The Alpha King's Contracted Luna (Ava and Grayson) novel Chapter 126

Chapter 126 

-Grayson’s POV- 

The buzzing of my phone finally broke through my concentration, dragging me away from the solitude I had been clinging to. My eyes flicked to the screen, Ava’s name glaring back at me let out a long sigh before turning off the screen without answering. 

Rickon, sitting across from me with his usual smirk plastered on his face, raised a brow. “Are you sure you don’t want to take it? I promise I won’t make smoochy noises.” 

I leveled a flat look at him, lacking the energy to muster a proper glare. “Do you ever stop?” 

Leaning back in his seat, he lifted his glass to his lips, shrugging casually. “Didn’t get a lot of attention growing up. So, Í figure I’ll keep doing everything I can to get it now,” he said, a faint smile touching his lips. For a moment, I thought that was the end of it, but then I caught the shadow in his eyes. “If you want to blame someone for how I act, blame my parents.” 

I stayed silent, caught off guard by the unexpected admission. Rickon, always quick with a sarcastic remark or a grin, had let something slip that felt… raw. It wasn’t what I expected, and for a moment, I didn’t know what to say. Somewhere in his flippant comment, I saw a reflection of my own damaged past, the ghosts of a childhood neither of us could escape. 

Before I could decide whether to say anything, my phone buzzed again, shattering the moment. I silenced it without looking at the screen. 

Rickon’s tone shifted slightly, a hint of seriousness creeping in. “Why aren’t you taking her call?” 

I didn’t answer immediately, leaning back in my seat and running a hand through my hair. Finally, I said, “For the same reason I told you not to mention this to Isabella. And I hope you didn’t.” 

His raised hand, the one not holding his glass, was a gesture of mock surrender. “I didn’t say a word. You know, I’m quite honored. Out of everyone you could’ve dragged on this little adventure, you chose me.” He grinned, the familiar teasing glint returning to his eyes. 

I shook my head, already regretting the decision. The moment I called him to join me on this trip to Italy, I knew I’d made a mistake. But I needed someone I could trust to accompany me to Ricardo’s pack. Whatever trouble they were stirring up needed to be curbed because I wasn’t in the mood to let things escalate into a full–blown war. Not when I already had too 

fires to put out. many 

It had been two days since Carter informed me about the situation, and I’d spent that time putting everything in place for my departure. I hadn’t told Ava about my plans, nor had I mentioned the curse. Things between us were good–no arguments, no tension–and I wanted to keep it that way. Bringing up issues I could handle myself would only complicate things. That’s why I left Liam in charge and called Rickon. 

The phone buzzed again, and I sighed heavily. 

Rickon smirked, clearly enjoying my frustration. “She’s not going to stop calling, you know. Why don’t you just answer it?” 

I glanced at the screen before switching off the phone entirely and tossing it onto the seat beside me. “I’ve already told her I’m at the office and might not be back tonight. I’ll come up with something else later.” 

“You do realize,” Rickon began, swirling the liquid in his glass, “that lying is a slippery slope, right? One lie turns into two, then three, and before you know it, you’ve dug a hole so deep, you can’t climb out of it.” 

I didn’t respond, instead closing my eyes and leaning back in my seat, trying to find a moment of peace. The silence stretched between us, but it didn’t last long. Rickon began breathing heavily, exaggerated and obnoxious. 

མ་ང་ང་ང་ང་ང་ད་ན་བ་ 

10:40 Sat, Jan 4 

Chapter 120 

I opened one eye, glaring at him. “Stop that.” 

“Stop what?” he asked innocently, his expression the picture of feigned ignorance. 

“You know exactly what,” I growled, shutting my eye again. 

He let out a long, dramatic sigh, and I could practically feel him grinning. “Fine, fine. But you can’t expect me to sit here quietly for a six–hour flight. I’m not exactly the ‘silent and brooding‘ type like you.” 

“And what exactly do you expect me to do about that?” I muttered, already dreading whatever suggestion was about to come out of his mouth, “Tell you a story.” 

I opened my eyes to glare at him again. “Don’t answer that.” 

His grin widened, and I could see he was enjoying every second of this. “Fine but you know, you’re really bad at this whole travel companion‘ thing. I’m trying to make the time pass, and you’re just sitting there, scowling at me. How about a game? Something simple.” 

“No.” 

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, the grin never leaving his face. “Come on, it’ll be fun. We could play ‘Would You Rather‘ or maybe-” 

“No.” 

“Twenty Questions?” 

“No.” 

Rickon let out another dramatic sigh, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms. “You’re no fun. You know that, right?” 

“I didn’t bring you here to have fun,” I said flatly, closing my eyes again. 

Silence fell again, but I knew it wouldn’t last. Rickon was like an overgrown pup–restless and incapable of sitting still for long. Sure enough, a moment later, he spoke again. 

“You know what I think?” 

“No, and I don’t care,” I said without opening my eyes. 

Ignoring me, he continued. “I think you’re not as bad as you make everyone think you are.” 

I cracked one eye open, giving him a look that was equal parts annoyance and disbelief. “Is that supposed to be a compliment?” 

He shrugged, the grin softening into something almost genuine. Just an observation. You put up this whole ‘cold and unapproachable‘ act, but I think deep down, you’re not half as bad as you want people to believe.”