Novel Square
Chapter 55
Chapter 55
Chapter 55
Xandar walked Lucianne to her room before he drove home for a shower and a change of clothes. He picked out a maroon shirt and black jeans before putting on a leather jacket. After double-checking his appearance in the mirror in the living room, Xandar drove back to pick Lucianne up. She emerged from the entrance of the hotel in a bright red blouse and a black knee-length skirt and moderately-high black heels. Wedges, to be precise. Her hair fell over her shoulders and on her back. Coincidentally, a gentle morning breeze graced their surroundings, causing Lucianne’s hair to be blown ever so slightly to highlight her gorgeous face and luscious curls.
Xandar had never been struck by anything more flawless. He got out of the car to greet her, pecking a kiss on her lips as he whispered with a grin, “You’re so beautiful.”
She smirked as the blushes reddened her cheeks, “You look good, too. It’s the first time I’m seeing you in casual wear.”
“Mm…disappointed?” He asked coyly as he took her hands in his.
“No. Just envious.” Lucianne replied. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion so she explained, “I didn’t think I would be going out for anything but the collaboration, so I didn’t pack anything suitable for a date. This…” she gestured at the outfit she had on before declaring, “…is actually one of the clothings I packed for the collaboration. It’s too formal for a date.”
He snorted and kissed her on her forehead before he said, “I think you look perfect.”
“Of course you do.” Lucianne muttered under her breath before saying, “C’mon, let’s go.” He kissed her hand before they got into the car.
The café was a fifteen-minute from the hotel. When they arrived and entered, the chatter of the place died down and all eyes were fixed on Xandar, who had a hand around Lucianne’s small waist. As they
stood, bowed and uttered ‘My King’, they studied Lucianne from the corner of their eye with great interest. Most of them already had glazed-over eyes, mind linking their coffee companion about what they were seeing.
Who was this woman?
Xandar and Lucianne bowed in return. The King explained the new formality and credited Lucianne for the idea, introducing her as the Queen. There were surprised gasps, oohs and ahhs as everyone bowed a second time and addressed her as that. Lucianne, too, offered a second bow and smiled graciously at everyone before the waiter showed them both to their seats in a corner. They sat facing each other at the small, round table, and the customers who were seated slightly closer to the King and Queen squealed softly in excitement before
quieting themselves, hoping that their Lycan hearing could pick up a thing or two from the royal love- birds’ conversation. 1
After the waiter took their orders, Xandar’s large hands reached across the table to take
Lucianne’s small ones before she could place them on her lap. He looked at her with overflowing love and affection, so much so that Lucianne’s cheeks were starting to feel warm just by meeting his alluring gaze.
She then cleared her throat before averting her eyes and saying in a small voice, “Xandar, you really don’t have to look at me like that for too long.”
He chuckled and then lifted her hands up to kiss her fingers, “You’re so cute when you’re shy.” That made Lucianne even more flustered.
Lucianne wanted to retract her hands to cover her even warmer face but Xandar’s grip tightened as he enjoyed the sight of his stunning mate blushing before him. Even his animal was looking at her in pure
bliss. Xandar was filled with so much happiness when he saw her trying but failing to suppress an upward curl of her soft, delicate pink lips.
After taking a steady breath, Lucianne then suggested, “If you want to keep looking at me like that to keep me flustered, Xandar, can you at least talk about your family while you do it?”
He chuckled lightly before he asked while stroking the back of her hand, “What do you want t o know?”
She shrugged and said, “Everything. Who’s your favorite? Who’s your least favorite? Why? Who did you look up to? Who do you miss? You know, everything. I don’t keep up with the gossip about celebrities or royals, so I can tell you that I know close to nothing about the royal family before I met you.”
Xandar smiled wider and he started, “If those questions are for the time before we met, then m y favorite was definitely Aunt Reida, Christian’s mother. My least favorite has always been Greg. That should come as no surprise. Who do I miss? Hmm…Granpa Brock and Aunt Reida from my mother’s side, Uncle Conrad from my father’s side, and my own mother, of course. M y father…he’s kind of a gray area. I miss the father-and-son outings we went on when I was younger but in the years he trained me to ascend the throne…I saw a different side of him.”
Lucianne held his gaze as Xandar continued, “It was only when I helped out with his duties did I realize not everyone had what we had, or lived the way we did. I knew we were the most powerful family but I didn’t know the disparity between us and everyone else was so large. Lycans were handling it well. But when I asked about the wolves, my father just gave me a thin folder with a list of pack names and their incomes. Nothing else. There was no record of welfare, financial support or even the general size and population of each pack.”
Lucianne suddenly muttered to herself, “So that explains the sudden annual headcount in packs since eighteen years ago.”
Xandar showed an embarrassed smile, “I didn’t want to remain as ignorant as how we always were, how I always was myself. I can’t claim to be King when I don’t even know these foundational aspects about my people.”
He averted his eyes and a look of discomfort graced his features before he uttered, “My father…
didn’t see a need to give anything of value to the werewolves. The first time he told me that wolves should be grateful that we let them live, my whole perception of the man changed. He used to be this strong, reliable and caring father. When he was around the ministers and subjects, he exuded this air of leadership and confidence. I always tried to emulate him, to be him.”
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He scoffed darkly. Lucianne’s own thumb started stroking his hand as Xandar continued his tale, “You’re probably going to judge me really harshly for this, sweetheart but…” his grip on her hands tightened as he muttered, “I have never understood the need for combat practice… because I‘ve never even heard of a rogue attack until I was training to ascend the throne.”