Heart Of A Lycan King
Chapter 40

We strolled hand in hand down the busy, congested street after Aiden had parked the motorbike. I could still feel the excitement and adrenaline from riding the bike with Aiden. It was one of the best feelings in the world.

And now, he was holding my hand.

My palm was sweating so badly I wondered how he could stand touching me, let alone make it look like it was the normal thing to do. At first, I wasn’t too sure I’d like to be seen in public with him this way before the ceremony. I guess he noticed my nervousness and produced two identical face caps for us.

“We don’t want all eyes on you now, do we?” he had casually said as he fitted the face cap on my head. I smiled, knowing fully well he did this for my sake.

I let my eyes wander around the different stalls. This part of the capital looked completely different from the part I had gotten accustomed to seeing over the past four weeks since I had gotten here. The stalls were mostly clustered together, however, the people here looked happier than those I had seen in the fancy shopping malls.

I saw so many couples. I saw families. And I saw a clique of friends laughing with books tucked underneath their arms. Seeing that brought back the undeniable urge to go to school again some day and study.

“This is the heart of the capital where most of the Omegas who live in the capital stay. At first, this part was inhabited by ranked Lycans, and the unranked Lycans and Omegas mingle towards the outskirts of the capital. I didn’t like it, so I dedicated this whole part to them, if not for anything else, then they can at least run their businesses here,” Aiden explained.

My heart swelled with pride for this man. He always puts everyone first before himself, just like he’s always put me first before him. Some day, I hope that I will make him as happy as he’s making me right now.

He swung our interlocked hands with a huge grin on his face, and I couldn’t help grinning as well. It felt like we were kids, just enjoying an afternoon walk. Aiden continued to show me buildings around the street, and what they are used for. Or what they once were used for.

Soon however, we stopped before a small shop with lots of flowers displayed. These weren’t the normal flowers I was used to seeing back at the Malakari pack.

“Wild flowers. They are very rare to find around here. Come, Nala,” he pulled me towards the shop. “Do you know what type of scent you carry? Ice and wildflowers. But yours is way better than this,” he added, picking one of the flowers on the display stand and tucking it behind my ear. “A wild flower for my wild Nala hiding underneath the innocent Nala I see now,” he grinned.

I laughed, placing my empty hand over my mouth like I had watched women in movies do so they don’t appear too much. Or too lacky.

“I’m not really wild,” I mumbled quietly.

“Hmn. Was the innocent Nala the one that asked if she could lick me yesterday?” he asked, his eyes glistening with a mischievous look.

I instantly flushed. My cheeks were hitting up as the image from yesterday flashed through my face. But instead of feeling mortified, or sad about it, I felt…happy. Happy that I dared try to satisfy one of the fantasies I had.

“We can find out if that was the wild version or the tamed, innocent version,” I said boldly.

Aiden chuckled, tugged my hand forward as we resumed walking. However, just as we were about to round a corner, a young boy suddenly rounded and nearly bumped into us. He held an ice cream cone in one hand, and a car tyre he was riding with a stick in the other hand.

“Careful there,” Aiden rushed to help steady the boy. “You shouldn’t play with that when on an errand, especially not on a busy street,” he ruffled the boy’s head and leaned closer. “I played with this as a child too.”

“Really?” The boy beamed, before bowing a bit and greeted both Aiden and I. “Good morning, Uncle. Good Morning, Aunt.”

This was one of the things I love about us. The respect we have for elders. I’m certain he doesn’t recognize Aiden as the King, even less me.

“I can bring my brother’s tyre so you and I can race once I get this to my sister,” he continued.

“Too bad I can’t do that. I’m on a date with this beautiful woman, who does not want me to take a step away from her,” Aiden smiled, grabbing my hand, interlocking our fingers, and nodding at the boy. “How about we race during the Kilmanshe festival?” he added.

“Will you be there also?” the boy asked.

“Yes, I will be. When you see any of the guards around, give them this and ask for Aiden, they’ll get you to me and we shall race. How about that?”

“That’s a deal, Uncle Aiden. My name is Hanyf,” the little boy with short dreadlocks beamed. “I’ll see you tomorrow!” And off he ran, after pushing the small card Aiden had given him into his shorts.

“Aren’t you the best king around?” I teased, my heart swelling with more emotions for this man.

“You don’t think a king can run with a wheel and a stick?” Aiden said, with an exaggerated surprised expression, making me smile.

“I never knew you were good with kids,” I said again as we finally came to a stop before a closed shop. Aiden pushed the glass door open with his empty hand as I stepped onto the black and white tiled checkered floor of the old shop. White chandeliers shone over the displayed freezers filled with different flavors of ice cream.

“Maybe a bit,” Aiden said with a lopsided smile as he adjusted his face cap and then mine again. “They do have a way of making even the most boring of gatherings fun. Especially when they don’t know who I am.”

“You think your subjects won’t recognize you this way?” I asked with a small smile.

“Some will and some won’t. The whole point here is that they understand I don’t want to be approached every time I’m seen wearing this,” he replied, pointing to the face cap. “What flavor would you like?”

I could barely think about the ice cream with him leaning too close and his breath tickling my nape where he had bent a little to fix my cap.

“Is it possible to get three flavors on that cone?” I whispered.

“Anything the queen wants is doable,” he whispered back, a small smile dancing on his lips.

I laughed a bit, then pointed at the vanilla flavored shelf, mint chocolate chip, and strawberry. I wonder how a combination of those three would taste on my tongue.

The thought of it reminded me of the k**s I had been trying so hard to ignore. One I had been trying to pretend never happened, not because it didn’t matter, but because I had enjoyed it too much. So much so that I craved for more of it.

“Those three are your favorites?” Aiden asked.

“Strawberry flavored precisely,” I replied with a grin. “Thank you for this. It’s been ages since I last had an ice cream,” I said with a smile. The last time I had one was before my parents death, I had wanted to say but held back. There’s no point ruining this day with my sad sob story.

He dropped my hand and made a move to wrap his arm around my waist before he stopped. After ordering for a single flavored vanilla ice cream, he leaned down again and lightly brushed his lips on my forehead.

“Do you mind if I touch you in public, Nala?”

The way he asked, the way the nickname he had given me rolled on his tongue, the way his dark eyes searched mine intently, set my insides on fire. The best part of it all, was how he always asks before he touches me.

That has been one of the top reasons I had gotten comfortable around him, because I knew he’d never touch me without asking.

“Does a king need to ask his queen for permission?” I heard myself say. These days, I keep surprising myself with how bold I was becoming.

“The Queen owns her body. She has total control over it, not the king,” he replied quietly.

Yup! He’s out for my heart and soul today.

“Then you have my permission,” I said after a moment.

As though eagerly waiting for my reply, he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me flush to his side. My cheeks heated up as I caught people looking at us with small smiles on their lips. At least, they weren’t judgmental, I thought.

“That’s much better,” Aiden said with a grin, and I couldn’t agree more.

A few minutes later, we got our order and Aiden led us to a chair at the far end of the shop, which seemed to be quite empty of people. We each held our cones and spoons, and I was eager – too eager – to have a taste of mine.

I watched as Aiden dug his spoon in and scooped some of the ice cream before the contents disappeared into his mouth. He popped the spoon out, and licked it clean, his eyes never leaving mine. For a moment, for just the briefest moment, it felt as though he was trying to seduce me.

“I bet you mine tastes better,” he said smugly.

We were sitting side by side. A better part of our body pressed together. I loved the warmth of his body that seeped through to mine, and the way his scent embraces every inch of me.

“Hmm,” I said as I dug my spoon into mine and scooped a combination of the three flavors I had ordered. As expected, the taste was exceptional, and I figured this combination was going to be my new favorite. “I think I like mine better,” I replied.

“Let me have a taste,” Aiden said.

I pushed the cone towards him, but he shook his head and closed the little space between us as he brought his face closer.

“I have a better way we can both get a taste of each other’s ice cream, Nala,” he said breathily. “Do I have your permission?” he asked.

I furrowed my brows, wondering why he needed my permission just to taste an ice cream. But knowing him, I didn’t argue, I simply nodded my head. “Sure.”

“Okay. We’ll each take a scoop of our ice creams in our mouths, no swallowing though,” he said.

“That’s weird. Shouldn’t we taste each other’s…”

“We will. But just do as I say for now, Nala.”

I gulped as his intense gaze settled on me. For a moment, I thought I saw his eyes darken even more.

“Okay,” I replied as I took another spoonful of my ice cream combination. He did the same with his. I waited to see what he’d do, only to see him push his cap up to expose more of his face and do the same with mine as the flower he had tucked behind my ear fell before I felt his fingers trail over my jaw as he tipped my head back and sealed his lips over mine. His tongue speared into my mouth, and the taste of him mixed with the flavor of the ice cream. This was not what I had expected, but I knew that I wouldn’t be complaining about it anytime soon.

He didn’t move his fingers from my jaw, nor did his arm skate around me. He did none, all he did was k**s, smearing the different ice cream flavors we each had and combining the flavors in our mouths. At some point, a m**n escaped from my throat as I fought hard to hold my cone in place without letting it fall and the idea of running my hands through his hair or wrapping them around his neck.

He kissed me fast. Then hard. Then slow. Then the sweet, closed-mouth k**s that felt scandalous, yet too delicious to resist. Everything around me faded away, and it was just Aiden and I, the taste of ice cream, the loud thudding of my heart, the knowledge of his lips against mine, and the feel of his beard as it grazed my jaw where his fingers still stayed.

With a lingering lick of my bottom lips, he pulled away and grinned, his dark eyes intense, hazy, and…hot.

“I can’t…oh Goddess!” I tore away as I placed trembling fingers to my now swollen lips. “Aiden…”

“Did you like it?” he asked, suddenly looking serious. Sounding too serious.

It dawned on me then that he was afraid I may not have liked it. And the thought alone, broke the little shield I thought I had stacked between us.

‘Next time, I’ll do the kissing, Nat,’ Erin purred. I ignored her, because right now, I wasn’t really in my real senses to argue with her.

“I did,” I mumbled while subconsciously lightly licking my mouth. I could still feel the tingles of his mouth on mine. “That’s one tricky way to taste each other’s ice cream you’ve got there,” I laughed a bit.

“Well, I do have a lot of those tricks up my sleeves. Be prepared to be ravished. Leo said that, not me,” he winked and I ducked my head with a shy smile.

“Aiden?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you,” I mumbled quietly, setting my cone on the table before placing my head on his shoulders. “Thank you for enduring all the baggage of s.hits I came with…”

“Don’t say that,” he hissed a bit. “You aren’t a baggage of s.hit, Nala, you are my mate.”

“Then thank you for accepting me. And thank you for showing me I deserve happiness.” My eyes were starting to get misty with tears, and I watched as he set his cone aside and wrapped both of his arms protectively around me, tucking my face into his neck.

“I know I have a long way to go before I become the woman you want me…”

“Nala…”

“Let me finish, please,” I placed my hand over his and smiled a little.

He nodded, the conflicting look in his eyes telling me he doesn’t like this, but is willing to do it for me.

“I want to be a better version of myself, Aiden. But it can’t be as fast as I want it to be. I know you want things to be merry and better between us, and I apologize deeply for not being able to give you all of that now. Like I said, I do know I have a long way to go. I promise I’m trying with therapy, and I’m trying on my own as well, which isn’t easy, but it does help to take away the negative thoughts I had always carried. I am slowly healing, and it is all thanks to your patience with me. All I’m trying to say here is, thank you for not pushing me too hard. Thank you for giving me a chance to go at my pace. Thank you for not asking too many questions about my past, above all, thank you for accepting me,” I finished, allowing a small trail of tears to roll down my cheeks.

Aiden said nothing, instead, he tightened his hold around me, as though words failed him and simply let me suck in his scent.

I needed to say this. It had been on my mind for a while. I do know he’s struggling to put up with me, I am also certain there are times he gets frustrated. He tries to hide it, but I see it sometimes, and I hated that I was responsible for making him feel that way when all he ever has done was trying to make me feel better.

And all I’ve done was think of myself alone.

‘That’s not true, Nat. You have…’ I blocked the connection with Erin before she could say more and focused on our locked fingers. I always love when he does this.

“You are the best thing to have ever happened to me. I don’t want you to ever think otherwise, Nala,” Aiden mumbled, his arm running over my bare arm. Today, I had gathered more confidence to step into public with my scars. And I didn’t feel as out of place as I used to.

“Did you write that in the journal you plan to show me?” I teased, trying to ease the tension I could feel rising in the air.

He laughed, his body reverberating from the impact.

“No, Nala. The journal is an old one like I said. One filled with a teenage boy’s fantasy,” he replied.

“Interesting. I can’t wait to read through,” I smiled. “But I won’t, because those are your secret fantasies like you call them. They won’t be a secret anymore if I read it.”

He stared down at me with a grin, but didn’t say anything.

“When I first shifted, it was the worst experience for me. Every wolf looks forward to shifting, and I did as well. But after my first shift, I never thought I would want to shift again. And Erin feels the same way. That was one of the worst days of my life,” I said. I thought to share a part of myself like he shared his, and because I had discussed this with Doctor Lily, it was easier to talk about it now. “But do you know that I have one thought that instantly takes away the pain of that day? The thought of my Abba and Ummi.”

And then, I found myself talking about my childhood. The secret missions I made up as a kid and always do them. I told him about the dances I learned every time I visited my maternal grandparents, how the two cousins I knew I had left when their mother, who was Ummi’s elder sister, died and their father took them away to the human country. I told him about the night stories Abba always told me. Aiden simply listened, laughing at some point and asking me questions at some point.

Not once had he asked about my first shift. In a way, it felt as though he knew I wasn’t really ready to discuss all those sad memories with him yet, but at the same time, I wanted to. It felt like he knew I just wanted to brush through the topic so he had an idea why I was scared of shifting when he had told me that was part of the ceremony. And perhaps, knowing I told him the thoughts of my parents makes me happy made him lean towards asking questions that only involved them.

Today, I had shared the happiest moments of my life with Aiden, and nothing could ever beat the satisfactory feeling that had brought me.

Our ice creams were already melted by the time we decided to leave. We walked down the streets hands in hands, Aiden bent a bit and whispered.

“You are stronger than you think, Nala. And I’ll never get tired of telling you how proud of you I am,” he smiled warmly, his fingers lightly grazing my cheeks. “Now, how about we race to the bike and see who wins? The loser does anything the winner wants.”

I grinned, adrenaline kicking in at the prospect of getting challenged. “Challenge accepted!”