ALEISTER“ Levian…can tell when someone is lying. If you had stayed back, he would have found out about your child. You don’t realize how brutal he can be when it comes to getting what he wants. And right now, it’s not the time for the war. It’s time to hide that you are pregnant, Avi. ” Dustin explains to her.“ You want to hide my child? ” She huffs. “ that’s not happening. ”“ That’s why I didn’t tell you before. Now that your mate here has told Levian that you are not pregnant and that he is not allied with the other three Kingdoms, Levian is not desperate to snatch your child. He will wait. Because he believes we are weak when we are not united as the four Kingdoms. ” He says and wipes the dried blood from under his nose again. “ He will wait for you to find your mate. ” I conclude neutrally.“ He will wait for me to break and join him. Or he will wait for a mate to come to break me and get me to lose my mind like the rest of you. ” Dustin replies, and smirks. “ but that’s never
DUSTIN“ What are you thinking now? ” Lenora asks curiously.“ That’s not the right question, Lenora. ” I tell her and place my palm over the edge of the window. The sea appears calm today, or maybe, it’s just me. I am calm, inside out. There is no noise inside my head right now. After seeing Avi genuinely happy, I think I will be better for some time. “ Did you always know that King is her mate? ” She inquires and stands beside me.“ Does it matter? ” I wonder. Why does everyone make a fuss about it? If I know, so what? Does it change anything?The loser thinking makes me want to roll my eyes. If you jump into the ditch after knowing that it’s not deep or you jump without knowing it’s not deep…it’s all the same. In the end, you still have to jump in the ditch. “ How did you know? ” She turns her head and studies me curiously.“ Moon Goddess told me. ” I vowed to not lie to Lenora before, so she gets all the honest answers.She snickers. “ I am serious, Dustin. ”It’s another thi
AVERYIt was not as bad as I imagined it. Aleister did stick out from the others, but no matter how wary they were, they couldn’t say anything about it or him anymore.We had breakfast together, and then I showed Aleister around. As expected, Dustin gave us a side eye whenever we stumbled across him but he couldn’t do anything about it which left me giddy.For the first time in my life, I have my own team. Aleister and I are together, and I don’t care if the whole world is on the other side. He is enough for me.But I like that my former friends and acquaintances have accepted him as my mate.“ You have been smiling from the morning. ” Aleister mumbles, pressing a kiss to my neck from behind.“ Do you not like it when I smile? ” I inquire playfully.“ Of course, I love it, Princess. ” He trails a path of kisses up my neck as his hand rests on my stomach, caressing it softly. “ I want you to keep smiling like this forever. Will you do that for me? ”“ If you don’t make me mad, I will. ”
AVERY“ Was this really as necessary as you make it out to be? ” I ask, moving across his room, smoothening down the non-existent creases in the dress.It’s the same gown that I wore to the festival. Back then, Aleister sent me away without even looking at me but he carried this dress with him wherever he went when I left him.Now, he wants me to wear it on my initiation. I told him it’s unnecessary, but he insists that I must wear this.“ I can get you a new dress if you want, my Princess. ” Aleister says, stepping out of the dressing room and pulling me into his arms immediately. I notice the dark suit he is wearing, the material fitting every bulging muscle and making him appear bigger than he already is. Our eyes meet and warmth spreads in my insides—It’s instant and soothing. “ How do I look? ” I whisper, reaching up to press my lips to his mouth gently.“ Like my Princess. ” Aleister tilts his head, connecting our lips again. “ Like the greatest star in the sky or the beautif
AVERYLife is unpredictable, they say.I caress the cheek of the newborn, my finger trembling softly. I am awed and reduced to a teary-eyed, half-conscious woman with nothing more meaningful in life than the bundle lying on the bed beside me. So, I believe now…Life is unpredictable. If someone had told me that I will give birth to a beautiful girl, with glassy grey eyes and a sharp cry…I would have told them that I didn’t need them to fool me into believing things that would never happen.But it has happened.“ You have the right. ” Aleister lays on the other side, watching the girl lying between us with similar expressions. He looks dazed as if he is in a dream and scared of touching this beautiful creature.“ We decided on that. You will get to name her if it’s a girl. ” I pull my knees to my chest, trying hard to forget the pain I felt during labor yesterday. People say something else too—they say giving birth is no easy feat. It’s like dying and coming back to life after seei
AVERY“ We shouldn’t be out here. Let’s just go back, Princess. If your brother, the King finds out we sneaked out and ended up here, we will be so dead. ” My friend and helper Renee whispers in my ear.I shake my head and shoot her a glare. “ What did I tell you before, Renee? ”Her dull blue eyes move towards the building in front of us before she looks back at me, “ You told me to call you Ava when we are out. ”“ Yes, that’s right! Tonight, I am just Ava. ” I point my forefinger at her. To my surprise, I see two fingers instead of one.Perhaps, all the alcohol is finally kicking in. “ Ava. ” I mumble, and lower my finger to avoid the embarrassing state of my mind. “ let’s—let’s just go inside. ”It’s a big mistake. A small voice in my head keeps whispering but I can not pay attention to that. When your heart is crushed and your spirits are beaten down, maybe, you simply can’t bring yourself to care about anything else. That’s what must be happening to me. I don’t seem to give a
AVERYWhen I near him, the man turns his head slightly. I halt, trying to see his features through the hood covering his head but it is impossible.Shaking the drowsiness from my mind, I approach and slump on the seat opposite him. He picks up his head and casts me a curious look.My breath hitches. A pair of deep grey eyes peer back at me, as his lips morph into a quirky smirk.Unconsciously, I hold my breath and stare at him without moving a single muscle. I have seen my fair share of handsome men in my life, but something about this gruff and muscle-packed man screams a certain kind of sex appeal. I swallow the lump forming in my throat and focus on his grey eyes. I narrow my gaze on him.“ Are you from the South? ” I huff, my voice coming out slurry. Grey eyes are the symbol of people from the South, the enemy Kingdom—the same place where I am supposed to be shipped to, a week later.The people from there reside behind a magical wall that they raised in their defence, and they a
AVERY“ N—No. ” My back arcs.“ Ask my name. ” He demands in an amused tone.I can’t focus on whatever he wants. I can only feel his hand in my hair and on my breast. Calloused fingers kneading my skin, and making me breathless.“ Ask me. ” His lips press onto mine again, just enough to make me yearn for more.If I know his name, will I…seek him again?I…can’t. “ I don’t want to know. ” I shudder helplessly. “ What do you want, Princess? ” His breath hits my cheek before sliding to my exposed neck.He pulls at my hair, making me arc more for him. His lips press into the crook of my neck, sending chills down my spine.“ I just want you to, Ah…make me feel good. ” I blurt hesitantly.He chuckles against my skin. My fingers dig into his muscles, feeling the hardness and imagining his body over mine.The tingling sensation between my thighs is driving me crazy. I open my mouth to demand him to hurry up but his hands behind my back stop me.With a tug, he rips the back of my dress. Butto