Kingmaker (Ace of Queens #5)

Pt.31 Two to Tango

Chapter 31

Ella patiently sat around the room as Maksim hopped into the shower. The clock on the table read 4 AM. Sleep was nowhere to be found in Ella's eyes. The jitteriness she felt in her system made her want to run laps around the city.

As Ella waited she wondered how she would get Maksim to Juniper. Obviously he wouldn't leave just because she asked him too. He was a stubborn mule. But so was she.

The queen had given her a task and Ella intended to do whatever was necessary to complete it.

Some time later, as the sky outside started to lose just an ounce of it's darkness, Maksim came out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. Ella sat on the sofa as she heard the bathroom door open and then his footsteps walking around the room as if he was searching for something. Pretty soon he walked through the archway that connected the bedroom to the living room and landed his eyes on Ella.

"You're still here?" He asked. His voice was irritated but his eyes were relieved.

"I told you. I'm not leaving, Max," Ella said as she looked into his eyes. She willed herself to not look down. His towel was hanging dangerously low and the way the water droplets from his hair slid down his hard chest made Ella's mouth run dry.

"My name is Maksim," Maksim turned away as he towel dried his hair.

"Stop being a jerk," Ella rolled her eyes.

When she found her body rising from the sofa, she didn't understand what she was doing. It was like her second nature to want to touch Maksim's wet hair. And seeing him after so long only made her want to do it even more.

Ella picked up the towel he had put on the bed and grabbed his arm. Maksim looked down at her in surprise and pulled his hand back.

"Sit down, Maksim," Ella said.

Maksim's eyes narrowed, "No."

"Max, your hair is dripping water everywhere," Ella complained. "Just sit down. Stop being so difficult."

"I'm being difficult?" Maksim laughed. "Oh please, I beg you. Please explain how I'm being the difficult one."

"Do you realize the way you are behaving?" Ella raised a brow. "For the past month, you have been out of control."

"Don't," Maksim took a step back as Ella tried to touch his hair. "Don't speak to me about the last month. You have no idea what it's been like."

"Feeling like there is no one there for you?" Ella asked. "Feeling like you're drowning or six feet under screaming but no one can hear you? Yeah, I know exactly how that feels. I lived through it for three months, remember?"

Maksim didn't respond. He saw the pain in Ella's eyes as she bit down on her bottom lip and tried to keep herself calm.

"At least you didn't have to live with knowing your mate rejected you," Maksim finally said after a pause.

"You were going to reject me!" Ella suddenly yelled. "Don't make me the bad guy. You started this."

"Yes, it's all my fault Ella!" Maksim flared his arm. "You left me!"

"You left me too!" Ella said in frustration.

"So this was payback? You rejected me to get back at me?"

"No!" Ella felt angry tears run to her eyes. "Of course I didn't do that. You needed to see that your actions had consequences."

"That was one hell of a way to show it, wasn't it!"