The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 166

-Ava POV

a

“And what you said afterward. That you loved me.”

The words lingered on the tip of my tongue, but as soon as | said the word sex, | saw the subtle shift in Grayson’s

expression. His entire demeanor seemed to sharpen, his hackles rising ever so slightly. It wasn't that he was

angry-just alert, his focus zeroing in onwith an intensity that made my throat dry up. | stopped there.

| wasn’t even sure he realized he'd said those words during one of our more... passionate moments. And even if

he had, | didn’t know if it was something he meant or just something that slipped out in the heat of mind-

blowing sex. But for me, it wasn’t something I could just brush aside. I'd clung to it, turning the words over in my

head more times than | cared to admit.

still, this didn’t feel like the right tto bring it up. Not yet.

| realized he was staring at me, his piercing eyes making it impossible forto think straight. My entire body

heated up under his gaze, and | didn’t need a mirror to know my face had turned completely red. | suddenly

regretted bringing up this entire conversation, silently cursing Isabella for planting the idea in my head in the

first place.

“What about it?” he asked, breaking the silence. His voice was calm, yet curious.

| bit my lip, searching for words, and the corner of his mouth twitched in a way that made it clear he was holding

back a smirk. That simple expression was enough to makeblurt out a rushed explanation.

“It's not anything bad. Actually, it’s great-like, thinking-about-it-all-the-tgreat. | was just talking to Bels, and

she had this stupid idea, and now that I've brought it up, | don’t even know why I did. Just forget about it.”

Grayson arched a brow, his lips tugging upward just slightly. “You wantto just forget about it? You said it's

about sex and now you're tellingto forget about it? Would you?”

| groaned inwardly and looked down at the napkin in front of me, fiddling with the edge. “Well... no.”

His voice softened, coaxing. “What was the idea?”

It

gaze. neck as | avoided his way down my If | was red before, | was sure | resembled a tomato now. The heat

spread all the didn’t matter how far we'd cas a couple-sometimes, Grayson still had the ability to

completely unnervewith just a look.

“She said | should... make a list. You know, of things | wanted to do. During... sex.” My voice faltered as |

stumbled over the last word, shifting uneasily in my chair. “This was a bad tto bring it up.”

Grayson didn’t say anything for a moment. Then his voice broke the silence, amused and low, “Did you make the

list?”

My gaze snapped up to meet his, and | glared at him. “It’s not funny.”

That seemed to break the dam, and the smirk he'd been suppressing spread into a full, amused smile. “Of

course, it’s not funny,” he said, his tone laced with humor that he didn’t bother hiding anymore. “And I'm not

laughing at you. | just... wasn’t expecting this.”

Then his expression shifted, his eyes softening as he leaned slightly closer. “You can talk toabout anything,

Ava. You know that, right? Especially about this.”

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Chapter 166

“It's not that | don’t like what we're already doing,” | blurted out, the words rushing together in my nervousness.

“I mean, | like everything you do. It’s really, really great. Like, forget-my own nkind of great.”

| clamped my mouth shut, horrified at how much I'd just admitted. | looked away, staring down at the table,

wishing | could disappear.

Grayson'’s lips twitched again, but this time, he didn’t laugh. Instead, he stayed quiet, lettinggather my

thoughts.

“It’s just...” | sighed, finally finding the courage to speak again. “Its stuff | think I'd like to try. You know, to see if

I'd actually like it.”

| felt like | was digging my own grave with every word. | wanted the ground to open up and swallowwhole.

Just as | was about to bury my face in my hands, salvation arrived in the form of a waiter.

The man approached our table, his gaze locked on Grayson as he asked, “What can | get for you, sir?”

Not once did he glance in my direction, and | wanted to burst out laughing. Grayson ordered without even

glancing at the menu, his tone polite but firm. The waiter nodded, still avoiding eye contact with me, and said,

“Your orders will be out in ten minutes.”

All amusement died down at that. Ten minutes. Ten whole minutes before

| could use food as a buffer. | groaned inwardly.

As soon as the waiter disappeared, Grayson’s eyes were back on me. “Did you make the list?” he asked, his tone

casual, as if we were discussing grocery shopping.

Looked at him, praying he would let it go, but his expression toldotherwise. He wasn’t going to drop it.

Sighing in defeat, | reached into my bag, fumbling through its contents until my fingers brushed against the

folded piece of paper. Pulling it out, I handed it to him with reluctance, my eyes fixed on the table.

Grayson took the paper, his brows raising slightly as he unfolded it. | caught the briefest flicker of surprise in his

expression before he masked it.

His eyes scanned the page, moving slowly as he took in every word. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat

louder than the last.

The list wasn’t just a few bullet points. It was a comprehensive inventory of every dark fantasy, every curiosity

that had ever crossed my mind. It wasn’t just one page-it was two. Back to front.

| was going to kill Isabella. And then, once | was done with her, | was going to kill myself for listening to her.

Grayson didn’t say anything as he finished the first page and flipped it over to the next. His expression didn’t

change-not a smirk, not a frown, not even a raised brow. That made it worse. | couldn’t tell what he was

thinking, and the suspense was unbearable.

Finally, he looked up at me, and for a moment, | couldn't read the look in his eyes. Then, slowly, a smile tugged

at his lips- not mocking or judgmental, but something softer. Intrigued.

“This is... thorough,” he said, his tone laced with amusement.

| buried my face in my hands, groaning. “I knew this was a bad idea.”

“No,” he said quickly, his voice firm. “It's not a bad idea. Not at all

Peeking through my fingers, | saw his expression had softened even more. There was no trace of judgment in his

eyes. If

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Chapter 166

anything, he looked impressed.

“You know,” he said, setting the paper down on the table, “this tellsa lot about you.”

| groaned again. “Like what?”

“That you trustenough to share this with me.”

| lowered my hands, blinking at him. That wasn’t the reaction | had expected.

“And,” he added, a glint of mischief in his eyes, “that you've got a pretty adventurous side.”

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| wanted to sink under the table and disappear, but instead, | managed to mutter, “I was just curious about some

things. That's all.”

He picked up the list again, his gaze flicking back to the items. “Well, curiosity is a good thing.”

“Stop looking at it,” | said, my voice rising slightly in panic.

Ignoring me, he continued reading, his expression thoughtful. Then, after what felt like an eternity, he set the list

down and tapped a finger on the paper.

“Number eighteen,” he said, his voice calm but laced with something I couldn't quite place.

My stomach dropped. “What's number eighteen?”

He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he leaned back in his chair, a slow, almost wicked smile spreading across

his face.

And in that moment, | instantly regretted ever giving him the list.

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