The Crown's Entrapment

With everyone having left the great hall, Bella and Osman were left behind on their lonesome, both of them staring at each other as if waiting for the other to start the conversation.

"Shall we grab some coffee?" Osman suddenly asked.

"Don't you want to rest early?" Bella asked back.

Osman chuckled as he shook his head. "I don't want to sleep just yet after having seen an opportunity to be with you in private like this," he directly stated. "Besides, I'm far from being sleepy at the moment."

"Looks like your alcohol tolerance is really quite impressive," Bella murmured as she let Osman escort her to a table near the open balcony of the great hall. Upon arriving, she couldn't help but smile at the view they now had of the snowy night.

This was honestly soothing. Bella just loved how she and Osman would simply sit together and drink his favorite coffee. As expected, Sephiro arrived and brought his things, and Osman prepared the hot coffee for the two of them as they sat beside each other.

As soon as Sephiro left, Bella curiously asked, "Did Sephiro open up to you already? I mean, has he somehow recalled anything about himself?" Though Osman didn't mention anything about it, Bella could feel how much he was worried about the boy.

There was a deep sigh from Osman before he spoke. "He still can't remember anything, unfortunately. It's been around eight months since I found him, and I think he'll need more time to recover from the trauma he experienced," he regretfully replied. "I just hope that Lady Jayra and the Ebodian Mages including the Queen can help him out and keep him safe in the process..."

"I'm sure they would," Bella reassured him. She then let out a pensive hum as she asked. "Was he really badly hurt when you found him?"

Osman nodded. "Yes. I honestly thought of turning him into a Lycan, but he was in no position to give consent so I didn't go with it... It's not in my character to make a decision for somebody else's life without them knowing it, after all," he humorlessly chuckled.

"It's only a good thing that I was with a very good healer at the time, and he was able to perform a blood transfusion to save Sephiro's life. The boy had lost so much blood, and I offered mine to him just to keep him alive. Fortunately, the healer was able to exclude the toxins in my blood that make me a Lycan, preventing me from infecting Sephiro."

"Hmm.... Right, you're a Lycan, so feeding a human with your blood wouldn't be enough to heal them unlike us..." Bella casually recalled. "Then again, it will always depend on the severity of his wounds. Like in your case when His Majesty saved you, feeding you his blood wouldn't save you so he needed to turn you to fully heal you. Unfortunately, not all humans receiving our venom would manage to control it. Some would turn rogue, but not always, thankfully. It's a good thing that HIs Majesty looks after you so well..."

There was a lull in the conversation when her body suddenly stiffened. Osman's hand was currently on hers, and she turned to him only to see the bright smile currently adorning his face.

[Looks like you two now have this unspoken mutual understanding,] Poona teased. [I knew you wouldn't be able to hold yourself back...]

Bella's face turned redder in embarrassment at her wolf's words. She knew just ate her words for even letting this happen. Indeed, there was nothing official between them yet, but deep inside, she and Osman already had this understanding... A mutual understanding.

"Ah... I just hope that those two years would pass by so quickly!" Osman suddenly murmured.

"I'm still scared though..." Bella couldn't help but utter as she stared up at the bright moon shining outside. It was cold, but she felt rather warm with Osman sitting close to her. She bit her inner cheek when she felt his arm wrap around her shoulder, his strong arm pulling her close to him without even a second thought.

"It's cold... I don't want you freezing while you're with me," he cooed, making her smile and chuckle even more.

"Aren't you just making excuses to take advantage of me like this?" she snorted before letting her head comfortably rest on his shoulder.

"Was I so obvious?" Osman asked with a chuckle before he gently kissed her head.

"I don't mind anyway. I like you like this, a man willing to do anything for me," Bella whispered. "In the near future, I hope you'll remain the same."

"I won't hesitate as long as it involves you, Bella," he firmly stated. "Hell, even if you feel the Mate Pull and meet your so-called mate... I'll kill him before he even gets near you."

Bella frowned. That was an unexpected answer coming from him. Osman being violent seemed off somehow, and she couldn't help but tilt her head up to look at him more closely. Currently, their faces were way too close to each other, and she could feel his warm breath fanning against her lips with each second that passed.

"I don't think killing would be necessary," she murmured as she kept eye contact with him. His words and killing intent were making chills run down her spine. For the first time since she had met him, he looked dangerous. She couldn't help but wonder if this was what he looked like back when he was still a pirate. She wasn't scared of him, but she wouldn't hide the fact that it was worrisome to see him like this.

"But so I'm madly into you right now that I can kill just to make sure you end up with me, Bella," Osman murmured as his eyes went down to her parted lips. "I'm not the violent kind of person, but just the thought of losing you makes me so mad..."

Bella frowned, and she was about to scold him when he suddenly sealed her mouth with his lips. Her words were left unsaid as she felt herself melt, their kiss going from gentle to aggressive the longer they remained connected.

She could feel his hunger... His passion for her with how much he was ravishing her lips. It wasn't the first time, but this felt more intense than usual. It was as if Osman was sucking in all that he could of her through their connected tongues, and he was probing deeper and deeper that she unconsciously let out a soft moan into his mouth.

It didn't last however, and he soon broke the kiss, leaving her panting and somehow disappointed. Osman was a good kisser, and there was no one else she could compare it with since he was her first kiss. Still, his kiss was something that always left her wanting for more...

"I'm serious, Bella... I've never been this serious in my entire life," he murmured before giving her lips another light peck. "I've never wanted someone like this before, and I'll do whatever it takes so that I can be with you without hesitation in the future. I want to make it clear..."

Bella could only stare at him with blinking and helpless eyes.

[I've never felt this weak around any men...] she inwardly retorted.