Thirty-four

Luca

The drive continued all the way to the mansion in silence; I didn't respond to her last statement.

How do I keep her safe when she's never still? I thought to myself.

"Go inside," I ordered her.

She looked at me for a few seconds, unsure of what to say, then stepped out.

"Set up a meeting between Hope Salvatore and me," I told four.

I also stepped out of the car and decided to go meet Elena.

She is already making me vulnerable, and that is something I do not want to happen.

If people find out she's my weak spot, she will be targeted by everyone who wants to see me go down, and I am only trying to protect her.

I went straight to her room, and she was lying on her bed already; she must have heard me come in as her eyes were tightly shut.

This amuses me a lot. Why is she pretending to be asleep? Is she avoiding me?

"Elena," I called her; there was no response, but I could see her eyes twitch.

"Elena," I called again, "we need to talk."

Giving a very fake yawn, she sat up on the bed.

How can she yawn when she's only been on the bed for a few minutes?

"You deserve an explanation for the way I do things; I can no longer keep you in the dark."

"Like I have said before, you are my mate, and the mark on your neck is an identification that you have been mated already."

I watched her closely to be sure she was paying attention; she seemed engrossed, so I continued.

"The Avante's have a high reputation of being the most feared mafia family in the country, which means we also have tonnes of emies."

"The enemies, as you know, will do anything to find a way to bring us down, and I don't speak of humans alone."

"What attacked you that day is called a Lycan; there is something about you I don't understand yet as to why they are after you."

"That I will find out soon enough."

She mumbled something as if she wanted to ask a question.

"You can ask anything you want," I told her.

"In all this, you haven't mentioned anything about Hope or how he is dangerous to me." She said,

My eyes darkened. Why would she mention that name again? I have tried to contain my anger ever since the mall.

"Hope and I go way back; we were all friends from childhood."

"Hope, Anthonio, four, and I."

"As you already know, four and I are related. He is my cousin, and we are the only werewolves in our group."

"Hope and Anthonio are humans; Anthonio, for one, does not have a clue of our true nature, but Hope's family is the only family that knows of our existence."

"We drifted apart when we realised we were to pick up the reins of the family business; we were never bothered about it before, but our families have had a long-lasting feud."

I paused for a moment. I have never had to do so much explaining for anybody, but she has to know the tiniest details for her to understand.

"My father came up with a solution for how to end this feud by setting up a marriage deal between Imani Salvatore and me," I continued.

I noticed her eyes widening as I mentioned the marriage between Imani and me.

"Imani Salvatore!!" she repeated

"That means she's Hope's...

"Sister," I concluded for her.

"Like I said, we go way back; I planned to go along with the whole thing just to prove myself to my father."

"Now that I have found my mate, I won't go on with that plan."

Elena

I just sat like a statue, listening to all he was saying, my face transfixed like a person who had been hypnotised.

The reason for four following me around was my protection. This is me, a regular lady, living a normal, regular life.

Within the past few weeks, I have transformed not only into a wolf but also into someone who is targeted as a weak spot to bring down the Avante's

And I was tortured because Luca's father does not see me as befitting enough to be Luca's mate.

I didn't ask for any of these, I said within myself.

I just wish I could get my whole life back.

Even with all this, I don't understand why I still want him. I just want to be near him and always feel his touch.

"Elena??" I heard him call me.

"You have been quiet for some time now," as I didn't really, he added.

"Don't you have anything to say or ask?"

"I have asked you something already." I finally spoke up.

"No, you didn't; you only asked about Hope."

"Which you have gotten an answer to already."

"If you have nothing more to say, can I rest now?" I ask him.

He frowned again, and this time deeply. I can see that he is trying to control himself.

Sighing deeply, he stood up. "I will leave you to rest and digest all I have said to you, but in three hours, get ready."

"For what?" I asked him.

"We will be having dinner with my father tonight," and with that, he sauntered out.

I haven't even registered what he said about dinner before he left.

Dinner?? with his father?

It sounded so awful to me.

The same man who punished me hours ago for a crime his own son committed by picking me as a mate

I can still remember the searing pain that rushed through my body as I was chained up like a dog.

But I wouldn't want to offend Luca by not going; besides, I'll be safe since we will be going together for dinner.

With that decision finally made, I think I'll just nap a little before preparing for dinner.

It felt like I just lay for two minutes, but it was two hours, and the time flew by really fast.

I would not want Luca to come looking for me, so I hurriedly took my bath, knowing that I had less than an hour to be fully prepared.

The feeling of the water running all over my body feels so good, but I couldn't stay in long enough to enjoy it.

I haven't decided on what to wear yet, but luckily for me, I don't spend much time searching for what to wear.

My eyes caught a midnight blue suave dress; it really caught my eyes. I didn't know it had been in the wardrobe.

Quickly, I put it on, and it fitted perfectly, moulding up my breasts. It had two slits in the front, revealing my long legs. Aside from that, the dress hugged my body perfectly.

My hair does not meet many arrangements, as I have very beautiful long hair. I have always packed it up in a ponytail, but now I will just let it splay all over my back.

After spraying some scents on my neck, I feel ready to go.

I stepped out of my room and walked down towards where I would meet Luca.

He stood not too far from me, wearing a suede suit the same colour as my gown.

Was it coincidental, or did he plan it? I asked myself

As he turned his head towards me, I noticed how dashing he looked, with such a perfect jaw line and oozing masculine serenity.

He just stared at me like I was a clown, making no comment on the dress. He quickly cast a side glance at me and averted his gaze.

So much for thinking. I looked good tonight.