"Of course." she said dryly."Tell me Athena, were you a bully or bullied?" He pretended not to notice the bitterness dripping from her reply when he mentioned Ciara. While he entertained her jealously rehearsing fiona, Ciara was his best friend he wouldn't want to ever choose between Athena and she even though he and Ciara knew that undoubtedly he would choose Athena, he prayed she did put him in a position like that, he feared it was highly likely."Have you ever wondered if there could be a third category."She twirled the ring around her fingers as she spoke."Enlighten me." She didn't reply him immediately, the way she focused on the ring it seemed her mind had wandered off some far away place, unlike he did, she didn't smile however, her expression was focused as she scrunched her brows together. The sight was so endearing to him he almost didn't give her a jolt back to reality."Where art thou.""Memory lane." She dropped her hands to her side before sitting on the bed, as she

"Everything was fascinating. From the way the men laughed and threw arrows, dueled and roared around bonfires, into the dark skies, stars scattered across like pieces of glitters on a taffeta material. It was all fascinating to me. I was a young girl who had never really stepped her feet outside, not to talk more of being around so much people," "I started paying attention to my surroundings and I noticed that I could only see bare-chested, tall men who moved around with glistening loins. I couldn't hide any longer because I had already been spotted. Heck, I didn't even remember to run and hide. So I was pulled into the crowd of men, all bubbling thick with testosterone; so much vigor and strength. I was asked why I came out at this time that children and women were forbidden to be outside. Too young and having no idea what to say, I kept quiet. Well, Reynold Griffith whom you so much respect took an interest in me and asked that the men leave me be. He took me to his tent, sa

As soon as Alexander left the room, Athena immediately shuffled to her feet and put herself in order before leaving for her chambers. There was nothing to do today as she had dismissed everyone and asked them to take the day off. Now, she regretted why she had said that. She had been enjoying her afternoon eating scones and reading a sultry book- all thanks to Alexander for putting ideas in her head and spiking her curiosity -when Alexander had stepped into the room and disrupted her solitude. Even as he left her to her own self, she found it hard to concentrate. The words she read floated in the air, but her brain was not porous enough to absorb it as Alex had left an impression on her. Even as she sat in her King size bed, she felt restless. She wasn't used to this. She wasn't used to Alex being around, wasn't used to the fact that his presence made her restless and edgy. She needed to do something about it. Only a few more days and he would be gone.

The next morning, Alex was feeling quite okay. The treatment had hastened his recovery and he couldmove around. The first thing he had in his head was to go find Fiona. They weren't done with theirbusiness and he really needed to find the girl and finish up whatever they had started. He was hellbent onfinding whoever had hurt his Athena.He woke up as early as six, knowing fully well that Athena would be asleep or still in her chambers.She spent most of her mornings there, bathing and having her breakfast so it was rare to find her in thedining room.Once he had dressed up, he left his room and went out of the palace through the servant's quarters. Noone would see him as the palace quarters would be empty due to the fact that they had all resumed theirdaily duties.The grass was still damp from the morning dew and he made sure to avoid wetting his boots since theywere almost going bad. He needed to avoid water at all costs.The roads were void of activities save for so

The whole room became immediately silent as Athena entered. Minutes ago, the men had been speaking in low tones, how Athena was making a mess of things and how being a woman King was messing things up but as soon as they heard familiar footsteps coming towards the meeting room, they all hushed in silence. Athena's face was drawn tight. She was unsmiling. This was her usual expression but it seemed like it was more intense today. Everyone made sure to compose themselves as they were not ready for their blood to be spilled. They all stood up and bowed to her in reverence. Ignoring them all, she walked up to her throne and took her seat before facing the congregation of men. "Why has this meeting been called for?" Morpheus, one of the spokesmen who had been appointed by the late King, stood to his feet and cleared his throat. He was a man of great speaking voice. "We called this meeting to remind you about the coronation. It is only right and customary that you