The Heiress Carrying Chapter 36 - 37: Because you asked

Chapter 36: Chapter 37: Because you asked

Elara’s POV

I sat there for a long mont, still in my heavy robes, feeling the weight of them pressing down on . I had won. Barely, by the slimst of margins, but I had won.

So why do I keep feeling like I might be sick?

I stood carefully, gripping the edge of the table, and made my way back to my chambers. Lena was waiting, as she always was, and she took one look at my face and imdiately moved to help

with the robes.

"How did it go?" she asked as she worked on the complicated fastenings.

"I won the vote. Eight to six." The words ca out flat, exhausted. "Kaelen will be released tonight."

"That’s good, Your Majesty. That’s–"

I didn’t hear the rest. The nausea that I had been fighting all morning suddenly overwheld , and I barely made it to the basin before I was retching. Lena was there imdiately, holding my hair back, one steady hand on my shoulder.

When it passed, I sat on the floor, breathing carefully, trying to will the world to stop spinning.

"You won, you were so nervous, vomited" Lena said quietly while chuckling.

"Barely." I wiped my mouth with the cloth she handed . "And Malakor will not forget this."

"No," Lena agreed, helping

to my feet. "He will not. But you showed the council you cannot be controlled, Your Majesty. That matters more than Malakor’s pride."

I nodded, but exhaustion was pulling at

now, dragging

down. "Help

to the bed, Lena. Please."

She did, and I lay down still half-dressed in my formal robes, too tired to care about propriety or comfort. Lena covered

with a blanket and quietly left.

I closed my eyes and tried to rest, but my mind would not quiet. I kept seeing Malakor’s face, that cold smile. I kept counting the votes, rembering how close it had been. Eight to six. Eight n willing to support . Six who had sided with Malakor.

What would happen next? What was Malakor planning even now?

And underneath it all, a small, insistent thought: Kaelen would be free tonight. He would be back.

I must have dozed, because when I opened my eyes again, the light had changed. The sun was high in the sky, bright morning light streaming through my windows. I had slept through the night and into the next day.

I got up slowly, my body still protesting, and moved to the window. Down below, sowhere in the depths of the palace, Kaelen was being released. I imagined the guards unlocking his cell, imagined him stepping out into the corridor, free again.

Because of . Because I had fought for him.

The thought filled

with a warmth that had nothing to do with strategy or politics.

Morning stretched on. I dismissed Lena for a while, wanting to be alone with my thoughts. I changed into simpler clothes and stood at my window, watching the palace co alive below .

Then I heard it. A knock at my door.

My heart jumped. I knew who it was before Lena’s voice ca from the other side.

"Captain Kaelen, Your Majesty."

I took a breath, steadying myself. "Send him in."

The door opened. Kaelen entered slowly, and I could see imdiately that his ti in the cells had marked him. He moved with careful stiffness, the way people move when their bodies are still healing. He had been given fresh clothes, the dark uniform of the palace guard, but his face was thinner than before, his cheekbones more pronounced. There were shadows under his eyes.

When he saw

standing by the window, he dropped to one knee, his head bowed.

"Your Majesty."

"Rise," I said softly. "Please."

He stood, and we looked at each other across the space of my chambers. Everything had changed between us. The boundaries that should exist between queen and guard had been irreparably blurred. We both knew it.

"I have reinstated you to your position," I said, keeping my voice formal, professional. "You will resu your duties as my personal guard imdiately. There will be resistance from so on the council, but that is my concern, not yours."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." His voice was rough, like he hadn’t used it much in days. "I will not fail you again."

"You did not fail , Kaelen." I took a step closer, unable to help myself. "You saved . You endured punishnt you did not deserve. You demonstrated loyalty I will not forget."

I saw sothing shift in his expression, gratitude, yes, but also sothing deeper. The mory of what passed between us in that cell. The kiss that neither of us had acknowledged but neither could forget. It hung between us now, unspoken but very much present.

"King Thorin arrives in two days," I continued, forcing myself back to safer ground. "Your presence at my side during his visit will send a ssage. That I choose my own protection. That I am not easily influenced by others."

"I understand, Your Majesty."

"Do you?" I searched his face, looking for... what? Understanding? Agreent? So sign that he felt what I felt? "This will not be easy, Kaelen. The council will watch you for any sign of failure. Malakor will look for reasons to have you removed again. And Thorin... he will be here for marriage negotiations. Your position will be scrutinized constantly."

"I am aware of the politics, Your Majesty."

"And yet you are here."

"Because you asked

to be," he said simply.

The statent was simple, but it carried so much weight. I felt the pull between us, the attachnt I had tried to deny, the connection I could not sever no matter how much I knew I should. I should maintain distance. I should keep the relationship purely professional.

Instead, I found myself moving toward him.

"You should not be here," I said quietly. "Not like this. Not alone with ."

"No," he agreed. His eyes held mine, steady and warm. "I should not, but I can because I’m your personal guard."

"Yes but still you ca ."

"You asked

to. You reinstated

back to my position"

"That is not an answer."

"It is the only answer I have." He took a breath, and I saw his hand twitch at his side, like he wanted to reach for

but was holding himself back. "You asked, and I ca. That is what I do. That is who I am."

"The council will"

"I do not care about the council."

"Malakor will–"

"I do not care about Malakor. I am your personal guard and I have every right to be here and you know it."

"Kaelen." His na on my lips felt like a confession. "You have to understand. If they see, if anyone finds out–"

"I know." His voice was rough. "I know what is at risk. For you. For your position. I know."

"Then why are you here?"

He was quiet for a long mont. When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper. "Because you asked. Because I would cross any line, break any rule, risk any punishnt. For you."

The words hit

like a physical force. I felt them in my chest, in my stomach, in the trembling of my hands.

"Kaelen."

"I should not have said that." He looked away. "Forgive , Your Majesty. I overstepped."

"No." I moved closer, closing half the distance between us. "You did not."

He looked back at , surprised by his features. "Elara–"

My na. Not my title. Just my na, spoken in that rough voice, and sothing inside

broke loose.

I crossed the remaining distance and kissed him.

For a heartbeat, he was frozen. Then his hands ca up, cupping my face, pulling

closer, and he kissed

back with an intensity that stole my breath. His lips were warm, insistent, and I felt all the tension, the fear, the danger, the longing, all of it pouring into this single mont.

When we finally broke apart, we were both breathing hard. His forehead rested against mine, his hands still framing my face.

"I should go," he whispered.

"Yes." I could feel his breath on my lips. "You should."

Neither of us moved.

Then he pulled back just enough to look at . His eyes were dark, intense. "What are we doing, Elara?"

I did not have an answer. I only knew that I could not let him go. Not yet. Not when I had just gotten him back.

"Stay," I whispered. "Just for a little while."

He searched my face, looking for sothing. I did not know if he found it, but after a long mont, he nodded.

I took his hand and led him to the small sitting area. We sat across from each other, the space between us suddenly feeling imnse.

Kaelen leaned forward, elbows on his knees, and ran his hands through his hair. When he looked up, his expression was open in a way I had rarely seen. Vulnerable.

"I do not know what this is," he admitted. "What we are doing. What we are becoming."

"Neither do I," I said honestly.

"We cannot..." He trailed off, searching for words. "You are the queen. I am a guard. There are rules. There are reasons for those rules."

"I know."

"And yet." He gestured vaguely between us. "This."

"This," I agreed.

We sat in silence for a mont, the weight of everything unsaid pressing down on us.