The Lycan Princess and the Temptation of Sin

33. In the Forest

ROYCE.

I really have no way to explain what I feel when she turns and saunters out of the cafeteria as if she

owns the entire place. If I try to put it into one sentence, it would be; She looks fucking mind-blowingly

sexy and smoking hot.

Her long killer legs move confidently, her hips naturally swaying as she walks, and her breasts bounce

as does her hair. There’s a fire in her eyes that makes my throat go dry. She’s not seen me but she’s

angry and she doesn’t give a shit about the consequences.

Call me insane, but I actually admire that.

She’s able to be herself without even considering the repercussions of her actions.

She spots me, and her heart skips a beat. Her eyes meet mine for a second, before she turns those

bottle-green eyes away and brushes past me, leaving me with a hint of her scent…

That fleeting remnant doesn’t do justice. There’s something about the wild princess that gets to me

every damn time, and I’m not the only one left speechless in her wake. I hate that a sliver of jealousy

rushes through me at the gazes of some of the senior boys watching as she leaves. Not to mention her

tiny shorts barely cover anything.

I cast one look at Aleric, whose eyes meet mine. They’re burning gold and his heart is thundering. He

isn’t one who can take humiliation or failure. Being slapped in front of this many people won’t sit well

with him.

‘You told her.’ He snarls through the link.

‘I only told her to back off from me, that you two are welcome to do whatever the hell you want. I don’t

want anything to do with either of your games.’ I reply, dangerously calm, before turning and exiting the

hall.

‘Royce. Back off from her.’ He growls warningly.

I don’t bother replying as I head out of the food hall, not knowing what to make of it. A part of me just

doesn’t want any more part of it, but there is a part of me deep down that knows her, the part who had

begun falling for her without even seeing what she looked like… that part is a storm of destruction,

confusing me.

There’s a part of me that wants to just hand in my notice and drop this position so I can do whatever

the hell I want, and just be me without any responsibilities or expectations but I’m here to help her…

And above all, that’s what I need to do and what I should focus on.

Needing a breather, I head outside. The rumours and the buzz of what went down are rife in the air,

having travelled like wildfire through the walls of the school. With a new social media app that is run by

Leo Herrmann Rossi- LHR Enterprises, a move that had not gone down well with Dad. The social

platform is only compatible with the internet that he provides. With such technology news will travel

faster than ever.

Rumours of something going on between Skyla and Aleric had already begun making the rounds as

well. That isn’t going to look good…

Stepping out into the fresh air, I head down the side of the building and around the dorms. There are

five houses, and each pupil is assigned to one, although these are more vital for those who live in the

school as things such as field trips, passes, ranks and grades, all contribute to your house.

Growing up, I actually wanted to attend one of the four Academies, to get away from the rules and

expectations of the Arden hierarchy.

Leaning against the wall, I close my eyes to calm the turmoil in my head.

Breathe…

I slide to the ground; one leg raised, the other sprawled out ahead of me as and rest my head against

the brick wall behind me, staring up at the sky.

Life can be a bloody shitshow.

I’m there for a while, just about managing to calm the blizzard that had raged within my mind despite

trying to calm it, when I hear running and the sound of a pounding heart.

I can smell fear…

My eyes snap open as her scent hits me and I know instantly who it is before she even comes into

sight.

I’m surprised to see her, she’s partially shifted. I can see the white fur that has sprouted along her

arms, her claws are out, and her eyes are dazzling, a brilliant plum.

Just like that serpent-like thing that Aleric claimed to have seen. I wouldn’t have believed him until

Kataleya Rossi mentioned Apophis…

She’s struggling, as she impressively holds her human form despite the fur and the growth that has

become visible.

“Are you alright?” I ask, getting to my feet as she rushes past, not even noticing me.

She freezes, and her head snaps to mine. I frown slightly as I watch her. Do I step forward, or will that

only make her react negatively?

She lets out a low snarl, before I hear several more bones snap and reform, but where I’m expecting

her to double over and grow into a full wolf, she instead grows bigger and taller taking on a form that I

have never seen in person.

“Bloody Hell…” I murmur.

Our eyes meet for a second before I look her over.

She’s… she’s a…

Holy hell.

“You’re a Lycan. Fuck, you’re a Lycan.” I manage to murmur, unable to say anything else. She’s not just Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

a Lycan, but a damn beautiful one…

Her fur is pure white, a beautiful contrast to her plum eyes.

She turns and suddenly breaks into a run.

The first thing that hits me is that no one should see her. If Dad knew… I don’t even want to think about

it.

Fuck!

What should I do?

It’s obvious she didn’t want anyone to know either, or I’m sure she would have told me.

It all makes so much more sense now, but I can’t delve into that right now. Scanning the area, I break

into a run, speeding up as I follow her scent.

I can hear her pounding heart and although I don’t want to shift, she’s too fast…

I wish I could stay in human form, but there’s no way I’ll be able to catch her.

I’m doing this. Groaning in irritation, I quickly strip out of my jeans and top, shifting and grabbing them

in my mouth. I am not going to be around her naked.

I spot her as she disappears behind the side of the left wing. Speeding up, I catch her heading towards

the heavy forest behind the dorms. Ah, fuck not in the damn forest!

There’s a barrier surrounding the Academy premises, to keep students in and other things out. If she

hits that, I’m not sure what would happen.

She’s heading straight for it and I’m readying myself for her to smash into it, only for the entire thing to

blaze a deep green before she forces her way through. I frown, how is she able to do that….

Well, if she can, then so can I. Keeping my head down, my eyes blaze as I create a heavy fog to settle

in and run towards the barrier, fuelling all my power and determination into it.

I growl upon impact. For a second it feels like a thousand shards of cutting-edge electric like bolts have

slammed into me, and a numbness rushes through me. Then it’s gone, and I’m out in the dark forest.

Turning, I glance at the forcefield, feeling it hum and see the ripples surge through it. It’s powerful… I

feel weaker, tired as if I have run a thousand miles. I wonder if it will have slowed her down a little. I

turn and focus on finding the Lycan princess.

I sniff her out easily, and soon I catch up with her.

Dropping the clothes on the ground, I launch myself on her back, knowing that unless I have the

element of surprise, I’m not sure I’ll be able to pin her so easily. She lets out a ground-shaking growl as

I knock her to the ground.

She slashes into my left flank, and I growl lowly, trying to get her to calm down. If only I could converse

with her.

Come on Love, focus.

I lick her face, making her growl, but I don’t back down, nipping gently at her neck. She tenses as her

eyes meet mine and I realise what I just did.

At least it got her focus.

Fuck, I’m going to have to shift back… This is my chance to get through to her.

I shift back, my paws that were on her chest, now changing to hands, and I quickly remove them.

Regardless of if she’s in her Lycan form, this is not appropriate.

“Listen to me Sky, shift back… you’re in control, remember that. Take calming breaths.” I say quietly,

staring into her eyes.

I see them soften, her heart thumping loudly. Despite the wind in the trees or the faint sound of the lake

nearby, nothing is louder than the beating of our hearts, like a rhythm of drums.

‘Fuck.’ I hear her voice in my head.

So, like her father, she can link Alphas…

She begins shifting and I get off her, turning away and heading back to my clothes I had dropped a few

metres away. I pull on my pants, zipping them up before I turn back to her, keeping my head down as I

pick up my grey T-shirt.

“Here, put this on.” I say, tossing it at her without looking up, but I can still see her long sexy legs as

she catches my top.

She doesn’t respond, but she pulls it on, and I finally look up at her. She’s staring at me, her heart

thumping as she stands there wearing my shirt that barely covers her thighs.

“Why did you follow me?” She growls accusingly.

I cross my arms, not missing the way her eyes dip to my shirtless torso. “Because you seemed to be

dealing with a lot of emotions. I was simply making sure you were alright.”

She doesn’t respond, looking away as she crosses her arms. “I wanted to be alone.”

“Want to talk about it?” I ask. As I buckle my belt, I can feel her gaze burning into me.

“Thought you didn’t want anything to do with me?” She counters icily.

I frown slightly. “I’m still here to help you.” I reply.

“Your brother told me what happened.” She says coldly.

Sure, he did.

I turn and cock a brow. “Good to know.”

She clenches her jaw and opens her mouth to say something, but she shakes her head.

“It doesn’t matter… I realised something today… and I realised that what you said last night was right. I

do need to stop playing around.”

Our eyes meet, and a part of me feels relief. She’ll stay away from Aleric?

“Good.” She nods as she turns and stares through the trees, but she’s still conflicted. “Want to talk

about being an incredible Lycan?” I ask.

That gets a small smile from her. “Incredible? Is that the best you can come up with?”

“Well, I probably should be able to do better with the extensive vocabulary I’ve been instilled with, but

incredible is the first word that came to mind.”

Her heart skips a beat and her eyes flicker with an emotion I cannot decipher.

“There’s not much to say, I mean I’m just a Lycan with rage that I can barely control…” She mutters

dropping onto the floor near a tree, it takes every ounce of self-restraint not to let my gaze fall to her

sexy thighs and instead I take a seat against a tree just a metre away from her, so she’s to my right.

“Just a Lycan? Considering there are only two on this planet right now?” I ask, cocking a brow.

She looks over at me. “Being unique isn’t special. It’s a fucking curse.”

A curse…

“Yeah, I get how that feels.” I murmur, staring through the treetops.

She doesn’t respond, and I can feel her eyes on me. I glance over at her; her head is resting back

against the bark of the tree and I find myself looking into her gorgeous green eyes that are watching

me curiously.

“You do?” She asks.

“Yeah… Being an Arden comes with great expectations.”

“Oh yeah? Can you rival a Rossi?” She challenges, and I can’t help but smirk.

She really does pride herself on being a Rossi.

“Oh, I think I can.” I reply, allowing myself to be a tad cocky.

She grins and tilts her chin up.

“Impress me.” she replies with an air of power.

I wish I could, my lady…

Instead, I turn away and hold my hand out, ready to break the one rule that the Solaris bloodline must

never break… but I know her secret, and I’m alright with her knowing mine…

“First tell me, Princess, can you keep a secret?”

“Until the grave.” She replies softly.

Words that Lil Lucifer has spoken…

The air seems to thicken and for a moment, I’m lost in those eyes.

Would things have been different if she wasn’t a princess and I wasn’t an Arden?

Maybe…

I turn my attention back ahead, my eyes blaze blue, my aura surging, as I let ice spread from beneath

me…