Chapter 36: Her Fears..

Chapter 36: Her Fears..Ariana’s blood ran cold as the atmosphere turned suffocatingly calm. In fact, at this point, any word spoken would help. "Was that all he said about the place, Did he say anything else, Aria?" His eyes were calm, yet his tone was anything but—it was commanding. She pushed the book aside to write, and Zavren watched. ...I can’t remember, she wrote quickly, almost missing some words in her haste. Zavren’s expression darkened as he read her response. It was obvious there was more, but she was hesitating to say it. His eyes moved to her golden ones, which looked at him. Ariana tried to hold his gaze, but his blank, hollow stare was too much. She shifted her gaze immediately. ’Why did he want to know? Was there something wrong?’ She thought to herself. He watched her, his eyes briefly flickering to her pink lips before he shifted his gaze. Just then, he silently moved to push some strands of her hair from her forehead to her ears. Ariana flinched. Zavren’s body went still as slowly ran a hand through his hair. "You’re scared of me, aren’t you?" he asked in a low tone, as if he were used to reactions like this—but the way his cold voice faltered ever so slightly showed he didn’t want her to be. His expressionless gaze remained as he studied her. Ariana didn’t react. She just stared at her gown, her hands pressing tightly into each other. "Look at me," Zavren said firmly. Ariana forced herself to meet his gaze, her lips trembling as tears began to stream down her cheeks. Zavren stiffened as he watched. Ariana moved, covering her face with both palms as she trembled softly. Zavren’s hand reached out but stopped midway. What if she flinched again? Seeing the way her shoulders shook, Zavren clenched his jaw tightly. Then he moved closer and gently pulled her into his arms. If only he knew that anything concerning her ex-husband Fredrick always sparked fear within her—not the normal kind, but a very strange type, unlike the fear she had for Zavren, which came solely from his intimidating aura. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her, and yet... To his surprise, she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his chest as she trembled even more. Zavren slowly patted her back, allowing her to cry. Ariana didn’t know why, but the more she tried to stop, the harder the tears came. It was like all the pain she had bottled up finally spilled out. She knew she must look incredibly vulnerable right now. She bit her lip as her breath quickened. Gently, she pulled away. Zavren cupped her face with both hands and used his thumbs to wipe away her tears. Ariana sniffed and avoided his gaze, clearly embarrassed. "I apologize, my wife," he said in a quiet voice. Ariana’s lips parted. D...Did she just hear that right? Zavren... the Alpha King... just apologized to her? She stared at him in disbelief. "Don’t cry anymore, sweetheart," he said softly, his voice low and soothing. Ariana sniffed again, her gaze dropping to the floor. Then Zavren spoke again, gentler this time. "Let me show you somewhere." He wanted to take her to the garden, as he didn’t like seeing her cry that way. Ariana gave a small nod, slowly rising to her feet. Her cheeks were still flushed from crying, her lashes parting like trembling wings as she tried to compose herself. Zavren stood as well, and Ariana’s eyes widened when she noticed it—her tears had stained his royal garment. A dark, visible patch marked the place where her face had rested. Her upper lip trembled slightly as she pressed her lower one beneath it, trying to hide her embarrassment. ’Oh no’ Zavren’s hands moved to the buttons of his shirt. Without a word, he began to unfasten them, completely unfazed by how close she was. Ariana blinked, startled. Then he looked at her, eyes calm but unreadable. "Go on, Snowflake," he murmured, a teasing lilt hidden beneath his calm tone. "Unbutton your husband’s shirt." Ariana’s head snapped toward him—she couldn’t even help it. After all, she was the reason he was removing the shirt. Guilt tugged at her as her hands moved hesitantly toward the fabric. She tried her best not to look at him. Her eyes accidentally rested on his lips, and she quickly looked away, forcing her gaze down to the buttons. With careful fingers, she began to unbutton his shirt, moving slowly. That was when she truly realized how tall Zavren was—tall enough that she had to lift her hand just to reach the second button. ’One button done’ she whispered to herself, almost like encouragement, before moving on to the next. "Calm down, Aria," Zavren murmured. "Take your time and savor the moment. We have enough time." ’Enough what?’ But... didn’t he say he wanted to show her somewhere? She glanced up at him—and instantly regretted it. It felt like she had just triggered something dangerously tempting. Something she wasn’t ready for. A sweet shiver ran down her spine. Her gaze dropped to his lips again, and this time... she didn’t look away right away. For some unknown reason, she felt the urge to— ’Ariana, look away.’ She jerked her head to the side, horrified. What was that? She couldn’t believe a thought like that had just entered her mind. Her heart began to thud loudly in her chest as she swallowed hard. A peek of his chest came into view, and she quickly focused on the next button. Who knew unbuttoning someone could feel this... intimate? She tried to calm her thoughts, ignoring the heat rising in her cheeks. And the pounding of her heart felt like an alarm that could only be snoozed for five fleeting seconds. Zavren looked down at her calmly, watching her flushed face with amusement. His lips curled into a faint smirk as he noticed how focused she was—like she was performing a delicate operation. Zavren let out a deep chuckle. Ariana’s head snapped up toward him again. He tapped her hair lightly and spoke in a low voice, "Don’t take it too seriously, sweetheart." Ariana glared at him and quickly looked away, refusing to let her eyes drift over his annoyingly drool-worthy body. She concentrated on the final button, and as she undid it, she finally exhaled the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding: She turned to step away—but then his voice stopped her. "Remove it, snowflake." Ariana froze, gulping. She refused to look at his infuriatingly perfect face. Instead, she stepped closer, her eyes finally sweeping over the bare breathtaking chest she had tried so hard to avoid. ’Just do it quickly, Ariana,’ her thoughts pleaded. She pressed her lips together and lifted her hands, gripping the fabric. As she pushed the garment off, her fingers brushed against his firm muscles. Her lips parted slightly at the unexpected hardness. She poked once—then again. So hard... "You get easily distracted," Zavren said smoothly his stormy eyes glinting with dark observation. Ariana jolted and immediately yanked the shirt away, flustered. Zavren, meanwhile, observed his wife with growing amusement. He’d noticed something about her—when she was curious about something, she always had to explore it, almost like her mind couldn’t rest until it understood. Now, he stood before her, completely bare-chested. Ariana’s eyes couldn’t help but roam across his body, which only made Zavren’s lips curl into a wider grin. "I’ll be leaving tonight," he said suddenly, voice calm. Ariana turned to him in surprise. Her heart ached just a little. Why was he leaving? "I have something serious to handle," he explained. "As you know, we’re not on good terms with the vampires. In order to protect the people, I need to go. I’ll be back in a few days." Ariana turned her face away and nodded quietly. Zavren stepped closer, his voice dipping low again. "Don’t miss me too much, my wife." Ariana turned to him slowly, giving him a pointed look that clearly said, Who said I’d miss you? Zavren’s smile deepened. "Oh, just admit it. You’ll miss me, won’t you?" She shook her head softly, trying to keep a straight face. Zavren chuckled lowly. "See? You lie too much—your nose is growing." Ariana’s hands immediately flew to her nose, and that alone gave her away. Zavren raised a brow, amused. She glared at him, cheeks puffing as she pursed her lips into a tight pout Zavren’s eyes narrowed. "Are you not planning to give me a safe trip kiss?" he asked, voice teasingly husky. Ariana’s face flushed a deep shade of red. Zavren lowered himself slightly toward her—and, as if drawn by instinct, Ariana leaned in and before her knew it. Ariana crashed her lips on his in a searing kiss. What shocked her the most... was the fact that she had initiated it. One thing Zavren had no idea about... was that her earlier cry wasn’t because of him—but because of Fredrick. The man who had caused her trauma. The one who had been a wife-beater.