The Crown's Entrapment

After some endorsements and a productive conversation with Bella's parents, Aurelia made her way out of the Hindman Manor itself to begin her return trip back to the capital. It was going to be a long ride by horse, but she was more than fine with a bit of downtime in her life after all that suddenly happened.

"Oh, I was just going to look for you."

But unfortunately for her, Calypso's sudden appearance put a dent in her plans. And just as she was about to make her way to the stables too.

"What do you want, Calypso?" she cooly addressed him with her usual cold shoulder.

"What? I just wanted to see you," Calypso replied with his usual cheeky tone. "That, and I was hoping to offer you a ride back to the capital."

Aurelia raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Unfortunately for you, I already have a horse with my name on it. And don't get me started with riding a carriage again. I'd actually like some silence in my life again for a change."

She let out a scoff as she watched her mate shuffle in front of her. Clearly, her words had the intended effect. She still remembered the last time they had any sort of extended time with one another, and she was more than eager to even score with him after he used her drunken past self against her.

Never again will she put her guard down like that... even if it was a bit fun in retrospect.

For a few seconds, Aurelia watched as Calpyso visibly tried to think of a reasonable response to her words. But after exactly five seconds of awkward silence, she had enough of waiting for him and decided to give him a hint.

"Look, if you want to take me for a ride, give me a valid reason to do so," she exasperatedly sighed.

She crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for a response. Unfortunately for her, it took her the same amount of time for Calypso to smirk to realize just what exactly she said.

"Oh? Why didn't you say so?" Calypso grinned. "For one, it's faster for us if we went in my wolf form. And as for giving you a ride..."

Aurelia fought the blush of embarrassment threatening to bloom in her cheeks as she waited for the punchline she inadvertently walked herself right into. Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath. Really, why was she so careless with her words whenever she was around him?

'I really have to stop these impulsive responses,' she reminded herself with a frown. 'I can't keep letting him get all these opportunities to get to me...'

Letting out a sigh, she opened her eyes preparing to see a smug Calypso about to give her with yet another witty remark using her own words against her. However, that wasn't what greeted her in the slightest.

No... The sight before was equal parts amazing and confusing that the only reaction she had for him was to stare at him from head to toe, hoping that it was some kind of unspoken joke to her.

...

...

Aurelia blinked at Calypso as he stood in front of her with all of his naked glory, the awkward silence between them stretching on for as long as they went without speaking. With his arms still splayed wide, she didn't know why he was keeping quiet for this long.

"N-Not even a reaction?" Calypso finally asked, breaking the awkward stalemate between them.

"To be frank, I was expecting more," she truthfully admitted.

"You mean you don't get it?" he incredulously asked. "This is what you'll be riding. Well, in a sense."

Aurelia felt her hand hit her face as she fought the urge to let out a blushing chuckle. She was speaking the truth, at least. She did expect more than for him to strip naked and show her his goods. But she must admit even to herself that she was satisfied with what she saw.

There was no denying that Calypso was a specimen of a man. Not that she would ever admit that to him right now.

"Just shift already," she waved him off, turning her head away from him in an effort to hide the amusement on her face. "We're burning daylight."

"I'll take that as a yes then?" he eagerly asked.

"Don't push your luck, Calypso."

Hearing him shift, Aurelia finally deemed it safe for her to turn around, only to be greeted by the same wolf that he had always been all these years. Wordlessly, she climbed on top of him, not even letting him gesture or make it easier for her to hop on as she oriented herself.

"What?" she scoffed at him as she felt him stiffen underneath her. "Like I said, we're burning daylight. I won't wait for you to kneel down to make it easier for me to climb on top of you."

Calypso huffed before shaking his head. Turning towards the exit, Aurelia braced herself as he finally ran towards the capital.

Using the roads, they made good time as she enjoyed the relative quiet of their journey. This was surprisingly better than using a horse, she could admit, and their speed would ensure that they'd be back in the capital before the sun could even set.

'This is somehow more relaxing than I anticipated,' she admitted to herself. 'At least Calypso isn't bugging me with his usual remarks.'

Still, it was rather quiet at times without his constant attempts at wooing her. Maybe it was just her starting to get bored with all the quiet, but maybe a bit of noise was a welcome change every once in a while.

"Maybe I'll consider approaching you for transport arrangements whenever I need it," she addressed him with a slight scoff.

He couldn't respond, of course, but she could tell that he was asking her about it.

"This is admittedly more convenient than I anticipated," she shrugged.

And, again, more comforting somehow. But she wouldn't admit that to him now of all times. She needed to have something to shield herself from his embarrassing quips and using her tried and tested cold shoulder worked wonders for her.