"Let's sit down first," I said, pulling him to sit on the bed with me, facing each other.
"My first question, how do you know what I'm thinking?"
He pondered for a moment, "We're connected, so I have access to your mind and heart."
He smiled, placing his index finger on my chest. "I know what you think about, our hearts are connected."
He pulled away, and my eyes widened in surprise.
"How is that possible?" I asked.
"When a white wolf develops feelings for a full human and mates with her, he gains access to her mind and body, making her his possession. But it's different when he does it with his own kind, they don't connect with each other the way I do with you."
I felt my cheeks grow hot. "So, you know what I'm thinking?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
"What about the heart? Do you know how the other person feels?" I inquired, my heart racing with anticipation.
"Yes," he replied, his eyes locked on mine.
I felt my heart skip a beat. Does that mean...?
"I want you to say it directly to me," he said, his voice gentle.
"Say what?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
"You love me," he replied, his gaze piercing.
"Huh? Uhm, some other time, not now," I looked away, trying to avoid his intense stare.
"I won't force it, I'll wait," he said, his hand brushing against my cheek. I couldn't meet his eyes, feeling so fluttery.
"Next question," I raised my head, trying to compose myself.
"Why did you pick me? I'm not that pretty, and I don't know how to read and write. I have so many flaws, yet you chose me. Why?" I felt a pang of sadness.
"None of those things matter," he said, "What matters is how I feel for you, and that feeling developed the first time we met. I've made up my mind, and it's you who I want."
I fought back tears, determined not to cry. I'm a strong girl.
"I'm sure you said that to other girls," I said, trying to sound casual.
"Are you jealous?" He chuckled, his eyes sparkling with amusement.
I furrowed my brows. "No, who's jealous? I'm not."
"Forget it, I don't want to know," I said, standing up from the bed.
"I don't care. It's your choice," I turned to walk away, but he pulled me back by my wrist, and I fell onto his chest, his arms holding me tight.
"Let me go!" I struggled to free myself.
"I've had girlfriends in the past, but I haven't said any of that to them. You are different, and I love you," he said.
"Girlfriends? Does that mean you slept with them?"
"No," he laughed. "We only kissed and went on dates."
"You kissed other girls before me?" I asked, feeling a twinge of jealousy.
"Yes."
"Uhm, okay. I want to sleep now." I felt both angry and sad at the same time.
"You're not hungry anymore?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.
"You know what I think anyway, so you should know."
"I know you're upset, and I don't blame you," he said, his voice gentle. "But please, don't shut me out. Let's talk about this."
I sighed, feeling a mix of emotions, anger, sadness, and frustration. "I don't want to talk to you."
"I'll let you be. But promise me you'll talk to me when you're ready?"
I nodded, feeling a lump form in my throat. "I promise."
He pulled me into a gentle hug, holding me close. "Sleep tight, my love. I'll be here, waiting for you to talk to me when you're ready."
As I lay down on the bed, I felt confused and hurt. Why did he have to bring up his past girlfriends? Why did he have to make me feel like I was just another one of them? I closed my eyes, trying to push the thoughts away, but they lingered, haunting me like a ghost.
"I can't sleep," I said, sitting up in bed.
Liam was still sitting at the edge of my bed, his back facing me. He turned to face me, his beauty striking from this angle.
"Are you still upset?" he asked.
"I wasn't upset," I said, looking away.
I looked back at him, and he looked unhappy, his face etched with regret. Maybe I shouldn't be upset with him. He's not in the wrong.
I crawled towards him and wrapped my arms around his chest from behind, my cheek pressing against his.
"I shouldn't be upset, and you should stop making those puppy faces." I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and pulled away.
"I'm hungry now," I told him.
I got down from the bed and walked to the door, then turned around to face him. A smile played on his lips as he stared at me.
He stood up and walked towards me, cupping my face in his hands. He brought his forehead to rest on mine, his eyes never leaving mine, sending shivers down my spine.
He brushed his lips against mine, a gentle peck, and pulled away, taking hold of my hand.
"Let's go," he said, opening the door and pulling me out.
I think I might have fallen deeply for this guy, I thought, as we made our way down to the living room, with Liam still holding my hand.
We entered the dining room, and Liam pulled out a chair for me, the one at the left side of the dining table. I sat, while he took his seat at the head of the table.
He took hold of my hand once more and intertwined my fingers with his.
"Your Majesty, lunch is served," a lady said.
I looked to my side to see one of the maids. She served the dishes with the lids closed, assisted by two others. She opened them, and the aroma of the food instantly filled my nostrils, it smelled amazing!
She served us and walked away. What are all these dishes anyway? They look really nice, and this is the first time I'm seeing them.
"Liam, what are these dishes?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. "They look and smell incredible!"
"This here is chicken, grilled chicken with roasted vegetables," he pointed. "And that is creamy vanilla custard with fresh berries."
I chuckled. "It looks all different from how my mom makes it."
"I'd like to meet your mom," he said.
"Really? You want to meet my mom?" I took a bite of the chicken, savoring the flavor. "But why?"
"I want to meet my mother-in-law."
I raised my head, my heart skipping a beat. "What do you mean, Liam? We are not married!"
"Not yet, but soon we will be," he said.
I looked back down, taking another bite of the chicken, trying to avoid his gaze. I heard him chuckle and didn't bother looking up.
Just then, a guard approached. "Good afternoon, Your Highness," he said. "There's a woman outside claiming to be Layla's mother, and she's asking to see her."
"My mother?" I stood up, dropping my chicken. "Where is she?"
"She's outside," the guard replied.
"Let her in," Liam said.
"Yes, Your Highness," the guard bowed and walked away.
I looked down at Liam, noticing him smile.
"Sit," Liam said to me.
"Uhm..."
"Layla!" a familiar voice called out. I walked to see my mother standing in the doorway.
"Ma!" I ran to her, wrapping my arms around her neck. "I missed you!"
"Me too, dear," she said, holding me tight.
We pulled away, "How have you been? You're looking well. They're treating you well, right?"
"Yes, ma. How have you been too?" I fought back tears, trying to be strong.
"I'm good too, dear. Who's he?" my mom asked, her eyes wide with surprise and a smile spreading across her lips.
"Who's who?"
"That angel behind you," she said, her gaze fixed behind me.
I turned around to see Liam, and I could swear he was blushing - his cheeks were red as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Is he my son in law?"
"No, ma, he's not!" I exclaimed, as she walked over to him and took his hand.
"You're so beautiful, son. What's your name?" she asked.
"I'm Liam," he replied softly.
"Oh, nice to meet you, Liam. I'm Amanda, Layla's mom"
"Nice to meet you too," Liam said, his voice low and gentle.
I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy, why was he blushing so much when my mom touched him?
"Layla, you have such a beautiful husband," she said, turning to face me and then back to Liam. "Is this your hair, son?"
"Ma!, of course that's his hair!" I exclaimed.
"Oh my, it's really long!" she said, her eyes fixed on his hair.
"Thank you," Liam said, his voice low and husky.
I felt a surge of possessiveness, why was she touching him and making him blush like that?
"Call me mom, dear," she said.
"Let's go have lunch," Liam said, his cheeks growing redder by the minute.
"You're so beautiful son, look at those eyes, so pretty," my mom continued, and I felt extremely jealous.
"Ma, that's enough," I said, walking over and pulling him by his arm. "Let's go have lunch."
She laughed and I pulled Liam back to the table, his blush starting to fade.
We sat down, and my mom sat opposite me, her eyes fixed on Liam as the maids served her food. I couldn't help but feel a little annoyed, why was she paying so much attention to him?
"When did you two get married?" She asked.
"Ma, we're not married!" I replied.
"Not yet, but we will get married soon," Liam said softly, his cheeks slightly red.
I looked away, feeling shy myself. "Eat already, Ma!" I told my mom, facing my plate.
She laughed. "He's too beautiful, Layla. How did you find him?"
I felt my cheeks growing hot. "It doesn't matter, Ma. Eat already."
"You know, son, Layla has always told me that she wanted to marry a prince charming. And God was kind enough to give her someone even better," she said.
"Ma!, that's enough!" I exclaimed.
I heard Liam chuckle. "She'll always tell me about her dreams of her and her prince charming living in a big castle, living happily ever after." She laughed again.
"She even cried all night one time, saying she was too ugly for any prince charming to want her." She laughed once more.
"I had to sew her new clothes and style her hair perfectly so she could wear it around the whole day, just to please her."
I heard Liam laughing. "Ma, that's enough. It's not true," I said, trying to hide my embarrassment.
But she kept on laughing with Liam. It was true, though. I had always dreamed of being with a prince charming, and here I was, with one myself.
"Keep on laughing, you guys," I said, biting a piece of my chicken with my hands, trying to hide my smile.