Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Three hours later, Lucianne’s sleepiness started subsiding, and her senses slowly brought her back to reality. She could gather that she was lying flat on a bed and the quilt covered her body to chest-level. When she slowly opened her eyes, she realized that her right hand was laced with something rough and warm. She gasped and her body shot up in panic.
“Hey, hey. What’s wrong?” Xandar asked softly when he heard his mate’s gasp and felt the tugging of her small, smooth hand in his larger, rougher one.
Lucianne let out a sigh of relief when she saw him. “It’s just you. I’m okay. Sorry about that.”
He shook his head as he uttered, “Don’t be.” He then cautiously sat on the bed right next to her and caressed her arms to soothe his mate as he said, “It’s so good to hear your voice.” He then pecked a kiss on her cheek.
Lucianne looked at herself under the quilt, and instantly noticed that her clothes were not the ones she wore after the battle in the Jewel Pack. She couldn’t bring herself to meet Xandar’s gaze, thinking that he may have been the one who changed her clothes.
Xandar seemed to have read her mind when he explained, “Lunas Hale and Felicity helped clean you up and change.”(This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)
Lucianne’s relief washed away the anxiety that was there before. She smiled and nodded to signify that she heard him. She then started recollecting the events before she slept. All of a sudden, she looked left and right while asking almost inaudibly, “What time is it? How long was I out? And where’s my phone?” She lifted the covers and looked for it, and wanted to get out of bed to continue her hunt.
Xandar held both her hands to stop her from leaving the bed as he said in a soft, gentle voice,” Hey, slow down. You’ve just woken up. Let me get it for you.” He positioned her back into the bed before walking to
the dressing table to get her phone.
As he was striding towards her, he said, “It’s almost one in the afternoon. You slept for about six hours. Here.” He handed her her phone, sat back on the bed and kissed her forehead as he asked, “How are you feeling?”
“Better. Thanks for asking, and for staying with me.” Her voice was stronger, much to Xandar’s relief.
He smiled and kissed her cheek again. “Baby, I’m your mate. You don’t have to thank me for showing concern.” When a blush started appearing on her still-pale face, she tried to get out o fbed for the second time. 2
Xandar asked frantically, “Where are you going?” Was she avoiding him?
“I slept for six hours. I need to pee.” She said matter-of-factly.
Having understood that he was overthinking, Xandar chuckled softly before helping her get out of bed. Lucianne went straight to the bathroom before closing the door behind her. Xandar called Juan, who was beyond relieved. Juan then said that he would tell the others. The Alpha could finally get some sleep without worrying.
When Lucianne came out, Xandar took huge strides towards her and hugged her as he greedily took in the scent of her hair. For a while, they just stood there in silence.
Then, Lucianne’s palms pressed on Xandar’s hard chest, and she parted their bodies. Xandar only pulled away enough for their eyes to meet. When she noticed the dark circles under his eyes, she noted, (This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)“Now, you look tired. You should get some sleep. I’m okay now. You should head back.”
Xandar smiled despite the pain he felt from her words so he asked, “Are you trying to get rid o fme, my love?”
Lucianne rolled her eyes. “Xandar, if I wanted to get rid of you, I would’ve used a more direct set of words. You can sleep here too, if you want. I can be quiet, or I can leave the room if you prefer to…”
“No.” He said even before she finished speaking, and pressed their bodies back together as he muttered, “Don’t leave.” He then kissed her again on her hair.
When she released herself from his grip, she said, “Okay. Then, take the bed. I’ll be quiet on the couch.”
He then had a thought and smirked. “I have a request.”
“Which is?” Lucianne cocked her head to one side with curiosity. 1
His smile widened as he took her hands into his. “I stayed by your side when you slept. Stay b y mine while I sleep?”
She shrugged like it was no big deal. “Sure, why not? I can be quiet. Just…let me get a book first. Uh..” He chuckled as he released her hands.
“What’s the joke?” She asked as she strode to the couch, where there were three books stacked on the armrest.
He didn’t respond but just stared at her moving figure in a daze, admiring her body. And when she chose a book and was walking to the stool Xandar sat on when he watched her sleep, he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her into him. She gasped in surprise when their bodies made contact. He looked deep into her eyes and said in a husky voice, “There isn’t a joke. You’re just adorable.”
Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and she looked at the plain T-shirt and loose sweat pants she was wearing before meeting his affectionate gaze again. He was still smiling. She then said, “You really need to sleep, Xandar. You’re probably hallucinating already.”
Before he could say anything further, she walked to the bed and threw the covers over and motioned him to climb into bed. “C’mon.”
He obliged with a smile. He climbed into her bed and set his body a little further to the other end of the bed. Lucianne found it odd but she didn’t say anything. When she was about to put the covers over him, he leaned over and grabbed her hands to stop her.
“Can you stay by my side on the bed with me?” He asked as he stroked her hands.
“But…” she pointed to the stool and asked, “Didn’t you sit there while I slept?”
“I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable while you slept, and I didn’t want to scare you when you woke up to find me on the bed with you.” He then pouted. “But I feel more comfortable having you on the bed with me. Please?” 2(This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)
She was surprised to hear what just came out of her mate’s mouth, so she could merely nod. Xandar smiled radiantly as he positioned her pillow to lean against the headrest, and Lucianne sat there before covering Xandar’s body and her own legs with the covers. He was still gazing at her so she asked, “Better?” Content © NôvelDrama.Org 2024.
“Yes, thank you.” He pecked a kiss on her forearm which was right next to him.
“Good. Sleep before the hallucinations get worse.”
“Why didn’t you believe me when I said you’re adorable, baby?”
Lucianne sighed. “Xandar, you need to sleep. Let’s keep the questions for after you wake up.”
“It’s just this one question, I promise.”
She looked uneasy as she averted her gaze from him and said in a small voice, “All I did was agree to stay with you while you slept and that I’ll get a book. I don’t see how that’s adorable.” 1
He kissed her forearm again as he explained, “You are a lot of things, Lucianne. What you are at a given moment depends on what you’re doing. You’re fierce, strong, noble, courageous, beautiful, and a whole list of other things, one of them being adorable. When you said that the way you did, you were being adorable.” He took her hand and kissed her fingers, “You can’t see it but I can.”
She blinked and digested his words before she said softly, “Sleep now, my King. Let’s see if you can make sense of your own words after you wake up.” She stroked Xandar’s hair, and his animal purred in bliss.
He was definitely not hallucinating. She just didn’t see herself as how he saw her. She didn’t see how the way she did certain things made her look so innocently cute. That cluelessness o f hers, in itself, was another adorable thing about her. He didn’t want to argue with her any further, knowing that she would just dismiss his compliments and affection for her as him being sleep deprived.
Xandar leaned closer to her and his arms went around her thighs, hugging them tightly.
Lucianne gasped at his action but made no move to move away. His eyelids dropped, and he kissed the side of her thigh on her pants once before he snuggled as near to it as possible.(This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)
When Lucianne’s hand left his hair, he groaned in frustration at the loss. With his eyes still closed, his hand reached to look for Lucianne’s hand before placing it back on the back of his head. Satisfied that her fingers were now buried in his hair, he smiled as he drifted off. Lucianne smiled, and was chuckling internally. ‘He’s acting like a child’, She thought to herself as she continued stroking his hair again.
Xandar fell asleep with ease and woke up four hours later. His arm was still around her thighs. Lucianne’s thumb was still stroking his hair slowly and lovingly. His animal had never felt happier. It even
wanted to pretend to be asleep for a little while longer to enjoy their mate’s comforting touch. As much as the human part of him craved her touch, he wanted to see her even more.