Dangerous Lycan: Claim Betrayed Luna’s Second Chance Mate

Dearest Clara

How are you?”

I have not seen you in days and your absence is understandable. I want to come by but I do not want to breach your warnings. I am inviting you over for a bowl of warm chicken soup at dusk, I know how much you like that. We can walk through the gardens together. Let me have this chance with you now I still can.

Ryan.

I read it out loud again, so I could hear the words in his voice. I had heeded the warnings of Lady Ana and Beth, to stay away from him. He had shown me so much in so little time. I was asked to sit here and waste away, but the urge to go and speak to him bubbled as I read the letter again. I wanted to feel his warm stare around me even when he thought that I was not looking. His smile closed the rift of solitude I had created around myself in the past years.

“Who is it from and what does it say?” She asked as she caught me smiling.

“It’s Ryan and he is inviting me over for a bowl of hot chicken soup and a walk through his beautiful garden.”

“Wait, there is a garden here?”

“I felt the same way when I first saw it.”

“But girl would you go?”

“I don’t think I should. I mean why should I? It would only mean that I am leading him on.”

“But you like him, so that would be completely different.”

“I don’t know.”

“Look, I know I said you should stay away from him but I think you should honour his invitation. At least he didn’t just badge in here to drag you out now did he?”

“I told him not to.”

“And he respected your wishes, that’s quite noble.”

“So I should go?”

“Yes, even if it’s not for friendship’s sake, at least let it be for the fact that he is the alpha king and deserves your respect.”

“You are right.”

“Don’t worry about Lady Ana, I’ll cover up for you.”

“Beth, that’s so sweet, you barely know me and you are doing this much for me already.”

“We know someone in minutes if we want to. And you are not so bad after all.”

I moved away from the chair, to the little box of my raggedy clothes. There, I found a repro silk white dress with a hooded cloak, perfect for my visit even if I knew it wasn’t very different from my other dresses.

“Are you seriously going to wear that?”

“Yeah, I didn’t bring my box of designers down here. This is the best I have.”

“Well, you’ll need something to touch it up.”

“Like what?”

“I’ll be right back.”

Beth dashed out of my room as I began to put on the dress and in a short while, she rushed back in with some jewelleries, a fancy hat and a purse.

“Where did you get those from?”

“Well, I had seen it the day that I was to clean Lady Ana’s room.”

“Wait, you stole this from Lady Ana?”

“Relax she has so many of these she wouldn’t even notice they are gone. Just make sure you aren’t seen.”

It was just what I needed though to spice up my dress with the peacock feathers by the rim. With my gloves on and my purse, I sneaked away from the cottage through the gate without being noticed. At the other end of the path I sighted a carriage, the horse man waved to me and I walked up towards him.

“Lord Ryan asked that we bring you.”

“How did he know that I would accept his invitation?”

“He said he is just being hopeful.”

I settled in as we began the ride through the gate. It felt like a dream, alone in a carriage, in a fancy dress, going to have a meal with the Alpha King. The most powerful werewolf of all time and that had been nothing but a nemesis to me. I did not know what my parents would think of me if they ever got to hear about this or Lady Ana who would always remind me how badly I had been raised.

I felt my forehead burning now and my stomach rumbling again. I wanted to tell the rider to stop, to turn the carriage around and take me back to the little cabin, just then, I sighted Lady Ana with an even younger and prettier girl walking beside her. She might be going for her evening stroll as well, with her handmaids and a few guards. I bent over so I did not catch a glimpse of her eyes until we moved past them.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

The carriage drove ahead and stopped. I peeked through the curtain, and we stopped in front of the garden. The carriage door swung open and the man helped me with the stool. I stepped out watching around. I could feel my heartbeat increase and the aura of an unwanted guest around me.

“Thank you.” I muttered to the kind man.

“You are most dearly welcomed. He is in the garden. He asked that you should come to the spot where you first met him in the garden.”

“Oh, that should be the rose garden.”

“I presume so.”

I walked down through the path of the garden, running my hands on the leaves. Then, I saw his back again, just like the first day I had seen him admiring the roses in the garden. He turned with a meticulous smile on his face.

“I thought you wouldn’t come.”

“The man with the carriage did mention that you were hopeful.”

“I am a man of faith.”

“So, this is where you spend most of your day?”

“Yes, when I am unable to fulfil any duty.”

“What do you actually do here apart from watching the petals bloom and taking in the fresh smell? ”

“I just walk.”

“Walk?”

“Yes, not exactly walking though, I prefer to call it trampling.”

“Why do you prefer to call it that?”

“It is a term I just made up because just walking seems dull. I look upon what is not there and imagine what is there.”

“Mm, that’s a bit of a strange thing to do, don’t you think?”

“No, you should try it.”

“Look upon that branch, what do you see?”

“Nothing, just an empty branch.”

“Mm let’s keep walking.”

We walked along to different parts of the garden, “Why do you have a garden this large?”

“It wasn’t always me. My father made this. He loved the garden more than anything and so I guess he passed it on to me.”

I stopped walking and the aching in my feet had suddenly become unbearable, nipping my hose and eating up my toes.

“What’s wrong?” He moved closer holding me until I settled on a platform, just facing the daffodil flowers.

“My feet hurt, I wore the wrong footwear.” He sat beside me, “I apologise.”

“Oh, no you do not have to be sorry, I do enjoy the view of your beautiful garden and would love to continue our sightseeing.” I squeezed my feet in my grip in a means to ease the pain, wheezing.

“Let me see that.” He took my foot from my grip, squeezing it in his grip, his touch was tender, like that of a mother fiddling her infant. He looked at me which made me look away hiding the shy smile growing on my lips. Beneath all the ruthlessness he was certainly a gentleman.

“You cannot walk with this in your feet, the nurse will see to it.”

“The nurse?”

“Yes, she knows how to handle aches and sprains of this sort; she has the magic fingers.” I took up my shoes, “No, you do not have to take them with you. Hold on now, would you?” I nodded, ” Henry!” He called out and Henry rushed in with a bow. “You would take this lady’s shoes in and call the nurse now.”

“Alright Sire.” He took up my shoes.

“Now, you come here.” He took me up from the ground unto his arms. I felt his muscles contract, showing how much of a strong man he was. He looked into my eyes as he walked into the house, so firm and strong that I had forgotten all that had happened earlier up to that moment because it was all that mattered, this feeling and rush of desire that this man had made me feel so stronger than anything I had felt in my years on earth.