Semua Bab Six-Times Rejected Freak: Claimed By The Alpha Prince: Bab 11 - Bab 20

Alina’s POV I took a step back, my eyes narrowing as I looked at Rylan lounging on my bed like he owned the place. His posture was relaxed, but I wasn’t fooled. There was a sharpness in his gaze, something calculating and dangerous.He sat there like he owned the place, one arm propped behind his head, the other lazily tracing patterns over the silky fabric of my new dresses. I had left some on the bed while I was staying to decide which to wear.His smirk widened when he saw me standing in the doorway. My grip on the doorknob tightened. “What are you doing here?” He stretched like a bored cat before rising to his feet with a grace that made my skin crawl. “I could ask you the same thing, but I already know the answer to that, don’t I?”His eyes gleamed with something unreadable. “The better question is, what are you doing here?” I exhaled sharply, forcing myself to remain composed. “If you have nothing important to say, I’d appreciate it if you left,” Rylan chuckled, taking

Alina’s povI wasn’t exactly hungry, but sitting alone at the long, opulent dining table felt like the safest option that morning.After the tense encounter with Rylan the night before, I wanted no, needed peace. His suspicion had gnawed at me like a silent threat all through the night, clawing its way into my thoughts with a vicious persistence.I could still feel the weight of his gaze on me, as though he saw through every layer of the facade I’d worked so hard to maintain. But more than anything, I needed to speak with the prince. I had questions that I couldn’t keep bottled up any longer. Questions about Malia, about the curse, about where I stood in all this madness.Unfortunately, I had no idea when or where I could find him. And I wasn’t about to go wandering around the palace like some desperate shadow, asking servants and guards if they’d seen him. The last thing I needed was to appear pathetic, lost in a place that already felt so foreign.So, I sat there. The breakfast spre

Damien’s POVThe silence between me and my father stretched like a taut string, threatening to snap. I stood before him in the private council chamber, the one he reserved for conversations that required no witnesses, no distractions, only obedience.He was seated, as usual, in his favorite armchair by the wide windows, dressed more like a warlord than a king. His sharp eyes cut through me the moment I walked in, as if he already knew I wasn’t here to grovel.“Well?” he finally said, voice low and imperious. “Time’s up, Damien. Are you going to do your duty or spit on the legacy that built this kingdom?”I didn’t flinch. “I’ll marry Blair.”A heavy pause followed my words.His brow arched, a hint of surprise flickering in his expression. “Just like that?”“No,” I said calmly. “Not just like that. I’ll agree to an engagement… for now.”The king sat straighter. “That wasn’t the deal. The deal was marriage. Immediate. I don’t need another scandal.”“With respect, you’re not going to find

Damien’s POVBlair’s voice was the kind that cut through even the thickest tension; high, sugary, and utterly grating.“There you are,” she said, as if she hadn’t planned the interruption with surgical precision.I didn’t move right away. Alina was still right behind me, her scent faint but maddeningly real, the kind of thing that curled around your lungs and refused to let go. I could feel the heat of her body from where I’d just pulled back. My skin still remembered the moment. The closeness. Her breath on my throat.And then Blair had to show up.She smiled up at me like nothing was out of place, but her gaze flicked to Alina, a half-second too long, a little too sharp, and I knew immediately: she wasn’t just here to find me. She’d come to pry.Again.“I’ve been looking everywhere,” she said, slipping her arm through mine like it belonged there.I didn’t pull away, but I didn’t grip her back either.“We were talking,” I said, tone clipped.“I can see that,” she replied, sweetly. H

Alina’s POVI stared at the arm Darius offered, my fingers twitching slightly at my side. Every instinct in me said to be polite, to smile and accept—because it was the eldest prince, because he’d been kind, because refusing tea could somehow be an offense in a place where etiquette ruled like law.But another voice—one deeper, sharper—was whispering Damien’s name in my mind.Don’t trust them.Darius’s smile hadn’t faltered. His posture was relaxed, patient even, but the way he was watching me told me he didn’t expect to be refused.“I... appreciate the invitation,” I began, voice careful, “but I’ve had quite the long day. Maybe another time?”His brows lifted slightly. “Another time?”I nodded. “A rain check?”He tilted his head, amusement dancing in his eyes. “You’re turning me down, Lady Alina?”“I’m not saying no,” I clarified quickly. “Just… not right now.”“You wound me.” His voice was teasing, but there was something else beneath it—an edge, quiet and smooth, like a knife hidden