The Alpha King's Reluctant Bride (Ava and Grayson) novel Chapter 83

Ava’s POV-

The scent of blood still clung to the air, sharp and metallic, even fier we’d left the scene. I tried to push it from my mind, but the image of the

Grayson hadn’t spoken a word during the drive back to the mansion. His grip on the steering wheel was so tight his knuckles were white, th Maybe because I wasn’t calun either.

What scared me wasn’t the threat scrawled in blood on the ground, though it certainly didn’t help. It was the way a part of me wondered if th

I didn’t know. I couldn’t know.

Grayson didn’t speak as we entered the mansion, the cold quiet of the halls swallowing us both whole. He didn’t glance my way; he just stor I couldn’t just sit there, not knowing what was going on inside his head, so I quickly changed into something comfortable and took a long, ho to ease the tightness in my chest, but it was something. When I climbed into bed, the weight of the night was too heavy to ignore I tossed ar Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore. I slipped out of bed and made my way down the hallway, my feet silent on the plush, carpet as I appro And there he was, standing right in front of me, hand raised as he’d been about to knock.

He froze, his eyes flickering with hesitation, and for a moment, I wasn’t sure what either of us was doing. He dropped his hand and gave m “Hi,” I said softly, my voice quiet, almost cautious.

Without waiting for a reply, I stepped aside, silently asking him to conte in. He didn’t

say anything, but after a long moment, he passed me, walking into the room without

looking back. I closed the door behind us and watched him as he glanced around, his posture

stiff and deliberate. It wasn’t like him to act this way, like the space was too small for both of us, like it was a battlefield we were both walking

I didn’t know how to fix this, how to break the tension between us. But I knew I had to try.

“You know,” I said, trying to make my voice light, “I never got the chance to thank you for the built-

in closet. It’s… perfect. It’s every girl’s dream, really. Everything fits just the way I wanted.”

He didn’t respond immediately, and I could feel the silence dragging on. I tried again, this time adding a teasing tone. “How did you know my

He didn’t look

at me, his jaw tightening slightly, but the hint of something flickered in his eyes. A smirk, maybe, or something close to it.

“I know people.” he muttered, his voice low,

I raised an eyebrow. “Is that all! No secret fashion expertise or some connection to the clothing gods?”

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slight smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, but he didn’t answer, and that left the awkward silence between us hanging in the air like smo

I wanted to say more, but I could feel the walls he’d built up around himself again, Grayson was a master at this- shutting down, retreating into himself when things got too close, too uncomfortable.

“Er…” I shifted on my feet, glancing around the room as if I could somehow find a way to dissolve the tension. “Do you want to sit down? Yo

He didn’t move immediately, and for a moment, I thought he might

just refuse. But then, slowly, he lowered himself onto the edge of the bed, his movements slow and deliberate. I followed, sitting beside him.

“Okay,” I said breaking it. “Let’s play a game.”

Grayson shot me a skeptical look. “A game?”

“Yeah.” I said, forcing a grin. “It’s a simple one: It’ll help us get to know each other a little better. It’s just surface stuff, don’t worry. I saw it on a tv show and it was fun. You don’t have to think too hard about it.”

He raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying into the idea. But I pressed on. “Here’s how it works. I’ll say two things— like ‘pencil’ or ‘pen-

and you just have to choose one. No thinking. Just whatever comes to mind first. Simple, right?”

Grayson stared at me for a moment, clearly hesitant. He wasn’t the type to engage in anything that seemed… trivial. But after a beat, he no

“Fine,” he said, though there was a guarded edge to his tone.

“Great!” I clapped my hands together. “Okay, first question: Black or white!”

“Black” Grayson answered immediately, no hesitation.

I couldn’t help but smile. “Okay, that’s easy. Next: Coffee or tea?

“Coffee.”

“Interesting,” I said, leaning against the dresser. “Are you one of those people who can’t function without it?”

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