Page 33 of Lycan King’s Claim (Lycan King’s Reign Duet #2)

T he car engine hums softly as we drive home from dinner, Xandros remaining quiet most of the drive.

I couldn't stop myself from regretting how much I had drunk; my head feels foggy and clouded.

No matter how hard I try, I can't remember the last three digits of Tasha's number.

My heart sinks as I consider the slim chance that Xandros will ever let me see it again on his phone.

Sighing, I give up on trying to remember and find myself sinking into a depressive state.

My thoughts drift to Tasha, and how much I missed her.

We have known each other since elementary school, and I know deep down that I will never have a friendship like that again—not with Xandros controlling me.

As if sensing my thoughts, he breaks the silence.

“You never told me Tasha was a vampire,” he states, his voice flat.

I hesitate for a moment before mumbling my response, “I didn't think it mattered, it's not like I will see her again, and if I do, it will always be under conditions. You don't need to worry, she won't hurt me,” I know my chances of Xandros letting me talk to her were slim to none.

“How do you know a vampire anyway?” he asks, curiosity lacing his tone. I can feel him studying me, waiting for an answer.

“She used to be my next-door neighbor when I was a kid. She lived with her mother next door. When her mother died, she moved across town to live with her grandmother,” I explain, a small smile forming on my lips as memories resurface.

“We kept in touch, and I used to run to her house next door when I was in trouble with my uncle. Her mother used to hide me.” I laugh at the memory, but the sound holds a tinge of sadness.

“When did she move away?” Xandros probes further.

“When I was seven years old, we hardly saw each other until I started working at Toby's.” My heart constricts as I say Toby's name, fully expecting Xandros to explode with anger. Instead, his knuckles turned white as he gripped the steering wheel tighter.

“Very unusual combination of friendship, a human, and vampire,” he mutters. I can't help but agree. “Tasha didn't have many friends, and well, I had none because of my parents. Beggars can't be choosers,” I tell him.

“So you hung out at work?” he asks, and I shake my head.

“No, mostly we video chat. She would lend me credit, not that I ever paid her back.

She always worked weird hours, and I always had to be home before dark unless I wanted to become someone's dinner on the night shift.” I shudder at the thought of the danger lurking in the city streets at night.

“We used to race each other to read books. She is a big reader too. We would both borrow the same book from the library, until my uncle burned my books, and they banned me from the library. And I couldn't afford to buy them with my uncle's debt being paid off and trying to save for the seekers.”

“Seekers?” Xandros asks, but I pretend not to hear, knowing I messed up mentioning them.

“Tasha is also a nerd, so even when I got kicked from the library, Tasha would buy them with her check and read a chapter. When she usually passed by on her way to work, she would drop the book to me in the foyer. I'd grab it on the way home from work and return it to our hiding hole the next day.”

“You two seem close,” Xandros states, and I can feel his gaze.

“We were, are, I guess. But I didn't see her the week before I met you. She was off visiting her father. He lives in one of the vampire kingdoms,” I explain to him, my voice trailing off as the car pulls into the driveway.

“What did you mean about the seekers?” Xandros asks me as the car stops.

I chew my lip, knowing what I mentioned is illegal.

“I used to put my tips in a box under the floorboard in my room; I was saving up to buy my ticket. The seekers sometimes smuggle humans out that want to leave the Lycan Kingdom, not that they have a good track record,” I tell him.

“Then why risk it? If you were caught; that is punishable by death,” Xandros reminds me.

“Because what future did I have here, forever paying off uncle Sven's debts, being sold to Mal?” I ask. Xandros seems to think for a second and nods.

“So why didn't you try to leave?”

“My uncle found my stash. The night I met you, we had a fight, and I ran to Toby. Only Mal came over and said my uncle put me down as collateral to cover his debt, and well, you know the rest.” I tell him with a heavy sigh, if only I took the beating that night, I wouldn't be in this mess, I think bitterly.

As we step out of the car, I can't help but feel trapped—a prisoner in my own life. I know that as long as Xandros controls me, I can never have the friendship I once had with Tasha.

Once back in my room, I get out of my dress and decide to shower.

Only once in the shower, Xandros invades my space by stepping in behind me.

I suddenly feel self-conscious, which is ridiculous.

We've seen each other naked more times than I can count.

Yet now I struggle to feel comfortable around him, like I am always waiting for the invisible hands of his anger to wrap around my neck.