Darius pov
I wanted to ignore her.
Ignore her scent, ignore the way the smiled despite the obvious pain in her eyes, ignore the way r my gare kept tickering to her despite not wanting to.
I wanted to ignore it all.
But I couldn’t
And that was what frustrated m
The fact that during this entire ride, my <b>thoughts </b>had been mainly filled with her
I’d been surprised earlier today by her request.
Even though she knew the reason I kept her <b>alive </b>and why I wanted her toe with me to the pack, might not be anything good, she still agreed……… just for an alliance with her pack.
I thought she’d <b>ask </b>for something else
Anything else.
But <b>all </b>she wanted was an alliance.
Sure, it wasn’t a small thing
An alliance meant protection and support, something most, if not all, would kill for from my pack, But there hadn’t been an alliance in centuries. Not since the death of my mate.
That <b>was </b>why I was curious
About her reason.
About what she meant when she said those words:
I
“I don’t need to know. You could still decide <b>to </b>kill me for all I care… as long as I get to save them from dying. As long as the past doesn’t repeatibell”
What did she mean by the past repeating itself?
That was what had me confused.
“Hehe. I finished a bottle! I want another, another one,”
My eyes shifted to her, just in time to see her till the bottle to her lips, drops of champagne spilling down to her mouth. She smacked her lips before setting it down with a light chuckle, her eyes locked on the next bottle in front of her.
Then she muttered under <b>her </b>breath,
“I want another one. One’s not enough to get my drunk… I can’t get drunk from this alone.”
And then she turned sharply to the bottle in front of me. Her grin widened even more as she <b>reached </b>for it and before I could even think, my hand shot <b>out </b><b>and </b>grabbed her wrist<b>, </b>stopping her in ce and pulling her toward me
Ourfaces were.
re just inches apart.
Almost instantly, her gare flickered to mine, her eyes going wide with surprise. Her breathing turned soft and rapid as she stared at a
For a brief moment, neither of us spoke.
I felt like that silence would stretch on forever until
“What do you think you’re doing?”
sally broke it, my voice low andnd withi
We were on our way back to my pack, and she was already drunk. Was this really the first impression she wanted to give?
Not that I cared.
Thad no intention of taking her as my mate, and her image meant nothing to me
But what irritated me, what truly bothered me was that she’d broken one of the very rules gave her
Do <b>not </be near me.
And yet, here she was.
And the sight of her right now only made that irritation burn hotter.
At my question, she blinked and the next moment, a <b>slow </b><bugh </b>escaped her lips
My eyes narrowed <b>as </b>she leaned in even closer, until our <b>lips </b>were just a breath apart.
At that moment, my gaze flicked to her full, plump lips, and I watched as she ran her tongue across her bottom one and for some reason, the urge to feel those lips on mine hit me <b>hard</b>.
I remembered how soft they were thest <b>time </b>we kissed, and I nearly followed through with that urge
Until she lightly pped my shoulder, breaking the moment.
“What am I doing? I’m not even sure <b>at </b>this point,” she said with a pout. “Everything is so <b>intense </b>and frustrating right now…I don’t know what the fuck
I’m doing
I could feel her hot breath <b>fan </b>against my lips <b>as </b>she spoke.
“But
night now… right now, all I want to do is drink. I don’t want to be sober…
Her voice dropped into a whisper.
“I don’t think I can…not right now,” she added, her voice cracking slightly at the end, her lips trembling
itted my <b>head </b>slightly as I watched her.
That look–That same look of pain in her eyes.
It surprised me that someone like her, someone who seemed like she grew up wealthy and pampered<b>, </b>could have that <b>look</b>, she’d been through hell.
Something… far too familiar.
Having lived for centuries, despite avoiding people, I had grown used to reading them.
And this girl, she was hiding behind walls made of pain, Just like I did.
“Can I drink the other bottle?” she asked, veice <b>low</b>, eyes watery and when a tear slid down her cheek, my breath hitched
“Please,” she whispered.
10E0 THU, 21 Jul
I frowned but said nothing.
Instead, I released her wrist and turned away, staring out the window.
She seemed to understand I’d given her permission, because she bowed her head slightly in gratitude before reaching for the second bottle
“Thank you…she mutinured, popping the cork.
The sound of slurping followed, along with a satisfied sigh.
When I turned to look at her, my brow twitched.
She was drinking straight from the bottle, eyes <b>shut </b>and a smug little grin on her lips,
“Hehe… tastes good,” she said softly, and I couldn’t help but scowl in disgust before checking the time on my phone.
Thirty minutes had passed since we left the Emberfang Pack, and we still had almost three hours left before reaching my territory and that’s if Drake
drove faster.
Not wanting to spend more time confined in the same space with her, I sent a mindlink to Drake,
“Drive faster. I want us there within two hours. Do
you
understand
His response came quickly.
“Yes, my king”
I sighed and tried to block out her mutterings and drunkenughter, deciding to close my eyes-
But the next second, they snapped open
And I found myself staring right into her eyes.
She had knelt on the seat and was now close to me, eyes trained on mine with a pout.
The world seemed to blur around us as we continued staring at each other.
And then she spoke, her words slurred, yet I heard them clearly.
“Why are you this attractive… yet your personality sucks? It’s <b>unfair</b><b>.</b>”
<b><i>AD </i></b>