Royal slave mate

Episode5:Task

Emily's heart was still thudding from her recent encounter with the Prince as she ran him a hot shower, the sound of the water masking her anxious thoughts. Her hands trembled as she adjusted the temperature knobs, steam already curling up and fogging the glass around the tub.

Then she walked back to the room to alert him the water was ready. She swallowed nervously as she came in contact with his shirtless body.

Her eyes ran over his chest shamelessly before she forced herself to tear her eyes away. She was about to excuse herself when his voice rang out again, calm but authoritative.

"Sit on the bed, wait for me.”

She paused, unsure if she heard him right.

"I won’t say it again, Emily.” He said with a stern look and walked into the bathroom. She turned without a word and made her way to the bed, perched carefully on the edge, too afraid to touch the silk sheets.

Emily sat still with her heart in her hands, worried and scared of the reason he asked her to wait.

Soon, the water stopped and she snapped back into reality. Prince Ronan walked into the room, with a towel wrapped around his waist and water dripping down his chest.

He might be an evil jerk, but he was perfectly sculpted- Emily admitted to herself unashamedly. She diverted her eyes to the ground but not without catching his sly smirk.

Prince Ronan, on the other hand, found her nervousness quite amusing, the way she fidgeted and avoided looking at his body. So he decided to tease her further.

He leaned in closer until their faces were inches apart. He picked up the strap of her dress with his index finger,

“Well, this won’t do.” He said as his finger traced her soft skin where the strap lay.

Emily swallowed profusely now, as beads of sweat formed on her forehead.

“Wh..what?” She forced out, unsure if she should even be talking.

“This dress…” He trailed off, flicking the strap off her shoulder. Emily couldn’t hold back the shudder and the gasp that escaped her lips.

She wondered why he had such an effect on her, or was it because no man had ever touched her, at least not the way he was doing presently?

On seeing her reaction, Prince Ronan decided he was satisfied with teasing her, well for now. He stood up erect with a smug smirk and clapped his hands, signaling for the maid, who walked in with a dress in her hands. She placed it carefully on the bed beside Emily and subtly walked out.

Emily furrowed her brows in confusion at the whole scene.

“This,” he said as he sat on his armchair opposite of her, with his legs crossed. “is what you’ll wear today.”

Emily blinked. “Today?”

“Yes, you are coming with me to meet the King and Queen.”

She froze. “What?

He arched a brow. “Was I unclear?”

Emily opened her mouth, then closed it. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. Meeting the Alpha king and Luna queen was unheard of for a slave—especially one who had just started.

“Why?” she finally dared to ask.

He looked at her with an unreadable expression. “Because they asked for you. Apparently, you are important enough now.”

Emily’s stomach twisted. ‘Important enough’ in Royal terms could mean anything—from praise to punishment.

She looked down at the gown, feeling the weight of expectation already settling on her shoulders.

"Well, are you going to change?" He smirks.

Her eyes flew open at the thought of changing in front of him, but then again, she didn’t really have a choice, he was her master.

She turned around reluctantly and hesitantly started to change.

He lets out a cackle, "Oh you are amusing. You have three minutes to change," He said and walked out of the closet.

“Damn you,” she cursed him in her head.

She opened the bag and brought out the dress, it was a long burgundy single-strap dress with a slit in front. She put it on and stood in front of the mirror, admiring herself. The fabric clung to her body in all the right places, it was so luxurious. Tears welled up in her eyes as she realized this was the first decent dress she had ever worn.

When she was fully dressed, she stepped out of the room. Prince Ronan waited outside for her, he was already dressed in a crisp black suit that made him look even more impossibly handsome. Emily couldn’t miss the surprise in his eyes once he saw her.

His familiar smirk returned as he walked closer to her,

“You clean up nice for a slave,” he spat out. Emily's head lowered, as she reminded herself of her status- she was always going to be a slave no matter what she wore.

They walked out of the halls and into

“Fix your face,” he murmured under his breath. “You look like you’re heading into a dungeon, not a greeting.”

They walked out of the Prince's quarters and got into a limo. The ride to the grand palace was short.

She walked behind him as quietly as she could. The heavy golden doors swung open, and they were announced by the royal guard.

“Prince Ronan of Rivendell, accompanied by his slave” his voice bellowed.

The King sat on a raised throne of black stone, the Queen beside him, regal and stunning in her sapphire robe. She was truly beautiful. She had wavy blonde hair that glistened down her back and stopped just below her waist. Her eyes were the same color as her son but instead of fragments of green, hers was indigo.

The king was rather handsome too. He had Brown straight hair and was also tall with chiseled features. He had golden brown eyes, in contrast to the queen and his son. They both had exquisite crowns placed upon their heads and gave off an aura of authority. Their gazes were piercing, unreadable, but not necessarily unkind.

Emily quaked in intimidation as they walked towards them. When they reached the steps of the throne, Ronan gave a casual bow. Emily quickly dropped to her knees and lowered her head, in proper slave posture.

“Rise,” Queen Aurora spoke, her voice melodious but firm.

Emily obeyed, standing to her feet, her hands trembling slightly at her sides.

“Ronan dear, nice of you to join us.” Queen Aurora said, her voice becoming much softer and motherly as she spoke to him.

Well, Emily presumed that’s what a mom would sound like, as she had never actually had one.

“So... this is the girl,” King Ares finally said, his voice deep and commanding. “You have stirred quite the conversation.”

Emily’s breath caught. She wasn’t sure how to respond, so she didn’t.

Queen Aurora smiled faintly. “She’s beautiful. You have chosen well, Ronan.”

Emily’s face flushed, and the Prince merely raised a brow, as if the compliment wasn’t news to him.

“But beauty isn’t the reason she’s here,” King Ares said, standing from his throne. “We’ve grown...concerned about your lack of interest in courtship, Ronan. And your reckless behavior.”

Ronan crossed his arms lazily. “This again?”

“Yes, this again,” the Queen said sharply. “You are next in line for the throne. You cannot rule without a mate. And you have avoided every arranged meeting for the past two years.”

“So?” Ronan shrugged. “None of them interest me.”

The king sighed at Ronan’s defiance.

“Well, the council has decided, and I have no choice but to agree, that you must find a suitable bride by the end of this year."

“You all can’t make me marry anyone. I’m not even king yet! I will not do it! This is insane!” Ronan fumed.

"You don’t have a choice!" The King bellowed… “Emily!” He suddenly called out her name.

She jumped on instinct, “my…my king.” She trembled.

The King went on. “Your task, Emily, is to ensure Prince Ronan attends every royal date arranged for him from this point onward.”

Emily’s heart plummeted. What?

“She isn’t a handler,” Ronan snapped. “She is…”

“She is your property, yes,” the King interrupted smoothly, “which means she can be anything we need her to be. If need be, your handler or even babysitter.” He spat out.

The silence that followed was electric. Ronan’s jaw clenched. Emily remained frozen, unsure whether to be afraid or insulted—or both.

“I trust you understand your duty, girl?” King Ares asked, pinning her with a sharp stare.

Emily swallowed hard, then nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

Ronan let out a bitter laugh under his breath. “You really think this is going to change anything?”

“It better,” the King said coldly. “Or I will be forced to hand the crown to your much responsible brother.”

The queen gasped at his words. The threat hung in the air like a blade.

“Then do it!” Prince Ronan roared, his eyes turning bloodshot red and his claws emerging. It was his wolf.

“Ronan, stop it right now!” Queen Aurora raised to her feet, her eyes filled with worry. Emily on the other hand quaked with fear. The fury in his eyes was scary.

Ronan stormed out of the throne room. Yet the king seemed to be as collected as ever.

“We will expect reports on his behavior from you.” He said in a calm yet stern tone.

Emily simply nodded, too afraid to speak.

“Go after him, please.” The Queen added with worry.

Emily did her courtesy and scurried out of the throne room, unsure of what she was supposed to do.

“Go after him and do what? He wouldn’t think twice about killing me.” She murmured with panic.

Ronan was already gone with the limo leaving her no choice but to walk back to his quarters.

>>

Emily paraded the halls with the tray of food on her hand, too afraid to step into his room, but she had no choice, this was her duty.

She knocked gently before going in, the sight she saw before her shook her to her bone. There was a dead rabbit on the floor, sprawled out in front of Prince Ronan whose face was all bloody. She didn’t need to think twice before realizing he had just fed on that poor rabbit. His fangs and claws were out and his eyes, were bloodshot red, the way they were in the throne room.l

Her hands tightened on the tray as she forced herself to walk towards the table to set the food. She dropped the food and tried hurrying out of the room, but he suddenly appeared in front of her, using his super speed.

She flinched, backing up from him until her back hit the door. He moved closer until he was inches away from her, he had caged in.

He used his claws to raise her chin,

“You are scared.” He chuckled menacingly– “You should be.”

”Do you think you are safe because you’re now part of their ridiculous plan?” He growled.

“I…I didn’t ask for this,” she whispered.

“You might be their puppet, but remember you are mine…my slave! I own you.” He bellowed, grabbing her jaw.

Emily was visibly shivering now, but somehow she didn’t understand where the rush of confidence was coming from.

“I didn’t forget…” she started, “but the alpha king has given me a duty, I can’t ignore it.” She rushed out the words and swallowed fearfully.l

Prince Ronan stepped back, laughing hysterically.

“So you think you…” he stared down at her disgustingly– “You can convince me to go on those dates?”

She kept her mouth shut, cause she didn’t know what to say. He was right, how could she probably do that?

“I would love to see you try.” He threatened as he took his seat, his red eyes glowing in the dark.

Emily took it as her cue to leave and quietly walked to her room.

>

Throughout the night, Emily couldn’t sleep, her mind ran wild with thoughts of what the Prince was planning to do to her.

She knew for a fact that he would make her life a living hell, but she had no choice, she couldn’t defy the king. The consequences would be much worse.

“Argh!” She groaned as she fell on the bed.

Emily drifted off to sleep, dreading the hell that awaited her the next day.