“My god, my lady you look amazing.” Rhax greeted with a smile that made something clench in her heart.

“Well,” she almost whispered, “you were coming back and it is only appropriate to welcome my brave great knight looking presentable.” She smiled at him.

Rhax’s smile didn’t flatter when he leaned in and whispered. “Then,” she felt his breath on her face and neck, “maybe I should disappear more often.”

She felt her face burning with the implications of his words. She wanted to continue to talk but was cut by a voice she hadn't heard in almost 3 days. “Ah, Rhax, it is good to see you again. I’m sorry for your loss, I know you felt like it was your fault, but know that no one here blames you for Jeyne’s death.” Said Sybal while walking toward them.

Rhax immediately went to bow but Sybal was faster and put his hand on his shoulder indicating to him that he shouldn’t bow. “No, you do not need to bow to me. As far as I know Andromeda here thinks of you like her big brother, which kind of makes you, my family. So, do not bow to me.” Sybal had such an innocent face when he said the words but Andromeda felt them cut into her very core.

Guilt was overcoming her soul, guilt for falling for another man while Sybal was still alive and they were going to marry in less than one week. She imagined her mother seeing her condition and looking at her with a look of disgust on her face while mouthing “Whor-” No, she would not think of that. It was not her fault that her emotions chose Rhax, and Rhax was definitely not the person to blame. He was just doing his job and making sure she was safe. But to her the woman who loved her father because he was the perfect man in her opinion started having a crush on him because he was caring until it developed into something deeper. Rhax’s voice brought her out of her thoughts. “I’m honestly honored that Lady Andromeda thinks such about me. For all that matters, I feel the same way. I lost my sister when I was still in Firebird city and that was actually the reason why I left.” Rhax’s face was filled with pain, Andromeda wanted to hug him the same way she did days ago. His head resting on her chest, her hands going through his golden hair and their body heat round up together and making them hot.

She broke her line of thoughts after realizing what she was thinking about. ‘Dammit, I’m really a bad woman, aren’t I? The man is talking about his dead sister and I’m thinking about using his sadness to make contact with him.’ She thought with scorn.

Sybal had an understanding expression. “I understand, my little sister died too. It was the worst day of my life when I found her lifeless body on her bed. I remember crying for a week because I lost all of my family and I was alone in the world. But look now, I will be having a family in a matter of a week. So, don’t make the past swallow you, Rhax, you need to move on. And from what I heard from the servants you already moved on, having a wife and a baby and all.” Sybal winked at Rhax with a smile.

Rhax looked honestly confused, which gave Andromeda’s heart that was throbbing with pain at the mention of the possibility of Rhax marrying and having a family already was too painful to her a little hope.

“I’m sorry? Wife and a kid?” Rhax looked like he was told he was actually a woman and not a man.

Andromeda answered, she spoke with a small voice so it would not crack and show her emotions. “Well, a servant saw you get out of a house, then a woman and a baby waved you off. So, we assumed that you brought your family here after you got the job.”

A look of understanding graced Rhax’s face. “Ah,” he exclaimed, “you mean Angela and Diana. They are not my family, Angela and I travelled together for some time. Then each one went their own way, and I found her in the market some days ago and invited me to crash with her and her daughter. Who is not mine by the way, she is too young for that.”

That made Andromeda feel bad even more. ‘Him, her, alone, while having a past relationship.’ She didn’t want to think more because she knew the result.

But she asked a question that can make her fears real or make them disappear. “Just Angela and Diana? No father?” She tried to sound as much like a friend as possible and not show her jealousy or any other emotions. They entered a hallway as they had started walking a while ago.

“No,” he said and that made Andromeda’s heart squirm in pain, “he is dead, it seems the fucker was some kind of a beast tamer. He tried to tame a lion, but the lion had other ideas and feasted upon him.” To her surprise and Sybal’s Rhax actually laughed.

“Rhax, this is horrible, how are you laughing?” She asked in a small voice.

Rhax didn’t even hesitate. “Well, it is. But it is also pretty funny, I apologize if I offended you. But being a sellsword you hear jokes like this and worse very often, and in time you start developing an immunity to them.”

It still disturbed her, but she let it drop. After all it was a habit, and habits die hard. But she swore that she would make him abandon that habit of laughing at others' pain. It will take some time, but it will be all worth it when the time comes and Rhax doesn’t laugh when someone tells him a story about how their father died because he was a beast tamer and was eaten by a lion.

Arriving at their destination, Rhax’s room. They stopped. “This was good chatter, welcome back Rhax.” Sybal said before leaving, leaving them alone in front of Rhax’s room.

Andromeda felt like it was her chance and gathered her courage and went on her tiptoes and printed a kiss on his left cheek. But she intentionally kissed a part of his lips in the process. She then looked him in the eyes. “Welcome back, my brave great knight.” She said and turned on her heels and walked.