Chapter 88: Queen Carina
The ride back to the Royal Chevalier Palace had been a slow, but peaceful one.
Flustered at the thought of being on the same steed with Lord Ivan, Samantha realized how much he had kept to his promises regarding finding her if she ever escaped. Not once, not twice, but three times he had fulfilled the promise he made to her and himself, but now that she could think with a clear head, Samantha wondered what use he really saw in her to keep coming for her over and over again, despite her many attempts to escape from his clutches, he always found her.
She was unwanted, yet he wanted her.
"Little Lamb."
"Hmm?" The sound of his magnetic voice calling her name so gently had made a pink hue form on her cheeks, whilst her anxious grip on Blaze’s reins subconsciously tightened. She needed her racing heart to stay calm, she needed to breathe, but what the vampire Lord did next only made things worse as his own bigger hands gently covered her delicate dainty hands, giving them the appearance of a couple riding a horse together - a sudden warmth ran through her arms when she felt his fingers loosening her tight grip on the reins.
"Loosen your grip a little, or else Blaze might get the wrong message." He instructed, and when he felt her grip loosen, that didn’t stop him from holding her hand, and then he said. "Do you know how to ride a horse? If you did, then you’d know by now that Blaze is more of an emotional sponge, he reacts uncannily once he senses fear, anxiety, or even.... The racing heartbeat of a particular lamb." His whispering tone turned sultry upon uttering the last sentence, almost honeyed, and Samantha’s eyes widened when she knew he was referring to her, whilst the tip of her ears flushed pink at his teasing.
Samantha quickly withdrew her hands from the reins and defended. "I....My heart is beating just fine. I think you’re giving yourself too much credit, Lord Ivan."
"Is that so?" An amused smile she could not see graced his lips as he enjoyed her flustered reaction, but he made no further comment as they continued to ride down the hill. The morning weather seemed to be more favorable than the harsh chilly weather of the night, and it made Samantha wonder if the vampire Lord was in a good mood because of it.
It was quite obvious that he was enjoying his free time outside the Palace to think of returning, whilst Samantha found herself enjoying it too as the cool breeze felt refreshing against her skin. To avoid running into any passengers that might recognize him as the prince, Ivan had decided they take the longer route back since it was more desolate, she knew it was just his excuse so he could spend longer time outside, and as expected they engaged in their usual argumentative conversation till they made it back to the Palace.