15

Charlie

I had never been so bored out of my mind. Christina and I had done everything that could be done in the castle. But according to Damon, I am not allowed to leave. Not until the rogue situation has died down and he knows what's going on.

"I'm so bored." I got up, walked to the mirror, and started brushing my curls. I needed to have a wash day and soon.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but what is your ethnicity?" Christina asked randomly. I turned to her and raised an eyebrow, but I decided to tell her anyway.

"My father is from the middle east, my mom is from America, specifically Colorado. Where we are from."

"I wondered where your dark features came from. You and your mom don't look much alike." Christina said sitting up on the couch she was laying on.

"Yeah I know, I look exactly like my dad. If only he was here to see where I was. He would always talk about how he wanted to meet the king and queen and come to England. I wish he was here."

I started to think of all the times that we shared. How he would constantly talk about how amazing it would be to visit there.

"I mean maybe it's for the best, it would have been awkward if he was here and my mom and your dad met." We both started laughing at the situation, it was pretty funny. Maybe things do happen for a reason.

"Have you ever wondered about why the moon goddess does what she does?"

"What do you mean?" I questioned. I went and sat down next to her to let her finish what she was saying.

"I don't know, but don't you ever wonder why some of our lives are harder than others? How can she be so cruel to some but so graceful to others? I wonder if she ever had a mate."

"Wow, this is a really deep conversation." I laughed at her.

"I mean, come on...don't you want to know more about her? How she became what she is?" Christina leaned forward and grabbed my hands and her eyes lit up with wonder. I could tell this was something she'd been wanting to figure out for a long time now.

"Are there any books anywhere, maybe we can read something?" I suggested.

"I've looked, and there's nothing. But I am determined to find out."

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Christina got up and opened the door and there stood another Lycan. I haven't met this one yet, but he looked extremely important.

"What's going on Corey?" Christina asked him.

"Alpha Damon and Beta Trey are looking for you, both." He turned to me and I got up immediately and put my shoes on.

I grabbed my hair tie and put my hair up in a quick bun and threw on my sweatshirt. Honestly, I hated the fact that he kept seeing me so 'bummy'. I wanted him to think that I was pretty, and I haven't been looking like it recently.

We followed Corey throughout the castle and we found our way to, I assume Damon's office. Corey knocked on the door and I heard a muffled come in. He pushed open the door and there sat Damon and Trey. Damon was sitting in a giant black chair and was leaning back relaxed and Trey had his arms crossed leaning against the desk. Then Damon's smell hit my nose and my eyes automatically drew to his and I was wrapped in.

"What's going on?" Christina asked as we walked in and sat down in the chairs across from them.

"Just making sure you were okay. Some things perspired today and we needed to know you both were safe." Trey spoke up, his eyes glued onto Christians.

"Like what?" I'm glad Christina was saying something, I was too focused in his eyes to even consider trying to make conversation.

"We can't go into details yet. But it is being handled."

Damon had yet to say a word. He just looked at me. That's it.

"Let's give them a minute," Trey said motioning between Damon and me.

He got up, grabbed Christina's hand, and left us alone. Corey followed them out, and once the door closed the tension rose, and his attitude changed too. His eyes traveled down and I followed them to see what he was looking at.

That's when it hit me, I was wearing his sweatshirt and sweatpants. He didn't leave me any clothes when he left and I needed to shower and I wasn't going to roam the halls of the castle in only a T-shirt. So I chose to wear some of his clothes, but I was going to change before he got back and saw. At least that was the plan.

His eyes were flickering back and forth from his deep-sea blue to black.

"Sorry, I didn't have any clothes..." I said softly, his gaze was way too intense I had to move my eyes away from his.

"How was your day?" I asked trying to change the subject but it didn't work. The tension was still too thick.

"What are you doing tomorrow night?" He asked me.

"I was just going to hang out with Christina maybe, or go catch up with my mom." I lied right through my teeth, knowing damn well I had no plans tonight.

"Well, if you find some free time, I would love to have dinner with you tomorrow night."

"A date?" I asked back, it completely caught me off guard.

"Yeah, a date."

He sat forward in his chair and put his elbows on the desk and looked deeply into my eyes.

"Have you figured out what all you needed? With Tyler and everything?" I didn't want him to feel rushed, I wanted him to have as much time as he needed.

"Don't worry about that. I have decided that I am no longer going to put my life on hold for people who wouldn't do the same. Tyler is in my past. You are my future. Let me prove it to you."

"I would like that." A smile covered my face and I saw his eyes light up at my answer.

"Okay so then tomorrow at seven, be ready and dressed. I will be in our room waiting for you." He stood up and walked around the desk and sat on top of it and looked down at me.

"Are you tired yet?" He asked me as he reached out his hand for me to grab.

"I am a little tired."

"Come on, let's go lay down. How about a movie?" He reached his hand out for me to grab and I slowly moved my hand to grab him and the sparks ignited instantaneously.

We walked through the castle hand in hand, and silence. It was a comfortable one though. There were so many questions I wanted to ask him. So many things that I wanted to know but I didn't want to seem too clingy or annoying.

"You can ask me whatever you want." He said like he was reading my thoughts. I looked up in shock and he just laughed.

"I can see it all over your face." He laughed at me. "You can ask me about whatever, talk to me about whatever, even say whatever, and I will answer, and listen. So ask away, what do you want to know."

"So, where exactly did you go? Like when it was just the Lycans where did you live?" I asked him.

"When Stephen came to get me I had never been so afraid in my entire life. All I remember from that day is getting in a car and meeting Christina and driving for hours. Then we winded up in the most random place. All I knew was that it was cold. Snow was everywhere. Later found out that it was Finland, on fifty acres of land, for just us. There was a giant packhouse that we all grew up in. For years I saw lycans come and go and find their mates."

"Stephen knew that one day I would be king so he trained me like it. Every day I was learning, training, fighting, and learning control. Trying to figure out how to be the best Lycan possible." We made it to the room and walked in and sat down on the couch as I continued to listen.

"I was treated as an equal, there was no special treatment. But regardless of being surrounded by people who were the same as me, I was lonely. "

"I missed my family, yeah they were messed up. But they were mine. I missed the Castle, I missed my friends. I missed life being 'normal'. But after some years that feeling faded. I forgot what it was like to be at home. I slowly started to forget what my mother and father's faces looked like, what they sounded like. We didn't have TV or phones, Stephen wanted us to stay off the grid as much as possible. So I never saw the announcements or stayed up to date about the outside world."

"All I knew was that we needed to be in hiding until the right time. Then years went by and the thought of leaving my solitude was the last thing on my mind. They had become my family. And leaving them felt worse than when I left before."

"What changed your mind then?" I asked him.

I was listening intensely to what he was saying, wanting to know everything about his life. At least as much as I could at this moment.

"You. Having a mate not once crossed my mind. That was the one thing Stephen never told us about. Since Christina was the only female Lycan and the stories of Lycans only being mated to Lycans made it hard to believe that we all could have one. But then when I found out about Tyler and I'd situation from extremely wise Lycan elders, I had never wanted a mate as much as I did in that moment."

"At that time I was slowly beginning to become the Alpha of our pack, and I decided to come here and find you. I thought it was finally time to come out of hiding and show ourselves. I wasn't expecting everything else that's happened to unfold but I don't regret it, not one bit."

He stared me deep into my eyes, meaning every word he said. It made me extremely happy that he was being so honest and open with me at this moment. Though part of me couldn't help but feel like he was still hiding something from me.

"The elders, what is that about? How did they find out you and Tyler were connected like that?" That part did confuse me a lot.

"The moon goddess herself appeared to them. Lycans are the direct children of her and her mate. We have a link to her that is completely different than the link you have with her. She showed up to give them direction, to warn us. Of what's to come."

"What's to come? Is something about to happen?"

I could tell worry covered my face and Damon could sense it from me as well. He immediately grabbed my hand and held it in his.

"There's nothing you need to worry about. Listen. I am taking care of everything okay? Once there is something to worry about I will tell you. Right now, let's just focus on us." He pulled me closer to him and I leaned my head against his chest, letting his warmth surround me.

This was the closest we have been in a long time and it was comforting.

"You know this is the first time we have been together like this." He said and he chuckled slightly making his chest rumble against my face.

"Last night?" I asked him as I looked up.

"Well, you were passed out for most of it. So I won't count that." We both laughed at that and I guess he was right.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure we'll have more moments like this. I promise."

I moved my head slightly and I realized just how close we were to each other. His face was so close to mine I could feel his breath fan my face. The comforting feeling immediately left and I could feel the lust creep in. His eyes were slowly changing to black the longer he looked down at my lips. His eyes kept flickering back and forth like he was trying to make sure that it was what I wanted. Which it was. I moved my hand up and cupped his face as my way to say it was okay.

He slowly leaned in and in seconds his lips were against mine and my body swelled in pleasure. His lips were soft and gentle. This kiss was the sweetest thing I had ever experienced and ever will. I'm sure of it. He pulled me closer to him and wrapped his arms tighter around me. He rubbed his hand up and down my back, I know it was meant to be comforting but it was setting me on fire. The feeling was amazing and I just wanted to stay like this at this moment forever. Damon slowly pulled away and looked at me with so many emotions running through his eyes.

"We should get to bed." He sighed and I nodded. I was about to get off of him but he held onto me not letting me move.

"What are you doing?" I asked him.

"Sleeping."

"On the couch?" I laughed and he looked over and grabbed the blanket that was hanging on the back of it. He put it over the both of us and readjusted to where we were both laying down.

"The couch is comfy." He shrugged and he pulled me impossibly closer to his chest.

I didn't say anything back, rather just gave in. Nothing was changing his mind about us moving. But I didn't want to move either.

"Goodnight Charlotte."

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