Chapter 19
1073 Words
Aria
The rest of breakfast went by in a blur. A tense and eerie feeling hung over each and every one of us. Perhaps it was just me, but no matter the myriad of jokes that seemed to slide past Damon's lips, I couldn't bring myself to laugh.
As we ate, I couldn't help but feel Mrs Diallo's gaze on me. My skin crawled as her gaze on me never faltered. Like she was unraveling the many layers of an onion, I felt uncomfortable, and no matter how deep I sunk into my skin, there was no escaping her.
I'd heaved a huge sigh of relief when breakfast was over, but for some strange reason, Mrs Diallo's voice rang painfully in my ears.
“Of course,” Her words had been on repeat since I left the dining room, and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't shake it off. “We'll just have to wait and see what'll happen at the ceremony right?”
What did she mean by that? Even as I cleared the dishes, my mind couldn't help but wander back into that direction. I wasn't sure what I did, but I knew for a fact that I'd somehow offended her, and in more ways than one, if I was being honest.
As I headed back to Damon's room, one thing lingered in my mind. Damon's mother definitely wasn't happy about the conditions around me and Damon's wedding, and if I was being honest, I wasn't sure I was happy about it either..
I shook my head as I strolled down the hallway. Maybe I was overthinking it and my mother in law was only trying to intimidate me, just the way she did to her other workers.
I inhaled and exhaled before pushing the door to the bedroom open. However, the moment I stepped foot into the room, I knew something was wrong.
Shit.
The grim look on damon's face was more than enough evidence to tell that something was wrong.
I guess I wasn't hallucinating and overthinking it in the first place.
“Damon?” I called wearily, before shutting the door behind me. He was sprawled on one of the armchairs in the room, his gaze settling on the floor pot in front of him. “Is everything okay? Are you alright?”
“No.” A couple of seconds passed before he spoke up. “No, I'm not alright.”
“What happened?” A part of me didn't want to hear the answer to that question, but at this point, I wasn't sure I had a choice anymore. “Did something happen?”
“Did my mother talk to you?” Damon let out suddenly. “What did she tell you?”
“Nothing.” I was lying through my teeth and I prayed to the goddess that he wouldn't catch on to it. “ She didn't say anything.”
“You're lying.” He was on his feet immediately. All it took was two strides just to get to me. I flattened my back against the door as he stepped closer, too close to my personal space if you asked me. “What did she tell you?”
“She suspects foul play.” I rushed out the words at once. I could feel all of my personal space being thrown into the wind as Damon stepped all the more close. “And she says she's not going to stop until she finds out.”
“Shit.” Damon exclaimed and I winced. “This is not good at all.”
“What's wrong?” I exhaled as he stepped back a bit. “Damon, talk to me.”
“Do you know what a mate picking ceremony is?” Damon threw a question. “Answer me.”
“Yes?” I nodded, confusion etched into my features. “What about it?”
“It's literally what the name implies.” He huffed, “But it's kind of different for the royal family.”
My ears perked up at his statement. I knew what a mate picking ceremony was, but I felt something twirl at the pit of my stomach at his last words. What did he mean by it was different for the royal family?
“Most times, we host a ball.” Damon continued, almost like he could read my mind. “And at this ball, you're expected to find your mate. For our family, ours is done publicly.”
“What?” I gasped breathlessly. “What do you mean?”
“At the end of the ceremony, the alpha and Luna are presented to the crowd to find out if they're truly each other's mates.” I wasn't sure where Damon was going with all of this, but trust me when I said I didn't like it. Not one bit.
“Damon…”
“To further confirm if they're mates,” Damon continued, totally ignoring me. “There's usually a birthmark that appears on their bodies and at the same spots too. If it's the same, then they're mates. And if it's not…”
“No.” I gasped. My breath hitched in my throat as realization dawned on me. “No, no. You don't mean it, do you?”
“Do you know what this means, Aria?” His voice was low as he inched dangerously closer to me again. “Aria?”
“No.” I shook my head slightly. “No.”
“If we attend the mate picking ceremony.” Damon whispered into my ears, just low enough to send shivers down my spine. “And we don't have the same birthmark…”
“Then everyone will know we lied.” My voice was barely a whisper. I felt my heart beat increase its pace. The world around me blurred immediately and I felt my head spin.
No, this couldn't happen. If it did, then everyone would know our secret. Damon father, his mother, and most importantly; Callum.
There was no way Callum could find out. If he did, then it would be game over for both of us.
With wide eyes, my gaze jumped back to Damon's eyes. Our eyes locked for a second and that was more than ample time to ask the question both of us yearned to let out.
What the hell were we supposed to do now
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