Chapter l217

Chapter 0217

I stood very still, confused and surprised both by the very presence of Julian’s l*ps on my cheek as well

as the tenderness of the affection he was showing me.

Julian had always struck me as something of a pl ayboy, and while I understood that much of how he

acted was an act, he never seemed to connect with any woman, in any relationship, beyond a fleeting fancy.

In our school days, he strung along many hearts, leaving a trail of broken ones behind him. He never

seemed to care about the mess he made of girls’ emotions.

Even Nicholas had warned me that Julian was a love them and leave them kind of guy.

So the gentle way he k*ssed my cheek, and the way his hands hovered over my shoulders, close but not

touching, was so bizarre to me, I was stunned speechless.

Then he pulled away, walked around me, and continued up the stairs. After a few steps, he stopped to

look back at me. “You coming?”

I nodded, still too surprised to formulate words, and hurried along behind him.

We walked in silence the rest of the way to my door. He was smirking like always. His hands in his

pockets, he had a familiar saunter to his walk.

He always looked smug, so I couldn’t correlate that with the strange k*ss.

To the best of my observation, he was acting like the k*ss hadn’t happened at all. Or, it hadn’t meant

anything, which seemed more likely.

That fell more in line with what Nicholas had warned me of

Outside my door, the guards greeted us both. When Mark saw me, he let out a heavy, relieved breath.

He had his phone in his hand. I imagined he was texting with Nicholas. Maybe he still wanted to see us in

the flesh, just to be sure.

“This is where I’ll leave you then,” Julian said. He barely gave me a glance as he turned to go back the

way we came from. “Goodnight, Piper.”

“Goodnight, Julian,” I said, but he was already walking away. He waved his hand up, but did not look

back. I watched him until he was gone.

Then I turned to Mark. “How is Elva?”

“I’ve been checking on her every fifteen minutes,” Mark said. “She’s been sleeping soundly all night.”

“Thank you, Mark.”

“Just doing my job, miss,” he said, but that wasn’t entirely true, His job as Beta was to attend his prince, not protect his prince’s ex-girlfriend and her small adopted child.

“Thank you anyway,” I said, desperate to give my gratitude.

He didn’t argue again. He lowered his head instead, but not before I saw the small smile tugging at his l*ps.

“Goodnight then, Mark. Gentlemen.”

Mark and the guards said goodnight in return, and I sl*pped into the room.

Elva was sleeping in the bed, her face even in her peace-filled slumber. I walked into the closet and

changed into my pajamas. Then I walked to the bed.

Curling in beside Elva, I tried to convince my b*dy to relax. Elva was here and safe. Mark and the guards

were at the door. Nicholas was working tirelessly to arrange guards around the tunnel. And Julian – well,

he was likely plotting something too.

At the moment, I could do nothing more than try to gather my own strength for the fights yet to come.

The future promised many dangers, and I would need to be at my best to keep Elva safe from Terry and

whoever else.

And I would need to keep my wits sharp so I could discern more of my sister’s involvement. If she

needed saving, and the opportunity arose, I wanted to be ready.

I would do whatever I would have to, to protect my family.

The next morning came very early. A sèrvant announced that all the candidates were to join in the

parlor to receive more announcements.