Chapter 274\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 274\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ellie POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan had been standing in front of the mirror for far too long.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not admiring himself-he never did that-but staring at his reflection like it might challenge him to a fight if he looked away first. His shoulders were tense beneath his shirt, jaw set, posture rigid in that way that meant he was already preparing for battle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched him from the edge of the sitting room, curled into one of the armchairs with my legs tucked beneath me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re going to wear a hole through the glass,\u201d I said lightly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He blinked, as if only just realizing I was there. \u201cHmm?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I sighed and stood, crossing the room until I was behind him. I slid my arms around his waist, resting my cheek between his shoulder blades.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re wound tighter than a bowstring,\u201d I murmured. \u201cIf you don\u2019t relax, you\u2019re going to exhaust yourself before the debate even starts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He exhaled slowly, leaning back into me despite himself. \u201cIt\u2019s being broadcast across the entire kingdom, Ellie.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m aware,\u201d I said dryly. \u201cI helped you rehearse for the last three interviews. This is not new.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is different,\u201d he said. \u201cAll the alphas. One stage. No edits. No spin. Just\u2026 me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd them,\u201d I reminded him. \u201cYou\u2019re not walking into an ambush alone.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His hands came up to rest over mine, grounding both of us. It feels like one.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped around him so I was facing him, placing my hands on his chest. I could feel his heart beating-strong, steady, but faster than usual.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThen let\u2019s practice,\u201d I said. \u201cOne more time. Humor me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His lips twitched faintly. \u201cYou\u2019re enjoying this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cImmensely,\u201d I replied without shame. \u201cNow sit.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He did, reluctantly, lowering himself onto the sofa while I perched on the armrest beside him like an examiner preparing to interrogate a suspect.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to play interviewer again, you get too into the role,\u201d he grumbled. Despite his complaining, I could see the amusement in his eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I cleared my throat dramatically. \u201cAlpha Nolan of Silver Fang. Thank you for joining us tonight.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He rolled his eyes. \u201cYou\u2019re terrible.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnswer the question,\u201d I said, pointing at him. \u201cThere\u2019s no hiding now, this is the big leagues! First topic: your record as alpha. Critics say your leadership relies too heavily on fear. How do you respond?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at him curiously. It was more than just his critics who thought that. Everyone knew that Nolan had taken an iron fist approach from the start, but he was backing away from that now. He had to be able to justify the change.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t hesitate this time. \u201cFear was a tool I used when I believed it was the only one available. I was young and it was all I knew. I won\u2019t deny that. But fear doesn\u2019t build loyalty-it only delays rebellion. My leadership now is about accountability and trust.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded approvingly. \u201cGood. Concise. Honest.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He relaxed a fraction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I let him have the moment before pushing again. After all, this debate wasn\u2019t going to be easy. They wouldn\u2019t be giving him fluff questions to avoid making him angry. He had to be prepared to react to questions that would very likely piss him off.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNext,\u201d I continued. \u201cYour relationship with your mate and children has been a major focus of this campaign. Some say you\u2019re letting personal matters cloud your judgment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A faint, dangerous smile curved his mouth. \u201cAnyone who believes protecting my family clouds my judgment doesn\u2019t understand what judgment is for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I laughed softly. \u201cAlso good. Maybe soften the delivery just a touch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He huffed. \u201cI\u2019m not apologizing for them. Our kids are safe because of the decisions you made and that\u2019s not something they get to judge.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know,\u201d I said gently. \u201cYou don\u2019t need to apologize. Just try not to glare a hole through the camera lens when it gets brought up. Because it will be brought up, maybe more than once.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He studied me for a moment, then nodded.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know. It\u2019s a popular topic right now, I won\u2019t be able to avoid it. I\u2019m prepared for that, Ellie.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo am I,\u201d I assured him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took a breath, shifting slightly. \u201cFinal question.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This one mattered. It was a basic question, but the one that people would pay the most attention to. The one they would likely end on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha Nolan,\u201d I said more quietly, \u201cwhat is your vision for the future of the kingdom?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The silence that followed was immediate-and heavy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan\u2019s gaze drifted away from me, unfocusing as it fixed on something only he could see. The tension didn\u2019t spike this time; instead, it sank deeper, like weight settling into his bones.\u00a0<\/p>\n
P\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 274 Chapter 274\u00a0 +25 Bonus\u00a0 Chapter 274\u00a0 Ellie POV\u00a0 Nolan had been standing in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23843","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-unremembered-mate-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23843"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23843\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}