Page 35 of The Alpha King's Curse: Part Two

“Because it’s not going to stop?” she questioned.

Again, that pause she had sensed before. It made her regret not insisting on the entire story before she had gone out to her sister.

“We’ll talk after dinner. I’ll get changed.”

By the time she and Britney were waiting near the door, her regret had intensified. Was she going to get stuck like this forever? Would she always have to block out all the sounds? Would her eyesight remain sharper and her sense of smell so strong?

“Are you okay?” Britney whispered.

She put away her worries and smiled at her sister before she put her arm around her shoulder.

“Of course,” she lied. “And you look beautiful in that dress.”

Seeing Brit dressed up was weird, but that was what she had always wanted for her sister. For a change, she wasn’t wearing her ill-fitting hand-me-downs or second-hand clothes from a thrift shop. The simple purple skater dress brought out her hazel eyes, and she had even applied some light makeup. Brit didn’t look like she had just been crying.

“I agree. You both look stunning. I’ll be the envy of everyone there tonight.”

Jackson’s deep voice had her turning to watch him approach. She disagreed with his statement. He was back in a suit, a blue one that made his eyes more noticeable, and it was probably tailored to fit his huge frame. All eyes would be on him; no one else would shine.

“Shall we head out?”

Jackson opened the door and walked out first. She noticed how he focused on his surroundings as if he was making sure it was alright to step out of their rooms before he turned back to them with a smile.

A smile.

She hadn’t seen one of those since she had tried to escape.

Brit’s hesitation was obvious, but she coaxed her forward. If her sister was ever going to believe she was with Jackson of her own free will, she had to show her this lie, this facade. Jackson held out his other hand for her and then entwined their fingers.

Like lovers did.

She hadn’t touched him for so long that even that felt like sensory overload. Their gazes met, and a thought she didn’t want filtered through her mind.

What if this was real?

What if she was just a girl having a baby with her boyfriend, going out to dinner?

But she knew that tonight things would change. She would get her questions answered, and then her life would never be the same again. She’d known that from the first time he’d hesitated to answer her question.

The elevator ride was silent, but as they approached the ground floor, Jackson gently squeezed her hand to reassure her.

“If you get... If you get tired, just let me know. We’ll head straight back up,” Jackson said.

She knew he meant if she couldn’t block out all the noise. Was she ready for that?

The doors opened and Jackson led them out. The noise hit her immediately; no matter how much she tried to block it, it was too much. Cars outside, people talking everywhere as if they were shouting, dogs barking, dishes and glasses twinkling.

She looked up at Jackson as her panic started to rise, but his eyes were calm.

“Focus on one thing,” he whispered.

The first thing she latched onto was his heartbeat. Strong and steady. All the noise started to disappear until it became more tolerable.

Jackson seemed to know when she was okay because he started to walk towards the hotel’s restaurant. But as they were walking, his heart skipped a beat. And then it beat triple times.

Something was wrong. Again.

Was Costas back?

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