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After three days of being treated like royalty, even though I was nowhere near that status, I asked if it was good enough to go. Both Alex and Delilah frowned at my words, and immensely asked why.

"Do you not like it here? Is someone treating you without respect? Tell me who." Alex almost commanded, but his mate slapped his chest, and gave me a warm smile.

"Ignore this demeaning Alpha, but please, do tell why you feel uncomfortable with us."

I sighed. "So I'll take that as a no."

"I'm sorry Eva, but not yet. There are still news going around, and Xavier is trying to fix all of it. That's why you haven't seen him for the last two days."

She winked at me, and I blushed profusely, my eyes going wide. "I'm not looking for him!" I cried out, and then placed my hands over my mouth.

Damn! I just yelled at royalties!

"Uh, Huh. Whatever you say Evangeline. But don't be embarrassed, as my mate here already approves of your choice." He gestured to Delilah, who stood next to him, propped against the chair.

"What choice?" I croaked out between my fingers.

"Of both you and Xavier! Gosh, Alex. Even though we can't have mates, I think..." she trailed off, wiggling her eyebrows at him. He smiled, shook his head, and pulled his mate into his lap.

"Can I still go outside? Or is it still of markets?" I had remembered my little two minutes of freedom a couple days ago. As soon as I had caught my breath, I was bombarded by a handful of wolves, like actual supernatural wolves, and I froze. Someone I didn't recognize rushed out from the doors I had just ran through, only to usher me back in, cursing softly to herself. Apparently, the pack that protected the palace was not informed of my staying, and they were surprised by my presence. Thank goodness the maid had heard them growling, and went outside to check what was wrong or else I would be resting in between canine teeth....

"No, they have been informed since that day. We do apologize about it Eva. You are meant to be safe and in that moment, you were almost attacked." Delilah apologized as she wrung her hands out in front of her.

I held my palms up. "No need to apologize. So, if it's all good, I will be outside if someone needs me."

They nodded and I quickly walked out, kind of remembering where I was supposed to go. Some of the hallways still looked the same to me, but I was already getting used to it; I was starting to remember small things that made me know where exactly I was at.

I walked out through different doors than I had found, and paused when I saw a few shirtless men talking a good ten feet away from the door. All three turned to face me, but instead of growling, they smiled —one waved— and then turned back to their conversations, leaving me alone.

I stood in the same spot for another minute, before I released a deep breath and began to walk to my left. I wasn't a few steps away when something caught my eyes. My steps picked up, curiosity eating me up, and a smile broke out on my face when I saw the homemade swing resting on a thick branch of one of the many trees. I bit my lip for two seconds, but my inner child won and I jumped closer to it, resting it out first with my body weight. I didn't know how long it had been there or if anyone had used it in a while, and I didn't want to risk falling down on my ass halfway up. When it didn't budge or show any indication that it would rip, I sat in the wooden seat and began to swing myself.

The swing itself was situated right underneath two big trees, so I was in the shade. Only if I stretched my legs and pointed my toes, did a portion of my feet touch the bright, blinding sun that was on the other side. The wind that suddenly picked up carried the sweet aromas of flowers, the fresh scent of water, and even the mouthwatering smell of some bread being cooked. I was practically drooling and letting my spit fly behind me as I continued to sniff the air like a mad man.

Since I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings, I didn't hear the person who was slowly getting close to me. Only when their hands clamped around my waist, halting me from going forwards, did I realize I was not alone. A loud scream pierced the wind as I screamed, my heart hammering, and I whirled around to see who it was. Familiar laughter brought my eyebrows together, and my hands curled up into fists as I jumped him, wanting to do some damage to the dumbass that was in front of me, even though I knew I couldn't do any.

"You asshole!" I screeched as he continued laughing. "You fucking gave me a heart attack!"

"Nice to see you too," he chuckled as I huffed and stomped my foot on the ground.

"That's not funny."

He stopped laughing, and kept a small smile on his face. "Forgive me?"

I stayed silent for the right amount of time. "No." I turned around and went back to the swing, continuing off to where I was. I knew I was acting like a child, but I didn't want to let him off this easily. He had to work for it.

I felt his hands on my back as I went back, and then a soft push, making me go higher. "You know, my ma made me this swing when I was a kid. Pa had a heart attack when he saw his mate, up on a tree with a hammer and no security." He laughed for a few seconds and I couldn't help but to smile as well. "He sure ripped a new one to the pack that day, but I didn't care. I had my swing. I'm still surprised it's here, since I haven't used it in years."

I couldn't imagine Xavier as a little kid. He was too... mature, like if he was like this his entire life. "Tell me about your childhood."

His hands left my back, and they went around the ropes to stop them. He craned his neck to look at me, so I could see his eyebrows raised. "You want to know about my childhood?" He was surprised.

I shrugged. "Yeah, sure. I'll tell you about mine if you tell me about yours."

He was still centimeters away from my face, so with each breath I took, I could smell and taste his mouthwatering aroma. He smelled like a good concoction of earthy smells, and I just wanted to continue breathing it in. But before I could embarrass myself and stuff my face into his shirt, he went back behind me and began to push me again.

"I came into this earth about twenty one years ago. That was the time when my mother, my aunts, and my grandma were away from their mates." I frowned at his words and opened my mouth to ask why, but he beat me to it. "Before you ask why, I'll tell you," he laughed. "Did you ever read about the weird attacks that were happening twenty two years ago, before the world knew it was the supernaturals who were causing it?"

I nodded. "The drained bodies, and then a few months later, a small war broke out. There were more bodies there, and that's when the humans found out about the supernaturals. I believe, if I remember correctly, it was some hunters who told us about you all, and since we were scared, we joined them in the attack. But my side didn't win. Dimitri destroyed them all."

"Exactly." He then went and told me all about his sacrifice, Emilee sacrifice, the moongoddess's gift, the royal family's sacrifice, and then his birth. By the time he was finished, we were both sitting down on the floor, our backs against the tree that had the swing on it.

"Wow.... and that wasn't even your childhood!" I laughed breathlessly and he chuckled as well.

"Well my childhood was boring compared to what I just told you. I was spoiled rotten by everyone until more kids began to pop out. My aunt Arie adopted twins with her chosen mate about five years after I was born." I smiled as I remembered her, and Grace. They were such a pretty couple, and their daughters were gorgeous too. I never knew their three children were adopted; I had thought they had gone through AI treatments or something like that.

"I was treated like any normal child I suppose. My mother taught me how to be a gentleman, since according to her, they are all long gone, all while she kept me hidden from the human world. If they knew what I was, they would be scared of us again."

I was confused now as he shifted away from me. "Why would we be scared of you? Why would I be scared of you?" He didn't answer me. I prodded again, and when he remained silent, I sighed.

A secret could only be told if another secret was spilled. It could happen today, it could happen two days from now. He was going to know either way, so might as well tell him, right?

"I'll tell you my secret if you tell me yours." I whispered and he slowly turned to face me.

"You have a secret?" He sounded curious. "What is it?"

I bit my lip and shook my head. "You tell me yours first and then I'll tell you."

He shook his head as well. "I know this game. Why don't we both say it out loud at the same time so we both won't be making excuses."

I laughed and shrugged. "Ok."

My heart was hammering now, knowing I was about to tell him the truth. I saw his eyes quickly flicker to my chest, where my heart would be, but he brought them back to my face and took a deep breath. I took a ragged one of my own, and then began to count down.

"On the count of three."

"One."

"Two," I choked out.

"Three," he whispered and then we both opened our mouths.

"I'm dying," I whispered at the same time he said, "I'm a hybrid."

He stood up in a blink of an eye, stepping back as he stared at me in disbelief. "Wait, what?"