The Royal Contract

But, of course, for her to protect her son, she had to deal with Ryan. She believed she had to stop him before he made a stupid move of fighting for custody of their son. Moreover, there was no way that she was going to marry him.

“Good night, my sweetheart.” She mumbled to her son, whose eyes were finally closed.

She planted a soft, mild kiss on his forehead before moving away from his bed. She was careful not to make unnecessary movements or sounds, not to wake him again.

He said that she was making a lot of noise, causing him to wake up in the first place. At least it took just one story for him to fall asleep. But she did not know that she was making all those sounds. As she had said, she was having a nightmare.

“I hope you never meet your father.” She mumbled, knowing that it would never do him no good to have a father like Ryan.

But she would do her best to protect him from the likes of him. A man like Ryan did not deserve to have a child. And her child needed a better father than he could ever be.

She returned to her room, hoping she would fall into a dreamless sleep. But after approximately thirty minutes of tossing and turning, she was still wide awake.

“Aaahhh!” She hissed out of her frustration.

.....

Every time she closed her eyes, she could see his face smiling. And it was not anywhere near comforting. She could feel her body shuddering with disgust. She just wanted him out of her life and her thoughts.

Finally, giving up, she stood up and found her phone on the nightstand. She grabbed it, intending to search for a video or a game that would divert her mind away from her thoughts.

“What are you doing?” But instead of surfing the net, she found herself dialing his number. “End it.” Her mind said, but her fingers stayed frozen as she waited for someone to answer.

She should not be calling him at this hour since he might be already sleeping. Or he could still be out with his friends. She remembered the time that she saw him with his friends in a club.

But the phone kept ringing, and when she thought he would never pick up, his voice suddenly sounded in the speaker. “Ria. Is that you?” He asked, probably wondering why she would call. “Is there something wrong?” He hastily added.

She could hear that he had just woken up. She could surmise it in his raspy voice. Now, she felt terrible for disturbing him. But she knew she had to answer him before he became worried.

“Sorry. I don’t know what came over me. But I could not sleep. Then, I was about to play with my phone when I accidentally dialed your number.” She explained. But it was not an accident, as her mind reminded her.

“That is ok. You don’t have to apologize. You can call me anytime you want. I am just glad that you are ok.” He said, making a big sigh. But she could hear how genuinely concerned he was.

She could only guess that he was trying to make himself comfortable on his bed as she heard some ruffling on the phone. But that was not all, as her mind wandered to a different path.

“Ok. It was not an accident.” She confessed, suddenly feeling guilty. “I don’t know why I called...” Then, she stopped. “That is not true either.” Taking a deep breath.

“What I am saying is that I think I want to hear your voice so I can fall asleep.” She finally admitted.

“Why? Did something happen, or did you happen to miss me?” Finally, she could hear the teasing in his voice. But she did not mind. Truthfully, she found it sweet that they could finally feel comfortable with each other with tiny matters like this.

“Well..” She hesitated for a second. “I had a horrible nightmare. Then, Edison woke up.” She said. “And I believe I miss you too.” Adding the last part in a shy whisper.

She knew she should be comfortable saying these things to him, but sometimes, her fear got the best of her. She could not stop her self-doubt about her ability to land with a good guy like him.

As they said, he was a good catch, one of the most eligible bachelors in the city. For him to end up in the news cycle, he was either a celebrity or belonged to a high social circle. The latter seemed to be more appropriate for him.

“I can come over now and tuck you to bed. I can even sing you a lullaby. If you have not heard, I have a good voice.” He proudly said.

That was a nice thought, but that would beat her purpose.

“No need to come over. I don’t want you driving at this hour.” She said, thinking that he should not get out of the comfort of his bed. “But I don’t mind a few lines if you like to show off your beautiful voice. That is if you dare.” This time, it was her turn to tease him.

“I would prefer that coming over and tucking you to bed with a good night kiss.” He rumbled. But he knew he had no choice because she was calling the shot. “But a song it is, then. And I promise you. You will fall in love with my voice.”

When she heard his first hymn, she knew she had to eat her words. He did have a fantastic voice. Damn! He was good. And the fact was, she was not just falling in love with his voice.

She realized that she had fallen in love with him. And his voice was just the icing on the cake.