Chapter Twenty ▪︎

couple days have passed. Dahlia was almost fully healed and she could finally get out of that hospital room.

Alexander was terrified of someone possibly hurting her as she left the safety of those four walls, heavily guarded by his men.

She stepped out of the hospital. It was a surprisingly cold, but sunny day. There were cars parked just outside of the entrance.

Alexander surprised her by hooking his arm around her waist and taking her to the car closest to the entrance. He opened the door for her and when she settled down, he tied not one, but two seatbelts around her. The images of her bloodied body with shards of glass sticking out from her skin and smoke emitting from the broken engine was enough for him to panic completely and get another seatbelt installed on the passenger side of the car. He also got tinted windows and airbags installed everywhere he could.

To say he was paranoid was an understatement.

He got to his side of the car and sat down. He didn't bother with tying the seatbelt for his side.

Dahlia leaned over him, with great difficulty due to the seatblets, and grasped the metal clasp behind his head and clasped it to the orange part attached to his seat.

"Returning the favor." She smiled at him smugly.

His heart fluttered at his mate. A slight pink hue burned on his cheeks and the tip of his ears.

Dahlia almost melted at the sight.

The two were much closer after the days they spent talking at the hospital.

She didn't exactly feel like they were even close to being close like a couple, but they were at least getting to know each other.

The thought scared her. Did he expect her to be a queen? To be his queen? She remembered her father and shuddered hard. Her whole childhood was ruined because of him, but she wouldn't let him ruin her future.

She had a choice, something she never had before.

The car purred as Alexander pressed a button on the dashboard, and soon, they were on an asphalt road.

"How are you feeling?" Alexander worried. His bottom lip was in between his feeth but he didn't dare risking a glance at his mate. He couldn't take a risk like that.

His beast was out of control, craving the affection his mate was suplosed to offer. Alexander reigned him in by tying him down to the darkest corners of his mind. He couldn't risk him escaping and possibly scaring Dahlia with his words.

Thanatos was so strong he could escape Alexander's being and become his own. He didn't have a physical form, but he was almost a matter made up of raw power.

He escaped once, and many suffered his wrath. All of the people Thanatos didn't like, which is a lot, died instantly by the dark matter suffocating their souls.

"Alex, focus on the road." Dahlia lightly poked his thigh to get his attention, since words were apparently useless.

"You gave me a nickname?" He asked.

"Yes. Why are you so shocked? You call me Flower all the time." She turned to him.

He didn't want to risk a crash, so he turned on autopilot. The steering wheel disappeared in the dashboard and was replaced by an armstand. Alexander's seat rotated so it was facing her and hers followed suit.

"I've never had nickname. I mean, not an affectionate one. Thanatos is a sort of nickname, but it's not my own. People, hunters in particular, called me many names, but no one ever called me Alex. It means a lot to me. Thank you." He voiced his gratitude.

Dahlia was shocked. Nobody ever gave him a nickname? Poor baby, he needs some love. He has shown nothing but kindness to her so far and she couldn't stand the broken expression hiding in his eyes. She moved closer to him and grasped his hand in her own. Sparks flowed at the contact and his eyes held thin lines of red in them.

He expected her to let go of his hand at the revelation, but she instead held it tighter and brushed her thumb against his knuckles. He looked down at her hand in his own. His rings were cold and she found interest in one of them that seemed to glow

It was a simple iron ring, but it had an unfamiliar crystal in the middle. She knew it had quite the bit of magic cloaking it, due to the dark, ruby red fumes that seemed to dance along the edges of it.

"What is this one for?" She asked him as she went to touch it. He quickly grasped her hand before she could do so, worried it could harm her in some way.

"I don't think you are ready for that..." he looked down at the cursed object. If only he could take it off and crush the damn gem.

"Please, tell me." She pleaded.

"It's for Thanatos. He once escaped my being and became his own. It was more of a dark matter, he couldn't speak or feel anything, but he still somehow killed many people that day. I have no idea how he did it, but I made this ring that kept him close to me, even if he did escape." He told her. He was still worried about her reaction, but she had to know for her own safety.

"Is he always violent? He seemed nice to me at the ball." Dahlia muttered. She couldn't bring herself to believe her mate would do such a thing, though she knew better.

"He wasn't nice because it is in his nature. He knew that I would kick him to the back of my head if he even tried something bad with you. And he wants you to like him so you would let him feed from you and let him do... other things." He growled. His eyes darkened as he looked away from her and out of the window beside her head. He let go of her hand and rubbed at his glowing ring. It seemed even brighter now.

"Do you really think he would hurt me? I'm his mate as well, aren't I?" She hoped his answer would be 'no' but the look in his eyes told her otherwise.

"To be truthful, I don't know. He seems to like you more every passing day, but he could be fooling both of us. We can talk later, you should go rest. I have some business to attend to." He spoke as he pressed another button and the back seat transformed to a bed. As it folded down, a cabinet came into view.

"There are pillows in that cabinet and a blanket. The car will warm up soon, but you should cover up anyway. There is also a set of pajamas in there but-"

"I'll be fine. How long will it take to get to your home?" She cut him off.

He looked to his watch. "About 5 hours if there are no problems in the way."

"You live that far away? How did you manage to visit me so often back home and bring those gifts, which was, by the way, quite creepy. I mean, you couldn't have just mailed them to me?" She rambled.

"You don't have an adress." He chuckled.

Oh, right. "But you didn't travel 10 hours just to give me a gift, did you? I hope it wasn't some random guy breaking into my bedroom as I was sleeping."

"I had a house built close to where you lived. I would never allow anyone near you. " His tone quickly changed to possesive. It was strange to see his face morph from happy to possesive and angry.

"Still, thank you. I loved the dahlias." She smiled as she took off her boots and climbed on the makeshift bed.

"You have a garden full of them in the castle." He looked at her hesitantly. He expected her to freak out at his tone or at least act a bit differently towards him.

He watched as she opened the cabinet and took out two pillows, one giant blanket and a sheet to place over the bed. She assembled the bed and looked around the cabinet before she found the pajamas she was looking for and placed the other pair at the and of the bed.

"Can you turn around? I'd like to change, my clothes aren't too comfortable for sleeping." He was stunned at how comfortable she seemed with changing in front of him.

He nodded and turned his chair around. He opened his laptop and the black screen acted as a mirror when he looked at it. It held the reflection of Dahlia in only a baby pink bra and matching panties.

He couldn't breathe. He turned the laptop on as soon as he could, trying to keep Thanatos inside, though it was hard for him to keep even his own emotions in check.

She pulled the cotton t-shirt over her head and unclasped her bra. She didn't think much about being braless, considering the t-shirt she just put on was covering her just fine.

It seemed that Alexander's laptop was out of battery.

He couldn't resist turning the AC down to 19° C as he watched her take off her bra, wanting to see her nipples harden under her t-shirt. She put on the matching pants and laid down. He quickly leaned down to look for his charger and when he found it, he turned it on and connected his laptop to the wireless connection. The screen lit up and he typed in his password.

***

T

he rest of the day was boring as Alexander answered e-mails and declined phone calls to make Dahlia's sleep as peaceful as possible.

She unfortunately pulled the blanket all the way to her chin, disappointing both Thanatos and Alexander.

He turned the AC up higher and soon, the car was filled with warmth.

She shifted in her sleep multiple times and each time, Alexander would stay as still as possible, praying to the goddess above that his mate was still asleep.

He liked watching her peaceful expression as she slept.

He laughed lightly when he noticed she was drooling at the corner of her lips.

They were driving through a thick forest and soon, snow was falling down on them like a thick blanket.

They must have been close to Canada. Alexander stopped the car and locked it.

There was no way he would risk driving in the snow, and he might have wanted to rest with his mate for a minute or two.

He needed it, or else he would be forced to resort to drastic measures.

He quietly took off his shoes first. He moved on to his jeans and put on the pajamas Dahlia left at the edge of the bed. He didn't bother with removing his t-shirt as it was already as comfortable as the pajamas.

He gently lifted the blanket and slid under it. His bidy shivered as he felt her warmth engulf him like a hug.

He laid his head on the pillow and closed his eyes. He soon drifted off to sleep.

***

Dahlia woke up after a few hours. At first, she didn't know where she was, but the glow of Alexander's ring lit up a small part of the car and she remembered.

He was sleeping soundlessly on his side of the bed. She was surprised that he didn't try anything with her.

The car wasn't moving. She looked out of the window behind her head and noticed the snowflakes falling down from the sky.

She settled back in her bed and moved closer to Alexander. She remembered what the doctor said. He needs some rest or else he might get sick. She owed him at least this much.

She moved even closer and placed her head against his chest. He was sleeping on his back and his hand was tossed behind his head, making it quite comfortable for Dahlia. Her hand drifted along to his heart, surprisingly feeling it beating irratically under his fingertips. She looked up and his eyes were glowing blue. He looked at her in wonder. She shied away a bit, thinking that he was rejecting her small display of affection, but he stopped her by placing his hand around her waist and pulling her closer to his chest.

Her heart was pounding in her ears as he whispered, "Sleep, my Flower."

It was all it took for her to fall under his spell and dream of gardens full of dahlias and a certain man with diamond eyes and platinum hair.