Chapter 0027
Thea studied the aging Alpha’s headshot. “He looks grumpy.”
I laughed. “He does, doesn’t he? But it says here his favorite food is strawberry pie.
Her eyes lit up. “I love strawberry pie!” she said, then flipped to the next page, pointing at a regal–looking woman. “Who’s she?”
“That’s Luna Seraphina of the Golden Sun Pack. Their colors are gold and white, and their sigil is a sun with rays spreading out.
We continued like this, turning each Alpha and Luna into characters in our little fantasy world. Thea would make up stories about them, and I would fill it in with the facts I needed to memorize. Eventually, we started turning it into a game, pretending that we
were royalty.
“Greetings, Luna Seraphina,” I said, donning the picnic blanket like a cape and bowing to Thea, who had fashioned a crown made
of daisies. “How fares the Golden Sun P
She lifted her chin, trying to look dignified. “Very well, Alpha Jonathan. Our fields are bountiful this year.”
“Excellent news,” I replied, struggling to keep a straight face.
Thea burst into laughter. “This is fun!”
By the time the afternoon sun began to cast golden hues across the garden, we were both starving, and all I could think about wast eating a sandwich. We’d already gotten through nearly half of the binder, and with the gala still a little ways away, I’d say we
were making excellent progress.
As we gathered up the binder and scattered pages, I packed everything up neatly. Truffled Thea’s hair with a grin, honestly feeling a lot better after last night.
“You were a big help today,” I told her. She was a big help in more ways than one, truthfully, but I wasn’t about to dump my personal worries onto a child. Knowing Thea, she’d just make it her mission to help me, and I didn’t want her to have to worry about anything other than what to eat for lunch.
She grinned and grabbed my hand, pulling me back toward the house. “Did you learn everything?”
“Almost,” I said, tapping my temple. “Thanks to you.”
As we made our way back toward the house, Thea released my hand and skipped ahead, chattering about what she wanted to eat. I trailed behind, but my thoughts drifted.
No matter how much I tried to keep it off my mind that day, I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss last night. Nor could get the image of that mark on Elijah’s neck out of my thoughts.
As if on cue, as we reached the edge of the garden, something made me pause. It was a sensation of the hairs on the back of my neck rising, like I was being watched. I stopped in my tracks and turned, then looked up toward the mansion, squinting against
the golden sun.
1/2
Chapter 0027
+15 BONUS
There, standing by his office window, was Elijah. He was gazing down at us with an unreadable expression on his face and his hands clasped behind his back, his hair tousled from work and his shirt slightly unbuttoned.
Most of all, he was looking at me.
I felt my cheeks flush instantly as he caught and held my gaze, but it was nearly impossible to look away. I felt frozen, just standing there like a deer in headlights. And at that moment, all I could think about was the taste of his lips on mine.
But then, suddenly, the spell was broken by the sound of Thea’s voice.
“Mommy? What are you looking at?”
I blinked, suddenly pulled back to reality, and offered her a watery smile. “Nothing. How about grilled cheese sandwiches for
lunch?”
“Ooh! I want mine cut into a fun shape!” Thea exclaimed, turning on her heel and running inside.
I shook my head and went to follow her, casting one last glance up at the window
Elijah was gone, but the feeling of his eyes on me somehow remained for the rest of the day.
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