The Crown's Entrapment

At Keen Manor, Silver Crescent Territory

Gilas smiled as he watched Clara fall asleep before his eyes. While he wanted her to stay up a bit later and have a talk, he could understand why she fell asleep so easily. It had been a long day, and a lot of things had happened between then and now that even he was still trying to process. The fact that his father's crimes had been exposed was chief among his many thoughts, but of course, none of it even came close to overtaking his worries for the woman currently sleeping on his bed.

"I'll keep you safe, Clara…" he whispered. "Don't worry…"

Nodding to himself, he set off to care for his mate as soon as the chills happened. The night was only just beginning, and he was sure that the chills would come sooner rather than later. As such, he stayed awake, preparing a bunch of things that could possibly help him on his task. Rummaging through his closets and drawers, he pulled out as many sheets as he could, placing them right beside the bed for easy access once Clara started showing distress. Of course, that meant that he wouldn't be sleeping any time soon, but that was fine with him.

He made a promise, and he intended to keep it as best he could.

[Still, isn't this a bit too much?]

Gilas simply gave his wolf a pointed scoff as he replied, [Nothing is too much if it means I can keep Clara comfortable. Besides, this will help distract me from her constant scent.]

It was something that he could only hope would pass the deeper the night went. His desire for Clara was starting to build up again. And with how close they were right now, it was only a matter of time before he lost control if he didn't discipline himself.

[Eh… I say you should just let go and do it,] Ham chuckled. [She's already your wife, right? You've marked her, which means that it's fully in your right to make love to her.]

[That's not how it works, Ham. I'll wait for her consent no matter how long it takes,] Gilas insisted. [I've been patient for this long. What's a few more weeks or months of waiting compared to the years I've spent watching over her?]

Gilas chuckled as he positioned himself by Clara's side. He had already gone this long just hoping that Clara would even notice him. And now that such a thing has come to pass, what more should he be worried about? In fact, he had already won, and the only thing that he had left to do was to serve his king as best he could and make sure to build a safe future for himself and for his future family.

[Already thinking that far ahead, I see…]

How could he not? In spite of everything that had happened throughout his life, he couldn't help but smile at the current state of his life and his relationship with Clara. His mother was safe, and his mate had all but accepted her. And there was no doubt in his mind that she was going to wholeheartedly accept her role as his mate and wife once she had fully adjusted to her new post. All he had to do was wait, and he was very good at biding his time.

But first…

"She's starting to shiver," he frowned as he felt Clara starting to shake beside him. "Time to get to work…"

***

Gilas opened his eyes, his arms still wrapped around Clara as his vision adjusted to his drowsy state. He was pretty sure that he had just gone to sleep, but apparently, the sun was already up in its full glory, shining down its warm on him and his mate as it signaled for them to wake up.

'Ugh… This isn't right,' he grumbled to himself. 'I didn't even manage to get a few hours of sleep…'

Forcing himself awake, Gilas felt his bones click into place as he stretched. On his bed, Clara still seemed to be sleeping. Thankfully, she was no longer shivering, but that was far from the case earlier that night.

'At least I managed to stop her from freezing to death…' he inwardly chuckled.

Truly, it was with great effort that he did just to make sure that Clara wouldn't shiver on his watch. Even after covering her up with all of the sheets that he found in his room, it didn't seem to be enough. In the end, he ended up cuddling up with her in the same way that he did last time. And just like that time, he sweated, panting off with how hot it was around Clara's vicinity.

[As if that isn't the only reason why you couldn't sleep,] Ham scoffed. [The fact that you haven't jumped on her in spite of everything that has happened is a mystery even to me.]

Gilas shook his head at his wolf's words. While it was true that it was hard to sleep if he was sweating bullets underneath a bulk of sheets, his close proximity with his mate was what really made it hard for him to relax and fall asleep. Throughout the night, he could feel his manhood ache for a chance to be with her, and it took his all just to stop himself from moving on top of her and making love to her while she was asleep.

[As if she would've minded it in the end,] Ham pointedly chuckled. [You really should've gone for it.]

[And for the last time, I won't do it,] Gilas quickly retorted. [She said she'll mate with me once she's ready, and I fully intend to honor that decision.]

Besides, it shouldn't be long now before she just ended up approaching him and asking him to sleep with her. He could feel it even though she was asleep. She was having feelings for him, and he only had to nurture those feelings if he really wanted to cement their relationship and bring it to the next level.