Azazeal went still, his hand frozen in mid-motion. His brows furrowed but his expression was unreadable.
"What do—"
"My apologies," she hurriedly interrupted him, her face coloring. "That was uncalled for.
What I meant was, we need an agreement, and I won't breach the walls of your …private life.
I will give you an heir…that is if you want one with a mere human like me.
But other than that, we don't need to spend much time together."
Her voice trembled on the last word, but she forced herself to keep it steady. It was best this way, she reassured herself.
Although Elora understood nothing about the demon wolf king who was now her husband, one piece of information she was confident in from her past life was the love between Alpha Azazeal and his childhood best friend Anaya.
In her past life, the Wolf King had surprisingly gotten married to Anaya before Elora had died.
The whole world was in disbelief when they heard of the huge wedding that happened in the Crimson Sky Pack.
They wondered how a woman was able to claim the Wolf King's heart. But it made further sense when they knew he got married to his childhood friend.
Their love story was told wide and far even in the human realm and of course the wolf kingdom.
It was a love that endured through wars and bloodshed from when he was a young lad, till he grew up. They had always been there for each other and it was obvious that they were meant to fall in love and get married.
But Elora's reincarnation had changed everything.
In her past life, she never had the opportunity or the privilege to be in the presence of the Wolf King
But due to some trick of fate in this new life, not only was she thrown into an arranged marriage with him, but he discovered that they were mates.
However, she had no intention to make this a proper marriage.
She has no idea why the goddess decided to ordain her as Azazeal's mate in this life, but she knows he might secretly harbor feelings for Anaya.
How was she supposed to compete with someone like Anaya? Who is undoubtedly his true soulmate.
Elora was never going to try, she would never put herself in a position to fight for a man's heart.
She won't go through the rabbit hole she had in her past life, making a man her priority. Getting betrayed at the last minute had caused an unkind fate for her once, but that wasn't going to happen in this life!
She has learnt a very good lesson the last time
"A marriage of convenience?" Azazeal asked grimly, his voice cold.
He didn't even look up as he continued his task, folding the towel.
"Yes." She nodded, her throat closing up.
"Given the circumstances, it seems it makes the most sense. It will work for you, too."
Something unrecognizable flickered through Azazeal's eyes — like a flash of panic? Or fear? —but it vanished almost as soon as it came.
He leaned back on his chair a little, half watching her with slight interest.
"And what circumstance is that?"
Elora opened her mouth to speak but fell short of words.
What would she tell him? That she knew he liked his childhood best friend named Anaya, someone that hadn't been introduced to Elora ever, nor did it seem like Azazeal had told anyone about his romantic interest.
How would she explain her knowledge about his feelings towards Anaya?
She paled and dropped her gaze to the swirling patterns on his robe.
Forget beheading me for my careless mouth and silly acts of mischief from earlier today, this time, they would burn me at the stake for witchcraft!
Azazeal's fingers came up to smooth the crease of her furrowed eyebrows.
"Stop frowning so much and talk to me," he said calmly,
The soft way he spoke to her sent a little thrill along her spine that grated on her nerves.
It was annoying.
Eyeing him warily, she drew in a deep breath shrugging her shoulders flippantly
" I'm in possession of enough self-awareness to at least know that this is just a political marriage that my father forced on the wolf kingdom.
I know that a mere human princess like me is not that useful to the almighty Wolf King, and I'm not expecting a loving marriage from you, nor do I want to vie for your attention.
We can pretend to be happy and in love in front of your people, but there should be nothing more than that, we should live our separate lives in peace
I will know my place in this world. But the least you can do is accord me respect and stay away from me except when necessary."
The chamber was eerily quiet, a cold breeze blew from the curtains and Elora shivered a little.
Azazeal gritted his teeth as he processed her firm words.
His wife was rejecting him.
She doesn't even want a chance in this marriage, either he had scared her to the core tonight.
Or maybe it was due to his reputation in the world and the rumors she might have heard about him.
Even though most of it might have been true, and he was a brutal monster undeserving of her love, couldn't she at least get to know him as her husband?
Was he so repulsive that she demanded he stay away from her throughout their marriage?
Wait, was she rejecting him as her mate?
At the realization that he won't share a bond with his mate, his eyes darkened and glinted dangerously, but deep inside the feeling of defeat hit him intensely.
"It's the least I can do," he repeated, finding his voice.
Elora nodded.
" Considering your lack of interest in the marriage since your father practically bartered you into the wolf king's arms. I suppose there should be reasonable boundaries "
His words were sharp and cold and Elora's heart fell at the change in his demeanor but her face remained impassive as she nodded in agreement.
Elora sent him a small smile, "I'm happy we agree with each other."
" But the so-called political marriage has nothing to do with the fact that you are my mate."
His voice turned lower, almost a growl as he spoke.
The possessive glint in his stormy grey eyes was evident as he stared down at her.
"And one thing I know is that I'm not staying away from my mate."
Elora stared at him, and her eyes flashed with anger and the earlier meekness and softness disappeared.
There's my girl Azazeal thought approvingly