Page 17 of Losing My Siren Luna
Now, I am just enjoying the wine, which seems to be my only companion again in this marriage.
Lachlan, though he claimed he was coming right back, still hasn’t shown up. I was about to wave Mimi over so I could retire for the night when he finally came back in, dressed entirely differently than before. He always favored black, but he wore more gold during our ceremony, and now he is in a white linen shirt with his signature black pants. You can see the contrast of his tan skin with the white shirt, making him more attractive and less severe-looking.
I’m sure the women at the establishment he frequents will go nuts over his appearance tonight. Good for them. Someone should feel happy on the day of our wedding. It isn’t either of us.
He sits in the chair beside mine, and I don’t even bother acknowledging his return.
“I’m sorry for my delay. I, uh, had a mishap on the dock and fell into the water. I had to go dry off and change.”
I can smell the saltwater on him, and his hair is still damp. I suppose he is telling the truth, but that is of little consequence to me. “I understand,” I mutter, so as not to be rude and disrespect him in front of his people.
“Lira,” he says the name softly. I wish he would stop calling me that.
“Elelira,” I muttered.
“What?”
“Elelira is my name. Not Lira. No one but-” I stop myself before I sayyou call me that. “No one calls me Lira.”
“I wish to,” he whispered in a deep, husky voice, making Val whimper with desire. I turned my head to look at him. His body is leaning towards mine and his eyes are begging me for something. For what, I do not know. “You will always be my Lira.”
With the tender way he says it, I almost believe him.
The silence stretches between us, and even Val is stirring inside me, curious, and maybe a little hopeful about the intentions behind his words.
"Uh, here," he murmured after a while, looking down awkwardly. He hands me a beautiful pendant necklace. The cool-toned jewels and pattern somehow remind me of the ocean, and my hand reaches for it without a conscious effort to do so, like I'm being drawn to it in some way.
"What is this for?" I asked softly. The metal in which the jewels are embedded is cool to the touch, and tingles run up my fingers. I would mistake the tingles for the mate bond if I wasn't familiar with the sensation from before. Magic. The necklace is embedded with fae magic, much like the siren magic I processed after my 20th birthday. Siren magic is fae magic, since sirens are one of the many races of fae-kind. "Where did you..."
"It was a gift. Not from me," he let me know quickly, "It was given to me by, uh, someone who wished to pass along the present to you."
"Who?" I can't help but ask.
"It has magic like ours in it,"Val muses in my head, fascinated by the feeling we get from holding the pendant. It almost feels like it's redirecting its magic to flow into us. "Who gave that to him? Does he know that it has magic in it?"
"Werewolves and Lycans cannot sense magic like hybrids and other races can. I doubt he is aware."
"Someone who wishes for you to have a happy life here," he smiled nervously.
I can't help but snort in a very unlady-like fashion. I doubt I'll have anything close to a happy life here.
"Lira, I just want to say, I do hope you can find a way to live happily here with me and, well, happy bi-"
"ALPHA!" a group of young women interrupted whatever he was about to say. They are all dressed alluringly, with low necklines and bodices to push their breasts almost to their chins. They came to his side of the table, a few of them ignoring my presence, and the others sneering in my direction before turning overly sweet smiles towards Lachlan.
Lachlan looks panicked, in an uncomfortable frenzy like he isn't sure what to do. One of the women, a beautiful brunette with thick lashes and voluptuous curves, pushes up against his chair, sending me a mocking grin before bending over to rest her arm around his shoulder, her chest imposing on his face.
I scoff, and Val whimpers inside my head. We knew better. I almost considered holding out hope for this second life and this marriage to my mate. Almost. I'm glad I didn't now, because he clearly hasn't changed.
"Alpha. We wanted to offer our condolences after listening to all your mourningall night longlast night. We look forward to seeing you again later this evening."
He starts to growl, pushing her away from him, but I quickly rise to my feet, maintaining control of my outward emotions. The only display of my annoyance is my painfully tight grip on the pendent in my hands. "I think I will retire for the evening. Have a wonderful night, ladies. Alpha," I bowed my head, and started walking out of the hall. I do not wish to cause Val any more pain than she is currently feeling, and my walls are fully erect around my heart and my emotions once again.
"Lira!" Lachlan calls to me, but I ignore him, done with his fake niceties for a lifetime.
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Lachlan POV
