“I was missing you, so I figured I would come and find you. I didn’t mean to distract you, though. I can leave if you want, I just enjoy being close.” My head turns to the side to peer at his face, not realizing how near he would be when I did so.
I meant to meet his eyes, but his perfect lips catch my gaze first, and I can’t bring myself to glance away. Although I’ll admit to not trying very hard. He moves a hair closer but not as close as I want him. “I didn’t say I wanted you to leave. Just that you’re very distracting, however it’s something I’m willing to endure.”
I may or may not have let a small whimper escape, much to my embarrassment. I finally flick my eyes up to his to try and discern if he heard the sound I made. To my surprise, Marcellus is gazing down at me like he’s forgotten the rest of the world. I know the feeling… This is exactly what I came to find him for, his comforting warmth to be wrapped around me. Me not realizing this is what I wanted, just proves to me why he’s my mate.
A loud snort and a shove to my shoulder knocks us both out of the trance we’re in. The horse, aggravated with me for forgetting him, tries to gain my attention again. I glance back to Marcellus, wondering if we’ll always be pulled into each other’s orbit like this, forgetting everything around us. That could be quite dangerous if we aren’t careful.
Marcellus is watching me with a smile on his face, like he’s thinking the same thing I am. He drops his forehead to my shoulder and gives me a squeeze. “I better go finish with the training. Will you stay here until I’m done? I feel like this is just a tease, and I haven’t had enough time with you yet.”
My heart fills with joy at his words. “More time together sounds divine,” I quickly respond to him. I try to soak up the calming feel of his arms around me while he’s still here, not ready for him to let go.
“I would ask you to try and be less distracting, but I know it would be impossible and not fair of me to do so. I may just have to cut things a little short today. Yes, that’s what I’ll do, be back soon, Darling.” His words make it sound like he’s going to head back to his men, but his arms don’t release me.
After a moment I can’t help but ask, “I thought you were going back to finish the training for today?”
He sighs and places a soft kiss on my neck and without pulling away, he says, “I am. I just don’t want to let you go. You’re my happy place.” With every word he speaks, the movement of his lips tickles my neck and sends shivers through my entire body.
“Well, I won’t discourage you from wanting some extra time with me in your arms,” I say before adding, “I don’t want you to let go yet either.” I snuggle into his hold and resume petting the persistent horse nudging me yet again. He holds me for a few more moments before we hear one of his men calling to him.
Marcellus lets out a groan. “We’ll have to resume this later, my darling.” Despite the warm day, a shiver runs through me from the loss of his arms. As he walks away, he mumbles to himself, “I don’t know why Silas ordered me to... Fuck him. Holding back is killing me.”
Did Silas tell him not to get too close to me physically? We truly need to get away from here. I’m going to need to start working on getting Marcellus to leave with me as soon as possible. He turns around right before joining his men and winks at me before mouthing the wordsoon. Fates, I never thought I would develop true affection for him, much less this quickly. His winks make me melt and cause fairies to flutter about in my stomach.
∞∞∞
I could tell during the rest of his training with the soldiers that he wanted to end things early. Unfortunately, Silas came out and added a few things he needed Marcellus to work on. When he was finally finished, he needed to get cleaned up before doing anything else.
My impatience causes me to pace back and forth in my chambers, even though I know it won’t be too awfully long for him to get ready. It’s so late in the day that we’ll have to join Silas for dinner before we’re able to enjoy any alone time together. Oh well, hopefully, we won’t be here much longer. I know I planned to ask Marcellus tonight if we could leave, but after spending so much time waiting on him, I realized it’s a better idea to wait until he trusts me a bit more.
A light knock sounds on my door and I rush to open it, excited to spend time with Marcellus even if his uncle will be there as well. I’m filled with disappointment upon seeing who’s on the other side though. Standing there is Silas with a smile on his face that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. The muscles in my body tense with the flood of protection magic released, ready to dispatch at the slightest thought.
Even my magic has developed a mistrust toward this man. “Lord Silas,” I greet him, unable to force a smile. Not the most polite greeting but the best he’ll get from me. I peer down the hall toward Marcellus’ room, willing him to come out so he can act as a buffer between Silas and me. While I’m capable of protecting myself, and my guards are right here, I’d still prefer him to be here with me.
“Your Highness, I came to offer you an escort to dinner this evening.” Ugh, yuck. Why? Is he dense?
“I thank you for the offer, Lord Silas, however, I’ve already made plans with Marcellus to escort me. He should be arriving momentarily.”Be gone, you annoying pest of a man!I strain my ears to catch any sound of Marcellus.
“Oh, I’m sure he won’t mind if his uncle swoops in to steal some of your time since he isn’t ready yet. Come along, we can wait for him in the dining hall.” He shifts his body to the side holding out his arm expectantly. Overly presumptuous men make me seethe. With narrowed eyes upon him, I think through what I want to say.
Unable to come up with an excuse that isn’t obvious, I decide the best course of action is to accept his offer. I don't know what he’s up to, but I don’t want him knowing my intentions too soon. “Well, if you’re sure, I suppose he can find us in the dining room.” I reluctantly place my arm in his, being careful to make as little contact as possible, and shut my door behind me.
Both Baxter and Frances walk behind me as we make our way along the hall and turn to head down the stairwell, which is when I hear Marcellus’ door open. Wanting him to hear us and hurry along, I ask Silas a question so our voices can carry to Marcellus’ ears. “How has your day been, Lord Silas?”Please hear us and hurry, my mate.
“Oh, it was productive. I’ve been trying to find some rare ingredients for a spell I’m working on. I was finally able to track down one of the more elusive ones today and hope to have it in my possession soon. Once I do, I can begin perfecting the spell.” His answer is full of excitement. Huh… this is the first time I've seen the man show any kind of emotion toward anything. It seems like this is a subject he’s passionate about. Although, how would he be able to perform a spell when, according to Marcellus, he has no magic?
“Cecily, my darling, wait a moment, will you? Uncle Silas, I hope you weren’t trying to persuade Her Highness out of pursuing me as a match!” Marcellus teases his uncle as he closes the door to his room. I may be reading too much into it, but I hope he’s trying to verify what I told him is the truth. This could help me gain his trust depending on how his uncle responds. I pause to allow him to catch up like he asked, thankful I won’t have to continue on to dinner with Silas.
Silas appears surprised by the question and stumbles over his answer. “Oh dear boy, one cannot be dissuaded from a mate such as yourself. It’s as if you're destined to be together.” His answer sounds like he’s trying to appease two sides of a story. On the one side, he knows I know about the Fates marking us as mates, and on the other he’s trying to keep with the story he told his nephew about me searching for a husband.
Marcellus reaches me and puts his arm around my waist, pulling me to his side. I try to hide my smirk and say, “As if? But that’s exactly what it is. The Fates marked us as mates. Two people with souls that fit perfectly together.” With my trap set, I watch Silas to see how he reacts to what I said.
Darkness slides over Silas’ eyes as he clears his throat before responding in a low voice, “Well, yes, that's true.” Then in a stronger voice he continues, “Shall we head to the dining hall now? I walked through the kitchens earlier, and it smelled divine.”
We follow Silas into the dining hall, which is already half-full with soldiers who arrived early for dinner. Mealtimes are the only occasions I see any of the servants who work here. There are a few servant girls currently filling our goblets as we head toward our seats. I give a nod to my guards, dismissing them now that I’m with Marcellus. I feel bad that they hardly get any time to themselves since we’ve been here.
Marcellus steps in front of me to pull out my chair when we get to the head table. After he helps push my chair in, he takes the seat next to me and discreetly places his hand on my knee under the table. With his touch, the buzz of our connection races through my body causing it to relax. It amazes me that a simple innocent touch can chase most of the stress Silas had caused from my muscles.
My right hand reaches for my goblet, and I place my left hand discreetly atop his on my knee. It boggles my mind how we can’t help but seek each other’s touch. I hate having to endure these mealtimes with Silas. His disdain for women is always the most evident when seated at the table surrounded by his men. The only women in the room, aside from myself, are those who are serving our meals.
