AryaArthur and I jump apart from each other, still dazed and feeling the heat from the kiss, only to find the King and Queen standing by the doorway with their mouths wide open.In my head, Ivory is wincing. She even has the nerve to say, “Uh-oh.”I want to tell her to shut up and be quiet, but all I can do is stare at my parents. My face is hot and it feels like my whole body is getting numb, but I still force myself to look them in the eye. Maybe that can help, right? Maybe that can make them think that this isn’t as scandalous as they probably think.But the horrified look in Queen Helena’s eyes tells me otherwise.“What. . . .” she trails off. “What is happening here?”“Your Majesty.” Arthur tries to bow but I can tell that he’s scared too. And who wouldn’t be? King Samuel is glaring at him like he couldn’t wait to get his hands on his neck and strangle him. “I . . . I promise, it’s not what you think. I just thought that I would see her personally since I don’t think I will be a
ArthurI’m losing my mind. Arya’s words are still ringing in my head and no matter what I do, I can’t seem to get it out of my mind.“I am not the King and Queen’s niece. I’m their long lost daughter, and I’m the princess of this kingdom.”I can’t get it out of my head. Her face, her voice, the way she called my name when I left. . . .I know it was probably not wise to leave the King and Queen like that. They might view it as a grave disrespect to their daughter since I outright walked away from her, but how can I stay after that? How can I just sit there and pretend that that was okay?I was lied to. All throughout our relationship, I was lied to. I was led to believe that she was someone else, that I was forming a relationship with someone else, someone who is not destined to take the throne someday.Because that is my fear. Someday taking over and ending up like my father. Power hungry and uncaring, not even giving a single damn about his son. I don’t want to rule anyone. I just w
Arya“Arthur.” I swallow hard. “I’m so sorry.”Arthur just stares at me, combing his hand through his wet hair. There are wet patches on his shirt and I can’t stop thinking about how the fabric clings on his skin. I want nothing more but to get in and touch him, but the serious look in his eyes stops me in my tracks.“What are you doing here?” he asks in a low voice. “How did you get in?”“The maids let me in,” I tell him sincerely. “I promise, I didn’t sneak in.”“Hmm,” is the only thing he says, and he just watches me expectantly as though he’s waiting for me to say something. Something specific. Something that will maybe fix everything.“I’m sorry,” I say, and I have to say that I hate the way my voice cracked. I came here determined to explain everything rationally and without asking for sympathy or an emotional response. But here I am, about to break down. “I really am. I know I should have told you. I should have asked my parents if I can tell you. I just came here to say that .
Arya "Marry . . . me?" I ask. Don't get me wrong. I don't feel bad about that. How can I, when it's Arthur who's asking that from me? I love him and I will do anything for him, and being together for the rest of our lives would mean the world to me. But I still can't believe that I managed to find someone like him. Someone so good and so genuine. Someone that's not like Levi at all. I freeze. Levi? Did I just think that? I try to take back the thread of memories in my head, but it slips away pretty quickly, leaving me with the conclusion that Levi might be the boy in my memories who said some bad stuff to me. It’s all just faraway now. All the feelings seem to be gone. "Yes," Arthur tells me with no hesitation. "I liked you since I first saw you, and my love for you now only grew when I got to know you. I'm sure that I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Tears start to brim around my eyes, and it feels good that this time, it's not because of pain. It's because of the
AryaThe pain is too great for me to bear. I don’t know what’s happening around me anymore, but I do know that I just crashed into what looks like a meeting between Dad and his important people.And by crash, I mean literally crashed into their table.I feel the wooden structure exploding against my back, as well as the shuffle of papers and the crash of coffee cups on the floor. I expect the pain to come but it doesn’t. Instead, I just feel a numb kind of sensation on my back.I have a strong feeling that his otherwise deadly collision against the table is actually cushioned by my prickly fur.The men around me all yell and flinch as I try to straighten up. In my head, I can feel Ivory’s chaotic joy and her immense freedom. I can hear her letting out a long and joyous whoop, which registers as a long and shrill howl that echoed in the tight space.Meanwhile, King Samuel is in great shock. He carefully approaches me as his men press themselves against the wall, trying not to get flatt
AryaSilence. There’s only silence among the four of us. I stare at all of them and their expressions are all different.Daphne looks shocked. Maria looks skeptical. Kate looks confused. This could have been a comedic situation if it weren’t for the fact that Arthur himself did not react too well when he found out. I would be hurt if my friends all think the same way about me too.“Um. . . .” Daphne is the first one to speak. “So you’re not their niece?”I shake my head. “No, I’m not. I had to pretend that I am until my Lycan comes so I can have proper recognition, and I got my Lycan just recently.”The three of them nod and look at each other. Then silence again. This makes my nerves skyrocket. What are they thinking? How are they feeling? How exactly are they taking the news?I want to ask them all these questions that are plaguing my brain but I decide to wait for their reactions. I don’t want to force them to accept it if they don’t feel like it’s going to work.Quietly, I take a
AryaThe words seem to float off the paper and around my head, swirling like a halo of taunts and bad memories.Suddenly everything starts to come back.Now, I remember growing up in that pack, Shadow Moon. I remember being called the weakest link. I remember my brother Daniel and my parents there, who were the only ones who were kind to me. And finally, I remember Levi Ellis.The Alpha who rejected me the night of my birthday there.The rejection feels like it happened yesterday. Suddenly I can feel the old hurt again. Suddenly I’m back in that pack, facing the cliff and choosing death over the pain that was given to me so heartlessly.For a whole moment, I can’t breathe. That’s why I wasn’t welcome there. That’s why my power never matched up to any of theirs. This Kingdom is where I belong.And that place has been the source of my worst pain.Tears start to fall rapidly down my cheeks. My parents look horrified.“Why are you crying?” Mom asks in alarm. “What are you crying about? Wh
Levi“Are you not coming with us?” Theo asks me absently as we both enter the arena for fighting practice. “I mean, it’s going to be really fun.”“Well, if you refuse to tell me what you’re up to, I’m afraid I would have to decline,” I say in an emotionless tone.That has been my tone for days now. Emotionless, bland. Lifeless and weird too, according to my dad.Unfortunately, that is also the only tone I can use for whatever “party” Theo and Daniel are planning to throw for me. They say it’s supposed to make me feel better and maybe amp up my performance as an Alpha too, which is something that my dad wants me to improve immensely.Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I’m not trying my best to be everything they expected me to be: a dynamic and active Alpha who would be able to finish his tasks seamlessly and without losing a single notch of energy. The kind of Alpha who would be perfect in all his endeavors and yet still manage to find the time for personal stuff, like love and marriag
LeviI tighten my hands around Lauren’s throat, feeling it pulse under my touch. There’s the level of satisfaction to that that I can’t explain.It's dark and it's something that I don't even want to acknowledge, but I would be lying if I say that it doesn't feel good.As I watch her eyes grow bigger with alarm, I feel more and more determined to end it this way. With her right under my hands, trying to fight off the force of my strength around her neck.I hate her, I realize as I try my best to finish her off and get this over with forever. She might just be an accomplice to her shitty brother, but she knows what she's doing.And if tonight is proof, I would say that she's not as innocent as she pretends to be. She's perfectly capable of making choices that would fuck other people up even more. She knows what she's doing.I still want to know so many things, like how she got to copy the scent of Arya and why she needed it anyway, when I can just tell completely that she's not my mate
LeviMy heart nearly gets stuck inside my throat. I want to scream, but I find that I can’t. The pain in my chest is still much too great for that, and I hate that I’m not even sure I’m seeing the right thing.Is Lauren really here, or am I just manifesting the stupid dreams and thinking that I am seeing her?I blink rapidly to see if she is indeed there, and to my horror, the image of her smiling in the corner doesn’t vanish. She’s walking close to the bed I’m lying on, but Gammie doesn’t even move. She doesn’t even flinch. I know for a fact that she’s a very sensible old woman who can practically feel everything, so this worries me.I look at Lauren again and see that she's getting closer and closer, and as though to confuse me further, she touches the side of Gammie's shoulder.And the woman doesn't flinch.Is Lauren real right now? Because I can hear her footsteps. I can smell her scent. I can tell that she's getting closer to me and she feels very much solid right now.Could this
LeviI was locked in a constant state of dreams and uncomfortable thoughts when they were operating on me.Part of me was conscious, but a bigger part of me just wasn’t. It was constantly floating in a state of blankness and anxiety, just a mish mash of things that shouldn’t go together. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my parents and my childhood. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my teenage years and my short days as an Alpha.But most of the time, I was dreaming of Arya.However, when I was about to wake up, I was dreaming of something else entirely. Something that resonated with my fear, the reason why I thought about bringing down the whole arena instead of participating in the fight that Connor and Lauren wanted to see.* * *In my dream, it was nighttime, and the lights in the arena are almost blinding me. My heart is pounding so fast that I feel like it's going to give out any moment. There are so many people around us. Too many, in my opinion. And they're all looking at
Arya“Arthur,” I mutter, his name leaving my lips like a plea as I shift around in his bed. I know perfectly well that I’m sleeping, but I also know that even in this state, Arthur is still the one in my mind. My Lycan, my mate, my love. Even though I know consciously that our relationship is in jeopardy because of his choices, I still want him, and he’s still the face I long to see in my dreams.And in my dream, I see him getting dragged away by the Rogues.“No!” I yell, but in this dream world, I’m voiceless. I’m powerless. All I can do is stand there while my mate gets clawed at by the dirty outcasts. All I can do is watch while he screams for me.“Help me, Arya!” His voice rings out in the darkness of our background. “Don’t let them take me!”He holds out his hand to reach for me. I extend my arm to get him. However, he’s already too far. He’s already too close to the mouth of the dark tunnel they’re taking him to. One of the Rogues, seeing that he has his hand outstretched, kick
AryaMy mouth goes dry at the sight of Arthur.He closes the distance between us, getting on top of me and taking both of my hands before putting them over my head.His lips are urgent on mine, intent on devouring. I can feel his hardness against my thighs. His hungry mouth travels down to my neck and on my collar bones, lower down to my breasts. When his warm mouth closes over my nipple, I almost explode. He sucks it, his tongue sweeping over it until I feel feverish. I close my eyes, not even aware that he let go of my hands until he starts to squeeze my other breast.He pulls his head away from my nipple and begins to suck the other. My hips are moving on their own. I'm so wet I can feel myself dripping on the sheets.I bury my hand in his hair, moaning loudly. But he's not done with me, cause before I knew it, his lips are traveling lower again. Until his face is between my legs. Lucien grabs my thighs and pries them apart. Then he leans forward, sweeping his tongue on my wet core
AryaLike an idiot, I turn to Arthur and ask, “About what?”He laughs softly, but the humor doesn’t reach his eyes. There’s a certain hint of sadness there, combined with another emotion that I can’t really place. Either way, seeing it in his eyes is throwing me a little off balance. I want to come with him and get to the bottom of it, but at the same time, I feel like he’s so serious that I don’t want to find out what he wants to say.“Just come with me,” he says gently. “Please?”“Well, of course,” I say, glancing back at Levi who is now sleeping soundly. “Who will be watching him? He can’t stay here alone, can he?”"I'm right here," Nancy says all of a sudden, appearing seemingly out of thin air. She wedges herself into the room and immediately comes to look at Levi, adjusting something on the IV that he's connected to. "I will be watching over him for the night. You two go talk, okay?""Thank you, Nancy," Arthur says, then he turns to me with that very same smile that doesn't reac
AryaMy heart leaps with joy. It’s something that I haven’t felt in what seems like forever, and I can feel it spreading all over me like a warm ray of sunshine. A smile appears on my face, and I look at Arthur.“He’s awake,” I whisper, and even I have to notice the sheer relief in my voice. “He’s alright. He made it. . . .”Arthur smiles at me and leans over to kiss my forehead. “I know, and I’m happy. Now go talk to him okay?”I nod, and with that I go with Nancy, who suits me up with a protective layer of clothing before we go inside.They have converted the infirmary room into a real hospital room. There are machines beeping everywhere, and there are also potions emitting sweet smelling steam somewhere in the room. There are some tools laying around, but the only thing that catches my attention is Levi lying down on the bed, his pillows fluffed up to prop him up into a sitting position.His face is pale, and his hair is slicked back over his handsome face with sweat. I can tell th
Arya“What is it?” I ask Nancy with my voice shaking immensely. I get up from my seat but I feel like the ground is lurching under my feet and I feel like I’m going to fall over if I don’t have something to cling onto. Thankfully, Arthur gets up and offers his arm to me. “What’s the problem?”Nancy hesitates, and I honestly hate how angry I became just in that moment. I want to scream at her and tell her that I am not playing games around here, that if something is up, then I must know immediately because I’ve been waiting for a long time to hear about him. Besides, the only person he has right now is me. His parents are not here and the others are back at the pack. I am the only one he has. . . .“Please,” I just say in a strained voice, looking at her and wanting to get on my knees and beg and corner her at the same time. Emotions are just running high inside my chest and I want nothing more but to know. “Please, what is happening? Is Levi okay? Will he make it?”“The truth is, I do
Arthur My blood goes cold. I swallow hard, thinking of what to say, but my mouth is completely dry and my throat is closing up. I want to assure Levi that I won’t leave him here, but he’s looking at me like he’s daring me to say those words just so he could reject them completely. So instead of talking it through with him and risking any rejection, I lift him up to his knees and very carefully start to chip away at the piece of rock lodged inside his body. Thankfully, the rock is easy to chip off, as it seems to be made of hardened mud instead of actual stone. I manage to clip it down close to his body so it won’t move or damage anything inside him. He kept groaning and screaming the entire time, and I just had to close my hearing so that I wouldn’t hear it and experience the pain of seeing him go through it. When I’m done, I take him into my arms, not caring about how weird it could look or what he has to say, and it seems that he still has a lot to say. As though to prove my poi