The Alpha Prince's Purchased Maid
Chapter 294: Guilty Desire

Chapter 294: Guilty Desire

I winced at his touch, but it wasn’t at all from the pain while I wondered how long I could keep this act up.

“I tripped. That’s all, it’s honestly not a big deal...” I replied softly.

“We should get a doctor to look at this. It doesn’t look bad now, but it could get worse very quickly without the proper medical attention,” he said as he looked up into my face.

“There’s no need for that. It doesn’t hurt that much anymore so you don’t need to worry so much...” I protested before trying my best to offer him a smile.

“That’s no good. I’ll call a doctor over to take a look at you. It won’t take long and there’s nothing for you to be scared about,” he said reassuringly.

But there was something that I should be scared about...

“Honestly, there’s no need for that. This is all my fault...” I said while repeating the duchess’s advice.

“This isn’t your fault, Mila. It’s just an accident,” the prince said before showing me a kind smile.

“It is my fault. I...should have been more careful...” I replied softly.

“I guess you might be right about that, but an accident is just an accident, and it can happen to the best of us. There’s no need for you to be so hard on yourself. That being said, since I’m not a doctor, we should get a doctor to tend to this as soon as possible,” the prince surmised.

I don’t remember the last time that I felt this panicked or scared. If a doctor came to check up on me, it would probably be exposed that I had faked my injury. I glanced over at where the duchess was standing to find her looking at us with a sweet smile on her lips. I wished that she would step in and say something to get me out of the situation that I was in, but she didn’t seem to think that it was necessary. If I had to guess, she seemed to like what she was seeing while I didn’t think that things were progressing in the direction that I hoped for.

“Umm...I don’t think a doctor is needed. I’ll really be fine. Duchess Flavia was just panicking a little and that was why she gave you a call. I’m fine...really...” I said and I could hear my own desperation.

“...Is that so?” the prince said after a moment of pause.

He didn’t seem totally convinced but I could see that he was now indecisive. Quickly, I nodded my head to assure him that I was fine.

“This is my fault so...” I murmured softly.

“Stop saying that, Mila...” the prince said before I could finish my sentence.

I didn’t want to keep saying that but since the duchess never told me what else I could say, that was all that I could think of. Her words seem to hold true that the more I said that it was my fault, the prince would deny that that was the case. However, that didn’t make me feel any better about the situation that I had gotten myself in. The more the prince reacted the way that the duchess had predicted, the more guilty I felt.

“I guess you can’t stand, so...” he said as he slowly got up to his feet again.

I glanced up at the prince’s face as he stood up straight once more. The hesitant look was completely gone from his face, and it seemed that he had made his decision already. Before I could wonder what he had finally decided, the prince’s arms were around my body. A moment later, he had managed to lift me smoothly into his arms. My body stiffened when I found myself being carried princess-style in his arms with his slightly stern face looking down at mine. My breath caught in my throat as my eyes widened in surprise.

“If you don’t want me to call the doctor here, I’ll just carry you to where the doctor is. There’s a couple of doctors here within the Sacred Chambers, did you know that?” he said patiently before he smiled kindly at me.

His kindness and worry tore at my heart. The pain in my chest was so intense that I wanted to start crying right there in his arms. If only he knew the truth, would he treat me the way that he was treating me right now?

At that moment, I had already forgotten about worrying about the doctor finding out that in fact I had not injured my ankle. The prince offered me one last smile before he began walking with me still held in his arms. The duchess offered me a smile that showed her satisfaction before resuming her solemn mode of a failed supervisor. The prince had not said a word to her since the moment that he entered the room, and he did not say anything when we passed where she was standing. The duchess bowed in silence to the prince as she watched us leave the room.

How do I tell him the truth?

The question that entered my mind made me understand that I had made up my mind about what to do. Instead of being found out by the doctor or continuing with my act to fake my injury, I had decided that I should tell the prince the truth and face the consequences that I deserved. A part of me wanted to place the blame on the duchess for talking me into this but I had to admit to myself that I did want this to happen simply because I wanted an excuse for Prince Leonard to come to me.

Needless to say, I wasn’t proud of the method that I had chosen to employ but I was just too desperate to see the prince. Although I knew that it was wrong, I couldn’t think of another way and the duchess’s plan just felt like something tempting that could work. It did work in making the prince appear almost magically in front of me and I was thankful for the warmth of his body against mine as he held me in his arms. What I did not expect was the pain and guilt that tore into my heart.

I need to tell him the truth and I need to do it right now...

--To be continued...