Chapter 3 THE CHOICE
Chapter Three
The Choice
Ryder’s POV
I took another glance at the girl standing in front of me, and once again, I found my heart burned with so much passion for her. I found it strange that my heart yearned so much for a girl that I was just meeting for the first time.
As we both stared into each other's eyes, we could not deny the desire we both felt for each other. I took a pause and wondered if I could ever truly bring myself to get rid of her. I had never been so confused in my entire life before. It was as though the moon goddess was punishing me for something.
Time was ticking fast, and I knew I had to make a choice. The girl was still leaning against the tree, her fingers roving around her neck her the prison guard had clawed her.
Her breathing was quick and shallow. She must have been terrified from the near-death experience. For a second, I almost rushed at her and grabbed her rich, dark hair, kissing it with a fiery desire, then taking her rosy pink lips into my mouth and devouring them. But I had to keep myself in check.
"What do we do, Ryder? Are you going to let her go?" Leo's voice came on, bringing me back to the reality of my predicament.
"Oh my God!" I muttered under my breath, unable to deny the fact that I had gotten attracted to the girl.
I took a step closer to her, and we both held our gaze, no one saying a word to the other. Her eyes were filled with passion, desire, and softness, yet there was something so fierce about her that I couldn't place.
Deep down in my heart, I knew there was no way I would get rid of her. She was my mate, after all. I needed to act fast.
"Leave us," I commanded the guard.
"But my prince..."
"I said leave! And don't you dare breathe a word about this or anyone or else, I won't hesitate to have your tongue cut off." I growled with power.
"Yes, my prince," the guard bowed low and went away without saying another word.
I sighed and turned back to her. "What is your name?" I asked, not knowing what exactly to say to her. I just found the whole situation awkward and annoying.
"Olivia,"
Her voice sounded so sweet in my ears that even Leo couldn't help but jump with admiration.
"You should have stayed out of my territory," I said with an emotion-laden voice. It was almost like I made the statement out of pity and care rather than a harsh warning.
"Well... I didn’t intend to walk into your territory. I was having a rough day back at home and decided to take a stroll. I didn't realise that I had left my pack's territory. " she sounded so sharp and fierce, but I could detect the sadness in her tone.
I felt a sharp pain in my chest at the thought of her being sad.
Her brown eyes penetrated deeply into mine, and then she asked, "Who are you?" Her voice was laden with curiosity. "From the way the forest guard addressed you, you're definitely not an ordinary lycan." she said as her gaze swept over me.
Her eyes widened in shock as soon as she sighted the royal bracelet on my wrist. It was made for every Lycan heir to wear. I had read about it in one of the ancient books of my pack.
"You're Prince Ryder, the Lycan King's heir. " Her voice suddenly lit with admiration.
I scoffed with pride.
"You know me?" I raised my eyebrows inquisitively.
She gave me a very pretty smile that melted my heart instantly. "Of course, you're very popular in the kingdoms."
"Damn it, Ryder. I can't resist her." Leo purred inside me.
"What? Weren't you the one who was insisting on having her killed a few moments ago?"
"Well... I changed my mind." Leo responded with indifference.
I scoffed at him.
I took another step towards her. Thinking that I might hurt her, she panicked and tried moving back, but she tripped on a stone and almost fell. However, I was quick enough to grab her with my hands, preventing her from falling.
I sensed a dangerous heat between us as she fell into my arms, her sweet scent wrapped around me. It was so intoxicating and irresistible.
Her pretty eyes burned searchingly into mine. They were no longer soft. They looked so fierce and bold. The heat of passion coursed between our bodies, making us shake with dessire.
I didn’t know who made the first move, but suddenly, my lips were on hers, devouring them with real, raw passion, like I had been hungry for them all my life. She responded with the same energy. She roped her hands around my neck, her fingers gently caressing my brown hair.
I kissed her harder and hungrily, my arms tightly wrapped around her waist as Leo howled with excitement.
As we kissed, the world around us melted away. We were in a new world where there was no kingdom, no law, and no hatred between our kinds. There was only us and our bond, with fire tearing through us with every brush of our lips.
When we finally broke the kiss, we were both breathless, but we didn't pull away. Gently, I kissed her forehead. Her chest heaved as she breathed heavily.
I rested my forehead against hers. My voice had become hoarse from the heated kissing session we just had.
"I shouldn't do this. We shouldn't be doing this." My voice broke.
She closed her eyes and whispered, her breaths fanning against my cheeks. "Then let's stop."
But we both knew the truth. We couldn't. There was no way we could stop. We had both crossed a line that our fathers had warned us against. A bond between a lycan and a werewolf.
Suddenly, I felt familiar, and yet, heavy presence around me. It was my father, the Lycan King. He had sensed the bond. My blood ran cold.