#Chapter 437- Be Careful, Little Mate
Ella
“I don’t think we’ve met,” Sinclair says, looking Calvin up and down, his voice low and dangerous.
“Not personally, no,” Calvin says, and I watch him, a little surprised to see that he has regained his composure faster than me. He again executes his sharp little bow, showing obeisance to Sinclair, the kind of gesture one Royal gives to another. “I am Prince Calvin, of Atalaxia. And, despite the uncouth gesture that my party made this morning, I hope you will believe me when I say that I am very pleased to be here and eager to build a good relationship between our nations.”
Sinclair raises his eyebrows in surprise, looking for a long moment at the Prince and then down at me, ”
Well,” Sinclair says, his words careful and measured. “It is good to hear you say that. After the events of the morning we were convinced that peace was not a priority for you.”
Clavin sighs and glances over his shoulder, to where the rest of his delegation are speaking quietly with a group of people I don’t know. ” Honestly highness,” he says, his voice low as if he’s seeking not to be overheard, “for many of them? It is not. But I hope that over the next few days I can convince you that you have at least one ally over this border.”
Slowly, Sinclair nods, pulling me closer to his side. “I look forward to being convinced,” my mate says evenly, still studying this strange Prince.
Clavin bows again to both of us, realizing that this interview is over. “A pleasure, your highnesses,” he murmurs, beginning to turn away.
“Ella,” I call – and I surprise myself to hear my name fall from my mouth.
Calvin turns back to us, slow, likewise surprised.
“Please,” I continue, “call me Ella.”
The Prince hesitates for a moment, flicking his eyes to Sinclair, but then he bows to me more deeply than he’s done before. “It will be a pleasure, Ella.”
And then he turns away.
I press myself closer to Sinclair’s side now, a little unnerved.
“What the hell was that,” Sinclair asks, his voice baffled but not at all angry at least not with me. I look up at him, slowly shaking my head. “I honestly don’t know,” I whisper.
But what I cannot deny?
Is that it was…something. Something real, something significant.
And as Sinclair and I find our way to Roger’s side – Cora and Rafe, I smile to see, are already making their way back into the room through the main door – I find my eyes following this strange prince.
Wondering who the hell he is, and what he could possibly want from me.
Sinclair and I go to bed late that night, after hours of chat with delegates from other countries. Honestly, even though all we did was stand around chatting, it feels like I’ve run a marathon.
I settle my sweet baby in his little crib, giving him a kiss on the head before flopping fully-dressed onto my own bed.
My mate laughs at me. “Ella,” he says,shaking his head, “up. Come on. You can’t fall asleep like this.”
“I can do what I want,” I mutter, turning stubbornly away from him.” I’m the Queen.”
Sinclair laughs harder now, coming close and slipping my shoes off my feet, which makes me moan a little with pleasure to feel them released. Sinclair, intuiting how good it feels, sits on the edge of the bed and takes one of my feet in his hands, beginning to massage it.
I moan again, louder this time.
“I like it when you make that noise,” he murmurs, his voice low, hungry. I open an eye and glance at him because honestly, even though I’m exhausted, when my mate talks like that?
Heat already begins to pool in my core.
“I like it when you make me make that noise,” I murmur back.
Growling with pleasure, my mate drops my foot and crawls over me until his body stretches above mine, holding his weight on his elbows to avoid crushing me completely. I take a deep, contented breath and turn onto my back, lifting my hands to pull his tuxedo shirt out of his pants and then slip my palms onto the hot, warm skin beneath.
Sinclair’s growl deepens and he lowers himself, taking a deep breath of my scent before pressing determined kisses to my neck, my shoulders, my chest – every one of them sending a new shiver through my body.
“You were wonderful tonight,” he murmurs, letting himself fall to the side and pulling me with him so that I’m pressed warm against him, stomach to stomach. “The perfect Queen.”
“I was not,” I laugh, pressing my hips close to his, wanting to feel him tight against me. “I didn’t even know half of the nations that those delegates were from – I’m a sham Queen, very ignorant -”
“No,” he murmurs, lifting his head to look at me, ensuring that I see and hear him. “You were perfectly yourself, Ella very charming. No one holds your lack of knowledge against you – they’re aware of your story. They love that you’re a real person who cares about her people – not some born-and- bred lady who knows how to affect the airs of a Queen and play the game.”
“Yes,” I say, my hands faltering a little on their path lower. “But doesn’t that make me…a bit of a crappy Queen.”
“No,” he hums, closing his eyes and exhaling deeply when my hands continue their path, slowly unbuckling his belt. “It makes you perfect.”
“All right,” I laugh softly. “If you say so, Dominic. You know best.”
“Damn right,” he growls, and I laugh a little more. I get his belt undone and begin to start on the button of his pants but suddenly his hand is there, stopping me.
“What was that,” he says, and I look up to sees eyes on me now. “Earlier – with the Atalaxian Prince?”
I bite my lip, pulling my hands away. ” Are you mad?”
“Why would I be mad?” he asks, frowning, a little concerned.
“Because I was talking to him,” I say quietly, “by myself. When we sort of agreed that…we’d give them the cold shoulder, and all talk to them together.”
“He cornered you, though, didn’t he? Didn’t give you a chance?”
“But that’s also my fault,” I sigh, shaking my head. “I should have just gone with Cora to change Rafe I was stupid, to try to cross the room alone.”
“Ella,” Dominic murmurs, taking my chin in his hand and shaking his head at me. “It’s never so serious that you can’t cross a room alone. Honestly, if it was that dangerous I wouldn’t have put you in that situation.”
“But…I was nice to him, when I should have been cold” I say, grimacing a little. “He was hard to be cold to though, he was…nice, and charming, and he…charmed me a bit.”
“Did he?” Sinclair said, curious.
“Yes,” I say honestly, looking up at him. “I was prepared to cut him, to push past and move immediately to your side but – honestly, Dominic, he was really nice to me, and easy to talk to. I felt instantly disarmed.”
Sinclair hums a little, intrigued and a little worried. I stay quiet for a moment, letting him sort through his thoughts, watching his eyes go a little vague as I see him turn things over. When he focuses again on me, I know he’s made a decision.
“He surprised me as well,” Sinclair says, his voice even and considerate. “I didn’t expect one of them to single themselves out, to…suggest that there were divisions in their faction. If it’s a ploy by them, it is…a strange one. Though not unconvincing? I don’t know. I need to talk to my dad about it – see what he thinks.”
“I think that’s a good idea,” I murmur, bringing my hands back to their place on Sinclair’s warm body now, wiggling myself closer.
“But Ella,” Sinclair says, his voice still serious, letting me know he’s not finished. I look up into his eyes again. ” Be careful with him, all right? He’s been …curious about you. I haven’t missed the way he focuses on you. It may also be a tactic a part of their plan. Just… be on your guard and trust your instincts when it comes to this Prince, yes?”
“All right, Dominic,” I murmur, nodding to him. “I promise I will.”
“Good girl,” he growls, wrapping a hand around my back and pulling me tight against him again before using that same hand to begin to work at the zipper that trails down my spine.
“So,” I say pouting a little as I slip my hand down his stomach, into the top of his pants, reaching for him. “I’m not in any trouble?”
Sinclair’s growl deepens as I take the wide, hard mass of him into my hand and begin to slowly stroke.
“Why, little mate,” he rumbles, his voice catching a little, “Did you want to be?”
His hand slips into the open back of my dress now, taking a full handful of my ass into his palm, making my breath come hot and short.
“Well,” I whisper, smiling a little bit as I tilt my face up to his, bringing my mouth close so that I say my next words directly onto his lips. “Maybe just a little bit…”
My mate snarls, a vicious noise that makes me smile, before lifting his hand into the air and delivering a sharp smack right in the place it just left, right on my ass.
The sharp feel of it reverberates through me and I moan louder now but before I can make much noise at all my mate silences me with his mouth over mine.
