The Prince's Mate

Chapter 33

I spent the rest of my morning in the bathroom. My blonde hair looked exactly as it should've considering that I hadn't tended to it for months and the rest of my body needed a whole lot of love too. I spent an ample amount of time running a comb through my hair, near tears much of the time. I had more knots than I thought possible and my hair was thinning from not eating so I didn't want to pull out more than necessary. I also took my time in the shower, shaving all of my leg hair away. Had I not been so caught up in the moment with Bennett I would've been mortified about the condition I was in. thankfully a razor worked wonders and after my shower I slathered my dry skin in lotion.

I felt much better once I was done with the whole ordeal. I felt like a human again, like a woman again and that was beyond lovely. But when I looked in the mirror I only looked slightly better. I was still terribly thin and my neck, though sealed, was still very raw and red. My cheeks were sunken in, my hair dull, and my skin more pale than usual.

Still, I wasn't silly enough to think that those things would change overnight so I pulled on a nice outfit, a cute, but formal floral skirt and a plain white blouse with a nice blazer. I swallowed hard, ignoring my reflection and walked down the stairs to find Donovan standing tensely by the front door.

"Princess." He said, bowing his head.

"Oh, Donovan." I squealed, running down the last couple stairs, "Where have you been, I haven't seen you in ages!"

Donovan stepped back when I moved to hug him, "The prince ordered me to stay away from you, but I'm the only guard that is available to keep watch over you today." He answered stiffly.

"Bennett told you to stay away from me?"

"Yes, but it seems that he no longer is concerned about my presence." Donovan nodded his head towards the kitchen, "Should we go eat, Princess?"

"Please don't start calling me princess, okay? We're still friends, call me Brook."

"I think that might've been the concern, Brook, we were too close of friends." Donovan took my hand and pulled me towards the kitchen, no longer waiting for me. "Let's get you something to eat so you can go to the hearing, alright?"

I sighed. I clearly wasn't going to win this battle. I hadn't known that Bennett had banned Donovan from seeing me, but it made sense. I was incredibly close with him, a lot closer than I had been with Bennett. I wanted to be angry at my mate, but things had changed now. He had changed. And after this morning I knew he wouldn't be bothered by Donovan. He knew that I was his and he was all mine.

Donovan moved through my kitchen with purpose and, as much as I wanted to be useful, I was really weak so I sat down at the kitchen table and allowed him to make me breakfast.

"You were collared for a long time." Donovan said finally. He kept his back turned to me as he spoke, not even bothering to look over his shoulder.

"Yes, I was."

"It's amazing you're still alive."

"I was pretty close to dying." I agreed, unsure of where this was going.

"Did you want to die?"

"Sometimes. Pain and hunger do crazy things to your brain."

Donovan nodded his head as he scooped something onto a plate. "I'm surprised that you actually submitted to him, though. You are very pig headed when you want to be. But I guess your other option was dying so I can understand that. I think most women would've given in a long time ago."

I opened my mouth to deny his claims, to tell him that I hadn't submitted to Bennett outside in the cold while in wolf form in front of everyone. But I clamped my mouth shut. I assumed that Donovan was a good friend, he was the best one I had here, but I didn't know how far that would go. I didn't know if our friendship outweighed his guard duties or the other way around. I didn't know if he would tell everyone that I hadn't submitted to Bennett while on the collar and I would have to endure it again. If people thought I had submitted on the collar then I would leave it be until I spoke to Bennett and figured out what was going on. I didn't want to get us into trouble again. So when Donovan put a plate down in front of me I said nothing and began scarfing down as much food as would fit into my reduced stomach.

It didn't take long for me to get full, but after eating I was exhausted all over again. Donovan evidently didn't see it because he just walked out of the kitchen, through the living room and to the front door. And I followed him like a puppy.

"I hate winter." I hissed when we stepped outside.

"I don't. I love the snow. And Christmas. I get to be with my family for once."

"Oh." I whispered, "I guess winter sounds good when you put it that way."

Donovan walked me the rest of the way to the complex in silence. He bowed his head when we reached the front door and told me to send for him when I was ready to return home. I told him I would then went inside the building by myself.

I wasn't sure what I expected exactly. Bennett hadn't given me any details other than telling me it was serious. In all fairness, I assumed that anything that involved the royals tended to be quite serious so I didn't think twice about his warning. But when I entered the building and all eyes turned to me I couldn't stop myself from gasping in horror and freezing in shock.