Page 12 of The Alpha's Cursed Queen

He snickers.

When he doesn’t move, I glance up at him. “You’re not part of the Moonlight Pack, are you?”

A small, secretive smile blooms on his face. “No. Do you really not know who I am?”

I narrow my eyes in thought. “Should I?”

He chuckles. “I guess it’s not a bad thing that you don’t know. Are you celebrating your birthday all by yourself?”

He comes to sit beside me without an invitation, and my heart begins to beat like crazy. He smells so good. Like fresh leaves on a summer day.

“Technically, it’s tomorrow. But yes. I was celebrating my freedom,” I reveal. “I’m going to leave the Moonlight Pack now that I’ll be of age.”

“Really?” The man smiles at me. “Where do you plan on going? Traveling?”

I shrug. “Anywhere. I don’t care. As long as I can leave this hellhole.”

His smile disappears. “You don’t like your pack?” When I don’t reply, his eyes roam over my face. “Your injuries are better. Was it someone from your pack who hurt you?”

I break the cupcake in half and hold out one of the pieces to him. “Before I start spilling secrets, maybe you should tell me your name and who you are.”

The man is silent for a few seconds, as if contemplating my demand. Then, he accepts the piece of cake from my hand. “Darian. I”—he pauses before continuing—“work with the royal family.”

My eyes widen. “You are a royal soldier, then?”

Darian hesitates. “Not exactly. But I work in the palace. So, who hurt you?”

“You’re not in a position to get me in trouble, are you?” I study him cautiously. “Because if I tell you something and it gets back to my pack, I’m in for a world of hurt. Although, why I would tell you anything makes no sense to me. Let’s stop talking.”

He nudges me with his shoulder. “I can keep a secret. I keep plenty of them.”

I take a bite of my cupcake. “It’s fine. I just remembered that I’m talking to a stranger. Which is what you are. I can’t trust you.”

“To be fair, this is our second meeting,” Darian says playfully. “I think we’re beyond strangers now.”

When I glance at him, he’s grinning at me, and it lights up his entire face. What it does to my heart is a totally different matter. I put my hand over his face and shove him back lightly. “You’ve got no business being this good looking. Go away. You’re bad for my heart.”

His eyes go wide, and his entire face grows red.

“What?” he chokes out.

I shrug. “You need to sit farther away from me,” I reiterate. “You’re making me feel funny.”

A sly look enters his eyes, and he edges even closer to me. “Should you really be admitting that to me? I thought women were supposed to hide things like that and play coy.”

I glare at him. “I’m not flirting with you.”

“You just said I’m good looking,” he argues. “How am I supposed to take that?”

“Take it as a compliment, and then move a couple of feet away from me,” I suggest.

He makes a face. “I’ve been told I’m handsome before, but never like this. Do you think I have cooties or something? Why can’t I sit with you?”

“Because I’m just about to get my freedom,” I tell him severely. “I don’t want to have a heart attack and die before I’ve even enjoyed one minute of it. You’re making my heart beat funny. So, either you slide over or I get up and leave.”

“You’re not going to die of a heart attack just because you think I’m hot,” Darian scoffs, looking a little smug.

“I never said you were hot,” I point out. “What I said is that you’re good looking. You’re pretty.”

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