Chapter 22

Ava walked beside Damon as they entered the palace, marveling at its immense size. "Where are we, Damon?" she asked, looking up at him. He remained silent, his face displaying anger. Was he upset about something?

They walked quietly through the hallway until finally reaching a room. Damon opened the door and stepped inside. "Take off your clothes, Ava. I don't want you to catch a cold," he murmured, unbuttoning his shirt. But since Ava didn't move a muscle, he furrowed his brows at her. "Do you need the maids to help you out?"

"What?" Ava exclaimed.

"The servants here," he repeated, and she rolled her eyes. "I need you to give me some space, Damon. I'm not going to change right in front of you."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why not?" he asked, stating the most obvious question.

"I don't like you enough to do that," Ava replied, causing his annoyance to grow. He undressed himself, and she averted her gaze. When he was done, she returned her gaze to his direction, noticing his black trousers and blue long sleeves. The colors suited him.

Instead of moving away, Damon sat on the bed and grinned. "Hurry up, Ava. We don't want to miss breakfast."

"I'm not hungry," she stated.

"Neither am I," he smiled. "But I must say, I want to see you take off your clothes, or I will help you out." Frowning, Ava moved to the closet. Surprisingly, there were women's clothes inside, although they were unnervingly short.

Picking out a short blue dress, Ava furrowed her brows at Damon. "They believe their women should look sexy," she remarked. Making her way to the bathroom, she stepped inside and shut the door, gasping at the enormity of the space. The bathtub itself was massive.

"Hurry up, Ava. We haven't got all day," Damon called from the other side.

Quickly changing into the short blue dress, Ava was relieved that it at least covered her behind and part of her thighs. It was an advantage of being of average height, she thought. "Ava," Damon called, and she hurriedly finished getting ready.

"I'm coming," she replied, opening the bathroom door and placing her hands behind her back. "Do I look good?" Damon stood up and moved closer, loosened my ponytail, picked up a brush from the table, and brushed my hair down a little. "And this," he says, leaning in to bite my lower lip and kiss my cheek, which makes them turn a little red. "Now let's go."

"Why did you do that? I look flushed like we just had sex," I exclaim.

"That's the idea, sweetheart," he smiles. "I'm only marking my territory. There are lots of bastards around here."

"Then you shouldn't have brought me," I growl. "I feel exposed."

"You look sexy," he retorts.

Rolling my eyes, I take in my surroundings—the servants bowing their heads as Damon walks by. Who is he? "Alex?"

"Hmm?"

"Why are they bowing to you?"

"I am their master," he looks at me, then stops walking and whispers, "They have accepted me to do whatever I want to them, and when I say whatever, I mean whatever." He squeezes my butt swiftly before taking my hand and dragging me along.

I wish the ground would swallow me up right now. This Damon needs a lot of discipline, and I promise to give him that one day. I plan on putting him in his place.

Finally, we arrived at a grand hall. Damon doesn't hesitate to push open the door, revealing a long table filled with various meals. "Damon!" Anna runs toward him and hugs him tightly. "You came."

"What do you think, Anna? Unlike some people, I am a man of my word," Damon grins. Meanwhile, I glance at the big man sitting at the end of the table—surely the head of the household.

"Stop right there, Damon," Anna giggles. Then she looks at me. "And who is this? Is she the one stealing you away from me?"

"Shut up, Anna," Damon pulls me closer as he makes his way to the table and sits down gracefully. I sit next to him, feeling completely out of place. Grant is not seated here, which means he isn't part of this family.

I look around and my eyes settle on the woman sitting next to the big man. She has beautiful blue eyes and long dark hair. "How have you been, Damon?" she asks.

"What do you think, Mother—or should I say, Elizabeth?" Damon furrows his brow. "Did you expect me to die?" Damon retorts, a smirk playing on his lips.

"She asked you a simple question," the huge man growls, clearly irritated. Damon just chuckles. "Listen, Fedor, I didn't come here to forgive or talk about our misunderstandings. I'm hungry, and there's someone I'd like to meet." Damon shoves a piece of meat into his mouth. "I also heard that a war is coming, and the great Fedor is powerless."

"And this person you're going for is Zulu?" the other man at the table mumbles. He has blue eyes and brown hair. "Is that why you showed up, huh, big brother?"

"You know, for a small boy like yourself, you sure talk a lot, Michael," Damon replies with a smirk.

"I am one thousand years old. Is that small for you?" Michael retorts.

"It sure is."

Ava remains still, unsure whether to speak or eat. All this arguing within the family is making me nervous. "Is she human?" Michael gasps in surprise. "You brought a human here?"

"Oh my God," Elizabeth covers her mouth in shock. They all look stunned, except for Damon, who continues to eat patiently. The truth is, I'm scared. I just want to get out of here.

Damon turns his gaze in my direction, looking at me with a smile. "Go ahead and eat, Ava." Nodding my head, I cut a small piece of meat. But before I can take a bite, Fedor slams his hand on the table, causing me to flinch, and the food falls from my hand.

"Do you plan on staining my kingdom with human blood?" he growls. Damon seems even more determined to anger him by bringing a human here.

"Shut up, Fedor," Damon growls back. "If you're going to point a finger at her, do it with respect. That is my woman you're talking to." He stands abruptly, and I quickly follow suit, trying to calm down by holding his hand.

"Let go," I plead, looking up at Damon. His gaze softens as he stares down at me. "Please."

Damon turns around and walks out of the dining hall. As we move down the hallway, he speaks. "That wasn't how I expected it to go, Ava. Was that frightening for you?" I nod, still confused about why he brought me here.

"What are they?" I ask, my voice trembling.

"Dragons. Stupid dragons that will die in the approaching war if they don't beg for my help."

"Who is Zulu?" I inquired, curious to know more about the person he mentioned earlier.

"Someone," Damon replies, brushing off the question. He doesn't want to talk about them.

Changing the topic, I mumble, "That is your father, which means you're a dragon." Damon chuckles and shakes his head. "I am not a dragon, Ava. Stop thinking too much. Come with me. I'll take you to a place where you can relax."

Damon leads me to the library, and as I expected, I'm thrilled to see the expansive space. "This place is so huge! When will I finish all the books?"

"Centuries to come," Damon replies with a hint of amusement.

"I'll be old and not able to read by then," I giggle. Climbing a ladder to find the perfect novel, I call out, "Damon?"

"Hmm?"

"Can you please move closer?" I surprise him as I suddenly fall from the ladder. In an instant, he catches me in his arms, his grip firm around my waist. I giggle, feeling a newfound trust in him. "You trust me now, huh?"

"I don't," Damon says, letting go and staring at the book in my hands. "Lucifer's Obsession?" he reads the title aloud.

I nod happily. "This will be my second time reading this book. Their love was so magical. He fought hard for her to love him back, though."

"Do you want me to do the same?" Damon asks, catching my attention. I frown in response. "Of course not. You don't even love me, and Lucifer was obsessed with her."

"Hmm," Damon murmurs, moving closer. He stands behind me, his voice a whisper in my ear. "If there are any other words greater than obsession, that's how I feel about you," I say, turning her head to face me. She stares at me, her eyes filled with surprise. "Sometimes you make me feel insane, so insane that I want to keep you to myself and explore every desire we both have." She gasps, and I giggle, realizing the shock of my words. "I'm joking about locking you up, but the other part is real." I kiss her gently, savoring the taste of her lips before pulling away.

"I like, love, and hate you," I continue, my voice filled with conflicting emotions. "You make me feel different things, and that hasn't happened to me in a long time." Kissing her again, this time gently biting her lower lip, I feel her gasp in response.

"Continue reading," I whisper, reluctantly letting her go. "I have somewhere to be right now. Come to our room when you're done." She nods in agreement, and with that, I walk away, but not before I swear I see a genuine smile on her face. She quickly covers it and shakes her head.

The way she reacts always amazes me.