Chapter 87: Let’s Get To Know Each Other

Olivia’s POV

I stared at him, unable to move or think properly. Lucian had shown me affection before. He had held me close, kissed me, and told me he wanted us to become a real husband and wife. But hearing him say those three words so plainly was something I hadn’t prepared myself for.

"I don’t even know when it happened," he admitted. "I tried to fight it for a long time. I kept telling myself that this arrangement was nothing more than an agreement between our packs and that there was no reason for me to get emotionally involved."

He shook his head, a faint smile appearing on his lips.

"But somewhere along the way, you became more than that to me. I started looking forward to seeing you every day, even when we had nothing to say to each other. I started worrying about you, wondering whether you’d eaten, whether you were comfortable, and whether you were happy."

My throat tightened as I listened to him.

"And yesterday, when I thought you might be in love with someone else, I realized just how much you meant to me." He gently squeezed my hand. "I don’t want to keep fighting with you, Annabel. I don’t want you to feel like you’re living with an enemy. I want you to be happy here, and I want to be part of that happiness."

I looked away quickly, afraid that if I kept staring at him, I might start crying. Why was he telling me all this now? Why now, when Lucas had just offered me the chance to leave? Why now, when I was supposed to give Lucas an answer by the end of the day?

"Annabel?" Lucian called softly.

I turned back toward him, only to find him watching me with a concerned expression.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

I nodded slowly. "Yes, I just..." I swallowed hard, trying to organize the thoughts running through my head. "Lucian, I don’t know what to say."

His expression softened immediately. "Then don’t say anything."

I blinked. "What?"

"You don’t have to give me an answer right now." He smiled gently. "I didn’t tell you how I feel because I expect you to say the same thing back. I just wanted you to know."

"But..." I began.

"Annabel, we’ve spent so much time fighting and misunderstanding each other that we barely know anything about each other. I don’t expect you to suddenly fall in love with me just because I’ve finally admitted how I feel."

I looked at him, surprised by how understanding he was being.

"We have plenty of time," he continued. "Plenty of time to get to know each other, to understand each other, and to figure out what we want. I’m not asking you to make any promises today."

My chest tightened at those words.

Plenty of time.

If only he knew that I might not even be here tomorrow.

"Besides," he added with a small smile, "I haven’t exactly given you many reasons to fall in love with me."

Despite everything, a quiet laugh escaped my lips. "No, you haven’t."

Lucian raised an eyebrow. "You could have at least pretended to disagree."

I laughed again, shaking my head. "You were the one who said it."

"Fair enough." He chuckled before gently releasing my hand. "Then I suppose I have a lot of work to do."

For the first time that morning, I felt myself relaxing. Lucian wasn’t demanding anything from me, and he wasn’t angry because I couldn’t return his confession. Instead, he seemed perfectly content to let things happen naturally, something I would never have expected from him a few weeks ago.

"There’s one more thing," he suddenly said.

I raised an eyebrow. "What now?"

"You’re no longer grounded," he announced.

I looked at him in surprise. "Really?"

"Really. And I’m sorry for restricting you in the first place."

I smiled faintly. "Thank you."

Lucian reached for my hand again. "I don’t want you to feel trapped here anymore, Annabel. If you’re going to stay with me, I want it to be because you want to, not because I’m forcing you."

My smile slowly faded as his words sank in. If only he knew how much they meant to me. If only he knew that someone had offered me the chance to leave him just last night and that I was still struggling to decide whether I wanted to accept that offer.

"And that’s why..." Lucian began, suddenly straightening his back.

I looked at him curiously. "Why what?"

He smiled. "I think we should start afresh."

"Start afresh?" I repeated.

"Yes. Forget all the fighting, the arguments, and everything else. Let’s get to know each other properly, without all the expectations and misunderstandings."

I frowned slightly. "Get to know each other?"

"Yes. Like two people meeting for the first time."

Before I could ask what he meant, Lucian stood up from the couch, straightened his shirt, and cleared his throat dramatically. I watched him in confusion as he turned toward me with an expression so serious that I almost wondered whether he was about to make some important announcement.

Then he extended his hand.

"Hello. I’m Lucian."

I blinked, looking from his outstretched hand to his face. "Are you serious?"

"Very serious," he replied.

"Lucian..."

"Ah, ah." He shook his head, interrupting me. "You don’t know my name yet. We’re meeting for the first time, remember?"

I stared at him for another second before bursting into laughter. Of all the things I had expected from Lucian that morning, watching the ruthless Alpha of the Full Moon Pack pretend to introduce himself to me was certainly not one of them.

He grinned at my reaction. "There. That’s better."

"What?" I asked, still laughing.

"Your smile. I was beginning to think I’d forgotten what it looked like."

My laughter slowly faded, and I found myself smiling at him. There was something strangely charming about seeing him like this, so relaxed and playful, without the cold expression he usually wore around everyone else.

He continued holding out his hand. "Now, let’s try that again."

I shook my head, still smiling. "You’re unbelievable."

He smirked, cleared his throat again, and gave me a charming smile.

"Hello, beautiful lady. My name is Lucian. And you are?"

My smile disappeared.

For a moment, everything around me seemed to go quiet, and I could only stare at his outstretched hand.

Olivia.

That was the name I wanted to give him.

My real name. For one foolish second, I wanted to tell him the truth.

I wanted to take his hand and say, Hello, Lucian. My name is Olivia.

I wanted to see whether he would still smile at me the same way after discovering that I wasn’t Princess Annabel, that I wasn’t the daughter of Alpha Kenneth, and that I had been nothing more than a maid before coming here.

But I couldn’t. At least not yet.

"Annabel," I finally whispered, forcing a small smile onto my face.

Lucian smiled warmly. "Annabel. That’s a beautiful name."

My heart twisted painfully.

"Thank you," I replied quietly.

He took my hand and shook it gently, playing along with his little introduction as though we were truly strangers meeting for the first time.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Annabel," he said.

I forced myself to smile a little wider. "The pleasure is mine."

"Now," he continued, sitting beside me again, "tell me something about yourself."

I raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Anything. What’s your favorite food?"

I blinked. "My favorite food?"

"Yes," he answered.

"Why?" I asked, looking at him.

"Because I’m trying to get to know you." He gave me a look that suggested I was being deliberately difficult.

I laughed softly. "You’re really taking this seriously."

"Of course. I intend to become an excellent husband, and apparently, that starts with knowing what my wife likes to eat."

I shook my head, smiling despite how tense I felt. "Alright. I like roasted chicken."

"Good choice," he replied with a nod.

"What about you?" I asked.

"Steak," he answered.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course."

Lucian frowned playfully. "What’s that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. You just look like someone who would eat steak every single day."

He laughed, shaking his head. "Well, you’re not entirely wrong."

I smiled, surprised by how easily the conversation was flowing between us. Usually, whenever Lucian and I sat together, there was always some kind of tension hanging in the air. But this morning was different. He seemed genuinely interested in whatever I had to say, and for once, I wasn’t constantly worrying about saying the wrong thing.

"And what else?" he asked.

"What else?" I repeated.

"What makes you happy?"

The question caught me off guard, and I looked down at our joined hands as I tried to think of an answer. What made me happy? Before coming to the Full Moon Pack, happiness had been something I rarely thought about. Most of my days had been spent serving Princess Annabel, following orders, and trying not to make mistakes. Even after arriving here, I had been too busy surviving to think about what I actually enjoyed.

"I don’t know," I admitted quietly.

Lucian’s smile faded slightly. "You don’t know?"

I shook my head. "Not really. I’ve never given it much thought."

He studied my face for a moment before gently squeezing my hand.

"Then I guess we’ll have to find out together," he said.

I looked up at him, surprised by the sincerity in his voice.

"Together?" I repeated.

"Yes. We’ll try different things until we figure out what makes you happy."

I couldn’t help smiling. "That sounds like a lot of work."

"I’m an Alpha. I’m used to hard work," he replied confidently.

I laughed, and Lucian smiled, clearly pleased with himself. Then he leaned a little closer, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

"And for the record, I already know one thing that makes me happy."

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

He reached out and gently brushed a loose strand of hair away from my face.

"You," he answered softly.

My cheeks immediately warmed, and I shook my head, laughing softly, while he chuckled before leaning back against the couch.

For the next several minutes, we continued talking. He asked about my favorite colors, whether I preferred mornings or evenings, and what I liked doing when I had free time. Some questions were easy to answer, while others made me realize how little I had ever thought about myself.

And surprisingly, Lucian listened to every answer. He didn’t interrupt, didn’t mock me, and didn’t make me feel foolish whenever I struggled to explain something. He simply listened, occasionally asking another question or sharing something about himself.

At some point, I found myself asking him questions too, and I discovered things about him that I never would have imagined. He hated overly sweet food, preferred quiet evenings to crowded gatherings, and enjoyed riding through the forest whenever the responsibilities of being an Alpha became overwhelming.

For a brief moment, I forgot everything. I forgot Owen, Alpha Kenneth, and the fact that Princess Annabel was dead. I even forgot about the promise I had made to Lucas the previous night. For those few minutes, I was simply a woman sitting beside a man who was trying to make her smile.

Then Lucian reached for my hand again.

"Annabel?" he called gently.

"Yes?" I answered, turning toward him.

"Can we do this more often?"

I looked at him curiously. "Do what?"

"Talk. Laugh. Spend time together without fighting."

My smile softened as I looked into his eyes. He seemed so different from the man I had met when I first arrived at the Full Moon Pack, and I couldn’t deny that I liked this version of him.

"I’d like that," I answered quietly.

He smiled. "Good."

Then he leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss against my forehead. I closed my eyes, allowing myself to enjoy the warmth of his lips against my skin, even though a small part of me kept reminding me that I had no right to be this happy.

"I have some work to attend to," he said reluctantly when he finally pulled away. "But I’d like us to have dinner together tonight."

"Dinner?" I repeated.

"Just the two of us," he explained.

I hesitated for a moment. "Like a date?"

Lucian grinned. "Exactly like a date."

I laughed softly. "Alright."

"Alright?" he repeated, looking pleased.

I nodded. "Yes, Lucian. I’d love to."

He smiled and stood up, looking almost reluctant to leave. After straightening his shirt, he walked toward the door, but just as he was about to open it, he turned back toward me.

"And Annabel?" he called.

"Yes?" I replied.

His expression softened.

"I meant everything I said this morning. And remember, you don’t have to give me an answer about how you feel. We have all the time in the world to figure things out."

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to smile.

"Okay," I whispered.

He smiled back before opening the door and walking out, gently closing it behind him.

I remained seated on the couch, staring at the closed door as his words echoed in my head. Lucian had just confessed his love for me, and for the first time, he was willing to give our relationship a genuine chance.

A few weeks ago, I would have given anything to hear those words. But now, instead of feeling happy, I felt more confused than ever.

Lucas was waiting for my answer. He was offering me the freedom I had desperately wanted since arriving at the Full Moon Pack, while Lucian was offering me a future I was beginning to want.

And the worst part was that I cared about both of them.