"You tired, Guinevere?" Arthur frowned, kicking off his boots as he padded through the archways that led to their bedchamber. After a day that had seemed to last forever, the final meeting had finished, and he had at last been allowed to escape to the sanctuary of his chambers.
"A little. More so since you kicked off your boots, actually."
"Sorry." he grinned warmly, swiping them up and placing them instead neatly at the foot of the changing screen, beside hers. The sight of the small boots next to his own caused a flicker of heat to run through him, and he straightened up, smiling that crooked, boyish smile that he kept only for her.
"There." he smiled. "All cleared up. And now that I've proven I'm an obedient, house trained husband, am I allowed to come and say hello?"
Gwen giggled. "Of course. I would've let you come anyway, you know – the house trained part is just a bonus."
"Well in that case -" he padded around the bed and sank down on the mattress beside her – "I hope you'll keep me around."
"I'll think about it." she teased in response, leaning up and kissing him in greeting. "Hello, husband."
"Hello, my love. I feel like I haven't seen you all day."
Gwen gave him a pointed look. "That's because you haven't."
"I'm sorry. I had hoped to be here for lunch, but training ran over and by then you were already down in the lower town."
"How did you know that?"
"I'm magical." he deadpanned, and Gwen rolled her eyes, biting back a giggle as she did so.
"Seriously, Arthur."
"What if I am serious?"
"Then you are not my husband, and therefore I have to leave this bed -" She made to move, but Arthur's arm caught her waist and pulled her back down to him.
"And what if I were to hold you hostage?" he grinned, raising his eyebrows at her.
"Then I'll call for the guards."
"You wouldn't."
Gwen raised her own eyebrows at him now. "Watch me." she said, opening her mouth as if to cry out, but just as her lips formed the first letter, Arthur dipped his head and kissed her.
It was a long kiss – tender and languid and completely distracting from the issue at hand. By the time they broke apart, Gwen's insides had turned to liquid.
"You don't play fair." she managed to murmur against his lips – slightly swollen now, and warm from the kiss. Arthur grinned.
"You never laid out any game rules."
Gwen rolled her eyes. "Know it all." she teased, pulling away so she could look at him properly. "How was it you really knew?"
"I asked Merlin. He told me he'd seen you with Leon whilst he was taking the laundry down."
"So you're not magical after all?"
"Not exactly, no." he kissed the tip of her nose. "If I had it my way, Guinevere, we would never have left our chambers this morning, but unfortunately for both of us -" he wrapped his arm around her and she cuddled against him, settling her head on his shoulder – "the kingdom had other ideas."
"It always has other ideas."
Arthur chuckled. "True. Maybe one day it'll behave itself."
"Mmmm." Gwen hummed sleepily, snuggling closer. "Merlin'll be up in a minute, Love."
Arthur kissed the top of her head. "I know."
"We'll have to move when he appears."
"Maybe." He rested his cheek gently atop her curls now, and Gwen sighed contentedly.
"Why maybe?"
"Because these are our chambers, and you, Guinevere, are tired."
"But if Merlin -"
"No buts." He kissed her forehead. "You're exhausted, my love – I'm not having you get up from your first break of the day, just because my manservant is bringing dinner in. Besides, Merlin won't be embarrassed – it's not as if we're doing anything -" Arthur paused, struggling to find the right word – "illicit."
"Illicit?" Gwen tilted her head to the side in his shoulder, looking up at him with an amused expression on her face.
Arthur grinned down at her. "You know what I mean, Guinevere."
"Hmmm." she smiled, and now it was Arthur's turn to regard her with amusement.
"Hmmm?"
"Hmmm."
