Chapter 1

Kezia Clarke, smiled with satisfaction, she had single handedly arranged and cleaned the room. Changing the beddings with fresh ones, and also placing new towels and toiletries. She enjoys being useful around the palace. If she is not in one of the rooms cleaning, she's in the royal library, the place she loves the most. One can simply get lost in that big room, thanks to the King who has given her the permission to upgrade the place, especially now that she has graduated from the university, with a degree in Library Science.

Kezia enjoys the company of books more than being around people, the smell, texture in her hands —oh thinking about the new books she ordered fills her with excitement. Naomi, her friend, always claimed she was weird with the way she preferred books to the company of men while they were still in the university. They met in their first year and since then the two ladies have been together nonstop. She hardly goes out, the few relationships she's had never last past four months. Subconsciously it is as if she's always measuring any man, she meets with one particular person, a man she's trying so hard to forget. She finally opened up to Naomi one day, after she had pestered her, accusing her of always sabotaging her own relationships. Kezia has an intense crush on someone she can never have: Prince Henry Gbadegesin. He's the reason why she can't seem to have connection with any other person.

"Kezia! But isn't he like older than you?" She recalls Naomi asking that day, as she told her, her deep secret.

"He's not that old, maybe nine or ten years, but I don't really care. Besides it doesn't even matter because he will never look in my way, I think he hates me," Kezia pointed out.

Naomi was now even more confused when Kezia declared that the Prince hated her. How could hate such a sweet person like Kezia? Determined to know everything, she gently encouraged Kezia to tell her the whole story.

Kezia recounted her first encounter with the prince to Naomi.

She has always insisted on helping her parents right from a very young age. She practically grew up in the palace. Though She hardly saw the three Princes because they were busy running their own empires and when they comes around to Ijomo, her mother would never allow her anywhere near to the royal wing. She remembered the first time she saw Henry in the palace—it was a chance encounter, in his military uniform. Kezia was seventeen then, she was practically drooling seeing how the official wear molded to his body, as he stepped out from his car and sauntered into the palace in hurry.

Kezia was just coming from running errands for her mother. She could not help but stare with longing at him rooted to a spot at the entrance, for she has never seen any man that handsome before, nor does she have anyone to compare him to. Here was a grown man not a boy.

She fell in love that day with the tall handsome prince, she could not help it. She recalls pleading with her mother to allow her to start working as a maid in the palace pending the time, she would gain admission to the university. At first, she refused outright, but later agreed seeing that the additional income would help towards the funding of her education and since she can't just be sitting at home doing nothing while waiting for admission. It was a perfect opportunity and excuse for her to be closer to the prince. She made sure she was the one that was assigned to take care of his needs while he was around.

Kezia had heard of his countless adventures with different beautiful women from other maids. The ladies are always around him all through his short stay, it's like a beacon attracting them. She hates all of them for it. She may be young, but not naive about what the Prince was doing to them. On one of the occasions that his latest lady friend slept over, she waited for his lady friend to leave before coming in to clean like she usually does, not expecting to see anybody in the room, because the prince is usually up and about early.

She remembered going into Prince Henry's room to clean it, thinking he would be out already, but she was shocked to find him in bed, still sleeping. The bed sheets were all rumpled, she stared at his long form on the bed, it was obvious to her that he was naked under the cover cloth covering only his half, leaving his chest bared. She wanted to leave at first, but her curiosity was killing her, and it's not like she had seen any boy in that state before, though this man is far from being a boy.

She stealthily moved towards the bed to look at his sleeping form. This is the first time she would be seeing a man like this. Palms sweating, she bit her lips in concentration, and inspect him, fascinated by his body, tracing his abs and biceps with her eyes, she stopped at where the cloth covering his waist was, trying to decipher what lays underneath the cover. She glanced up to stare at his lips again—it fascinated her, only to find his dark eyes glowering at her in fury.

"What the hell are you doing here little girl? Looking at me in such a manner?" he growled, as he sat up dragging the cloth to cover himself. She could not even form a coherent answer; he did not even allow her to say anything before demanding she leave immediately and never attend to him again till he leaves.

She remembers scrambling out of his room in fear and close to tears. It was like waking the sleeping lion that day, but that was years ago when she was seventeen. She did not expect that he would still be carrying any grudge, especially against a naive girl of that time, but how wrong she was.

The last time they saw each other was two years ago. She stumbled upon him at the crown prince quarters when she was serving Lola, and in his usual arrogant manner, he demanded that she was stalking him. He told her to stop throwing herself at him, and that he didn’t rob cradles.

Imagine him calling her cheap and immature. For the second time she bolted away from him in tears.

"Wow that's serious girl, but you can't continue to let him torment you. Stop thinking about him, and move on," Naomi had advised her after hearing it all.

She tried, God knows she actually tried as much as possible not to be on his radar, or even Google him. Searching him out on the Internet would only cause more heart ache for her. Anytime her other female friends gush about how hot the three Gbadegesin brothers are, and talk about how lucky she is growing up close to them in the palace. Kezia tries as much as possible not to get drawn into the conversation. It's better not to feed the intense attraction she has for Henry.

Despite Kezia's effort snone of her relationships work, and that is why she is still single after spending four years in university.

Now he is coming to visit his father, even at Twenty-four he still has a way of making her feel like a naive teenager.

She gazes around the room and sighs, everything is in place and it will not go down well for her if he finds her in his room yet again.

Kezia wonders how the prince will look now, in the flesh after two years. Handsome as ever, if not more.

She almost jumps out of her skin when she hears a footstep at the room entrance, but sighs with relief when she sees that it's just one of the maids.

"Hello, Anna, do you need me?" Kezia asks, joining her at the entrance.

"Not me, but his Highness as sent for you, he asks that you prepare his usual for him" she said, smiling and giving her a knowing look.

"Alright then let's go, but you will have to help me in the kitchen if you want to eat!,” Kezia told her.

Anna's face beamed. It's no more news among the staffs, that Kezia knows how to make the best chicken soup, and ever since she had prepared it for the King when the old man had a little cold, he has been requesting it almost daily. The staff haggles over the remaining soup. Anna almost skips with excitement, at the thought of helping Kezia in the kitchen, her portion is guaranteed.

******

The king sipped the soup gently; the chicken soup was simply delicious. He sat in one of the soft couches in his bedroom, enjoying and chewing the soft meat.

"Have I ever told you that my late wife knew how to prepare the soup?" He asked, smiling wistfully.

"No you haven't your Highness" Kezia replied, occupying the seat opposite him.

"Well she did know how to, just like you. You remind me of her sometimes, you know? You are beautiful just like her" He said.

Kezia smiled shyly at the King, she enjoyed listening to him, he tells the best story ever, especially about his late wife, the queen. She glanced at her picture, by the King's bedside, he loves looking at it, and it comforts him. Whenever she comes home for school break, he will regale her with stories, and ask her about her studies.

"So how are you feeling now your Highness?" She asked. Kezia saw the king's physician leaving the Old man's room when she was coming with the soup, she is worried that the king may not be feeling well again, or maybe he just misses his children.

"Well between me and you I will be fine my child, I'm not going to die, at least not today," he said with mischief. "But this dying old man needs something from you." He placed the soup bowl down on the table.

"But you just said you are not dying" she replied, teasing the king.

"Naughty child, but I'm not as strong as I used to be. Listen I don't want you to just be attending to this old man, or cleaning the rooms like a common maid, because you my dear have gone to school and come out with a good result. You need a better job than just being here," he told her.

"Your Highness but I love it here, besides you know I love taking care of the library, lots to do in there. Did I tell you that the books I ordered will arrive today?" Her eyes beamed with excitement.

"I know you love being in the library my dear, and I must commend all the beautiful work you have done there. You brought the whole place alive again, I went there two days ago and I love the way you've arranged the whole place, but I want you to go out there, gain more experience, then if you still want to settle down with running the palace library I won't object."

"I guess you are right your highness," she mutters with reluctance.

"How about this, I will tell my Son—Henry, to find you a good position in his company, now listen before you say anything, I know he can be a bit tough and hard but that's just because he has been a military man before, and may be still is at heart, but you will learn a lot from him, my child. You will even learn more about technology, besides it also an order from your King,” the King said with a stubborn glint in his eyes.

Kezia sighed, “I understand you, your Highness. It will even be an honor, but I fear that the Prince hates me" she replied weakly.

"I doubt that my child, but don't worry I will talk to him"

"Alright my King," Kezia felt like she just received a death sentence. How could she be in close contact with someone that hates her guts?

"It's okay my daughter, I care greatly for your parents, they have both serve me with loyalty and honesty, you deserve much better" he said, smiling at her, as he resumed his chicken soup.

"I will be leaving now my King, I will come back to check on you again." she said, bowing down, he simply nod and continues sipping the soup, he watch her leave, with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.