Chapter 55: Chapter 55

LENORE

“Is that possible?”

“I should be the one asking you that,” Virginia replied. “...Is it?”

“I don’t know,” I muttered, glancing at the closet door which Fabien’s and Killian's voices were currently filtering through.

If it—Killian and I being mates—was possible, Cameron would have said something when I was in his room half an hour ago. Killian would have said something too. And besides, as far as I knew, the concept of mates only existed in the werewolf world.

…Can vampires have mates?

“…Have you had sex with him?” Virginia asked, snapping me out of my thoughts, and my brows shot up.

“Virginia!” I burst out before slapping my hand over my mouth at how loud my voice had been.

“What?!”

Oh my God… “…Not yet,” I muttered, heat rushing to my face, and for a couple of seconds, Virginia didn’t say anything. Then she burst out laughing.

“You… You said not yet,” she said in between fits of laughter. “Pleaseeee.”

I frowned, my face growing even hotter, and when a couple of seconds passed with her still laughing—it even grew hysterical—I hung up. “Jerk,” I muttered under my breath before my phone buzzed with a message from her. It was a row of laughing emojis.

Me: I’m blocking you

That got me another row of laughing emojis and I sneered at the screen before the word mate popped back into my mind. I pursed my lips, glancing at the closet’s door once more.

…Could we be? Yes, I was latent and I didn’t know if vampires could have mates, but me and Killian being mates wouldn’t be the most unusual thing to happen to me.

My phone buzzed, drawing my attention.

Virginia: Don’t omg :(

Me: Give me one reason

Virginia: :(

Virginia: Don’t you need help with your date outfit?

Virginia: Where’s he taking you?

Oh… I’d assumed we’d be having dinner in the dining hall, but her question made me realize he could be taking me somewhere else, so I dropped the phone on the dresser island and headed towards the door so I could ask Killian.

“I’ll keep the amulets in your safe for now,” Fabien said to Killian just as I was about to turn the doorknob. They’d been talking for a while now—he’d shown up right after Aurel and Aurora left—and though Killian wouldn’t mind me interrupting what had to be an important conversation, I didn’t want to do that just to ask where our date was taking place.

“Okay,” Killian answered while I turned away from the door.

“Also, talk to Her Majesty before meeting with the witch.”

I paused, then tilted my head. Killian’s meeting a witch? …Does it have to do with the invitation?

“Did Uncle ask you to tell me that?”

“No…? Why?”

“Nothing. Go bother someone else,” Killian said, and a couple of seconds later, he added matter-of-factly, “The next person that interrupts me when I’m with Lenore will be buried alive.”

My brows shot up. Huh?

“…I think Lenore will be averse to that.” Fabien sounded like he was standing next to the room’s door now, and the corner of my mouth turned up at how he sounded like he was talking to a petulant child while Killian mumbled something under his breath. The room’s door opened. “Rest assured, it won’t happen again.” WIth that, the door was shut, and after waiting for a couple of seconds, I opened the closet.

Killian’s intent gaze had already been fixed on the door before I opened it, like he had been thinking about coming to me, and the moment he saw me, he smirked. I was the half-werewolf here, and yet, as I walked towards him, I felt like I was being tracked by a wolf.

He shifted to the edge of the couch when I got to him, his hands coming to rest on my hips like they belonged there. They did feel like they belonged there.

“Is our date taking place in the palace?”

“No,” he muttered, pulling me closer before resting his chin on my thigh as he stared up at me.

I tipped my head to the side. “Where? The city?”

“Yes.”

I hadn’t properly been to the city before, and before moving to Killian’s mother’s palace, whenever I saw pack representatives leaving for the city, all I could think about was how scary it would be to be so surrounded by vampires. Now that Killian was taking me there, I found myself unbothered by it.

“What should I wear?” I asked and he hmmed, furrowing his brows in thought. I couldn’t resist bringing my hand up to trace his brows before burying it in his hair, and as I stared at him, I gained a favorite color—something I hadn’t really had before. Blue… the same shade as his eyes.

“Nothing would be lovely.”

I blinked at him. Then his words ran through my mind again and I stuttered, my eyes widening. He could as well have set my face on fire.

A grin overtook his expression. “Wear anything you want, Lenore. It’s going to be just the two of us,” he said, and I shot him a glare for his previous statement before clearing my throat.

Since his answer didn’t help narrow my options down and I wanted to wear something he’d like, I asked, “What’s your favorite color?”

“Green.”

I had three green dresses, but their necklines were insane… Pretty sure, he’d love them.

“What’s yours?” he asked and I smiled while moving my hand from his hair to his ear, tracing his earlobe. He leaned into my touch.

“Blue.”

“Steel blue?”

My smile widened.

That was the exact shade of his eyes.

“Narcissist,” I said and he kissed the inside of my palm. “Favorite food?”

“For now… chicken biryani.”

Again, my smile widened. I never would have guessed that, but I really liked the fact that I knew now. “For now?” I asked, wondering if his favorite food changed once in a while. Then it dawned on me that it had to—he was a vampire after all.

“You might take the spot,” he said in all seriousness, and I slightly drew my brows together.

“You said drinking from me would—”

“Not talking about your blood,” he added, his eyes glinting.

…Oh!

The heat that had blossomed across my face intensified, and I smacked his arm while he pulled me down to sit on his lap before pressing a kiss to my jaw.

He was so… direct. I mean, yes, I wanted him as much as he wanted me, but he never hesitated to voice it out. And when he didn’t voice it out, he had it written all over his face.

I needed to build some form of resistance to his words.

“You’re meant to take me to dinner first,” I muttered. My face could probably fry an egg now.

“Any chance after dinner?” he replied, and all of a sudden, the thought of being trapped under him—being pinned under that hard weight—popped into my mind and I sucked in a breath.

Fuck. He was making me horny. I was never horny—I hadn’t even had sex before!

“If you play your cards right.”

The corner of his mouth turned up and I looked away, suddenly feeling shy under his gaze. Like he hadn’t had me shirtless in his lap just a couple of hours ago and we weren’t currently talking about possibly having sex tonight.

“...Why did you protect me?” Killian asked and I furrowed my brows before shifting my gaze back to him. “Your brother. You didn't tell him how we met.”

Oh... “...You were eavesdropping?”

“Uhhh,” he started, and I narrowed my eyes at him. “I prefer enhanced listening.”

“Which equals eavesdropping. What's with you and lingering outside doors?” I asked because he’d done the same thing before breakfast—waiting outside the suite, so I could punish him for being late.

He gave me a sheepish grin, burying his face in my shoulder. “I'm sorry,” he said, and my lips twitched before I gently pinched his ear. “Why did you protect me though?”

I pursed my lips. It would take a lot for him and Cameron to get along, and though Cameron still couldn’t wrap his head around us being together, he understood that I wanted to be with him. If I’d told him how Killian and I actually met and the first time we’d had a conversation, that’d be akin to starting a fire that could never be put out.

“It’s in the past,” I muttered, not wanting to think of the period when I was terrified of him. “I don’t want you guys to fight.”

“...You want us to get along?”

“I’d like that,” I said, nodding, and after a moment, he heaved a sigh.

“I’ll try.”

At that, my lips curved into a smile and I pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Now—” I got to my feet. “—I have to pick out what I’ll wear to dinner.”

When I turned to walk away, Killian grabbed my hand and I turned back to him, raising my brows.

“I’m sorry, Lenore.” There was no missing the guilt in his voice, and I didn’t need clarification to know he was apologizing for how he initially treated me. “I truly am.”

I gently squeezed his hand and flashed him another smile. “I know.”