Chapter 36

Olivia

Well, well, well. If it wasn’t for the consequences of my own actions…

It had been a memorable day when Lucien had run his hands all over my body and brought me to complete abandon as I had shattered in his hand and he inside me. I’d felt weightless, like a leaf floating languidly in the air on a calm autumn evening.

But if I’d known this would be the end result, I probably would’ve kept my legs tighter than a nun’s.

I couldn’t sleep. My heart was beating with a pounding that rivaled that of a drum and my throat felt drier than the Sahara. Inside me, I could feel the baby move. A fighter, that one. I didn’t know how long I would have to do this but heavens knew I couldn’t hold on for much longer.

Next to me, Lucien snored lightly. I tapped him once, then twice. “Lucien. Wake up. I’m thirsty.”

He mumbled something incoherent, then turned to the other side. I sighed audibly. So much for taking care of me.

A glance at the bedside clock revealed that it was fifteen minutes past 1 AM. It was too late to ring any of the servants for a glass of water. I tapped Lucien again, pulling at his shirt. “Wake the fuck up.”

When it became obvious that I was grasping at straws, I willed my swollen body to stand up. I’d come to the conclusion that being pregnant was not much fun, especially since it felt like an actual baby wolf was growing inside me.

The sound of Lucien’s light snore filled the air and I rolled my eyes at how calm he looked. “I’m in this fucked up situation because of you, asshole.”

It took me a good amount of time to reach the door and step out into the hallway, not for the first time cursing Lucien’s father for building a mansion so big. It must have taken me another hour to get to the kitchen downstairs because by the time I held the glass of water in my hand, I was gasping for air.

Getting married and having kids might not have been my five-year plan but it was my reality now and I was living it. As my mind traveled, I glanced around the spacious kitchen. I’d grown up with money; Penny had made certain that I never lacked anything. But this kitchen had to be twice the size of my room at home. I felt like an ant in all the space.

I ran out of water so I did a quick refill. Amidst all the chaos of the past weeks, I realized that Lucien and I hadn’t had time to enjoy our marriage. Once all these were over, we would take a very long trip to a place where there would be no family, no pack, no blood-thirsty brothers, or annoying mothers.

The thought that Mason was in this house bothered me. We’d barely spoken five sentences to each other but whenever he was in close proximity, I couldn’t help the feeling of apprehensiveness I felt. It made my skin crawl. Yes, while I worried that he would break free of his bounds and attack either me or Lucien, it also didn’t sit well with me that he was bound.

For the life of me, I couldn’t bring myself to forget that no matter what happened, he was still Lucien’s brother. As unavoidable as it was, I would have to tell our children one day that their uncle tried to kill their father.

Ever since he’d been caught, Lucien had tightened the security around the villa. He’d also been spending more time with me, making sure I was as close to him as possible. It seemed like he’d taken my words to heart when I’d told him that Mason wasn’t working alone. All efforts to get any answers out of him had proved futile. Even Xavier had tried. Lucien didn’t trust anybody else and I definitely wasn’t going down there. I couldn’t bare to see him.

The thought brought me to Penny. Not for the first time, I wondered why she’d offered to go see him. I’d have expected her to be scared of her roots, not running toward the problem. In fact, I’d only just realized she hadn’t seemed scared that day in the dining room.

I sighed, massaging my temple. “Christ,” I muttered, before emptying my glass for the third time. Everything was so messed up. I wanted to sleep and wake up once the threat was gone. But I couldn’t. Now more than ever, I had to stay near Lucien. He needed me as much as I needed him.

It didn’t matter. I was not going to let anything happen to my family. In whatever form the threat may come, we would handle it.

I dropped the glass in the sink and proceeded out of the kitchen. I’d probably been in there for an hour given how exhausted I was. The climb up the stairs was easier than when I’d come down. I let myself into the room quietly, not surprised to hear Lucien’s familiar snore. Not even an earthquake could wake him at this point.

It was only when I closed my eyes to sleep that it occurred to me that I’d seen Elena walking away from the underground cells.

What had she been doing there?