Reign of a King (Kingdom Duet 1)

“Aiden and I don’t talk during meals. Due to the absence of a motherly presence in his life, he grew up to be emotionally abnormal.”

She slowly sets the fork down but doesn’t release it, her pupils dilating. “Abnormal how?”

“Ask him.”

She won’t. Ever.

If anything, I suspect she’ll do everything in her might to avoid him. That’s what she did at his wedding. She didn’t dare mention that she was his aunt.

Her grip tightens around her fork as if accumulating strength before she completely releases it. “Do you enjoy it?”

“Enjoy what?”

“Making people feel small.”

“People tend to commit mistakes when they feel small.”

But it’s not like that with her.

Aurora is closed off in a way that makes it almost impossible to get to the centre of her. In order to do that, I have to exploit her weaknesses, one by each bloody one.

“You’re a sociopath.”

“And you’re not eating.”

“I’m not hungry. A certain presence has made me lose my appetite.”

“Watch that attitude, Aurora.”

She lifts her chin, even though I can see the fear in her gaze. “I’m just saying, food tastes better when I’m with many people.”

“False. You spend most of the time talking, so you don’t eat then either, but since many people are there, it goes unnoticed.”

She glares at me, and this time, she doesn’t attempt to hide her contempt. The fact that I can read her is throwing her off, and she has no way to express it but through glares.

“You will eat.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Do you prefer I make you?”

“I prefer you leave me alone.”

“Either you eat or you bear the consequences. Be smart and choose your battles, wild one.”

Aurora stares at me, her gaze calculating my words before her brain chooses to take the intelligent route. She’s well aware that she can’t win against me on this, so she might as well cut her losses now.

“Fine.” She picks up her fork again.

“Not there.”

Aurora lifts her head, brows creasing.

I tap my lap. “Over here.”

18

Aurora