Chapter 194
ââ¦I call the shots?â
Janet lowered her voice.
She stared right into his eyes, ââ¦You will do whatever I have in mind?â
His breathing became rough. His gaze was intense.
âYes,â he murmured hoarsely, his lips only an inch away from hers. â⦠Anything.â
âWell thenâ¦â
She placed a hand on his firm chest, feeling his quickened heartbeat.
âI want us to go into the packhouse now, head upstairs, back to our rooms, get into the bed, and go to sleep.â
He froze.
Janet couldnât help but burst out laughingâthe look on his face!
âIt isnât fair!â he protested, âI want the rein back in my hand!
âToo late. You already handed that to me. I call the shots here.â she giggled, âAnd now I am asking you to go to bed like a big boy.â
He stared at her laughing face.
âWhen was the last time he made you laugh like this?â he asked abruptly.
A smile froze on her lips.
ââ¦There are happy times,â she said after a pause.
âYou are lying to yourself.â he said deeply, âYou know that the only thing he has ever done to you is to hurt you.â
Janet lapsed into silence.
âThey say that all women enjoy the company of men who can make them laugh. But they always end up with the men who can make them cry. Is it true in your case, Janet?â
Janet took a deep breath and forced out a smile, âWhat are you talking about? That is nonsense.â
âGood.â Westin cupped her cheeks with both of his hands, âThen donât give him a chance to hurt you anymore. You will have me to protect you in the future.â
Janet couldnât look him in the eyes, ââ¦It is really getting late, Westin. Letâs call it a day.â
âFine.â
Westin let go of her, âYou go ahead. I will enjoy the wind breeze a little longer.â
Janet nodded and went into the packhouse.
Her body was worn out, but her mind was sharp and clear as ever with thoughts whizzing across her mind nonstop.
She couldnât help but think about everything that happened that day.
Casper and Balvinaâs wedding, the thieves, Lord Rolf and Lady Priya, the Lycanâs wolf, and Daranâ¦.
She wondered to the floor where her room was at.
The bedroom was right down the hallway, but she didnât want to turn in just yet.
Instead, she pushed open the glass door and stepped into the terrace.
It was a beautiful night tonight, with thousands of twinkling stars surrounding a full
moon.
Westin was right.
What she should be doing right now was enjoying this beautiful night with the company of a man who could make her laugh.
But for some unknown reason, she didnât want to be with a Lycan tonight.
Probably because she was intimidated by his wolf earlier.
Just then, she heard a light creaking noise from downstairs.
She leaned against the handrail and looked down.
Right underneath the terrace was a small garden. In that garden stood a swing.
Right now, there was a dark figure sitting on that swing, which was where the creaking noise came from.
ââ¦Daran!â Janet couldnât help but call out to him..
The man on the swing looked up abruptly.
The silver moonlight illuminated his astonished face.
âJanet!â he gasped, âWhat are youâ¦â
She was suddenly in the mood to mess with him.
âCatch me!â she cried.
Daran shot up from the swing. And the next second, she had climbed over handrail and fell off from the terrace.
A pair of steady arms caught her before she crushed to the ground.
That was thrilling!
Janet started giggling.
âThat was 6thâfloor high!â Daran snapped. His tone was harsh.
âYes, but you will catch me. I know you will.â
He tightened his arms around her waist, âNevertheless, it is still way too dangerous-â
the
She pouted and jumped out of his arms, âWhy do you have to be such an old man with no fun? I am leaving.â
She threatened to storm away but secretly hoped that he would stop her.
And he did.
He caught her wrist just in time.
ââ¦Donât go.â
His voice was deep and hoarse, âStayâ¦for a little longer, will you? Do you want to play the swing? I can push you.â
She smiled and turned to sit on the swing
He went to stand behind her and gave a gentle push on her back. The swing made a creaking sound in the silent night.
He spoke up after a while, ââ¦We have a similar swing in Riverside Pack. Under the palm tree in the front yard.â
âYes, I asked the servants to build me one after I became Luna.â
âAnd what about this one? You had this one built after you came back to Blood Moon Pack?â
âYes,â
She paused, and then said slowly, âWhen I was your Luna, I would sit on the swing and wait for you to come back from the council chamber. I hoped you could at least spend some time with your wife after a long day of work and we could chat a bitâ¦But you were always in a rush. No time to chat, and definitely no time to hang out and play the swing with me.â
She looked up at the full moon overhead, âSo after I came back to Blood Moon Pack, I asked Casper to build this swing for me, exactly like the one I had in Riverside. And this time, I finally had people to hang out with, maids, soldiers, friendsâ¦I was finally
not alone.â
He didnât say anything for a long moment.
Only his breathing became heavy.
ââ¦I am losing this, arenât I?â he asked abruptly.
She tapped the ground with one foot and halted the swing to a complete stop. She turned on the swing and raised her head to look at him, shocked:
âWhat are you talking about?â
âThis fight between me and Westinâ¦I am losing.â
There was a lost and sad look on his handsome face, âI saw the way you looked at Westin earlier. You are attracted to him. He can make you laughâ¦.And all your friends and families seem to like him a lotâ¦â
Janet bit her lips, stunned.
Daran was a proud man and, at the same time, never revealed too much of his personal emotions.
This was the first time she saw him this defeated and vulnerable.
She should feel happy because it was finally her turn to hurt him and to make him afraid of losing her.
But revenge didnât taste as good as she had imagined.
âThat is the conclusion that you drew after tonight? That you are losing?â she asked. âWhat else am I supposed to think?â
He growled deeply, sounding frustrated, âI was confident that we are destined to be together because we have been through so much! But now that I think about it, all your memories about me have something to do with sorrow, longlines, and trauma. I want to believe that I am the winner, but the reality is making it really hard-
âSo you are giving up already?â
Janet stood up from the swing.
She glared at him.
âIt has only been one day since we came back to Blood Moon Pack and a couple of hours since the fight between you and Westin began⦠And you are waiving the white flag?! If that is the furthest your determination can get you, you should get your ass back to Riverside Pack tonight! Stop insulting the both of us!â
She was pissed.
He had always been a tough and determined person. But why suddenly became such a quitter when it came to her?
Was she really not worth his trouble?
Daran pulled her into his arms abruptly. His hand was on the back of her head, pressing her face against his muscular chest. She could hear how rapidly his heart was beating.
His shaky voice whispered into her ears, âI am not giving upâ¦I will never give upâ¦not in a million yearsâ¦â
âThen what were you whining about just now?â
âI guess I was just too afraid to lose,â he let out an awkward laugh. âI have never been this afraid in my entire life. The fear of losing you to Westin kept me up at night and haunted me in my dreamsâ¦â
She rested her head on his chest, âWhat do you want me to do then?â
He held her face with both hands and raised her head up.
âTell me you havenât ruled me out yet.â he said huskily, âAnd donât give Westin some extra credit for what happened tonight.â
âThis is cheating-â
âI know.â
He lowered his head and pecked her forehead, âBut I know the referee personally. So will the referee help me cheat?â