Chapter 53


    Xandar was awakened by Lucianne’s 4 a.m. rm. She turned it off within seconds. And he saw her get


    out of bed in the darkness. His sleepy eyes watched her stretch her perfect body before she walked


    towards the bathroom. When she locked the door behind her, Xandar allowed himself a few more


    seconds before getting out of the couch he slept in. He then remembered they had a date this morning.


    But after everything that happened the night before, he wasn’t sure if Lucianne still wanted t o go with


    their ns. He turned on the lights and stretched out his own body as he waited for Lucianne toe


    out from the bathroom.


    The moment he heard the bathroom door unlocking and saw Lucianne emerge in changed clothes,


    Xandar tookrge strides towards her, and held her in his arms as he pecked a kiss o n her cheek and


    forehead before whispering, “Good morning, beautiful.”


    She offered a shy smile, “Good morning, Xandar.”


    He then asked in concern, “How are you feeling?”


    She replied, “I’m okay. That phase was over after I cried it outst night. I’m back to normal now. Thank


    you.”


    He smiled and pecked a kiss on her nose before taking a step back to take in the ck tracksuit she was


    wearing before he asked nervously, “C-Can I join you for your run this morning?”


    She looked at him in confusion, “Weren’t you already going to do that?”


    He chuckled as relief washed over him before he exined, “I just thought after what happenedst


    night, you would want to go run alone.”


    She then asked quizzically, “So…you expected me to go on our date by myself?”


    His eyes widened as he frantically denied, “No! I just…” He stopped his exnation when he caught the


    cheeky glint in her eye, and he went straight for the flesh on her waist as she giggled and he muttered,


    “You little rascal.”


    His animal was absolutely jubnt to hear her giggles so early in the morning. It could not think of a


    better way to start the day, and neither could Xandar. After Xandar had cleaned himself up, they went to


    the ground floor and exited through the back, greeting Ethan who was standing guard before they jogged


    towards the forest.


    Lucianne went behind a tree to strip and shift. She held her bag of clothes between her canines as she


    came out from where she was. And that was when she came face-to-face with a nine-feet Lycan. 1


    Xandar’s animal had ck fur, and unlike werewolves which could only stand and run on all


    fours, Lycans only stand on two feet. Their hands are free to grab their prey and attack their foes. Their


    height itself was already an advantage. Most wolves are either equal in height as their human form, or


    slightly taller in the case of Alphas and Lunas.


    Lucianne knew that Xandar’s animal would berger than his human form but she was still surprised by


    what she saw, and had to take two steps back to get a fuller view. Xandar’s animal whimpered when its


    mate stepped back, thinking that she was avoiding him.


    N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ‘Baby, what’s wrong?’ His lc eyes showed concern as he mind-linked her.


    ‘I think I’m still not used to seeing Lycans.’ She said as she looked at Xandar in awe. His brawny build


    exuded strength, confidence and power. Hisrge hands looked like they could easily uproot a fully-


    grown tree. His lc eyes shone strikingly against his thick ck colored fur. Every part of Xandar’s


    majestic animal screamed dominance and perfection.


    Seeing that Lucianne didn’t say anything further as she continued to stare, Xandar misread her awe for


    fear so he linked sincerely, ‘I can shift back if you want.’ He, especially his animal, was worried that it


    may have upsetted her, or worse, scared her.


    Cheekiness sparked in Lucianne for the second time that morning when she linked, ‘Now why would I


    want that? Seeing you like this now gives me more time to strategize on how I’m going to beat your


    animal inbatter on.’


    His worry vanished as he linked in mock realization, ‘Ah, so that’s why you suggested we had an animal


    date. And here I thought you just wanted our animals to meet. This is quite embarrassing, my Queen.’


    ‘Looks like I’ve misled you.’ Lucianne smirked as she and Xandar continued to rey their conversation


    at the refreshments table before Xandar’s arousal spiraled out of control the other day, with their roles


    now reversed.


    ‘Hm..that, you did.’Xandar linked in his husky voice as he took a step towards her. His arousal was


    beginning to fill the space around them as he recalled the first time they spoke like that to each other.


    Lucianne then improvised from their conversation at the refreshments table, ‘You’re not going to consider


    punishing your mate now, are you, your Highness? This is hardly a fair game. You know I can’t outrun


    you.’


    He took another step towards her and said flirtatiously, ‘So why bother running? Just let me catch you,


    mate.’


    If Lucianne were in her human form, she would have blushed from the alluring way Xandar said the word


    ‘


    mate’. Not wanting to be the one to drop their harmless act first, she linked, ‘M m…no. I came for a run


    and I am going to run. You can’t stop me just because you’re a Lycan and a King.’ With that, she took-off


    and could not help but chuckle when she saw Xandar’s shocked expression as soon as she sprinted.


    ‘Babe, I honestly don’t know which one of us is going to regret this more once it ends.’ Xandar


    said, repeating Lucianne’s exact words to him when he challenged her to spar right after she took down


    the General. His words elicited a chuckle from Lucianne through their link, making his Lycan gain speed


    to catch up to her.


    Her adrenaline was pumping as she ran through the trees against the cool morning air. Within seconds,


    she felt Xandar’s animal catching up to her so she tried to get creative. She ran in zigzags and narrowly


    dodged trees with her agility and small size. The trick was to slow Xandar down, even if it was just by a


    little bit. The unexpected turns she was taking would make catching up to her slightly more difficult than if


    she were just running in a straight line.


    When the river she came to every morning was in view, she took a huge leap toward it when Xandar


    appeared from behind one of the trees and caught her in his arms before his body slumped to the ground


    with Lucianne safely wrapped up in his chest.


    With their bodies lying on the ground, Xandar’s concerned eyes bore into her sapphire orbs as he asked,


    ‘You okay, Lucy?’