Chương 228: Chapter 211. Ruby's Reward 3

" Hyah..." After we finished eating, Matthew began to yawn. With the cool breeze coming in now and the leaves of this newly created tree, I think this is the perfect place to take a nap. Which is perfect. Since I wanted him to rest today anyways. The walk here was mostly relaxing, sure, and we saw all of the flowers and even some of the small animals running around in the brush. It seemed to put him in a good mood.

Now that he's full and already yawning, I know he's ready to nap, it's time to break out the special move that Sarah and Anna said I should use." Here, Matthew, place your head here!"" Ruby?" I gestured to him to lay his head on my lap." I don't think its appro-"" I've already cleared this matter with Sarah and Anna! There's no issue in using my lap as a pillow." But still, you're an Unmarried Wom-"" This is part of my request! You have no room to argue."

"..." He was silenced with my words. Even with that, he still tried to think of some way to not have to do it. I've had enough waiting however. Grip! Pull!" R-Ruby!"" Today is just a relaxing day for both of us. So, today, you're not my "Employer" or the "Lord of Paradise", you're just "Matthew" and I'm just "Ruby", so just lie down and accept the lap pillow."" S-So you do know what this is?" His face lit up similar to mine earlier."

So, forcing an indirect kiss on me is fine, but forcing you to sleep on my lap is bad?"" Huh? Y-You were choking though?"" I have cups, see?" I pointed to the basket where I had placed the 4 cups I had shoved into the basket when I left this morning. While I rushed to help Matthew when he was joking, I placed them against the basket side where we could both see them. I didn't think I would've benefitted from placing them now when I did it, but I'm thankful I did now." But... You never..."" You never asked.

Now, please, just relax and take a nap. This is part of my request, so follow it." press... Matthew sighed, but he did as I asked. Now with him here, I can do something I've been wanting to do for months. pat... Soft... Warm... pet..." Ruby?"" It's to help you relax. Now close your eyes." I started to pet his head after he laid down onto my lap. His hair feels just like I thought it would. Its soft and warm. I've been wanting to do something like this since I began teaching him Martial Arts.

Every time I would praise him, he'd always make a beaming smile as I did. Under the watchful eyes of the other girls, I couldn't do it though, it was so hard to hold back. But now, I can finally get it out of my system. After a few minutes of petting his head, I heard his breathing begin to deepen.

"...." He's asleep now. It was voted by our Alliance that we, the ones who weren't married to him yet, weren't allowed to go past basic things like petting him and lap pillows. But... Just touching his cheeks should be fine, right? poke... soft... I poke his cheek. His breathing remains normal. This is... Fantastic! Sarah and Anna get to do this every day? I'm so jealous! And his cheek... It's so soft! If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it." Ehm..."

Oh, seems I touched his cheek a little too much? He almost woke up. I need to be careful. This is my reward at the end of the day, I need to enjoy it for all it's worth. Once he returned to normal and I was only petting his head lightly, I looked at Paradise from here again. Even going over how it was in the past, before Matthew, Sarah and Anna arrived, I don't think it does what they've done justice. To really see my town, the place I grew up in, go from so barren, to so... Lively...

I don't think words can do it justice. From the youngest people in the town being Flare and Edmon to now there's enough children that an actual school is being built for them to learn... All of this change... Coming from someone who's head and body is so small. I looked down at Matthew as I was thinking about all of this and I just looked at him for a moment...

".... Zzzz...." He's fallen into a deep sleep. Its only at a time like this, I can really tell how young he is. He'd be a year away from graduating from the Royal Academy right now if he was a normal Noble in this Country. Yet here he is, bettering our lives and sacrificing meals or sleep or anything that he can in order to make life better for Our People. He's so different compared to the old Lord we had.

The day that man was dragged away was a happy day for everyone, but from what I've heard from Mom and Dad, that Lord's conduct was what Our People were used to. I do wonder how they'd react when they come home from service? Will they be able to appreciate what he's done for us? Or will they act indignant like I did when he first arrived here? I know he won't hold it against them if they did, but I'd still like it if they were respectful of him when they first meet. Maybe by the time they meet...

I'd be introducing him as My Husband? Hot... I felt his face growing closer and closer to me, I was leaning into him. I want to kiss him now. I'm sorry, girls. I can't help it." Snore!"

"!" JERK! I jumped up." Hmph..." He turned onto his side. He was facing my body now. I felt my heart beating in my throat... I need to calm down. Otherwise, I'd wake him up early. I want him to sleep for another 3 hours at least. So for me, I'm simply going back to just rubbing his head. Ah, he's nuzzling up to my hand, I knew he'd like this! I need to make sure to remember this for later! I wonder if he would like it if I scratched his head gently? scratch... scratch... scratch Ah he seems to like that too.

He's smiling!

"... Mom..." He... Called me... Mom! Why... Does that... Make me feel.... So good? It's like he trusts me more than I thought! No, wait! He's not referring to me, he's dreaming. He's dreaming of his actual Mother. Where are his parents? Sarah and Anna never told us... And he never really mentions it either... Well, he's from another country, so it's not like I could ever meet them, but still. I want to know more about him. Not about "Lord Matthew" or "Matthew the Paladin"...

I just want to know more about Matthew... I wonder if he would tell me? Would he if I just ask? He's always been on the more formal side of things since he came here. There've been moments where he's let his frustrations out or he'd smile and laugh at something he finds amusing. But, he's never really talked about himself to Emily or me during our work... Even when Prince Delcan tried to get him to speak about himself, he just would default to talking about all of the work he's been doing here in Paradise.

That feels..." It makes me feel kind of sad..." Oh! It slipped out.

"..." He's still asleep though. Good. It's so strange, he's so close to me right now, but the more I think about it, he seems so far away... Well... He "technically" is far away... I mean, he's Married and all that. But Sarah and Anna have told me that it's okay to Marry him if I can make him fall for me. rub... rub... Press... I switched to rubbing his head again, and he seemed to nuzzle deeper into my lap. I'm thankful that he seems to enjoy my thighs as a pillow.

In the back of my mind, I thought that all of that training I did would make my thighs hard and unbearable to use as a pillow, but my thoughts seemed to be wrong. He fell asleep without much of an issue, he seemed comfortable when he did. Now with all of the petting, he's landed into such a deep sleep he's even dreaming. Hopefully it's a good dream, unlike that time he brought Princess Alice." Em..." rub... rub... press... He's turning again, now he's facing the same way as me.

Even while he dreams, he ends up looking at Paradise. He's breathing deeply and calmly still. I guess the dream is a decent one? Now that I've cooled down. I'm starting to take a better look at him again. He has bags under his eyes. I've also noticed the times he's furrowed his brow has increased during these 2 months. I understand that he's preparing for that party in Zana, but I wish he would relax somewhat.

I mean, we all know once he actually follows through with his plans, I doubt the Noblewomen will be able to sit back. Once they try ice cream for the first time, it'll go like every other time he's let anyone try ice cream. I wonder how that Lord Fracks will react though? He was known as an Honorable Man, but we stopped hearing anything about him ever since his wife died. Maybe ice cream can bring him some happiness if he's still sad? I wonder if Lady Cindy will be there as well... If so...

I should probably tell Sarah and Anna to keep him away from her. The last thing we need is him causing another Noblewoman to turn her head his way. Speaking of which, Sarah and Anna told me that Sarah's Friends and Sister are also part of the Alliance... pull..." Er..." I pulled his cheek, but not enough to wake him up. Just thinking about the headache he must give Sarah and Anna must be astounding. Maybe I have no room to talk though, since I also might be one of those headaches he caused them?

Maybe I should just stop thinking about it... I just let the time pass as I thought about how to make him fall for me instead of wasting it thinking about future headaches.