Chapter 177: Forbidden Love in the Royal House
Morgan’s voice softened over the device.
"Emma, hey... calm down. Evan isn’t going to disrespect your mate."
She stayed quiet.
"I know my sibling," she continued. "If Moon Prince thinks something crossed a line, Evan will back off immediately. You won’t have to worry about him causing problems between you two."
"Morgan, he already has. The last time we spoke on the device, he kept talking like we were supposed to be mates."
Morgan let out a quiet breath. "I think he just wishes you were. He sounded upset that it didn’t happen, that’s all. I don’t think he means any harm."
Another call lit up her screen.
"I’ll call Evan and set up our meeting," she said, pulling the device away from her ear. She ended the call with Morgan and answered the incoming one.
"Hi, Emma," Brooklyn smiled and waved at her as soon as she accepted her video call. She was buttoning her shirt as she smiled. Emma looked at her and glared. She didn’t look like the Brooklyn she knew. She looked so elegant now and she was highly impressed. She really missed her a lot.
"Who were you talking to? You were on that call forever," Brooklyn said.
"I just got off the device with Morgan. Evan’s sibling." Emma dropped her cup onto the chair. "I blocked Evan, so he went through Morgan to get to me."
Brooklyn’s face tightened. "He knows you’re mated to Moon Prince Brandon, right?"
Emma nodded slowly. "He came to the return party with his father. Since then, he keeps calling, asking me to spend time with him."
"Don’t go, Emma. He’s obsessed with you."
Emma rubbed her forehead. "He said he’d kill himself if I kept avoiding him." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "If Evan does something because of me..." She swallowed hard and shook her head. "I wouldn’t be able to live with myself."
Her fingers twisted together in her lap. "And I don’t even know how to tell him to let go without making everything worse."
She looked up at Brooklyn, eyes clouded with worry. "He was there for me before, remember?"
The video call flickered slightly as Brooklyn leaned closer to the screen. Her shoulders dropped a bit.
"Yeah, I remember," she said. Her fingers stayed wrapped around Emma’s through the screen’s edge, squeezing once before easing off. "Just... be careful, okay?"
Emma nodded, eyes fixed on the call. Her thumb rubbed lightly over Brooklyn’s hand before she let it rest still.
"Sure, I will," she said, shifting in her chair and straightening a little.
"I saw you buttoning your shirt. Are you going out?" she asked, eyes dropping to her chest as she finished the last button.
"Yes," Brooklyn grinned.
"Where?"
"I’m assisting my mate with his company."
"Wow, I love that! Where is he?"
"He has an appointment by 6:30 am and he has gone out already."
"Oh, I forgot we are in different time zones."
"What time is it over there? Brooklyn asked.
"It’s 7 pm here and December 7 also."
"It’s 7 am here, December 6," she said with a gleam of humour and they giggled.
"Are you still travelling tomorrow with Elara?"
"No, we have a little crisis."
"What is it?" She quickly sat down on the bed and asked.
"Elara is in love, I mean forbidden love according to kingdom rules."
"With Bernard, I know."
"Who told you?"
"Ken"
"He knows too?"
"He caught them kissing affectionately in the cookhouse when you travelled to Finland."
"Oh, my Goddess! Brooklyn, you didn’t tell me."
"He told me a few days ago and it escaped my mind."
"I must end their hide and seek love! even though Elara is a Princess!"
"So what happened?"
"I found out and encouraged them to open up, but Brandon is not finding it funny at all."
"Emma, talk to him. He can’t stop them."
"I have done that already. Elara and Bernard must travel with us! I’m going to lodge both of them in one resting chamber. Enough of all this hide and seek love!"
"Bernard is a nice guy. The only problem he has is that he is extraordinarily humble and aggressively sincere."
She turned when her bedchamber door opened and returned her head.
"He knows too?"
"My future Luna..." Mrs. Thompson paused when she noticed she was in a device conversation.
"My story has been sent to a publishing company!" She quickly changed the topic so she wouldn’t hear what they were discussing. Brooklyn threw her head and laughed.
"All the domestic workers on your estate know Princess Elara and Bernard are dating secretly. I’m surprised your gossip mates haven’t told you yet," Brooklyn murmured, ignoring the good news she had just broken to her.
The intercom light began to blink and she knew it was time to hang up.
"I’ll talk to you later," she said.
"Let’s leave it tomorrow. I have a lot of gossip for you."
"I will be expecting your call," she said and quickly hung up.
"Your mate wants to see you," Mrs. Thompson announced.
"Where is he?" She asked as she walked towards the door.
"He is in the reception chamber."
She walked down the stairs hurriedly and soon was in the reception chamber. He gave her one of his wireless receivers and she fixed it properly and sat in between his legs.
"If she needs a release from me, I’ll forward it to her. I want her to use my real name," she frowned a bit when she heard Lunara’s voice.
"What are you up to?" Brandon asked.
"I’m sorry for everything I did to her... I want to see her and apologize to her. Please, talk to her for me. She is the only family I have now."
"Well, I’ll talk to her."
"Thank you," she said with an innocent tone and hung up.
Emma’s brow pulled tight the second the call ended. She looked at the device, then at him.
"I told you to stop talking to Lunara," she said, voice sharp. "But clearly you’re not done."
Brandon caught her wrist before she could pull away, steady but firm.
"Moonheart," he said, holding her gaze, "she’s been calling nonstop. I wanted you to pick it up yourself, but you didn’t come in time. I only answered because it kept ringing."
Emma jerked her hand slightly. "What is her number still doing in your device?"
"She’s like a sibling to me. Nothing about her has ever been romantic—I’ve always seen her as family, that’s all. But she stopped being that the moment she crossed the line."
Her eyes narrowed, her voice steady. "Then delete her number... or block her."
Brandon exhaled through his nose. "What, you don’t trust me now?"
"It’s not you." She pulled her wrist free. "I don’t trust her."
He stepped closer without thinking, cutting the space between them. "You don’t need to stress yourself over that."
"What does she want again?"
"She wants to disperse Theresa’s ashes and she is scared of going to her maternal home alone. She wants you to accompany her and I said no."
She kept quiet and couldn’t tell him she would love to go with some guards. She felt Theresa did not deserve whatever happened to her or, apparently, her love for Theresa blinded her eyes.
"You’re not going anywhere, Moonheart," Brandon said with a grin the moment he intercepted her mindlink.
She turned her head when Mr. Richard sauntered in.
"Bernard is here," My Moon Prince," he announced. Brandon kept quiet for a few seconds and Emma felt like speaking for him.
"I’ll be with him shortly."
"Alright," he said and left.
"Please, call her back. I want to speak with her."
"You know the unlock code," Brandon said as he pushed the device to her. She unlocked it and dialed Lunara’s number.
"Lunara, what do you want from me?"
"Your forgiveness! Please forgive me."
"I bear no grudge against you, but I will never trust you again for anything."
"I need a favour from you."
"What is it?"
"I need some crowns of silver to clear my bills. Mother’s funeral and cremation cost me all my life savings."
"I’ll send the silver on one condition," Emma said, fingers tightening around the device.
"What is it?"
"Stop calling my mate. I don’t trust you."
She paused. Then a rough breath came through the line. "Then stop restricting me. I have no one else to call... please."
"I heard you are seeing some wolf already."
"H...he...
"I’m not interested. I’ll send some crowns of silver to you tomorrow at moonrise," she said and hung up.
Brandon stood up after a while and she did the same. She saw Elara walking towards them with a cup of green tea. She let go of Brandon’s hand and waited for her.
"How do you feel now?"
"Better."
"It’s obvious," Emma said and held her hands as they walked towards the reception chamber.
"Bernard lifted his face and stared at her. He continued staring at her until she joined Mr. Richard on the two-seater sofa and leaned on his shoulder.
"How do you feel, princess," Brandon asked with a smile.
"I’m fine," she responded with a pathetic tone. He stared at her for a while and shifted his gaze to Mr. Richard.
"Mr. Richard, I’m glad you’re here with us." He folded his hands together lightly. "There are a few questions I’d like to ask, if you don’t mind."
"Not at all." Mr. Richard smiled warmly.
"How old was Bernard when he joined the Royal family?"
"Nine winters old."
"Has he been treated differently, I mean like a commoner?"
"No, both of you attended the same academy. A winter after you left, the king secured admission for him into Oxford University."
"He graduated first-class."
"Bernard, do you know you are like a pup to our father?"
"Of course, I know," Bernard said boldly, and Emma was happy.
"Elara is like a sibling to you. That’s what I expected—a princess you’d protect, not mate. Last moonfall, I was furious. What you told me... I wasn’t ready for it. To be honest, I didn’t like it."
Elara lowered her eyes slowly.
Emma’s fingers curled against her dress.
Bernard stayed quiet, but his jaw tightened.
Brandon rested his arms
on the chair and looked directly at him.
"But after thinking about it..." he said calmly, "I realized something."
Bernard held his stare.
Brandon’s lips curved faintly.
"You have no idea what loving a princess is going to cost you."
