Chapter 72: Technically, My Day
"What are you doing here, Elias Hale?"
Lynsandra pulled herself upright, watching him withdraw his hand. Elias pointed to the corner of his mouth, but she remained unmoved.
Fluttering her lashes lazily, she said, "I don’t drool."
"You think?"
"Never."
"Heh. I thought you’d fall for it." He shrugged. "Sucks."
She leaned back with a huff and glanced toward the window. A part of her felt amused — she had almost forgotten the last time she’d taken a nap. A peaceful one at that. Strange, since napping hadn’t been her plan. If anything, it had only been an excuse to leave Julian.
"What did you do to him?" she asked. "To Gary. As far as I’m concerned, he should be here."
Elias leaned an arm against the table while she stared out the window for no particular reason.
"I didn’t do anything to him, for your information. I came here and saw you alone. So, I thought of writing something on your face."
"Sad — I got distracted." He cupped his cheek with the tip of his finger, reaching toward the side of his eye. "Sleep some more. I promise I’ll draw a masterpiece on your cheek."
"You haven’t answered my question," she pointed out, ignoring everything else he had said. "Where is my date?"
"He left," he replied lazily, resting his head on the table. "And before you accuse me of anything, I didn’t need to do a thing for him to run away. All I had to do was stand here. He quietly slipped off, telling me he’d finish his book in his room."
The corner of his mouth lifted into a sly smirk. "So no rules were broken. Your date ditched you. And honestly? I don’t blame him. You were on a date and dared to take a nap? Hah. What a horrible girl."
She deadpanned, clearly unimpressed. Lynsandra crossed her arms over her chest.
"He wouldn’t have left if you hadn’t stood so close to him," she argued coldly.
"Is standing near someone a sin now?"
At that, she simply looked away and pretended he wasn’t there. Although she’d had a good sleep, she couldn’t deny she’d briefly dreamed. Or rather, she’d dreamed of a birthday she would never forget.
"You keep going on dates with everyone," his voice echoed after a moment of silence. "I wonder when it’ll be my turn."
"You took Gary’s spot, consider it our date," she muttered, stretching her neck with her eyes closed. "Elias Hale, what are you truly up to?"
"To make you look at me."
Her brows twitched as she slowly opened her eyes, staring at him in mild surprise.
"Now you’re looking," he smirked, folding his arms over the table and resting his chin on them. Even like that, he kept his eyes fixed on her. "But if you’re asking what I’m trying to do here, isn’t that obvious?"
"No. It’s not obvious," she replied coldly. "I’m not as bright as you are."
"Heh," he chuckled. "Hey, Lynsandra. I’ve been thinking..."
"You shouldn’t be doing that."
"Huh?"
"Thinking," she stressed, shaking her head. "Don’t."
"I’m brilliant, for your information," he laughed, lazily stretching his arms over the table before straightening in his seat. "After careful consideration and several arguments with Draven... I realized something."
"Draven?"
His smirk widened. "My wolf."
So that’s his wolf’s name, huh? she thought, mentally nodding.
"As I was saying," he continued, "you could actually choose someone in this harem and abolish this whole arrangement." He raised a hand as if presenting something profound. "What I’m saying is, if you’re feeling lazy, you already have plenty of reasons to choose anyone here."
That caught her attention.
"Oh?" she hummed. "Do enlighten me."
"For starters, I’d make an excellent husband," he declared. "The North and the Royal Pack go way back. Even though we bow to the Alpha King, we aren’t under the Royal Pack’s jurisdiction. With our union, the alliance would be secured."
"This is what you’ve been thinking?" she asked flatly. "Something everyone already knows?"
He nodded. "It’s the same with August. As for Gary... I’m not sure what benefit he offers. Well, if you want a wimp for a husband, be my guest."
"Cassian marrying you would spark something major," he continued, wagging a finger. "I doubt it’d be easy for either of you if a half-breed were declared Alpha King. No offense to half-breeds, but the throne isn’t just any seat. I doubt these so-called nobles, including my brother, would sit still if he were to bow to a half-breed."
Lynsandra arched a brow, unsurprised. These were things she already knew. If Elias had only just realized them, he was more oblivious than she’d thought.
"Even Evander has his own advantage," he clicked his tongue. "But imagine the Royal Pack getting indoctrinated and baptized. That would be... interesting."
"The Church’s support and influence are massive," she leaned back, crossing one leg over the other. "Baptism is a minor issue. But I can’t let them gain control of the Royal Pack’s power."
He nodded. "That’d be troublesome."
"If I may ask, where exactly are we going with this?" she inquired. "Everything you’ve said is common knowledge. Even children understand this."
He chuckled. "What I’m saying is, you have reasons to marry everyone here. So instead of telling you why you should choose me, I’ll show you why you shouldn’t choose them."
"Huh," she scoffed lightly. "That’s... interesting."
"Interesting, right?" he laughed. "So today, I showed you why it shouldn’t be Gary Stone."
"Because he gave up his seat?"
"Exactly."
"As you said, I’m a horrible girl for napping on our date."
He smirked. "It was just a seat across from you, and he couldn’t even protect it. Or worse — he didn’t try. If he can’t guard that seat, how would he protect the throne? That’s problematic."
Lynsandra narrowed her eyes. She had always believed Elias shouldn’t overuse his brain. Now he was starting to make sense. It wasn’t that the thought hadn’t crossed her mind. She just hadn’t expected him to analyze it that far.
"Impressive," she admitted calmly, choosing not to argue further. She knew continuing would only lead to a debate she’d rather not entertain. She wasn’t about to defend Gareth when she knew it wasn’t worth it.
Deep down, however, she felt a twinge of disappointment. She would have preferred waking up alone or perhaps with Gareth still there. Though if she had to choose, she leaned toward the former.
Elias knocked on the table and rose, extending his hand toward her.
"What now?" she asked, glancing at his palm before looking up at him. "Why is your hand extended?"
"A date," he declared. "You said since I took Gary’s spot, so technically, it’s my day."
