Lucian stared at her blankly. "So, you admit you were awake when I took it."
Kat bit her lip and her eyes darted to the side as she stumbled over her words. "That's not... Umm... I simply reasoned you would have been the one to take the book since it is your room, after all." She said the last part calmly regarding her composure.
"Mmm, I see," Lucian responded, his gaze still fixed on her. Kat's eyes met his for a brief moment before she looked away, her lashes casting a shadow on her cheeks.
"Mmm, I see," he responded, his tone neutral, and didn't push her further. They settled into their reading, though today, Kat was quieter than usual, likely still embarrassed from their earlier exchange. She turned the pages quietly, her brow furrowed in concentration, her eyes occasionally flicking towards Lucian before quickly looking away, her cheeks still flushed.
As the day stretched on, Kat opened a bag of chips, the rustling sound breaking the silence. She poured them into the bowl in front of her, the salty aroma wafting through the air. Lucian glanced at her, his expression unreadable, as she continued reading and occasionally popped a chip into her mouth.
He returned to his book, but his gaze drifted back to Kat, his eyes lingering on her for a moment before he looked away. When Kat offered him a chip, his gaze shifted lazily to her hand, then back to his book. "No," he responded sharply, his tone dismissive.
Kat shrugged, her shoulders barely rising. "Suit yourself," she muttered, and let out a satisfied hum, continuing to eat as she read, flipping through the pages with a soft rustle.
After a few minutes, she noticed Lucian glancing at her again, his eyes narrowing slightly. This time, she couldn't help but chuckle, before offering the chips again, there was a hint of tease in her eyes.
Lucian's gaze lingered on Kat's outstretched hand, his eyes narrowing slightly as if weighing his options. "It won't kill you to actually eat something. I've seen Josephine eat a lot, so I know there's no such thing as vampires who don't enjoy food." Kat commented rolling her eyes.
Lucian's eyes flicked back to Kat's face, with his usual impassiveness. He reached out and took the chip between his fingertips. He examined it keenly, twirling it in his fingers. Kat watched, almost in fascination, as he hesitated before placing the chip in his mouth. His eyes never left the page, but his jaw moved thoughtfully as he chewed.
Kat waited, anticipating a reaction, but Lucian's face remained impassive. He swallowed, and with his usual indifference, said, "Not bad." Then, he flipped the page of his book and continued reading, dismissing the moment.
Kat's eyes rolled inwardly; she hadn't expected much of a reaction anyway.
She returned her attention to her book, but her gaze drifted to Lucian when She noticed his hand reaching for the bowl again, at first surprised, but later on her eyes narrowed. He took another chip without looking at her. He continued reading, occasionally taking another chip, until he'd nearly finished half the bowl. Before his hand could reach the bowl again, she nudged it away.
"Hey, just because I offered you one or two chips doesn't mean you get to eat the whole thing," she said, her voice laced with annoyance.
Lucian's gaze narrowed back at her. "You have another," he pointed out, his hand reaching for the bowl again.
Kat moved it away, her grip tightening. "I'm aware of that, and they're mine. Go get your own," she warned.
But in the blink of an eye, the bowl was no longer in her grasp. Lucian held it, his fingers wrapping around the ceramic. 'umm what just happened?' Kat thought to herself staring at her empathy hand, "Give it back!" she demanded, her voice rising.
Lucian gave her a look of disapproval as he held the bowl out of Kat's reach. Kat stood up, reaching for the bowl. But Lucian barely had to exert any effort to keep her at bay, while Kat continued to reach for the bowl, frustration evident in her every movement.
With a swift flick of his finger, Lucian flicked Kat's forehead, making her wince. Her hand flew to her head as she glared at him. "What was that for? It hurts!!" she snapped, clearly not expecting it.
Lucian returned to his book, holding the bowl securely in his other hand. "The chips are a distraction," he said flatly. " Focus on your reading."
Kat's jaw dropped. She could hardly believe what she was hearing—or that she was being bullied out of her own chips. Her eyes narrowed, glaring sharply at him, but he continued to ignore her.
She sneered, sitting back down with an angry huff. She kept stealing glances at Lucian, silently fuming. It felt like a petty power struggle, one she hadn't expected to lose so easily. She found it hard to stay still and her feet were aggressively tapping against the floor, with each bite Lucian took only making it worse. She stood up and began pacing around the room while she read.
Kat's face twitched with each crunch of a chip, her pacing growing more agitated with every bite Lucian took. It was as if he was deliberately testing her patience, his eyes never leaving his book, yet each crisp sound seemed calculated to provoke her.
Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she snapped, "Ugh, you're doing that on purpose!" Lucian didn't even glance up, calmly turning another page.
"Perhaps," he replied nonchalantly.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Kat added, her loose fingers tapping impatiently on her folded arm. "The sound is distracting and utterly annoying."
Without looking up, Lucian gestured vaguely toward one of the doors in the room. "If it bothers you so much, go read in there?" he said, his tone dismissive.
Kat glared at Lucian, with a dramatic sigh. She stormed over to the door, flinging it open with a burst of anger, and slammed it shut behind her with a resounding thud.
Inside the room, the dim lighting enveloped her like a shroud. Only a few candles flickered, casting eerie shadows on the walls. Kat's eyes adjusted slowly, and she glanced around, feeling a growing sense of unease in the oppressive darkness. The air was heavy with the scent of old books and dust.
"Why is it so dark in here?" she whispered, her voice barely audible over the creaking of the old wooden floorboards beneath her feet. She moved cautiously, step by step, her hands outstretched to avoid bumping into anything.
As she searched for more candles and a matchbox, Kat continued to mumble complaints about the lack of light, her voice echoing off the cold walls. Luck was on her side when she spotted a few candles on a nearby shelf, but her search for a matchbox proved fruitless. Undeterred, she used one of the already lit candles to light the others, carefully placing them around the room.
As she lit the last candle, Kat couldn't shake off the feeling of coldness that seeped into her bones. She could have sworn she heard a faint sound of breathing, a soft rustling behind her, Unlike most of her recent experiences in the castle that she ignored, Kat decided to keep it in the back of her mind, focusing on her task instead.
When the candle flickered to life, the light cast eerie shadows around the room. Her gaze drifted to a comfortable-looking chair, situated a little away from her.
As the candlelight danced across the room, she could see some parts of the room a bit more clearly and she looked around for windows, but there were none. She grumbled.
Kat approached the chair and was just about to sit down when she felt something brush past her leg. She yelped, dropping her book.
She scrambled on the floor, using the candle to illuminate her surroundings. As she held the candle up, the light revealed a pair of glowing eyes peering at her from the darkness. Panic surged through her, goosebumps immediately raising up her skin as she spotted the massive form of a wolf, its heavy breathing filling the space.
Kat froze, her heart pounding in her chest. As she tried to back away, she heard another sound behind her. Spinning around, she turned the candlelight to other corners of the room, only to see more wolves emerging from the shadows, their forms gradually becoming visible in the dim light. Their eyes fixed on her, glowing faintly, like lanterns in the night.
Kat's heart racing, she leapt up, dropping the candle, and bolted out of the room, not daring to look back. She flung open the door and ran straight to Lucian, launching herself at him. Lucian looked down at the girl in his lap, clearly annoyed. "Kathrine, what on earth are you doing? Get off me."
But Kat, trembling and still clinging to his collar, shouted, "What is wrong with you!? Are you trying to kill me!?" Her voice was laced with a mix of fear and anger.
Lucian raised an eyebrow, his tone icy. "Did you frighten my wolves?"
"What!?" Kat shouted. "Frighten them? Are you bloody kidding me? One of them almost bit me!"
Lucian's gaze remained cool and indifferent. "Well, they might not be too fond of you. After all, you're the reason they've been locked up."
Kat, catching her breath, stared at him in disbelief. "What do you mean by that?"
"They're guard wolves. They roam freely around my quarters. Since you've been coming here, I've had to confine them."
Kat blinked at Lucian, then realized that's why she never saw any guards. Lucian was such a twisted man; he used wolves for his personal protection "guard wolves..." She repeated and Lucain gave a light nod.
Kat's eyes widened slightly, she wasn't sure weather to be fascinated or angry. Lucian's nonchalant explanation only left her stunned.
Kat, still recovering from her shock, muttered, "They're fucking terrifying. That doesn't explain why the bloody hell you sent me in there?"
Lucian's expression remained unchanged. "You wanted to read somewhere quiet; the wolves are very quiet," he said simply.
"You..." Kat didn't even know what to say to Lucian and just wanted to get away from him.
Kat tried to pull away from Lucian's lap, stretching out one of her legs to get down, but suddenly froze. The door was still open, and one of the wolves came in, causing her to jolt back onto his lap.
Seeing the wolf move closer and snap its large white canines at her, Kat's heart pounded wildly in her chest. She remained clinging to Lucian, her face buried against his chest, her fingers gripping his collar tightly. For a moment, Lucian's gaze lingered on her, noting the way her dark hair cascaded over his lap, the way her dress had ruffled in her panic. Her breathing came in quick, uneven gasps. He could feel her breath against his chest and it felt warm.
The white wolf padded into the room. Its fur was a pristine, snowy white, and its eyes locked onto Lucian.
"Tell it to stay away. Tell it not to move closer!" Kat whispered against his chest before she looked up to meet his gaze, her eyes darting between the approaching wolf and Lucian.
Lucian glanced down at her with detached curiosity before turning his attention back to the wolf. The wolf sat down gracefully before them, its eyes never leaving them. Lucian's hand moved to gently pet its head, his fingers brushing through the wolf's fur.
"This is Fenrir," Lucian introduced "He's the alpha of the pack."
Kat, too rattled to absorb much, remained glued to Lucian's lap. Lucian's calm demeanor seemed to make the situation worse for her. She watched as Fenrir's piercing gaze remained calming fixed on them.
"He looks calm now," she pointed out, stretching her neck forward to get a better view of the wolf. "He's really cute, just like King," she continued to point out.
Kat, though still trembling, glanced at Lucian. "I'm not petting him," she replied firmly, as if she knew he was going to ask her to. "It's cute and all, but I'm not touching it."
Lucian didn't argue. Instead, he gave her a pointed look, his silent expectation clear. Kat hesitated, remembering how she'd panicked with King, only to eventually become quite fond of him. And King is way bigger than the wolf... With a sigh, she slowly extended her hand toward Fenrir.
"Is he going to bite me?" she asked worriedly.
"Touch him and find out," Lucian responded, to which Kat frowned. "Your cryptic replies aren't helping!"
Lucian became impatient watching her hesitate, so he guided her hand gently. The moment her fingers made contact with Fenrir's soft fur, the wolf remained still, allowing her to touch him before she swiftly withdrew her hand.
Lucian noticed how quick Kat's gaze changed from fear to fascination, he snapped his fingers, and Fenrir turned smoothly, heading back toward the room. The wolf nudged the door from the inside, and it swung shut with a soft thud. Kat's eyes widened in surprise at the ease with which the door moved, her heart still racing from the encounter.
"Most You always make it a point to cling to me," Lucian stated.
Kat glared at him. "Maybe you shouldn't send me into a room with a pack of wolves next time," she retorted, getting off his lap, she adjusted her dress.
Lucian didn't respond. Kat took her seat in front of him, "you are impossible," she took a deep breath returning to reading her book.