Chosen By The Cursed Alpha King (Emilia) novel Chapter 42

The walk to my chambers felt longer than usual. My body still ached from the storm inside me, though I masked it as best I could. No one could see weakness-least of all her. Yet when I pushed the heavy doors open, there she was.

Emilia stood by the window, framed in the pale light of afternoon, her figure silhouetted against the glass. The wind tugged strands of her hair loose. She turned at the sound of the door, her brows furrowing the moment her eyes met mine.

“You look pale,” she said softly.

For a second, the beast inside me stirred again—not the violent one, but something else. Something that tightened my chest at the fact that she noticed, that she cared. I straightened, letting my mask slide firmly back into place.

“It’s nothing,” I said curtly, my voice flat. The kind of answer meant to cut off further questions.

Her gaze lingered, sharp and searching, as if she wanted to push. For a moment I thought she might. But then she only sighed, her lips pressing together as though she’d decided not to challenge me.

I stepped further into the room, my boots heavy on the polished floor. “I have a surprise for you.”Suspicion flickered across her face instantly. Her arms crossed, her head tilting slightly. “A surprise?”

“Yes,” I answered, too clipped, too blunt.

She arched a brow. “You don’t look like the type of man who does surprises.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“And what type of man do Hook like, then?”

Her answer was immediate, cutting but not cruel. Honest.” Cold. Ruthless. I’ve never seen you smile. Your face is always unreadable. So you saying you have a surprise for me?” She shook her head. “Quite questionable.”

A muscle ticked in my jaw. Cold. Ruthless. Unreadable.

She said it without malice, but the words still struck. Still, I let none of that show. I only shook my head once, sharply.

“See?” she said, almost triumphant. “Nobody ever knows what you’re thinking.”

I turned toward the door, unwilling to be dissected under her steady gaze. My voice was low but firm, carrying the weight of command. “That’s why I’m the king, Emilia. Now come with me.”

I felt her glare burn into my back, sharp as a blade. But after a pause, I heard her soft steps as she followed.

Obedient, yet defiant all the same.

We walked through the corridors in silence, her presence trailing close behind. Outside, the sun was bright, the airheavy with the scent of pine and distant rain.

She asked nothing as I led her down the forest path, though could sense her curiosity. I had half a mind to turn back. This wasn’t my idea-Lucien had suggested it.

Said the lake might calm me, might distract my beast. I’d scoffed at first. But now, as the trees thinned and the shimmer of water appeared ahead, I began to wonder if he’d been right.

We stepped into the clearing, and the lake stretched before us, smooth as glass. The sunlight danced across its surface, the trees mirrored perfectly in the still water.

Emilia gasped, her hands rising slightly as though to catch the sight in her palms.

“This is… beautiful,” she whispered, more to herself than to me.

She stepped forward quickly, her shoes crunching against the grass, and then-without hesitation-she slipped them off and dipped her bare feet into the water. Her shoulders relaxed instantly, her entire body seeming lighter as the ripples spread around her ankles. She turned, smiling, her eyes alight.

“Come,” she called.

I stood rigid, my arms crossed. “No.”

Haughed.

The sound ripped out of me, foreign and strange, from deep in my chest. For a heartbeat I didn’t even recognize it. It felt… wrong. No-different. Too light, too alive. The world tilted on its axis, because I could not remember the last time such a sound had left me.

Emilia froze mid-splash, her eyes locked on me. Her lips parted slightly, as though she couldn’t believe it. And then, slowly, she lowered her arms, the water rippling around her.

Her gaze softened, deepened, as if she was seeing something no one else ever had. She stepped closer, the water swirling gently around her legs, and before I could retreat, her arms slid around my neck.

Her smile was tender, radiant.

. “You have a beautiful

smile,” she whispered. “You should smile often.”

The words struck harder than any blade. My chesttightened, my pulse a roar in my ears. And before I could stop myself, my lips were on hers.

This kiss was not the beast’s. Not wild hunger or brutal need. This was something else-something soft, something possessive. Something terrifyingly fragile.

Her moan vibrated against my mouth, and my groan answered, deep and raw. The world fell away —the lake, the trees, the kingdom itself. There was only her, pressed against me, her warmth, her breath, her heartbeat tangling with mine.

For the first time in my life, my heart thundered uncontrollably-and it wasn’t anger. It wasn’t lust. It wasn’t pain.

It was something I couldn’t name.

And it consumed me.