His Queen

22. Wishes and Desires

Damien's POV

Fuck my life.

Why did I have to say that?

Maybe it was so that she would stop asking me about what it is that I truly want. Scratch that, what I need, crave.

Too afraid to answer that question myself, I shrugged it off by saying something stupid yet again.

There is no 'finding someone eventually'. For years, my mind has avoided the thoughts of being with someone entirely. There was only one woman I allowed myself to be vulnerable for, and she turned out to be the biggest deception of my existence.

A part of me knew that reliving the past and letting it affect my present was wrong, but the aftermath of that betrayal continued to live through my every breath.

Lose, hurt, the never-ending pain. When every person you have ever cared for leaves you.

I wanted nothing more than just to erase that awful memory, it didn't deserve a place in my mind.

Aliya was awkwardly quiet the ride back home, and I was starting to think I had ruined another night of hers.

Not just any night, the first time we actually went out together. It felt like a crime to want her all to myself, without her running away to mingle and chat with my sister. Although I understood why she would get intimidated, being surrounded by vampires who love to feast on humans wouldn't be an ideal party for her. Which is why I kicked everybody out of the restaurant for the rest of the night, making up some dumb excuse when she asked me about it. Having her feel bad about it was the last thing that I wanted.

She is too nice for her own good.

I would shoot a few glances in her direction while I was driving, but I always found her turned away from me looking out the window like she was ready to jump out any second now. That is how annoyed she seemed, with a small frown on her face and eyes glaring into the distance.

Darkness surrounded us by the time we made it back to the castle. The guards opened the gates and I barely hit the brakes inside the driveway before the passenger door flew open and she was already on her feet, barging inside the castle.

This woman.

***

Aliya's POV

The distance between the main entrance of the castle and the king's chambers consisted of long hallways, sharp corners, and a million different groups of people. I turned back to check if he was behind me, but he wasn't. Looks like his majesty won't be carrying me in his arms up to his bedroom again tonight.

I was on my own.

There was a group of guards and soldiers who stopped talking and turned to look at me, clearing away from my way as I passed through them.

"Are you lost, human?" One of them asked, his dark eyes looking at me like I was the only prey in a room full of predators.

He was now blocking my way, unlike the rest of them who had moved back to give me some room. His gigantic physique made it impossible for me to move past him, with his head looming over my body.

He chose the wrong day to get on my nerves.

"Does it look like I'm lost? I clearly know the way that I am going, which you are now blocking," I said to him.