Page 66 of Once Upon a Prince

Dax smiled at me and moved toward me. “I’m counting on it.”

Chapter 38

Dax

“You know, I could get used to you cooking for me,” Ella said.

It was Sunday morning and we were in the kitchen. Ella was sitting on the bar stool while I made us some waffles. She had come back to my place and we had made love for hours only to fall into an exhausted sleep and do it all over again. It was late in the morning, almost the afternoon before we got out of bed. I couldn’t remember a time I had stayed in bed as long as I had on a Sunday or any day. But I couldn’t remember a woman I wanted to before Ella.

“Maybe I want you to get used to my cooking. Maybe I like taking care of you. I certainly like having you here,” I said and flipped the waffle maker.

Ella blushed, and I could tell she didn’t believe me. I put my hands on the counter and waited for her to look at me. I could tell she could feel my gaze but it still took her a few moments before she would look at me.

“Is it so hard to believe that I would want to do that?” I asked.

“It isn’t you, it’s me. I’m sorry, that sounds stupid,” she said and looked away from me again.

“No. It doesn’t. Though why don’t you tell me what it’s about you that makes you think I wouldn’t want to do nice things for you?”

“You’re the nicest, kindest, most caring man I’ve ever met. I’m just letting my insecurities and issues get the better of me.”

“What happened? Who hurt you?” I hadn’t meant to push but I couldn’t help myself. Ella had alluded to her past but never spoken about it in any depth. I could see she wanted to and I wanted her to know that I was there to hear all about it.

“I was so young when I lost my mother, I only remembered her in images, dreams, even the occasional smell. I had pictures of her, lots of pictures of us together, but I didn’t really remember her. Dad did the best he could to raise me and I thought he was doing a good job, but he must have thought he wasn’t or that I was lonely. I think he was lonely, too,” Ella began.

“So, he remarried,” I added.

“He thought he had found everything I could want and had been missing when he met Cheryl. I liked Chantel and Chloe, my stepsisters, they seemed nice. They were very close to each other and I hoped I would grow to be like that with them.”

“I take it that didn’t happen?” I took out the waffles and put them on a plate and turned off the machine. Breakfast was going to have to wait. I walked over and sat next to Ella on the bar stools. She turned to look at me and continued.

“I think they tried, but we were just too different. Or at least that was what I told myself. They included me when they felt they had to, or when my father was watching. It quickly became evident they didn’t want to have anything to do with me. I tried to be understanding. They had been sisters for years; it would be difficult to bring someone else into the fold. I think we found a way to coexist with each other until Dad died.”

“What happened then?” I reached over and took her hands in mine. She smiled at me but it didn’t reach her eyes.

“I was sixteen. I had already been working with my dad after school since I was fifteen and liked being at the factory. The employees had watched me grow up and it was fun to get to know them better and see how everything worked.

“We were all devastated by Dad’s passing but Cheryl kept it together. At first, I thought she was doing what she could to keep the company running and all of us together. I was happy to have the distraction when she asked me to work more hours at the factory. I didn’t mind answering the questions, staying late, paying the bills, doing whatever needed to be done. In my own way, it kept me closer to my father and I thought I was making him proud.”

“But?” I asked.

“I soon realized I was doing all the work while Cheryl and her daughters were spending money, having fun, and doing whatever they wanted to do. They stopped even trying to be nice to me. Chantel turned into a bitch. You think Tanya was mean to me, she could have taken lessons from Chantel.”

“Ella, I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

“Yeah, it sucked but what could I do? I needed a place to stay, I didn’t know how to change anything. I told myself I was making a difference, I thought I was doing what was right. And I was until I realized that while Cheryl was making me do all the work, she was taking all the credit.”

“What?” I sat up annoyed and angry for Ella. “How?”

“She was telling people all the things that I was doing were her ideas. All the budgets, reports, issues that I took care of, she said she did. I was happy that the company was doing well, there were rumors it was going to have to be sold, I saved that from happening. I was happy to keep our employees working and the company profitable. It was what I thought I needed to do.”

“But at what expense? You were a kid, how long did this go on?”

“Until recently. I graduated high school, and then Cheryl had me working full time at the factory. I wanted to go to college but the only way to do that was at night. So, I did. As I took more classes and kind of got my head out of my ass about Cheryl, I knew I needed to get away from her. I was working fifty hours a week and going to school full time. I didn’t have time for anything else. I wanted a life, I wanted to have fun, I wanted to be in New York with my friends.

“Because of Cheryl, I’d never taken a vacation. I hadn’t ever seen Ara or Layla after that last year at camp. Cheryl never let me go anywhere, not even with friends from school. She gave me a guilt trip saying she would miss me too much and it was her job to keep me safe for my father. I gave in, but I eventually realized it was because she wanted me to work. She wanted to control me and for a long time I let her.”

“What changed? How did you get away from her?” I thought I knew what Ella had been through but I hadn’t a clue. I couldn’t believe how much she had endured and how brave she had been to break free.

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