Chapter 3
Aria’s pov;
The morning I was dreading came far too soon. I hadn’t been able to sleep a wink, not with Kael Draven’s voice still lingering in my head and the emotions I felt when I had been with him kept rubbing on me.
Each time I closed my eyes, I was only reminded of his lingering touch; although fleeting, he had managed to leave a mark on the imprints of my soul.
And each time I managed to even sneak into a pending slumber, there was the soul-deep ache of what I now knew; He Was My Mate.
Every time this happened, I had to remind myself that I wasn’t supposed to feel anything. I was just the decoy of Celeste’s plan. A placeholder in a silk dress, painted in my twin sister’s image.
This was what I had been asked to do; I repeatedly told myself.
I couldn’t forget the look in his eyes as he stared at me the other night, like a part of him knew who I really was, like he knew the truth I was still struggling to believe.
To me, it hadn’t been just attraction. It was recognition. One that none of us had planned or expected to happen.
And yet, he’d said nothing. Not like the rumors painted him. Not like he’d acted in the past.
A thought crossed my mind, filling the missing puzzle. Maybe he was playing along.
Maybe he was waiting.