Olivia Sparks - Volume 1 Chapter 141 Lifting A Finger

“Jeez, Mom. I can wipe myself clean.” Maxen pulled his face away from Queen Isla but his mother was not someone who won’t get what she wanted.

“Everyone, hold Maxen down. I need to clean his face.”

“Seriously?” Maxen’s eyes bulged out of its sockets, finding his mother’s early morning nagging incredulous. Bending to her will, and to her height, he let her wipe off the lipstick stain on his face, and could not help but smile as he listened to Queen Isla hum whilst her eyes were trained on his face.

When she was satisfied with her handiwork, she gave him a double pat on the shoulders. “Jack,” she called forth. “Maxen and I will talk in the tea room.”

“As you wish, Your Majesty.” Jack gave a curt nod, gesturing to the tea room’s way. His mind was in a trainwreck, cooking up a back-up plan in his thoughts just in case the king decided to give Notios Estate a visit too.

Inside the tea room, Maxen lazily sat in one of the seats, still in his striped pajama. He raised a single brow on his mother as he regarded her queenly presence.

Ever the early bird, Queen Isla wakes up at four in the morning every dayan hour earlier than Maxen and the king. So when she heard the news of the royal physician visiting Notios Estate in the wee hours of the morning, it sent red flags to her mind.

On a typical day, it would take her three hours to get prepped for a trip outside the palace, but not that morning. She randomly picked her outfit, forgoing bath, while her make-up was done in the car ride to Maxen’s official residence.

“You almost gave your mother a heart attack,” Queen Isla huffed, placing her teacup down on the saucer.

“Yep. I can see that. Your shoes aren’t matched.”

“What are you talking about, silly child?” She glanced at her feet and chuckled. “Oh goodness gracious. It is not a match! See what you’re doing to your mother?”

“Whaaaaat have I done this time?”

“You check-ups should be done in the morning, Maxen. It won’t look good if the prince suddenly asks for a team of medical staff in the middle of the night. People might misread it, and who knows how much it would affect the economy.”

Maxen cleared his throat, straightening up in his seat. To say that he was uncomfortable receiving a morning lecture was an understatement because, at that rare moment, he wished it was the king in front of him and not his mom.

How could he talk back to the person who repeatedly reminded him of the pain that she endured for eighteen hours during her labor and his delivery? Little did Maxen know, Queen Isla was in the twilight zone the entire time after receiving an epidural.

“First of all, it’s not for me. It’s for Olivia.”

“What? Is she pregnant?” Queen Isla’s hand flew to her agape mouth. Uncertain what to feel over the news although she knew she was getting ahead of herself.

“What? No. She’s not. Mom, what are you saying? We’re not even married yet.”

“Well, then why are you cohabitating if you’re not? It sends the wrong message to other people. And it’s not your name that would be maligned but hers. Did you even think about that?”

Exhaling through his nose, Maxen closed his eyes for a brief second, calming himself. He then traced his sight to his mother who haughtily raised a brow on him when their eyes met. “People should mind their own business,” was his only comeback.

“People won’t mind their business because you’re a public property, Maxen. We all are. So I suggest” Queen Isla shimmied in her seat and cleared her throat. “I don’t want to sound like your dad, but I suggest that if you want to keep on staying under one roof, then do it elsewhere and not in your private residence just to keep the sanctity of the place.

“You know the history that’s attached in Notios Estate. It’s the first thing you learn, before the alphabet and counting, so you have to keep in mind that if you disrespect the house, you disrespect the name that came with it.”

Running his hands down his face, he let out a heavy sigh, hating the suffocating feeling of being controlled by the weight of the crown. “We’re only here for the animals and intend on going back to her penthouse in a week. Okay? Can you relax now?”

Queen Isla tipped her head to the side. “Animals? What animals?”

“She borrowed rescued animals from the conservation society.”

“Really?” Queen Isla’s lips pouted, stifling a smile as the gears in her head turned. The queen glanced at her wristwatch, shaking it. “That’s good to hear then. We have something to talk about during breakfast.”

“What? Mom! What about Dad? He needs you to join him for a meal.”

Standing up to her full height, the queen’s sprightly face glowed. “Oh, he will. He’s on his way to Notios as we speak.”

“Oh come on. Are you serious?” Maxen shot out of his seat, bracing his hands on his h.i.p.s. “Look at you barging into my home, and when you found out it wasn’t I who was hospitalized, you quickly changed the topic which you really wanted to talk about. You didn’t even bother to ask how she was doing.”

“Darling,” Queen Isla beamed, cupping the side of his face. “I don’t need to ask. I saw the medical results on your face the moment I walked into your home. I even cleaned it up for you.”

Queen Isla’s laughter echoed in the hallways as she walked to Maxen’s private library. It sounded like wind chimes tinkling as a wind blew past.

Foregoing his morning workout, Maxen rushed to the bedroom where Olivia was still sleeping. He saw a light sweep by the window, and he knew it was the king’s car arriving in his estate. Pulling up the duvet to cover her exposed shoulder, Maxen breathed in her sleeping form one more time before heading to the ensuite to gear up for the great King Alistair.

Maxen was in the midst of checking his face for any stubble when he noticed Olivia out of the corner of his eye. She was hugging the door frame, covered in her silk robe that reached above her knee.

“Good morning, handsome,” she jazzed with her just woken up throaty voice, smiling sweetly at him. In their months together, if there’s a part of the day where Olivia’s in here dandiest, it would be the morning.

He did his best to reciprocate her mood but Maxen’s mind was experiencing a thunderstorm, so he just gave her a half-suppressed smile. “Good morning to you too, beautiful.” He checked both sides of his face one last time and was surprised when Olivia’s arm coiled around his waist.

In his brooding, he didn’t see Olivia tiptoed her way to him on his side of the countersink. Looking to his side, he saw her grinning, but what stole his attention was her bare feet kissing the cold marble floor, so he turned around and whisked her up, placing her on top of the sink.

“You own a billion-dollar company and you walk barefoot, he scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. His hands automatically found her foot, massaging one after the other, warming it with his touch.

“That tickles,” she giggled, jerking her leg back but was too weak under Maxen’s firm grip.

With one finger, she tipped his head by the chin and their eyes metboth gleaming with deep love and respect for each other.

“Why the long face so early in the morning, Max?”

“King and Queen are here. They’d like to have a word.”

“Oh.”

“Yes, oh.”

“With you or with us?”

“With us.” Maxen gritted his teeth. Of course, they wanted to have a chat with her too. Why else would they make a trip to his home when they could summon him alone to The Highlands?

Knowing how awkward it would be that a non-family member would join them for a meal, Olivia contemplated whether she should. But seeing Maxen wash his hands by the sink with a face that screamed how much agitation he was bottling up over the fact of his parents’ surprise visit, Olivia offered, “Well, I’ll try to be as quiet as possible while you guys do your thing.”

Maxen’s shoulders shook from glee, surprising Olivia. “Want to make a bet? Five seconds into food service, and you’ll be the first one to talk. They have their ways of making one speak without lifting a finger.”

Pulling him closer to her, Maxen stood between her spread thighs. She massaged his knitted brows, relaxing it and forcing his eyes to close. “And I have ways of making one shut up without lifting a finger.”

“Okay. You do have the talent for that.” Maxen smirked. He planted a soft kiss on her lips, and kissed her once more, never getting enough from the high of touching her. “Get ready. We don’t like the king waiting for us.”