Astoria

thirty eight

It grew harder every day, her soul in pain as the mate bond pulled her to Romulus like a magnet, but it was days like this where Lyla forced herself to ignore it and find distractions, even in the most miserable of ways. School work. But when it came to friends, Venus was always sleeping when she could manage to grab an hour without withering in pain, and for Liam, he was wrapped up in Daeva, understandably so.

Lyla didn't ever get mad at them under these circumstances, especially Venus where her guilt grew more and more with the information she knew of about Caden. There was no right time to tell her about his disloyalty to Astoria, knowing it would only worsen the situation for Venus and her breaking heart.

She was frustrated, more than frustrated in these last few days than she had ever been in her life. With the lack of time with Romulus and the guilt nipping at her heart with the tip of a knife, she felt lost. Lost in these moments with no one to confide in.

But then, her eyes grew bright as her head perked up with an idea as a small smile grew on her face on the people she missed too much. Her parents. It was odd no longer seeing them every day, but she knew it was for the right reasons. But today, it was different. She needed their love and comfort, and she wasn't about to go another day without it when they were only a few mere hours' way.

Jumping out of bed and throwing on a warm outfit to conceal her small body from the freezing weather, she got ready to leave the palace and to find the one person that would help her do it.

Liam.

❖❖❖

"So why aren't we telling Romulus exactly?" Liam asked as he kept his eyes on the road with his hands on the wheel, glancing over at Lyla for time to time who sat comfortably in the passenger seat.

"You know why. He's too stressed for his own good and me going out would only stray him from his work. Its better I just head out without him knowing and then come back before he notices. It's for his benefit." Lyla explained as she played with her fingers in her lap.

"But, Ly, I don't know. Listen, I don't mind helping you but if he finds out he is going to lose his mind." He explained.

She shrugged her shoulders, her eyes heavy with pain at the thought of it, but knowing in her heart she needed this time away. "He'll be fine. He barely sees me anymore as it is."

"Ly..." Liam whispered. "Is that why you're leaving for the day? To get a reaction?"

"Not really. I need my parents, I do. I miss them. And I can't really talk to Venus because I still need to explain everything with Caden without breaking her again, and you're wrapped up with Daeva which is fine, and as for him...he just has so much to do. Yeah, I'm in pain. It really hurts that even though he said he loved me, he barely sees me after it. I mean, I barely saw him on my birthday once we all played stupid games...he just went back to work. We're fine, I'm not mad..."

"You're disappointed."

"I sound like a parent scolding their kid..." Lyla laughed lightly, no humor in her voice.

She missed him, Lyla really missed Romulus. She missed the long, suffocating cuddles he'd give her in the night, or when he'd wake her up when he'd need to leave by placing a soft kiss on her lips. Or the times they'd find themselves laughing together as they'd share knowledge and stories. Or when he'd call her his Flower, his love, and how he'd watch the silly romantic comedy movies she loved with a passion just to make his mate happy.

His love was there, it was something Lyla never doubted, but the attention to that large aspect of his life wavered with disappointment onto his mate who yearned for his touch. She needed him, his comfort and words to push her to do better. And at the same time, she wanted to do the same for him and give Romulus the words and comfort he needed to push forward with keeping this kingdom safe.