~ Aria's POV ~I gulped hard as Lucian made his way toward me. What if he believed Isolde? What if he really thought her words were true? Would that mean losing him?"Lucian, about what Isolde..." I began, but he cut me short by hugging me. His jaw rested on my shoulder, and his hands were all over my back."Lucian," I whispered his name.He didn’t say a word, he just hugged me, as his hands continued moving around my back, almost touching the strap of my bra."I miss you," he whispered as he pulled away from the hug, his blue eyes on me. I missed seeing those enchanting blue eyes of his."If you miss them, then why have you been avoiding me?" he asked."Huh?" I blinked.Lucian pressed his thin lips together before offering me a smile. "What I meant to say was, why have you been avoiding me when you know I’d miss you like crazy?" he said.This wasn’t what he said just now. He had twisted his words. The feeling of Lucian being able to hear my thoughts lingered in my mind."Did you hear
~ Aria's POV ~After a few seconds of being in his arms, I pulled away, his eyes on me."You should also talk to the monsters here," I said, guilt still gnawing at my chest."Why? Did they do something wrong?" he asked, concern lacing his tone."Not really. They happen to see me banging on your door and calling your name. I don't want them spreading rumours about it," I muttered, scared that if the monsters spread how I had come to Raven's room, it'd get to the hearing of both Lucian and Thorne."Is that what you want?" he asked softly, cupping my face in his cold, steady hands.My eyes reached for his, and I nodded my head."Alright. I will be right back. Once I talk to them, they won't say a word."With that, he went out of his room. With just one word from him, every monster on the fifth floor came out from their various rooms.Somewhere were vampires, ghouls, and somewhere dragons. I stood by the door, listening to the conversation he was having with them.I could hear him, becaus
~ Aria's POV ~Raven pulled away from the hug to look at me, his eyes shimmering with unrestrained happiness."Really? You'll be my girlfriend? You're my girl now?" he asked, his smile spreading wide.I loved the way he called me his girl. I knew what I was about to do was wrong, but I wanted to follow my heart and do whatever it told me. Although guilt gnawed at me, I just couldn't stay away them.Reaching for his dark brown eyes, I nodded my head with a shy smile. Raven let out a squeal of joy—raw, unguarded—and in one swift move, he scooped me into his arms, spinning me around as if the world belonged to us."Raven!" I laughed loudly, fully knowing that no one was going to hear us. This was the big advantage I got whenever I was with my three handsome monsters.He laughed in a way I had never heard before, wild and free, refusing to set me down. His joy was contagious, flooding through me even as my stomach twisted."My head is spinning, Raven," I gasped between giggles.Raven put
~ Aria's POV ~Thorne and I held hands as we stepped out of the cottage. His gaze lingered on me with a smile that warmed my chest."Are you sure you can go back to the Academy alone? I don’t mind taking you back," he said, his tone gentle and protective."I don't want you to be late for your sister's birthday party. I can go back to the Academy, and also I need to check up on Jeremiah," I replied.Thorne frowned and pulled me closer. "You're mine now, don't go to him."I smiled lightly. "He's in that hospital bed because of you, Thorne. I need to see if he has woken up. Moreover, you already promised to apologize to him."He groaned, resting his head on my shoulder with a boyish pout. "I know… you don’t have to remind me." When he lifted his head again, he was smiling."Should I ditch Nyx’s birthday and stay with you? I want to be with you," he murmured, brushing his thumb across my lips in a way that made my heart stumble."You can't do that, Thorne. Your sister will be sad if you d
~ Aria's POV ~"What's going to be your answer, Aria? Will you marry my brother?" Nyx asked, her gray eyes fixed on me, gleaming with innocent expectation, as if she truly wanted me to say yes.I gave Thorne a signal to bail me out from his sister's question, but he did worse by walking over to us and placing a hand on my shoulder."What do you say, Bunny? Will you marry me?" he asked with an amusing smile. He was teasing me. Thorne wasn't the type to crack jokes, and I would have really loved it if it wasn’t a situation like this."You don't love my brother? Is that why you're not saying anything?" Nyx pouted, tilting her head.This little werewolf was trying to get those words out of my mouth. How can I get out of this situation?I love Thorne, but I can't say it to him, knowing fully that I was also in love with Lucian and Raven too.Thankfully, Kael cut in, his voice calm and sharp. "We shouldn’t waste time, Thorne. Your father will notice soon that Nyx isn’t in the mansion."Relie
~ Aria's POV ~"How is he, doctor?" I asked with a pounding heart, my gaze fixed on Jeremiah, who hadn’t opened his eyes in over two hours."He’s fine. He may have sustained a few injuries, but thankfully, there’s no internal bleeding. He’ll need to stay here for observation while we keep checking up on him,” the doctor explained gently.Relief washed over me, though my chest still ached. "Thank you, doctor."He paused, eyeing me curiously. "Are you his girlfriend… or his sister?""I'm a friend," I muttered."If that's the case, you should inform his family. Though he's fine, they still need to know what happened to him."Even though I had no idea about his family, I nodded my head. The doctor left, and I stood beside Jeremiah, watching him.Thorne's anger was beyond repair. I could still remember how Jeremiah had intervened between Raven and me, but he managed to control himself and not hurt him. But in Thorne's case, it was different. He shoved him, forgetting he's a werewolf and Jer