The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy

Ella just rolls her eyes at Dominic and moves away from her mate, stepping over towards her sons with a scowl on her face.

"Don't get a divorce," Mark mumbles, covering his eyes with his hand, miserable. "Dad will want to keep us for Midwinter and he'll be crap at presents. And the food."

"Oh, he's not getting rid of me that easily," Ella mumbles, bending over to press a kiss to Mark's head and then moving to sit with Rafe on the couch, ruffling her favorite's hair as she does. And in her heart Ella knows that it's true that she and Dominic are slightly at odds at the moment because she took control out of his hands, and he hates that. But their commitment to each other is far too deep to be truly disturbed by something like a disagreement about the placement of one soldier.

Even if Jackson was probably the most powerful soldier Dominic had.

But some instinct rings true in Ella's heart - she knows, is absolutely sure, that it was right to send Jackson on a solo mission and that Dominic would have fought her on it. She explained all of this and begged Dominic to trust her demi-goddess intuition, but that had just pissed him off more. So, here they are, a week later, still pissy with each other for the time being.

"Any updates?" Rafe asks, sitting up to look into his mother's face.

She nods, curling her legs up beneath her and pulling a pillow into her lap to hug to her chest. "We heard from the delegation that they'd arrived at the Atalaxian castle and made a successful plea for entrance. Roger had very cleverly put a few tiny cameras on a couple of the ambassadors so we could see what's going on within the palace, but as soon as they got in?" She shrugs. "The feeds went dead."

"Damn Atlaxians," Rafe growls, shaking his head. "They must have some kind of magic up."

Ella nods in agreement as Mark comes to sit by her side on the floor, wanting the closeness and affection. Ella gives it immediately, running a hand over his hair, petting her youngest son. "You're getting to big for this, Markie. Soon I'll have to stand on a stool to pet you."

"No," he murmurs, closing his eyes and leaning wolfishly into her hand. "I'm very tiny. Just small."

She laughs, continuing to stroke his dark hair, grinning as she runs her eyes over Mark's handsome face and tall body, which is growing large enough to give Rafe and Dominic and Jackson a run for their money.

"And Ben?" Rafe asks, glaring a little

at Mark for continuing to joke

around and not take this seriously t

vel

God, but he's been too much indulged, allowed to remain immature while even Junipergrew up. "Any word from him?"

"Nothing in particular," Ella says, turning her eyes back to Rafe. "He's just one of the ambassadors, baby. We didn't send him in with any new technology or orders."

Rafe nods, looking down, because

he knows that's true. Ben begged to be one of the party going to Atalaxia. Rafe had argued against it, knowing that Ben is still young and

inexperienced and that the trip ion et

going to be very dangerous. There was one hell of a chance that all of the ambassadors would be

executed on sight. But Dominic had agreed, knowing that Ben knows Ariel better than the other ambassadors, that he might have some particular instinct about where she is or what she needs.

In the end, Rafe had lost the fight. And, potentially, another friend. He presses his eyes shut, worry

stacking up in his soul like bricks. One more person to worry about whether or not they're alive or dead...

Dominic snaps his phone shut and

crosses the room to join his family. "It was a miracle they were let in in the first place," he murmurs, looking distractedly out the window.l thought it was a longshot."

Mark opens his eyes and looks up at his dad. "Then why do you think they let them in?"

Dominic shrugs. "Either they've got something up their sleeve, or..."

The family waits while Dominic just frowns, trying to find his words.