, in three days, even a genius couldn’t."

"I don’t expect to be perfect, but I don’t like gettin’ mocked about the way I speak. And ye ’ave already taug’t me so muc’ just from eatin’ with ye."

"Child," Lady Delphine chuckled. "You flatter me. But I guess you recover quick. I will do my best to help improve your speech—it will be up to you to actually improve it yourself."

"I know," Rose said. She didn’t think she would get better so quickly, but she was sure she could at least learn something while she was here. If there was one thing she was looked down on for in the castle, it was how she spoke.

"Good. But you are a pretty good student, so I have high hopes. As for reading, my dear, that would take even longer. You can ask the crown prince for a tutor." fre ewebno(v)e\l.(c)om

Rose looked at Lady Delphine as though she had grown horns.

"Child," Lady Delphine laughed. "You better learn how to make demands. How do you think I have a manor? However, I shall do my best. Any other demands you’d like to make?" she asked.

"Can ye teach me ’ow to be a lady?"

"A lady?" Lady Delphine wiped the corner of her eyes as she laughed hard. "I can’t do that, but I can certainly teach you how to be less crude. Still, what is this? A moment ago, you were crying about not wanting to go to the castle, and now you’re asking all of this."

Rose clasped her hands together. "Ye said to make the most of my situation and to stop thinkin’ about it as a predicament. I am only takin’ yer advice."

"Yes, I said that, but I didn’t expect you to pick up on it so fast. But yes, I will help you. Is that all?"

Rose shook her head. "I ’ave one more request."

"I’m listening," Lady Delphine said, amused. "I doubt anything you say can shock me anymore."

"I noticed t’ere are no children runnin’ around," Rose stated.

Lady Delphine’s eyes narrowed. Rose wasn’t stupid. She had assumed the crown prince had picked a random peasant girl and made her his lover, but that was not the case. If properly trained, she would be a force to reckon with.

"Your point being?" Lady Delphine asked, feigning ignorance.

"T’ere must be a trick to it. It simply isn’t coincidence. Ye ’ave too many girls for there not to be one mishap."

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"I need—" Rose twisted her hands as she felt bile rise in her throat.

She wasn’t the type to do this, and she had already decided with Ander that she would have as many children as possible. But she knew she would rather claw out her insides than have a child for the crown prince. Proof of their act together—she would hate the baby.

"I need—" she tried again but found that she couldn’t fully say it.

"You don’t need anything," Lady Delphine interjected, annoyed that Rose was taking too long to say it. "I’ve laid with the crown prince, and not once did he pour his seed in me. The floor, my back—and I’m not the only one. What?" Lady Delphine asked at Rose’s expression.

"Thas not true. He always—" fr\eewe.bn(o)v\el.c(o)m

"What?" Lady Delphine yelled, her eyes nearly bulging out of her skull. "You’re saying that the crown prince always..." She paused and glanced down at Rose’s crotch.

Rose instinctively used her hands to block her view. "Yes," she replied. She wasn’t sure if she should add that it had only happened three times, so maybe it wasn’t a good gauge.

Lady Delphine took a deep breath, getting a hold of herself. "I will give it to you. However, are you sure about this? Whatever child you have will be the child of the king at some point. Are you willing to let that pass you? Illegitimate or not, it will still be the king’s child."

"I am sure," Rose said and nodded her head.

Lady Delphine sighed. "I will get it prepared for you. However, I must warn you," she said.

Rose nodded her head as she listened.

"If you have already taken in, you will lose the child," Lady Delphine said.

Rose nodded. She was sure she wasn’t pregnant, she didn’t feel any different and if she was, then she needed it more than ever. "Thank you," she mumbled. "Can I get more if necessary?"

"I don’t think it will be necessary. A teaspoon would do the trick, and I will make sure to get you enough. It will be your job to hide it properly."

"I will do my best," Rose said, nodding eagerly. "I cannot thank ye enough," she replied. "I truly cannot."

"You probably shouldn’t. You are proving to be even more useful than I thought."

Lady Delphine paused for a second as she thought. The scandal that would erupt if Rose got pregnant... She wondered if that was the crown prince’s goal. She only knew snippets about him, but everyone knew the king and prince didn’t see eye to eye, and that the King had sent him away at such a young age.

Still, she didn’t think the king would watch idly as this went on. It was clear from the fact that someone had tried to get rid of Rose.

It wasn’t a lot, but it was a good thing to help her—more for Rose’s sake than anything else. There was nothing worse than being a pawn amid royals.