FORBIDDEN ATTRACTION

Chapter 2

"Please can you take me to the princess room, Aria said to the guard, he only nodded and led the way, " why were this people not talking Aria thought as she looked at the guard, maybe she should hit him and see if he responds Aria thought, but she knew the impact of the hit will not affect the strong looking man. They stopped In front of another door that looked similar to her door and the guard knocked and a little voice from inside said "cwam in, "That's adorable, Aria thought. Aria entered the lavished room to find a tiny, curly-haired princess, no more than three years old, playing with a miniature throne and a toy scepter.The little princess, Sophia, looks up at Aria with big, sparkling eyes and giggles, "Aria! Aria!" as if she's known her all her life. Aria's heart melts at the sight of the tiny royal, and she can't help but smile.Sophia toddles over to Aria, her little dress rustling, and wraps her small arms around Aria's leg, looking up at her with a beaming smile. Aria kneels down to greet the little princess, and Sophia starts chattering excitedly about her toys and her kingdom.

Aria is taken aback by the unexpected encounter, but she's enchanted by Sophia's innocence and charm. She plays along, using her best "royal" voice, and soon they're having a delightful tea party with Sophia's stuffed animals.

As they play, Aria realizes that this little princess is a sweet and innocent soul and she's eager to learn more about Sophia's world. The guard, who's been watching from the doorway, nods in approval, "Her Highness has taken a liking to you, Aria. That's a good sign."he thought.

Aria doesn't even realize that it's dark already until she hears a knock on the door, she opens the door to see two maids standing with trays of food " this is for princess Sophia? Aria ask as she makes way for them. "it's for you and her highness one of the maid replies with a smile. Aria was shocked by this revelation, then what was she supposed to do.

After the maids left Anna and Sophia ate their meals, after which Aria bathed the princess in her wooden bathtub and tucked her in to sleep with a soothing lullaby. Aria goes to sleep after taking her own bath, seeing all the ingredients kept for her, Aria wondered if she has been given the wrong room. It has been a week since Aria stepped foot to the castle and every thing has been so good, she enjoyed the company of the little princess, the only things she had to do was to bath the princess, feed her, she wasn't even responsible for making the bed, how easy was her job. Aria heard that the prince came back some days ago, but she had not yet gotten the opportunity to see him. Aria finished from the little princess room and was returning to her room, as she left Princess Sophia's room, she couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder and excitement. She was still getting used to the grandeur of the castle and the unexpected delight of playing with the tiny princess.

As she stepped out into the corridor, she noticed a door opposite her room, slightly ajar. Aria's curiosity piqued, and she pushed the door open slowly, revealing a room that represented the epitome of masculinity. Dark wood paneling, rich leather furnishings, and a grand bed with a intricately carved headboard.Suddenly, a figure emerged from the shadows, and Aria's heart skipped a beat. Prince Alexander Blackwood, the infamous prince, was standing before her, his piercing blue eyes locked onto hers. His chiseled features and chiseled physique made him look like a sculpture come to life.Aria heard whispers of his ruthless reputation and his stunning good looks, but nothing prepared her for the intensity of his gaze. She felt like he was seeing right through her, and it was both unsettling and exhilarating.

"Why are you in my room" he ask, his deep voice low and smooth. "I....I uhmmmm, Aria begins to stammer, "I do not have time to waste and I do not like to repeat myself, he said impatiently with a slight frown, "I am the princess personal maid, Aria replied with a shaken voice, "I see....you've met my sister, Sophia."Aria nods, still trying to process the sudden encounter. "Y-yes, Your Highness. She's adorable."The prince's gaze lingered on her, and Aria felt a shiver run down her spine. She was aware of the rumors, the warnings, but in that moment, she could not help but be drawn to the enigmatic prince."I trust you're settling in well," he said, his eyes never leaving hers. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."he said with a nonchalant expression,like he was bored just talking to her. With that, he turned and disappeared into the shadows, leaving Aria feeling both intrigued and intimidated. She didn't need anyone to tell her that the prince didn't like invasion of his privacy, so she immediately came out and closed the heavy door, she wondered why they were no guards in front of his room, didn't every prince require a guard outside their room, "not my business Aria thought as she waved those thoughts off. She realized that her room was opposite the prince's, and she couldn't help but sigh in frustration. As Aria stood there, trying to process the sudden encounter, she couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and nervousness. She's heard stories about the prince's reputation, his charm and charisma, but also his ruthlessness and cunning character. She wondered what it would be like living under the same castle with all the royalties, she knew this was what she came for but it was more than she bargained for. Just then, a soft voice interrupted her thoughts. "Aria, are you okay? You look a bit lost."Aria turned to see a kind-faced woman standing behind her, likely the chief maid because her uniform gave her in "Oh, yes, I'm fine, thank you. Just a bit...overwhelmed, I suppose."The woman nodded understandingly. " if you ever need any guidance or support, don't hesitate to ask. And be careful around the prince, Aria. He's not one to be trifled with." Aria wondered why the woman was telling her that, she had no business whatsoever with the man, she was going to say that, but decided not to, it wasn't that important she thought.

Aria nodded, with a warm smile. she couldn't help but feel drawn to the prince's mystique, she entered her own room, opposite the prince's, she got ready for bed and as soon as her body touched the soft mattress she dozed off.

The next morning Aria woke up with a resolution to write to her mother, she could not believe that she had not written to her mother, did she get so overwhelmed with the castle and it's activities that she forgot the person that mattered the most to her. She mentally slapped herself for such display of character, that was very unusual of her.Aria entered the princess's chambers, where she found Princess Sophia playing with her toys on the floor. The three-year-old princess looked up to see Aria, her face lighting up with a bright smile."Aria! Aria!" princess Sophia exclaimed, running towards her with open arms, Aria knelt down, embracing Sophia in a warm hug. "Good morning, Your Highness! How are you today?" princess Sophia giggled, "I'm happy! I wanna show you something!"Just then, queen Adelaide, Sophia's mother, entered the room, a gentle smile on her face. "Ah, Aria, good morning I see Sophia is already entertaining you."Aria rose, curtsying respectfully. "Your Highness, good morning. We were just having a lovely time together."Queen Adelaide approaches Aria, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Aria, I'm so glad you're here. Sophia adores you, and I must say, I'm impressed with your kindness and patience."Aria blushes, feeling a sense of gratitude towards the queen "Thank you, Your Highness. I'm just happy to be of service and spend time with princess Sophia. She's a joy to be around."The queen smiles, nodding in approval. "I'm glad to hear that. Keep up the good work, "I'll like to spend time with Sophia if you don't mind, the queen asked, " you don't have to ask your highness, but she hasn't taken her bath yet, " oh don't worry I'll do that, the queen said, "alright then, princess Sophia, queen Adelaide, Aria says as she takes a bow and leaves the room. She was happy because now she could go write a letter to her mother who she knew would be worried sick about her. She asked a guard where she would be writing the letter and he directed get to the palace library, the library was big and beautiful as expected of a library, the shelves were tall to the ceiling and was decorated in royalty, she picked a quill and a paper which she started writing on, she wrote about the first time she came here and what had been happening since then, but she excluded the part of the prince which was very unimportant, she wished her mother well and apologized for taking this much time before writing to her, after she was done writing the letter ,she sealed it with a royal stamp and handed it over to the guard who promised that it will be delivered, Aria felt happy knowing her letter was going to get to her mother.