The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 126

-Grayson’s POV-

The buzzing of my phone finally broke through my concentration, dragging me away from the solitude I had been clinging to. My eyes flicked to the screen, Ava’s name glaring back at me let out a long sigh before turning off the screen without answering.

Rickon, sitting across from me with his usual smirk plastered on his face, raised a brow. “Are you sure you don’t want to take it? I promise I won’t make smoochy noises.”

I leveled a flat look at him, lacking the energy to muster a proper glare. “Do you ever stop?”

Leaning back in his seat, he lifted his glass to his lips, shrugging casually. “Didn’t get a lot of attention growing up. So, Í figure I’ll keep doing everything I can to get it now,” he said, a faint smile touching his lips. For a moment, I thought that was the end of it, but then I caught the shadow in his eyes. “If you want to blame someone for how I act, blame my parents.”

I stayed silent, caught off guard by the unexpected admission. Rickon, always quick with a sarcastic remark or a grin, had let something slip that felt… raw. It wasn’t what I expected, and for a moment, I didn’t know what to say. Somewhere in his flippant comment, I saw a reflection of my own damaged past, the ghosts of a childhood neither of us could escape.

Before I could decide whether to say anything, my phone buzzed again, shattering the moment. I silenced it without looking at the screen.

Rickon’s tone shifted slightly, a hint of seriousness creeping in. “Why aren’t you taking her call?”

I didn’t answer immediately, leaning back in my seat and running a hand through my hair. Finally, I said, “For the same reason I told you not to mention this to Isabella. And I hope you didn’t.”

His raised hand, the one not holding his glass, was a gesture of mock surrender. “I didn’t say a word. You know, I’m quite honored. Out of everyone you could’ve dragged on this little adventure, you chose me.” He grinned, the familiar teasing glint returning to his eyes.

I shook my head, already regretting the decision. The moment I called him to join me on this trip to Italy, I knew I’d made a mistake. But I needed someone I could trust to accompany me to Ricardo’s pack. Whatever trouble they were stirring up needed to be curbed because I wasn’t in the mood to let things escalate into a full–blown war. Not when I already had too

fires to put out. many

It had been two days since Carter informed me about the situation, and I’d spent that time putting everything in place for my departure. I hadn’t told Ava about my plans, nor had I mentioned the curse. Things between us were good–no arguments, no tension–and I wanted to keep it that way. Bringing up issues I could handle myself would only complicate things. That’s why I left Liam in charge and called Rickon.

The phone buzzed again, and I sighed heavily.

not going to stop calling,

entirely and tossing it onto the seat beside me. “I’ve already told her I’m at the office and might not

right? One lie turns into two, then three, and before you know

back in my seat, trying to find a moment of peace. The silence stretched between us, but it didn’t last long. Rickon began breathing heavily, exaggerated

མ་ང་ང་ང་ང་ང་ད་ན་བ་

Sat, Jan

Chapter 120

opened one eye, glaring at him.

asked innocently, his expression

what,” I growled, shutting my eye

and I could practically feel him grinning. “Fine, fine. But you can’t expect me to sit

already dreading

at

could see he was enjoying every second of this. “Fine but you know, you’re really bad at this whole travel companion‘ thing. I’m trying to make

“No.”

leaving his face. “Come on, it’ll be fun. We could play ‘Would You Rather‘ or

“No.”

“Twenty Questions?”

“No.”

his seat and crossing his arms. “You’re no fun. You know

fun,” I

an overgrown pup–restless and incapable of sitting still for long. Sure enough, a moment later, he spoke again.

know what I think?”

I said without opening my

as bad as you make