Warden woke up late to find June snuggled into his arms, her nightgown barely hanging on her shoulders with patches of kiss marks all over her rosy fair skin. She was sleeping soundly, but even the shot movements he made seemed to alert her. Her long ears perked up, brows wrinkled, as she slowly opened her eyes.
"Morning, Beautiful," he said, and kissed her lips softly.
June blinked a couple of times and rubbed her forehead. "You're a bad man," she said, gritting her teeth.
"What?" Warden shot her an incredulous look.
"You said you won't try anything," she said, heaving. "Then you said I need to help you once... how many times was it again? My arms went stiff with that thing in my palms..."
Warden could only laugh awkwardly.
June snorted and rose from the bed.
"Well, sorry to impose on you," he said, rubbing his nose. "As an apology, I can help you with my hands, or better yet—"
"No," June said sharply, cutting him off. She straightened her gown and then her eyes found the marks left behind by all the fluid in her gown, bedsheet and blanket. The strong smell still remained somewhat, reddening her cheeks. As if to rectify her blush, she glared up at Warden. "Get up, I need to wash the bedsheet and blanket."
"Let me do it," Warden insisted. "Since it was me who imposed on you, let me do the cleaning. You go take a bath first."
June stared for a good couple of seconds, looking suspicious. In response, Warden shot her his ideal innocent look.
"Fine," she said. "And from now on I'll think thrice before letting you do as you please."
Warden smiled. "You say that, but—"
He stopped finding her glaring at him. He coughed slightly as she hurried to the washroom. Warden smiled to himself and turned to face the soiled blanket and bedsheet. Even in his tunic and pants...
He wrapped the bedsheet and blanket quickly and shoved them into his subspace, thinking of washing them later. Perhaps framing them might even be right for a memento as proof of their first intimacy, but June would be unlikely to agree to that. Knowing her, she might set them on fire.
"No?"
This time, the bunny literally shook her head. She was growing more intelligent with time.
Warden smiled and came back into the drawing room with the tea in a plate. He served the tea to June's blonde mentee, as the suspicions in her eyes only grew. Now she had an icy glare in her look, probably thinking he was taking away her beloved mentor from her.
Warden cracked his lips into a slight laugh, as finally the mentor joined. She was in a new dress, but hadn't done her hair yet, which lay wet on her shoulders. Warden might have wanted to help her with that if there was no one else present with them, and June might even let him.
"Kiara, you're finally back," she said cheerily, and shot him a look. "I hope your father's mind is at ease after taking care of you over the week."
Warden served her the tea. "Extra sweet for you," he smiled.
June raised an eyebrow and slurped the tea, resting on the cough across Kiara.
"Professor June," Kiara greeted, standing up and bowing, which she clearly didn't do for him. Maybe because June was her mentor and their relationship was deep. And she didn't respect him. Well, definitely not after finding him here so early in the morning, even with all the goodwill he maintained by saving her life.
Yeah, she's definitely a brat, Warden thought.
"Unfortunately, Father is only at ease after sending a bodyguard to protect me," Kiara said with a sigh.
"A bodyguard?" June raised an eyebrow, sipping in the aromatic tea. "The academy allow this?"
"Unfortunately," the mentee said. "He has been on my tail throughout the way since father appointed him. I only managed to come here alone, saying Professor June did not alloy unfamiliar people, especially men loitering around her quarters."
She shot him a glare while saying that.
"Well, she did not," Warden laughed. "I'm merely a servant, she pitied."
This time, both of the women glared up at him.
"It's a joke," he coughed. "Why are you women stuck up so early in the morning?"