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Meanwhile, oblivious to her panic attack, Willow crouched on the floor. Prince Lucca threw himself into the princess’s arms, and she swung him into the air, twirling him around.

“You saw her two hours ago, Lucca.” Kate shook her head and smiled. Then she spotted Ella. “Oh, hello. We haven’t met.”

Gulp.

Ella opened her mouth to speak, and nothing came out. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment, but...she was the queen. If the king walked in right now, she would absolutely die.

“This is Ella. Mack’s...friend.” Brianna bumped her shoulder.

“Hi,” she squeaked.

“A pleasure to meet you, Ella. Mack is a valuable member of our senior warrior team.” Kate Moretti smiled warmly. “Are you staying with us?”

Ella shook her head. “No.”

That was two words. She was doing well, in her opinion.

“Well, you are most welcome. Mack should know that and have extended the invite.”

Telling the queen that he didn’t seem to want her around seemed like the wrong response. Fortunately, she was saved by the ever-chatty Brianna.

“Right now, the male is having kittens because I stole her and made Craig call him to the team meeting early.” Brianna giggled.

Kate shook her head and winked at Ella.

“You girls are troublemakers. Then again, it’s why your mates chose you.”

“Hey, I’m a mom now.” Willow argued, placing Lucca on the ground. He’d lost complete interest in her and was off to get a fire truck, which was on the floor nearby.

“Fruck.”

“Exactly, little prince.” Brianna grinned.

Kate shot her an unimpressed look, then returned to Willow. “I wanted to check that you and Bray will be joining us for family breakfast.”

“Yes. Did you invite Sage? She’s working so hard. I am worried about her,” Willow replied.

Ella recognized the name, but she wasn’t sure who Sage was. She’d have to go onto the Moretti intranet and do some digging when she got back to the house. If she was going to be spending time with Mack’s friends, she didn’t want to come across as uninformed.

If he let her visit.

While the queen had invited her to stay, she didn’t want to cross that line. Mack had rented the house, after all.

“Crap!” Kate nodded and vamp-sped across the distance to stop Lucca from smashing the truck into a glass table. “Uh-uh, gentle.”

He wasn’t happy. “No, momma. Bash, bash.”

“Jesus,” Brianna muttered beside her quietly. “Maybe I want a girl.”

Ella wondered what it would be like to be mated and carry a child. Vampire pregnancies were rare and precious. That the two royals had birthed two babies so quickly was huge news across the race.

“Yes, we are headed down to see Sage now,” Kate said, then sighed. “With four of our guards.”

Willow sat back down on the sofa and tucked her legs under her. Her lips pressed together as she reached for her glass of sparkling water. “It’s a pain, I get it. But trust me, the alternative...”

“I know, sweetie.” The queen gave her a loving but sad smile. When they all went quiet, Ella sensed it was because she was there.

Suddenly, she felt like she was intruding.