"So that is how you see me? As an inconvenience?" Damien had a discontented look. He knew he shouldn't get irritated and that she was only confused but he had been suffering because of the mate's pull for months and finding out that she saw him so negatively was truly annoying.
The blue eyes looking at him from across the dining table widened at his reaction. Why was he getting angry? She didn't want her life to get even more difficult. She was still hiding her true nature and Georgina was an accomplice to everything she did. She was already so affected by Damien that she knew if she stayed longer and listened to his reasoning that she would forgive him. Worse she probably would get even more impacted by his person.
Still, she didn't want him to be angry at her and tried to calm the situation. "I didn't mean it like that, and I am grateful for your help, but you see we are fugitives right now because The Ambassador thinks we helped you. If it were only me, I wouldn't mind as much but my best friend Georgina had to flee together with me, and it has been tough to get back on our feet. Hence your explanation is not that important because we have to deal with the situation no matter what your reasons were."
Feeling her discomfort and empathizing with her point, Damien calmed down. The last thing he wanted was for her to fear him. When she was resting, he had gone through the options and thought it best to take her with him back home where she would be safe, plus, that would allow him to make her fall in love with him. That was the only way he could secure his mate to stay by his side. If she were to go without him explaining everything, who knew if he would get her to meet him again?
"I am sorry about the things you had to go through, and you have all the reason in the four continents to be cross with me. I guess I should also apologize for my harsh behavior just now. You see, we werewolves can be very short-tempered. Anyways I want you to hear me out first because I also have a proposal for you so I would appreciate it if you stayed for dinner."
Eliana took a moment to think. She didn't want to go, if it were up to her heart, she would never leave his side again. But that feeling scared her because he was not only a stranger she only had met twice but also a werewolf and completely out of her league. He would never be able to return her feelings and most likely break her heart. However, many warning signs her mind flashed. She was a curious person and wanted to know his proposal. So, she decided to give him a chance. "Alright, I will stay for dinner."
"Fantastic!" He grinned from ear to ear satisfied with the current outcome and stood up again to finish the dinner preparations. Once everything was ready, Eliana didn't wait to eat one bowl after another, astonishing Damien. He hadn't expected her to have such an appetite and was delighted to watch her eat happily.
"I am happy you like the food." He teased her.
Eliana's cheeks turned red as she realized she had been eating nonstop. "Oh, yes, it is delicious. Thank you for cooking." She smiled embarrassedly.
"You are very welcome. Now that we both have filled our bellies, I can continue answering your questions."
"First, I would like to know what happened at the town fair and why you were there?"
"Hmm, well, my brother and I went there to check on rumors about the werewolf fights, which are illegal. The peace between Agora and Paxos is hanging on a fragile thread, and we wanted to clarify our suspicions to help the queen decide regarding the treaty." He took a quick break to breathe in and out while giving her time to take in the information. When she didn't say anything, he continued.
"The disappointment about the rumors being true was also the reason for my foul mood that evening. – Anyways, after bumping into you, we went to the tent and planned to rescue the poor creatures. Our intention wasn't to create chaos on that scale. Instead, we just wanted most people to run out of the tent so we could take care of the show owners and rescue the werewolves. But the people panicked, which was something we didn't expect. Furthermore, killing the werewolves was necessary because they had lost touch with their human side. If a werewolf stays in his wolf form too long, he loses his sanity, becoming deadly for everyone around him." Toward the end of his clarification, his sad tone referred to him feeling remorse about what had happened that day which didn't go unnoticed by Eliana.
As she had foreseen, his explanation showed how caring he was, making him even more attractive, but Eliana forced herself to take it all rationally and not interpret too much.
"By the way, your determination to rescue them was impressive." She looked at him dumbfounded. A warm feeling surrounded her heart.
Shaking her feelings away instantly Eliana carried on with her questions and ignored his remark. "Hmm it sounds like you regret the mistakes you made, which is good, only then will you be able to improve in the future. Alright my second question: Why did you only interfere now? And why do you care about two strangers?"
Damien chuckled due to her eagerness to find out all the details. He had a feeling that she would become his favorite challenge in life. Tilting his head, he didn't hide his amusement. "I think those were two questions and not one… But never mind I will answer your second AND third questions. We received regular reports but didn't know all the insights of the investigation. It had been already too late when we found out that you two were accused to be our conspirators. Moreover, it took us some time to find your whereabouts here in Laros. – Regarding your other question, as I said, we felt bad that two innocent people got dragged into our issues. It is the least I can do."
"How did you know where to find us in the first place?"
"It is a small town, and there are not that many girls your age, so it was easy to find out that you two lived at the orphanage."
It only struck her now that he had known she was an orphan. "You knew this whole time that I was an orphan? Did that not bother you?"
Damien looked at her quizzingly, not understanding her question. "Why should that bother me? It doesn't define who you are, does it?"
"I don't know, it probably does define me to some extent. Most people see us as less worthy when discovering our background."
"You don't have to worry about that with me. I only care about your actions and intentions." He gave her an encouraging smile to make sure she believed his words.
"Hmm, also, you have a brother you said?"
"Yes, he is a year younger than me and practically follows me everywhere."
"Is your brother here too?"
"No, he stayed back in Agora. - I have a question too you are done with yours?" She nodded, to which he asked away.
"Did something happen with The Ambassador?" He had heard many things about The Ambassador and was conscious of his peculiar tastes and treatment of female prisoners. She had been in the exam room with him alone for a long while, and it bothered him to think that The Ambassador might have laid a hand on her.
"He tried to intimidate me; that was it." There was no point in mentioning more details. She was safe now and didn't want to reflect on how The Ambassador's cold fingers had lingered in her hair and on her neck.
Damien didn't believe her but decided to let it go for now. "Hmm, good. Now that we have cleared everything, I would like to make you an offer. Agora is a wonderful place where all species are treated with respect and everyone has equal opportunities. Even though werewolves rule the land and the colonies attached to it, they don't favor their breed."
He became very nervous and stumbled over his own words. "What would you say - Or what would you think – I mean, would you be interested in coming back with me to my country?"
Rattled, Eliana's eyes widened once more. She bit her lower lip and pulled her brows together, doubting she understood him correctly. As the seconds passed, Damien held his breath and became more anxious to know her answer. 'Maybe I should have waited a little longer before blurting it out? Should I mention more perks?'
"Why would you want me to come to your country?"
"As I said, we regret what you had to go through because of us, and we would like to compensate you for it. If you were to follow me, I would ensure you have adequate accommodation and work. Moreover, I know you passed your admissions test for medical school today. We have a better school in Lothaire which you could attend. Most importantly, you would be safe and no longer have to worry about The Ambassador." Although the answer was simple, he had to keep the truth about them being mates to himself for now.
"How do you know I passed the test?"
Perplexed at what Eliana was focused on, he smiled at her proudly. "I checked." It impressed him that she could simultaneously work and study for such a difficult exam.
Her whole face lit up in happiness about his revelation. "I passed! Oh my god, I was so sad about not finding that out." She giggled and became the most adorable being in Damien's eyes.