Back to the present

It took Xhemin an hour to narrate to her husband what actually transpired the time she said her goodbyes to Huzey. Darryl then listened patiently, caressing his wife's hair as she recalled every detail of it, when she was finally done, she felt tired and so she snuggled through Darryl's chest and was comforted by his warmth.

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"The prince is looking for her?" Darryl asked. He liked the story she just told her, how she told the prince how much she loved him more than anyone and how she sees him as nothing but the man she loved but the part where Huzey gave up pursuing Xhemin to find another woman got him intrigued.

"Yeah, I learned from Ziggy that it seemed like the prince was obsessing with her," Xhemin answered, eyes closed as she lavished herself with Darryl's hard chest and his manly smell.

"You are not jealous?" He tried to tease her, wondering what she thought about it. Obviously, as a man, it seemed pretty obvious to him that the prince might be in love with that mysterious red haired woman. He might not have realized it yet or he must be in the stage of in denial or probably, the prince had been undergoing so many things he can't see it yet. Can't blame the man though, his life seemed pretty fucked up, probably more in a mess that how his life was previously. Although the prince came back, the small stories he heard from either Xhemin or anyone from the Dugmoch's household gave him a glimpse that Huzey was not okay. He might have found his way back home, but he was still able to find his lost self. That man surely needed a hard reset.

"Jealous?" Xhemin thought of it and found it ironic that she didn't feel any jealousy nor any kind of remorse about the woman the prince was pursuing. The prince made it clear she was the reason why he stopped pursuing her after he confessed yet she didn't feel any, not even a slight irritation at it unlike when she learned that Darryl made a concubine house. From the heart, she answered "Truth is I'm not. I had prejudices with her at first but that was not because the prince had his eyes on her. It was because I was afraid she might be a criminal or something knowing she might have some connections with the master thief but through time, I felt like she was very important to the prince and so I kind of liked her because of that."

"I can't blame your prejudices though, that woman is really creepy," Darryl commented, remembering the small time he had spent with her. "She's the most mysterious person I had ever met in my entire life to be honest,"

"I wonder where she is right now. The prince had been going insane looking for her," Xhemin's voice was becoming whispers as the deepness of the night and her exhausted body was calling her off to sleep. "I hope he finds her soon,"

"Sleepy milady?" Darryl kissed her head. He did tire her off so much tonight, it was not a shock why she was all feeling tired then. There is some part of him chiding himself for being so rough with her that night when it had been such a long time they spent sleeping together but he just can't help it. He had missed her so much it was hard to control himself. "Go on...sleep for now,"

"Hug me tight," She said the last and Darryl did as she requested. In just a few minutes the room that was once filled with moans of lovemaking turned quiet and what's left was the little comfortable snores from both Xhemin and Darryl as their bodies tangled up against each other, very unwilling to part.

***

It was almost noon time when Xhemin woke up the next day. She did wake up early in the morning as her husband woke her up with warm kisses and other rounds of lovemaking which she all heartedly gave him but after that, she slept again and had never woken up until then. When she dragged her feet out of bed, she instantly felt nauseous but it was only for a while. Even with a little troubling feeling, she managed to draw a bath for herself and lavished herself with cold water for a while. It was just the right remedy for her the aches and sores she felt all over her. Damn! Darryl did overwork her last night.

"Babba?" She heard Darryl calling her while she was in the middle of her bath and she answered shouting from the bathroom. "Over here my love,"

Darryl found her still in the tub and smiled at her face. "Feeling good?"

"With all this love bites? Probably not!"While taking her bath, Xhemin did notice that her body was all covered with Darryl's marks and she could only heave a sigh at that. Damn this beast!

"You are a married woman, things like that are normal,"

"Normal your face. We have two smartass kids outside, what am I going to tell them if they ask about what these are?"

"Tell them Appa painted it!" He winked and the expression that flushed on Xhemin's face after that made him let loose in a loud guffaw. He was giggling for a few minutes until he remembered why he was there in the first place. "Ah I remember, a messenger came announcing the fact that we will have visitors coming. People from the palace might have heard of your return,"

"Really?" Xhemin got excited with the news. It had been long since she left the island and she was all too curious how everybody was. She heard some news of all her friends from Enoch, her brother and the fact that the previous Chieftain was still alive but had gone sick again. However, seeing everyone in person rather than just hearing about them from Enoch was more delightful so she very much looked forward to it. "I'll finish my bath and get dressed in a few. I might still have time to cooked food for them,"

"Don't bother, Baruk Tam had his household prepare some feast. The servants will serve them here," Darryl told her. Baruk Tam came earlier to check whether the news was true as people from the village had been telling stories about the healer appearing in the village market with the children so he came early in the morning, just in time when the messenger came.

"He came here? Why did you not wake me up?"

"He insisted not to and wanted you to rest more. The children kept him company anyway. He brought them to his household but they'll come back soon when the caravan of guest arrives,"

"I see. Then perhaps I'll just get ready," Xhemin's panic subsided a little. She did worry knowing they'll have guests and she had nothing to offer them but knowing that everything was all prepared she sighed with relief. Looking at her husband who was standing in front of him, he realized he was all sweaty. Knowing him very well, he might have done some chores outside. "Have you taken your bath yet? Why don't you come and join me for a while. I'll have you cleaned,"

Darryl's face immediately drew a grin. "I was actually waiting for you to ask," he said and looked at her deviously again. Xhemin already knew what that smile meant and so she only rolled her eyes at it.