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Chapter 7: Taking Chances

"Hello! I'm Amaryllis, Lord Gunso," my daughter had finally introduced herself to Azarius and curtsied as soon as we were invited to dine with him for supper.

I felt anxious about bringing my daughter into the dining area. Despite my reluctance for them to meet, I found myself residing under Azarius' roof in order to fulfill my obligations at the shop.

Azarius, who was already sitting on his chair, stood up to approach us. I instinctively placed my hand on Amaryllis' shoulders, frightened that Azarius would do something to her.

However, he knelt on one knee, his expression softening. "We meet again. Do you still remember me?" His voice was as gentle as cotton candy, enough to sway a child.

Amaryllis nodded, smiling. "I still have your handkerchief," she said sweetly, displaying the handkerchief given to her. "I'll return it. Thank you for letting me borrow it."

Azarius chuckled and shook his head. "It's fine. It's yours now, sweetheart."

"Really?" Amaryllis beamed, turning to me with a wide smile upon hearing the confirmation. "Thank you, Lord Gunso." I nodded, smiling that I was supporting what happened.

Our supper commenced with a festive array of dishes, which surprised me considering that only Azarius, Amaryllis, and I were present. Hesitant, I questioned the extravagance, to which Azarius responded enthusiastically.

"Because you're here." My heart skipped a beat at his reply. "And of course, you too, Amaryllis," he added, his gaze unwavering from her since we began eating. "Did you know that your mother came here for work?"

"Yes. Mother said that we would stay here for a week. Then, we can leave and go to another place again."

"Go to another place again, huh?" Azarius glanced at me meaningfully.

I tightened my grip on the utensils in my hand. "W-What Amaryllis is trying to say is that we're simply going back to our apartment," I interjected, forcing a wry smile as I sensed the conversation taking an uncomfortable turn.

"Huh..." He arched his eyebrow before his gaze pointing at Amaryllis. "Is that true, young lady?"

I silently prayed to the Moon Goddess that Amaryllis wouldn't slip. I already made her rehearse what she should say to other people, but there were times when she might make mistakes.

"Hmm."

As soon as my daughter nodded, I felt this huge relief washed over me. I caught Azarius' face slightly contorted, not liking the answer he received. But he nodded and stayed silent for the whole night.

The next day, I went to his study room and proceeded to teach Azarius what he needed to understand in the shop. As he began skimming in the inventory and accounting records, he couldn't help but let out a sarcastic huff.

"Some records are not matching. Is this man seriously neglecting his business?" Azarius shook his head, a smirk of disappointment crossing his lips. "You're aware of this, Macedonia, aren't you?"

"Yes. It is why Lord Fabio entrusted you to fix it while he's away." I wanted to add that he had disorganized management as well.

"How on earth did this business manage to survive for five years?"

"Money is everything, my lord. You can manipulate evidence and evade taxes."

"Ah, yes. Of course. Manipulation..." Azarius nodded. stroking his chin. "You are excellent at it. You even managed to hide from me for seven years," he said with a hint of bitterness lingering in his tone.

My eyes widened slightly at his sudden retort. I knew that I should have prepared that Azarius would reproach me, but my heart couldn't handle how he expressed them solemnly.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Lord Gunso." I glanced at the documents on his desk while I was still beside him. I'd rather place my attention there than burn under his intense gaze.

"Hmm..." He hummed, drumming his finger on the desk. "You're not quite the actress, darling. I can hear the rapid pace of your heartbeat. Remember, I'm a lycan, Macedonia. Our hearing is much more acute than that of an average werewolf."

Suddenly, I swallowed my gasp as I found myself on his lap, wide-eyed. "W-What are you doing?" My heart was pounding loudly more than before when he locked me by snaking his arms around me. "T-This is harassment, L-Lord Gunso!"

Dear Moon Goddess... Why was I inside his arms? Why would take an action like this when he had never done this in the past?

Azarius' upper curled up into a smile. "Mace... You have no idea how much I missed you." My eyes widened upon hearing those words again.

I sensed the bearing pain and annoyance in his voice. But despite of that, it broke me as I really missed him, too.

"S-Stop this." My voice was timid, unable to make it firm.

His other hand lifted to gently cup my cheek, his face so close that I could clearly smell his perfume and masculine scent. That action was enough for me to feel nostalgic that I chose to stare into his gorgeous eyes.

Azarius... I missed you. So bad.

I couldn't muster a protest as his thumb began to caress my lower lip once more, mirroring yesterday's gesture. My throat felt dry as I gulped, noticing the longing in his eyes fixated on my lips. Unconsciously, I licked them, feeling a sudden surge of thirst.

"Your luscious lips... They bring back memories of our past. I should have kissed you when I first hit puberty."

This left me speechless as I had chills down my spine. I couldn't be hearing this wrong, right? Was he playing with me, or was he telling the truth?

I slowly closed my eyes when his nose gently teased my jawline. My hands reached for his shoulders as I slowly heaved out a sigh, feeling my body flaming in desire.

"You should have kissed her..." The words slipped out unexpectedly, eliciting a gasp and a soft purr from him. And I knew it was too late to take that back as I finally gave in to his tease, and I would never think that by this action, I would let my guard down.

I felt his nose trail down the slender curve of my neck. "Of course, this time, I will take my chances to kiss her," he whispered into my ear.

Before I could even process his words, Azarius' lips already descended into mine, making my eyes widen. I stiffened, not expecting that he would kiss me.

If my wolf were awakened upon removing the necklace I wore, she would likely chant about our mate kissing us and rejoice in our reunion.

That part was enough for me to return to reality as I tried to wriggle under his hold. "Mmm!" I even raised my hands so I could push him away, but Azarius, as bastard as he was, took my hands and coerced them to cling to his neck.

Initially, I resisted, but when his hand tangled in my hair and our kiss deepened, my defenses crumbled in the face of his enticing embrace.

If Azarius had done this to me in the past, just as he was claiming he wanted to kiss me as soon as he hit puberty, I would have probably punched him. I couldn't care less if he was the crown prince and would be the next Alpha King.

However, Macedonia today was yearning for this kiss for so long. I would revolt, but I would eventually give in.

Azarius' tongue sought entrance to my mouth, engaging in a silent battle for dominance. At first, I was winning. But I gasped when he sucked on it, shutting my eyes tightly as the realization washed over me that he still was an excellent kisser, just as I remembered.

Not only that but the way he was kissing me...

He kissed me like there was no tomorrow. He was kissing me as if he wanted to take my breath away, dwelling his tongue more inside me.

And I knew to myself that I was picking up his pace. I was matching his energy, returning the same fervor and heat, rubbing my groin to his.

Azarius groaned in approval, crawling his hands to my ass. I gasped as our heated kiss intensified with his actions, guiding me to feel his protruding bulge. I clutched to him, feeling myself pooling in between my legs at this moment.

A soft growl reverberated through his chest, becoming music to my ears.

As I moved on my own, Azarius ran his hands down my neck, as if searching for something, but I chose to ignore it, lost in the intensity of our passionate kiss.

I groaned in protest as Azarius slowly broke our kiss, his tongue lingering in a way that made me realize a string of saliva connected us, leaving me feeling dizzy and needy. My mind went haywire while we were both panting from that torrid kiss we both shared.

"You're really beautiful as the day we first met, Macedonia," Azarius whispered, his voice husky with desire.

Furrowing my brow in confusion, I tried to comprehend his words while Azarius wore a triumphant smirk on his swollen, wet lips.

"But I must say, you're even more enchanting now." He held the necklace up, the pendant dangling from his fingers like a damning piece of evidence.

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