Claire’s P. O. V
“You can rest here for a bit,” Danny said after showing me a room.
“For a bit? Are we heading back to the packhouse?” I asked him.
“Nope, we’re staying here till morning. Alpha Ethan will meet and take us to another place-a plantation.”
“A plantation? What’s that about?”
“You’ll find out tomorrow. We’ll be on guard while you rest. Good night, Lady Halle.” Danny closed the door.
It was a huge room, similar to the one Ethan gave me at the packhouse, but instead of a garden view, I saw the city’s glittering lights. Yet, one thing remained-the silence.
Why did Ethan bring me here if he was just gonna leave me alone? Honestly, I caught Christopher Gale’s men watching and tailing us all day.
Danny and the Warriors might not have noticed, but I did. Their scent was different from Ethan’s wolves and any other wolves here. It felt familiar yet strange, much like Ethan’s scent.
Time kept ticking, but I couldn’t sleep. My mind was of Christopher Gale, as if he wouldn’t leave me alone even if I begged.
While lying down, sniffing the light scent of the sheets, my door suddenly opened without a knock. The only person who’d do that was Ethan Randall, the Alpha.
I turned, and there he was. Ethan. “What’s with the new clothes?” I asked, noting they were different from what he wore when we flew here.
“Why aren’t you asleep?”
“Trying to figure out how to escape from you.”
“Huh, that’s funny.”
“Yeah, it’s always a riot,” I replied. “Who did you meet to smell like cheap champagne?”
“What do you know about champagne to call it cheap?” he laughed.
What was that? Why did he laugh like I said something hilarious? And why did he toss his jacket and climb onto the bed, crawling over me and kissing my neck? This was so out of character.
It does smell like alcohol. But not expensive alcohol, it’s like a canned beer that’s been sitting out at room temperature for too long, not fresh and not tasty. But why would Ethan want to drink something like that when he had such a great taste for a glass of wine.
I touched his shoulder, making him stop and meet my eyes. “Did you come here just to mess with me?”
“Why? Don’t you like it?”
“You already have Lucy Torrance. Why do you keep coming to me, asking for something that’s not yours? It makes me uncomfortable.”
Ethan sighed, lying next to me, his hand stretched out as if releasing his fatigue there. But did my words really stop him?
“I’m tired, but I don’t want to kiss you.”
“What? Did I ever give you something like this before?” I snapped.
“Do you want to go back to the packhouse tomorrow?”
I glanced at him lying beside me. “Why do you want to send me back?”
“You seemed uncomfortable there earlier. I thought you might want to go back.”
Huh, Ethan Randall trying to be nice to me? That was unusual. And yet, hadn’t Ethan shown this side before when he faced the Rogue Wolves in the forest?
Yeah, definitely. That was the first time Ethan showed me this other side of him.
“Nope. I’m enjoying this trip. They took me to cool places, bought me a lot of food, and showed me interesting spots,” I lied, hoping Ethan wouldn’t send me back.
I wasn’t sure if my lie worked, but maybe someone like Ethan Randall wouldn’t believe me anyway. Yet, it seemed he did. He lay beside me, closed the distance, and touched my hair with his fingertip.
“You know, it feels like I’m being toyed with, like something’s tickling my stomach. It’s uncomfortable, but also kinda nice.” He started talking, as if saying something random, a simple riddle that many people might know but not those who were too lazy to think.
I shook my head, without taking my eyes off him, I said, “If you’re talking about something like love, I think you’re overreacting. Didn’t you take me as just a war captive? Calling this love doesn’t suit you.”
I spoke off the cuff, sounding silly because Ethan couldn’t possibly consider this love. And a war captive?
Wait, why did I suddenly bring that up? Was it because it felt like I was connected to someone? Wait-should I tie this to Christopher Gale who’s been around me lately?
“Why not?” Ethan responded. “You’re my Luna, and the bond between us is too strong to ignore.”
Bonding? Of course this happened after we had sex, it got stronger day by day, until I could probably feel what Ethan was feeling, maybe he could even read my mind without having to look at my face. This was terrifying, considering Ethan was a terrifying monster who could eat me alive.
“Is that why you take me to every country for business?” I guessed.
“Can’t deny that,” he replied confidently.
I sighed, pushed Ethan’s hand away, and sat up, looking at his always handsome face. No lies there, especially when he smiled-it felt like gazing at a living painting.
“No matter that we’re mates destined by the moon goddess, or how strong our bond is, you still have Lucy Torrance. You can’t ignore her.”
“Do you want me to stop giving her attention?”
This sounds funny. When everyone wants Lucy Torrance to be Luna for him, suddenly she says something I didn’t expect.
“You’ll get in trouble if you do that.”
“Why should I have a problem with this? You will still be my Luna, and Lucy will still be my fiancee. You will be with me, and I will not stop giving you my attention.” He said.
This bastard seems like he’s testing me. It sounds like he has something to hide but chooses to peel himself off bit by bit in front of me, not like he was trying to explain it clearly, as if he wanted to know in my own way.
But, being side by side with Ethan when Lucy Torrance is still around, I don’t think that’s a good idea.
“I just want to find out who killed the sisters, Sister Alberta and the orphans. Coming with you is my decision, but my goal is not to become your Luna, but revenge.”