King In The Making (Throne of Thorns #1)

Chapter 8 - I should've

Chapter 8

As soon as Thalia walked out of the room, Rafail shook his head and tried to regain his senses.

"Excuse me," He said before quickly going after her.

"Thalia," He called her but she kept running down the stairs, not turning her head back. Confused at what the matter was, Rafail hastened his pace to catch up with her.

"Slow down a second," He tried again but to no avail. Her hair was sashaying following the movement of her hips. Rafail couldn't help but admire her form even through his visible confusion.

"Thalia," He grabbed her forearm gently when he finally reached her as she stepped outside of the house. Thalia gasped, surprised at the contact.

"Is everything okay?" Rafail asked with worry as his eyes searched her face. He could feel her anger and irritation through their bond. Thalia kept her eyes down and removed her arm from Raf's grip. She started walking again, slower this time, allowing Raf to follow her easily.

Raf felt his wolf whimper. He was too stunned by her immediate change in behaviour. He followed her in silence for some seconds, trying to collect his thoughts.

"Thalia," He tried again as they neared another building but she didn't acknowledge him. "Stop for a second, please."

"You have to train," Thalia mumbled. She was trying her best to ignore him but his confusion was annoying her even more.

Rafail grabbed her hand again. His heart leaped on his chest when she looked at him with stormy green eyes. "Fuck the training," He frowned. "You're more important."

Thalia snorted. "That's funny," She said as she tried to wiggle out of his grip but Rafail didn't let go.

"What does that even mean?" Raf asked her with a bit of annoyance. Why wouldn't she talk to him? She smiled brightly at Roi but he only got the stinky eye. He felt the jealousy ripple through his chest and bit down on his jaw before saying something he would regret.

"Please, let's get to the training area first," Thalia's eyes begged him. He looked around and noticed some people had gathered around and were looking at them with curious eyes.

Sighing, he nodded at her but didn't let go of her arm. Thalia let out a shaky breath and continued walking. When they passed the training building, Raf looked at her with a raised brow.

"I prefer training in nature," She said nervously, unable to hold his gaze.

"Hmm," Rafail hummed in response. He could feel the sparkles running up his hand from where he was touching her skin and he swore he never wanted to let go of her. He followed Thalia through some rows of trees till they reached a clearing.

"This is where we train in the summer," Thalia told him in a low voice. The place was surrounded by tall, fir trees. They allowed just the right balance of shade and sun to have a comfortable training session. All around the clearing, different gym equipment was placed in groups according to which sets of exercises combined better with each other. In the middle, there was a well-kept, clean space where Raf assumed the wolves sparred.

"Nice place," Raf said after taking a quick look. "Now, can you tell me what's wrong?" He walked in front of his mate, waiting for her answer.

Thalia bit down on her bottom lip. "Can we not talk about this now? You need to train."

"Thalia," Rafail dragged out her name. "I've trained every day of my life, love. It can wait."

Thalia's heart skipped a beat at his choice of words. Love. Would he ever really mean that?