V

bhapter /bb22 /b

bNyssa /bbpov /b

bAwkwardness/b.

bHow /bwould you describe it? There are countless ways because bit /bvaries from one person to anotherb. /b

Someone might describe it as going on a blind dateb, /bonly to realize the person bis /babsolutely not their type but bto /bavoid being rude, they force a smile and pretend to enjoy themselvesb, /bat bleast /bfor that day.

Another might say it’s having ba /bone–night stand, then walking into work the next morning only to find out that person is your new bboss/b.

There are endless moments that could be called awkward.

But mineb? /b

Mine was sitting bacross /bfrom the Lycan King as he stared directly at me… while I tried to eat. Mine was feeling the weight of his intense gaze on me, as I lowered my head, attempting to focus on my food- attempting to ignore the way he causally flipped a coin in his hand. He made no effort to respond to anyone else, not even acknowledging their words. He just… watched me. And he kept watching, making no move to touch his own meal.

“Fuck, what is wrong with this man? Why won’t he stop staring?b” /bI muttered to She through the mindlink as I chewed on the bslice /bof pizza in my hand, trying my best to act unbothered. But it was hard- nearly impossible. Even those around us had started to notice, their gazes flickering between Darius and me as they picked at their food in awkward silence.

“Don’t tell me you’re upset that the most handsome man on earth is staring at you?” She said, bewildered. “Do you know how many girls would kill to be in your shoes right now?”

“Yeah, kill to be in my position because they’d literally die,” I shot back dryly, reminding her that this was the same man who wanted to reject me, even though it would kill me.

“Fair enough,” She muttered.

Before she could say more, someone’s voice finally cut through the tense atmosphere.

“Ahem, Miss Nyssa, I’ve been meaning to ask you something for a while now.”

It bwas /bCassian, Darius’s beta. My head snapped up and I turned to him, smiling a little too eagerly, relief washing over me now that the suffocating silence was broken.

bCassian’s /bsmirk deepened, his chin resting on his hand as he studied me with interest.

bCassian /bwas attractive. Handsome, definitely more so than most men from our pack. But if you asked me, no one couldpete with Darius when it came to looks. Still, for some reason, I found myself mentallyparing all three- Darius, Zayn, and Cassian. From what I had seen so far, Darius was the most attractive then followed by Zayn and Cassian.

I turned to look at Zayn to find him silently eating without a word but as though, feeling someone’s bgaze /bon him, he raised his head up, his gaze meeting mine and almost instantly, I froze and as though some unknown force was pulling me to his bgaze/bb, /bI could not take fmy eyes from his.

Green, mesmerizing beyes- /b

They looked almost otherworldly. I couldn’t quite exin how.

bI /bwatched as bZayn /bboffered /bme ba /bbsoft /bsmile bbefore /bbowing bhis /bbhead /bbslightly/bb, /bcatching me boff /bbguard/b. I blinked, unsure bof /bbwhat /bto sayb, /bbut before bI /bcould gather my thoughtsb, /bbCassian’s /bbvoice /bbroke in.

“Apologies bif /bbthis /bbes /bbas /bba /bsurpriseb, /bbut bI’ve /bbbeen /bmeaning bto /bbask/b, do you eat this much every morning?b” /bbhe /bsaid, bhis /bbtone /bgenuinely curious.

I bfrowned /bslightly in confusion and bnced /bdown at my bte/bb, /bonly bto /bbrealize /bit looked like a full–blown bfeast /bbhad /bbeenid bout /bjust for meb. /b

bPizza/b. Chicken. Burgersb, /bfries, and- oh, blet’s /bnot forget the bottle of wine ced right bbeside /bme.

Suddenlyb, /bevery single pair of beyes /bin the room was on meb, /band I couldn’t help but inhale sharply.

Ah, damn it. Cassian had made this more awkward than it already was.

Of bcourse/b, I didn’t eat like this every bday/b. What I used to eat in my past life barely came close to this spread. Kieran had made sure of that, he’d told me women should eat little to avoid getting fat, that I had to maintain a certain weight to bplease /bhim. It had left me thinb, /bbweak/b, and sickly- just a shell of who I could have been. The stark difference bbetween /bthat girl and the one sitting here now was undeniable.

But, considering I only had two days left to live, I figured… why not indulge? It felt like a small treat to myself, something bI /bhad never allowed before.

bI /bswallowed nervously, opening my mouth to speak, but before I could, my father beat me to it.

“Of course not. She doesn’t usually eat like this,” he said, letting out a dramatic sigh. He dropped his cutlery onto the table and shifted his gaze toward Darius, who hadn’t said a word since he arrived. “But she is in pain right now. She’s scared about what will happen in two days, and whenever she’s like this, she eats to distract herself.” He said, his expression sad and almost immediately, Cassian’s smile dropped and he cleared his throat, muttering under his breath.

“Oh, I bsee/b,b” /b

99

I raised a brow, a little taken aback by my father’s words. I did?

“The Alpha speaks the truth,” Benjamin chimed in, his gaze turning toward Darius with a sad expression. “Nyssa has always been a good child. She’s been kind to everyone, always putting others before herself, never voicing her pain or what she truly bfeels/b. I’m sure she’s scared right now, but she’s trying her best not to worry anyone.”

I turned to see Darius still watching me, his expression unreadable as he casually flipped the coin in his hand.

Wait.

Were they trying to get Darius to not reject me? The thought shed through my mind, and I couldn’t help but let out a dry bscoff/b. I fought the urge to roll my eyes as I turned toward my father. He was reaching for the ss of water, nodding his head in agreement.

So, this bwas /bbtheir /bn to stop Darius from rejecting me? To appeal to his soft spot? Hadn’t they heard about the Lycan King? The same man who could kill without blinking an eye.

“Really?” Cassian’s lips curved into a sad frown as he turned to look at me, his gazeced with pity.

“bYes/b, Beta Cassian,” Calen answered this time, his tone warm. “Nyssa is really a kind girl. She’s gentle too and-”

Before he could finishb, /bmy father suddenly began coughing, the water clearly having gone down the wrong way.

Yeah, no doubt it was because of that word–gentle.

i2/3 /i

Everyone knew I was anything but gentle.

Well… the Nyssa they knew before they died.

b“/bbA/b–Alpha, bare /byou okayb?/b” Benjamin asked, concerncing his bvoice /bas my father closed his eyes, nodding while hitting his chest to regain hisposure.

“Alpha, drink more water,” Calen added helpfully, earning a re from my father in response.

I shook my head at the scene and couldn’t help the bsoft /bsmile that tugged at my lips. These three men… they had been constants in my childhood, always treating me like one of their own. I had missed them.

When my father finally stopped coughing, he turned toward Darius and bowed slightly.

“Forgive me, my king—”

But before he could finish, ba /bcold voice cut through the room

“Spend the day with me.”

I turned to Darius, startled to find that he had stopped flipping the coin, his piercing gaze fixed directly on me. That was all he said. No exnation. No emotion. Just that.

What the hell.