Rejected, Then Reborn
Chapter 58

Life was truly perfect with her mate by her side.

In the space of one day since his confession, the Alpha King had really turned on the charm, going all out to slowly break the little wall Lacy had managed to build around her soft, gullible heart.

He had told her all about the fact that he had masked his scent so that nothing would cancel out the memory cleanse, and now, she was sure whatever he had used was fading, which was why her feelings for him were returning with such a vengeance.

You know, they had actually gone out today… she had taken him out to see her little city as she fondly described it to him, and it had been nothing short of an amazing experience.

Reed was so carefree in that moment, lost in the dreamy haze of sightseeing and learning just how advanced mankind was gradually becoming. He had neither been bothered nor weighed down by the heavy crown that invisibly sat on his head, so much so that Lacy had almost given in to her selfish desires and told him that she had decided to stay with her family for good.

But then she had thought of Anaya,

And Xavier,

And all the other people that depended on her mate and looked up to him as their Alpha King and leader…

She couldn’t do that to them?

She couldn’t keep him all to herself?

He might be okay with it now, but she was pretty sure that he was eventually going to hate her for it, and she really couldn’t have that.

But speaking of Lykens… whatever had happened between him and his Lyken betrothed, Rieka?

Because the last time she had been in their realm, he had staunchly decided that she was the one he wanted at his side. Lacy couldn’t help but wonder what had become of that.

It didn’t matter that they had a nice time today and now that they were back home, she wanted to ruin it with serious talk… it was something that needed to be done anyway if this thing between them was to go anywhere, and so she put all her weird feelings aside and asked him about it.

They were in the huge living room now… a well-lit location that seemed to have met Ramona’s strict approval, and it was already nighttime. Both Alpha King and mate were refreshed from separate showers that had been spent thinking of the other, and now, they were spending the last few hours in each other’s company before they hit their individual sheets.

It was quite shocking really, but the living room had actually been suggested by Reed, who had openly rejected Lacy’s suggestion to hang out in her room instead, and Lacy wasn’t entirely sure, but she was willing to bet her last dime that that had been the changing point for her beloved nanny, who prior to that had regarded the poor Alpha King as though he was evil incarnated… which was funny really, considering that she hadn’t even seen his ruthless, vindictive beastly half yet. But at least she seemed to have lightened up a bit towards him now.

The Alpha King sighed deeply, bringing Lacy back to her unanswered question, “I’m going to be honest with you Lacy… we ended things. She was the one who had come to me to tell me that she didn’t feel okay going along with it… and I’m really happy that it turned out that way, rather than me going back on my word and rejecting her, because trust me, that was exactly what I was going to do when she bumped into me and hit me with the news.” He shot her a small smile, and reached for her hand… caressing it softly. “I’m fully in this now, Lace… and I’ll spend the rest of my life showing you if I have to.”

In that moment, with the intricate chandelier hanging up above them casting a soft glowing illuminance that flattered their looks and cast a shadow on each of their flaws, Lacy felt her body lean in… getting closer to his… closer and closer until she could feel his breath heating up her skin,

“You’re thinking about it too, aren’t you?” He asked huskily, and without a doubt, the little human girl knew almost instantly that he was talking about the time back in her room when Anaya had walked in on them, “I am.” She whispered back, her cheeks reddening slightly at the admission.

She was no prude… (okay, perhaps she was a little bit, seeing as she had only been with one man and all) but he really made her feel like the innocent virgin in those romantic novels that she read in her spare time, who always managed to someway somehow catch the eye of the resident bad guy.

He was making her hot all over.

And he hadn’t even touched her yet.

Just when she thought he’d lean in and hit a home run, he veered away and planted his lips on her cheek instead, letting out an almost painful g***n that shot right to her groin even as he let out a soft laugh, “We really wouldn’t have made it a f*****g minute if we had gone to your room, Lace.” He leaned back in his chair, and at good timing too, for no sooner had he done that than Ramona came trundling in, wielding a tray with two glasses of fruit juice in her hands.

“A perfectly chilled drink for you, sir…” She put the drink in front of him, smiling pleasantly, but that pleasant smile almost vanished as soon as she got to Lacy, a little scowl replacing it as she said, “Here,” and then placed the drink in her ward’s open hands a little too hard.

Rather than be offended or even upset about the whole thing, Lacy let out an amused chuckle. “Come on, Ramona… don’t tell me you’re still upset? We’re sitting in the living room just like you wanted now, aren’t we?”

But the old nanny ignored her, her beady gaze focused on Reed, “So where are you from, Reed? And how did you and Lacy meet?”

For a while, the Alpha King was lost, and thankfully, Lacy noticed and piped in right before things became weird. “He’s from Bloomshire, Ramona… and I don’t know, but there’s just something about the way he describes it that—”

“Reed, child… can you tell the lady sitting beside you to mind her own beeswax?”

Reed shot Lacy a helpless look, the small purse of his lips indicating that he was moments away from bursting into laughter at any moment. “Uhm, just like Lacy said, I’m from Bloomshire,” He managed to turn serious, keeping his eye on the old woman even though he desperately wanted to ask Lacy where the hell Bloomshire was.

“And how’s it like?”

“Boring. Uninteresting… at least that’s what I thought of it. It’s really why I moved here in the first place.”

At this point, Reed thought that he deserved some type of award for his lying abilities.

“I see.” The nanny said thoughtfully, “And how did you two meet?”

“At the hospital… my sister wasn’t well, Lacy was her nurse, and we became friends through that,” He shrugged for extra measure, noticing with an ecstatic feeling in his tummy that Lacy was really pleased with his answer.”

“Is there anything going on between you two?”

“RAMONA!”

But the nanny ignored her young mistress. The girl had been left in her care after all, and so she had to be entirely sure that she had a fair idea of whatever happened in her life in the space that her parents were gone so she didn’t get into any trouble of any kind when her overbearing parents got back.

“I’m in love with her, Ramona…” The Alpa King confidently admitted without breaking a sweat, shooting Lacy a little smile at one point, even as he said the words, “…and I really hope that one day, she’d eventually feel the same way I do.”

Ramona smiled fondly at him, the first genuine one she had shot at him since he had stepped foot in their house. “I knew I was starting to like you for a reason.” Those were the only words she spared him, and then she was dashing away from them, tray in hand as she swung it left and right.

“What just happened?” Reed voiced out his confusion, shooting Lacy a befuddled look. “Well, no idea… just take it as a win and leave it at that,” She advised with a grin, an image of a dark husky appearing on the TV screen at that exact point, reminding Lacy all over that right inside the man she was growing to love each day was a hidden beast that totally hated her guts. The image was gone in a flash, but somehow… the red glowy eyes of the beast that haunted Lacy’s nightmares remained, prompting Lacy to ask, “Reed, can I ask you something?”

“Uh… sure.”

“Is—is Ace okay with all of this now?”

Reed sighed deeply, wishing that he could bring himself to tell her another lie. But he really couldn’t. Not since he had confessed everything out to her. It seemed as though now his mouth could barely hide any secret from her, and so left with no choice, he told her the absolute truth. “He still isn’t Lacy… as a matter of fact, he has been subdued with an injectable Synn gave me.”