Stand By Me Darling
Chapter 193: The Butterfly

Chapter 193: The Butterfly

"What are you looking at?"

Talia placed her hand on Arthur’s cheek and asked. That guy had a gentle look trained on her and although it made her warm, she felt a little uncomfortable with the stare.

"It’s prickly," she rubbed his cheek over the stubble and her lips pouted cutely.

"Yes, help me shave," Arthur came out of his thoughts and dragged her to the washbasin. She understands him, trusts him and acts unusually cute. He wanted to distract himself from ravishing her once more.

He used to have these urges around her a lot, but now after having a taste of her last night, he wanted more and more.

"Okay," Talia followed him. She shaves her legs. She reckoned it would be the same.

"Are you kidding me?"

Talia couldn’t help but scream when she saw the happy looking guy taking a straight razor from the leather travel pouch with his shaving supplies.

"No, why?" Arthur opened the razor and shrugged.

Talia’s entire face twitched. "That’s a cutthroat razor and you’re asking me; the one with no experience to use it on you?"

"Yeah, why not? You are a fast learner. It would be a piece of cake for you," Arthur really was excited to let her try.

" No thanks. I’ll practice on a balloon first," Talia refused. Even her palms went cold imagining running that sharp blade through his face. What if she peels off the skin? Or accidentally cut some veins or something?

Arthur stared at her for a while. He could see her going pale out of fright. He did wonder for a moment that she might find this job beneath her when she blatantly refused, but he was pleased to know that she refused because she cared for him.

Talia watched him stropping the blade. His hands gently moved to and fro over the strop delicately holding the razor. His eyes were focused and she found him extremely handsome watching him like that.

Talia pulled a stool for her to sit and watched his every move. With her legs crossed and her phone in her hand, her eyes were wandering off to Arthur as he started preparing to shave.

Arthur noticed her drooling over him with her hands propping up her cheek and pressed his lips to stop smiling. He didn’t want to acknowledge her stare and allowed her to stare at him all she wanted.

Who else could find a woman like her who could not hold back her stares?

Talia stared at him for a while, busily. His hands were so perfect and whether it is shaving or ’other’ fun stuff, they can do so with extreme finesse. Her thoughts went to the previous night and without knowing she was grinning foolishly like an idiot.

Realising something wet on her hands, Talia sat straight clearing her throat. She had literally drooled over, watching Arthur! Ugh!

After making sure Arthur didn’t notice her drooling, she started to scroll through her phone. If he realised she literally drooled over him, nothing can take off the smug grin off his face.

Ugh! That can’t happen.

Arthur saw her wiping her drool off her hand and couldn’t help but smile proudly. But alas! He didn’t mind the blade and ended up scraping his skin. He hissed slightly and silently wiped his face with a frown. He didn’t want her to see him hurting his face, smiling at her.

Talia thought she should leave for her room. Bear was being taken care of by her staff in her room and she wanted to go see that puppy soon.

But looking at the way she is dressed, she decided it won’t be wise to leave Fred’s room like this. She sent a message to Amy, requesting her to bring her a set of clothes to change.

She scrolled through the headlines about her. The papers from Esteria still wrote that she was just lazy and frivolous, attending parties and dancing with celebrities. Usually her mood would get spoilt a little reading these headlines, but she found herself to be too happy to get affected by these things today.

Guess it should be the dopamine and oxytocin from last night!

Talia shrugged.

"You said you hired a body language expert. What happens to that? Everything about me is negative in Esteria," she complained to Arthur.

"Good," Arthur looked at her with a smile. "This would be the..." he paused for a second and shrugged, "This would possibly be the last time they write bad things about you."

"Really?" Talia was a bit skeptical. The media in Esteria are used to writing negative stories about her. How can a leopard change its spots?

"Do you have a plan?" she knew Arthur won’t be sure without a plan. Also he was the one who let those negative stories written about her. So she believed he had a plan.

"Mm hmm," he nodded and went silent. Talia wanted to ask what his plans were, but in the end decided to get surprised.

Talia scrolled through other news and found that there were majority of positive news about her. The record deal between the two countries that was yet to be signed was also discussed in many financial magazines.

"Grandpa refused to leave for Rosandale tomorrow," she told him as she remembered what Mr. Ed said last night. For some reason, her Grandpa wanted to leave the next day.

Arthur stared at her for a moment and wiped his face with a towel as he had finished shaving.

" Tomorrow is Jerald Brunton’s anniversary. You know your grandfather visits his grave each year," Arthur started to apply the aftershave.

Talia bit her lips and bowed her head. She forgot. Jerald Brunton was a distant cousin of her grandfather who was adopted into the Brunton family by her grandpa’s father when he was very young. Her Grandpa and Jerald grew up as brothers, but no one in the public acknowledged him as a Brunton since his mother was a Brunton but his father was not from an aristocratic house.

Back then Brunton family members were sparse and so were the Boswells since the feud was serious. So every Brunton left were protected by the head family and since Jerald Brunton lost his parents, he was adopted into the main family. Even with all the securities, the Brunton family only got left with her grandfather by the end of the war.

Her Grandpa considered him a brother and they were pretty close. During the war, her Grandpa received a draft letter. He was newly wed and during that turbulent times, even sons noble families weren’t spared from getting drafted. At least one person from each family were forced to join the military. Jerald Brunton took her grandpa’s place and went to war. Sadly, he passed away in the war. Her Grandpa really was very grateful to his brother and he still grieved for his loss.

’ He’s the sweetest lad I know! It was a shame... It Should’ve been me, Mary-Ann... He died in my place.’ Her grandfather used to say. Although Talia didn’t know her granduncle, she felt that he should have had a great heart to take his brother’s place and bravely go to war with no training.

She felt guilty for forgetting such an important day for her grandfather.

As she was bowing her head, playing with her hair, she felt something tickling on her neck and was startled. She knew it was Arthur’s fingers and as she saw she saw a beautiful butterfly descending down over the hoodie.

The white gold chain was thin and the butterfly with its wings spread was slanted to her left. On its wings were two deep red stones, which she assumed to be rubies. She held the pendant and was lost for words as she looked at Arthur with his hand on her shoulder walking to her front.

"You like it?" he asked with a gentle smile.

"A gift? I love it!" Talia sprung up and standing on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed his lips. "It’s so pretty," her voice became shrill and she ran towards a mirror and looked closer. "Fred! This is a surprise. What’s this gift for?" her face was filled with smiles and she couldn’t stop her legs springing up and down.

Arthur’s hands unconsciously went over his heart. He loved watching her. He loved to see her reaction each time he gives her a gift. Those eyes would immediately light up and lift his spirits up along the way too.

"It’s red... Why is it not blue?" Talia felt it weird and ran back to him and scratched his chest.

"I couldn’t find anything blue today," he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Ah? So that’s where you went so early in the morning? Fred, you surprised me!" she smiled and pecked his lips.

"Are these rubies?" she asked. She won’t care if they were cubic zirconia or glass even, but she knew this guy would only gift her the best and they won’t be fake gems.

"Red emeralds," he said casually.

"Wow!" Talia could only exclaim. He always goes beyond her expectations. She knew that red beryl, also known as red emerald, is one of the world’s rarest gemstones.

To find this in a very short time... He makes it seem like he only decided to buy it in the morning. So he must have bought it from the jewellery shop in the hotel.

" Does it mean something?" she asked. She felt it. He’d have bought something in blue if he could get this rare gem. But he purposefully chose a red one?

"Nope," he turned his face, not meeting her eyes and Talia knew he is hiding something.

"Fred..." she made him look at her. "Tell me... What does this red butterfly means?"

As she was speaking she realised something. When they met first, she called him ’Red’. And butterflies are usually associated with men. Her brain started working.

She is ’his Iris’ according to him and for her, he is ’Red’... Red butterfly for Iris.

The necklace had only one butterfly and that means...

" Are you claiming ownership over me?" she asked feigning anger. But she couldn’t hold her angry face seeing him pouting.

"So what? I can’t put a ring on your finger yet," he said and seeing her about to burst to laughter, he bent and kissed her in a domineering manner.

He was lost for words. He felt this one is too smart for him. But he loved her for it too.

Talia kissed him back too. She didn’t mind his gift. He wanted to give her this gift probably because they became one last night and he must have been happy and felt like buying a gift. He even put so much thoughts to this necklace. Why would she pick on it?

"I can be the only butterfly to sip your nectar," he said in a strict manner and Talia didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. His words seemed vulgar and sweet at the same time.

"Silly, I love you," she said and kissed him gently.

"Promise me..."

Arthur’s deep baritone voice rolled in her ears and his fingers held the back of her head as his lips trailed on her cheek.

"Promise me that you’re only mine..."

His lips ended just millimetres away from her lips. Talia felt his hot breath on her cheeks and an overwhelming musky scent, possibly from the aftershave, entered her nose making her lose her sanity for a moment.

But she soon composed herself.