Chapter 54: _People Are Annoying

Chapter 54: _People Are Annoying Odessa’s POV ***** "Sometimes I feel like he annoys me for the fun of it, you know?" I said to my maid, Caroline, who was busy helping brush my hair for the evening. After the experience with the tailor and all earlier today, I avoided Kaelos like a plague till night time. I was still reeling from the way he had stopped me from blurting out that we were mates because Celine and her mother were around. It wasn’t fair! I didn’t have anyone to talk to about this whole thing with Kaelos and it was eating me up mentally. Heck, even though I didn’t tell Caroline that we were mates, she still gave me awkward looks when I talked about him the way I did. Anyway, after a few unconformable seconds of silence, Caroline cleared her throat before she responded to my last statement. "Yeah, I’m trying not to say anything that would make me lose my job." She explained, an apologetic look on her face. "Sorry about that." I rolled my eyes, using my fingers to playfully flick the hands she used to brush my hair. To my surprise, she had a genuine smile on her face after I did that, which was visible in the mirror in front of me. It seems she’s growing even fonder of me. "Come on, Caroline. Lighten up." I said with a teasing tone before I sighed lightly. "Besides, the mighty Alpha King is having some kind of meeting in his office right now. He can’t possibly hear us from there now, can he?" Caroline’s silence after I said that last part made me furrow my eyebrows. There’s no way a werewolf could hear that far... Right? Ugh, whatever... "Very well, ma’am. I’ll talk about your... Husband issues." Caroline muttered with a slight smile curling up the corner of her lips, causing me to smile as well. She used her right hand to part aside some strands of my hair that had gotten in front of my face, giving me a little bit more view of my face. Sigh, at least the gods blessed me with beauty to compensate for the lack of magic. "Ma’am, the truth is, men ARE annoying. Not just the Alpha King." Caroline said, sounding like she was speaking from experience. But then she pursed her lips, tilting her head in thought before she added. "Scratch that, people in general are annoying. Especially when you’re in a relationship of any sort with them." I arched an eyebrow but she avoided eye contact, focusing on my hair instead. Interesting... "And then, what about a complicated relationship like what I have with Kaelos?" I queried, sighing heavily soon after. "I mean, we’re supposed to be a married couple and we don’t act like it. Well, apart from the sex, of course–" I was interrupted by Caroline’s gasp, causing me to cover my mouth as well. Shit, that had slipped out! "Y– You and the Alpha King have...?" Caroline stuttered but then her freckled face reddened with a blush as she looked away from the mirror. "Forgive me, I shouldn’t be prying. You were saying something?" Argh, my mouth will be the end of me! I hoped to the gods that I wouldn’t accidentally blurt out that Kaelos is my mate one of these days. Well, for now, I could only trust and hope that Caroline doesn’t tell a soul about what I just said. Anyway, I cleared my throat before I continued. "The point is, what Kaelos and I have isn’t a normal relationship. It’s all tied to a bloody ’truce’ which will decide the fate of this stupid war in the continent and possibly the whole world from the looks of things." I sighed, shaking my head. At this point, Caroline removed her hands from my hair, giving me space to breathe and to think too. I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My blonde hair was made into a ponytail that emphasized my face and my violet eyes, and my lips had a soft pink lip balm on them. "Sometimes I ask myself if this is it?" I muttered, standing up from the chair and stretching my arms. "If this is how my life is going to end? As the wife of the ruthless Alpha King of North America? I’ve never had it good when it comes to relationships but still... This is a lot." I stared at my reflection one last time before I breathed out and stepped away from the mirror. Meanwhile, Caroline who had been staring at me speechlessly, finally spoke up, walking beside me. "Don’t lose hope, ma’am Odessa." She said, sounding reassuring. "Who knows? The Alpha King might set you free from the bonds of the marriage if the truce goes on well and turns into a permanent fix to the war." Yeah... Right. I gave her a wry smile as I walked to a table in a corner of my room. On top of the table was my Aunt Althea’s grimoire, sitting there ominously. I stared at it, using the fingers of my right hand to brush against the surface gently. "Oh, and I’ve noticed the way he looks at you if that means anything." Caroline suddenly blurted, temporarily distracting me. I turned my head, squinting my eyes and hoping she’d elaborate. She smiled awkwardly, scratching the back of her head before she explained herself. "The Alpha King looks at you in a possessive manner that I’ve never seen him look at another woman before. And I’ve been in this mansion for five years now." I gulped, knowing where this was going but still waiting to see if I was correct. "I– I don’t know how to explain it better than that." She muttered, sounding bashful. "The banters, the tension... Everything about you two. It’s almost as if the two of you are m–" Yup... Hell no! "It’s getting pretty late." I interrupted hastily, tilting my head at her and smiling at her. "I’m in the mood for a little night walk. What do you say?" Caroline blinked at me, seemingly speechless. But I took that as a yes after several seconds of even more awkward silence and grabbed my aunt’s grimoire and then her arm, leading her out of the room.