Chapter 16: Chapter 16

Chapter 16 Doubt

LUCIUS' POV

"Will you take me to dinner?" Pamela asked.

"Of course; where would you like to go?" l replied, asking about her preference.

"The same place." She answered.

"Okay. Let me just get changed. Meet me outside?" I said.

As soon as she left the office, I went straight to my room. I mind linked Neal on the way to my room.

'Neal, keep watch on Maia. I'm going out for a while with Pamela. I'll try to get her to go back home. Keep me updated.' I instructed.

I immediately changed and ran downstairs to meet with Pamela. I needed to find the perfect timing to tell her about Maia.

We went to the same restaurant that we always went to whenever she visited.

"Why did you cancel my visit? I haven't seen you in almost two months. Is there something wrong?" she asked.

"No. I have just been very busy. A lot of things keep coming up. I didn't want you to be alone and get bored." I replied.

"Well, my parents are already asking when the ceremony will happen. We have been pushing the date and rescheduling for almost six months. Are you having any second thoughts?" She said.

"Pamela, have you never thought about your mate? The One that's from the Moon Goddess, and not me- your chosen mate. What if he was somewhere out there?" I asked.

She was quiet for a couple of seconds.

"No. If he was still alive, I would have met him by now. Besides, you are now my mate. You are the only thing that matters now. Where is this question coming from? Have you found your mate?" she replied, asking about my mate.

"No. I was just thinking about it. What if I'm holding you against what you want by choosing you as my mate?" I said, letting out a sigh.

"Why would you think like that? Have you forgotten what I told you? I'll always be here for you. I chose you as my mate to be with you through all your ups and downs. Your fight is my fight." She replied, holding my hand on the top of the table.

Before I could even give a reply to what she said, our food had already arrived.

"The food is finally here. You should eat a lot. You were on the road for hours." I said, changing the topic.

We spent the next hour eating and catching up. She told me all about what she did and the parties she attended the past couple of weeks. When we were about to head home, she asked if we could go for a walk in the park. As much as I wanted to get back to the castle, I couldn't have her lurking around and accidentally meeting Maia.

"I miss this, Lucius. It has been a long time since we last talked and went out. If I didn't know you, I would have thought that you already found your mate, or you changed your mind about us," she said with a dry laugh.

"Why would you think that?" I asked.

Luckily, I have already gotten used to masking my emotions very well.

"You have been very distant from me, Lucius. Have you forgotten? We have been friends since we were four years old. We spent half of our lives playing, studying and getting into trouble together. It is safe to say that I know you more than anybody else. I know when something is bothering you." She said.

"I am really sorry. I have just been very busy with paperwork. Also, the number of rogues had started to increase, and I needed to take care of it real quick." I replied, making an excuse.

Although it was an excuse, it was also the truth.

"You have been working hard without even resting. I don't want you to get sick, Lucius, especially when I am far from you," she said.

"Don't you worry about me, okay? I am taking care of myself. I always do. What's important is that I know you are safe." I replied.

She suddenly wrapped her arms around my neck and stared into my eyes.

"When will you introduce me as your Queen Luna? How long do I have to wait for the ceremony? How long do I have to keep traveling back and forth just to see you for a couple of days? Why can't I just stay here?" she asked.

"As I have said, I have not yet settled everything. I need to make sure that the rogue situation is already under control before we announce anything. I will never forgive myself if something happens to you." I said.

"You know that I can protect myself, Lucius. Don't you get tired of living alone? Don't you want to see a little version of yourself running around the castle?" she asked.

Her question made me think.

Of course I would want to have kids someday. I can't wait to actually see them running around the castle. I have imagined the castle walls to be filled with their voices and their laughter. I could imagine Maia painting in the middle of the field while the kids are out there playing.

The thought made me smile, and I was very excited about the future.

"I'll take that smile as a yes then." Pamela said, pulling me out of my bubble.

I shook my head and looked at her while slowly removing her arms around my neck.

"Let's get home. It's getting late." I said, changing the topic.

I just imagined my life with Maia while Pamela was standing right there in front of me.

When we got back to the castle, it was already late at night. I internally cursed myself for losing track of time.

'Neal, how is Maia?' I asked through the mind link as we drove home.

'She was looking for you. I think it is safe to say that she knows where you are and who you are with even though I lied about your whereabouts.' He said.

I couldn't help myself, but let out a sigh.

"Is everything okay?" Pamela asked.

"Yeah, just some last minute meetings that I need to take care of when we get back." I lied.

"I am sorry I took so much of your time. I wish there was anything I could do to help." She said, apologizing.

"No, it is okay. Your job is to rest and take care of yourself." I replied.

I couldn't be any happier when we arrived at the castle. As soon as we entered, I took her to her room and told her to have a rest.

I made sure that her room would be on a different floor than Maia. I just couldn't have her finding out about Maia without me talking to her about it yet.

When I checked on Maia, I found her sleeping in the chair. I was about to carry her back to the bed when I saw the pen and paper that she was holding. I took the paper and looked at it. She drew the starry night with just a pen, yet it still looks so beautiful.

I carefully carried her to the bed and tucked her in. I lightly kissed her on the forehead and stared at her sleeping face.

"Just give me some time to sort things out. I promise to show you the world and everything beautiful about it. If I could only show you the true me, but I know that you would not love me with such a demonic face." I said.

I watched her in her sleep for a couple of hours before heading back to my room.

'What was I going to do? How was I to tell Pamela about my mate? How would I tell her that she would no longer become the Queen Luna? How was I even supposed to tell Maia about my curse? What if she rejected me because of it? What was I going to do?' I asked myself.

'If I were you, I would deal with the Pamela issue first. You need to earn Maia's trust before anything else and having Pamela in your life is not going to do that.' Lucian suggested.

'If only it were that easy. What have I gotten myself into?' I sighed.

I stared at the drawing that Maia made until sleep took over me.