Dear Immortal Tyrant

When Kaden pulled back to admire the bright pink mark, he was met with her flushed face. She touched the spot, curiosity on her face.

"Did it leave a mark?" Lina asked, pulling up her shirt in hopes it'd hide something. Though, she was certain nothing she'd do could help.

A sliver of her stomach was revealed and Kaden's attention flew towards it. His groin tightened. He needed to get laid—soon. Just a glimpse of her stomach and he was turned on. What was he? Some teenage boy?

"See for yourself," Kaden responded, tugging her shirt down just to riddle her up more. The corner of his mouth twitched when she glared at him, like a provoked little cat.

Instantly, Lina's hand flew to her stomach, her eyes growing wide. She had faint stretch marks. He didn't see it, did he? It was one of her biggest insecurities.

Kaden narrowed his eyes, grabbing her hands. What was there to hide? She flinched when he tried to pull her fingers away.

"Did someone hurt you?" Kaden demanded, cornering her against the tree. His heart burned with the thought, his hands twitching by instinct.

"No." Lina shook her head.

Lina pried her shirt down more. In the process, revealed a bit of her bra. She thought he'd look. He didn't. At least he had some decency.

"Dove," Kaden growled. "Did someone hurt you?"

"Eden," Lina deadpanned. "No."

Kaden narrowed his eyes. He slammed a hand near her head, causing the tree to shudder and shake. But she didn't. She met his furious stare, her face filled with understanding.

"Don't make me repeat myself, Lina," Kaden grunted.

Lina tilted her head, surprised he'd care for that her much. She noticed he had dropped the nickname. The topic had infuriated him to that extent? She wondered No nickname this time… Was he truly that mad?

Lina frowned. "What happened to our marriage contract where we wouldn't meddle in each other's affairs?"

Kaden pulled away from her shirt. His fingers tightened into a fist. His fingernails dug into his palm, until it broke the skin and blood threatened to drip.

"How are we going to be husband and wife if we can't even communicate?" Kaden snapped, his voice rising.

Lina flinched like she had been slapped. Communication… She wished she could tell him everything on her mind, but it was the darkest place. If he found out what she thought, he'd hate her. Despise her even.

"Are we going to have a wedding reception?" Lina asked.

Kaden was momentarily distracted. He had never seen her in a wedding gown before, not even the red ones from their first life. He had never seen his ring on her finger, branding her as his, and his as hers. Now, he imagined her in a white dress that'd made her look like the Princess she truly was.

"We will," Kaden said, matter-of-fact.

Kaden was going to throw her the largest wedding of the century. No celebrity or royal family could ever match the grandness of things, not even the wealthy King and Queen of Wraith, a foreign country across the seas.

"O-oh." Lina's mind went blank.

One thing kept on repeating in her head. The flashes of his future. She was terrified. Was he going to leave her at the altar? Why was she crying in that vision? Why was she on her knees screaming? There had been fire and smoke.

"I-I don't—" Lina's voice died in her throat.

Kaden's glare silenced her. If she kept on talking, it looked like he was going to set the world on fire. The air around them became cold. He hadn't said anything, but she was already worried.

"Finish that sentence," Kaden warned her. "Go ahead."

"I'm just worried about the wedding reception," Lina mumbled. "Something unfortunate might happen."

Kaden narrowed his eyes. She was so reluctant to marry Everett, but had so many demands. Truly, she had been spoiled. He could give her everything in the world and she'd reject it.

"Like?" Kaden demanded.

Lina kept her mouth shut. Would he believe her if she told him she was a clairvoyant? He was an Immortal who lived a millennium. He'd believe her, right?

Infuriated by her behavior today, Kaden turned to leave. He should've let that rejection stand.

Kaden shouldn't have ordered Anakin to come yesterday. Maybe then, he would've had a reason to stay away from her—she belonged to another man. But the very thought of that made him want to shoot a bullet through Everett's skull.

"I'm sorry," Lina said, grabbing onto his belt hoop with a single finger.

If he wanted to leave, he could. She hesitatingly reached for his hip, an itch to hug him from behind. Then, her fingers curled shut and she decided not to. He'd push her away.

Lina heard Kaden breathe through his nose. She imagined him squeezing his eyes shut, to clear his head. Then, he turned around and intensely regarded her. She tightened her grip on his pants, this time, walking closer to him.

"I have something to tell you," Lina confessed, frightened that she was behaving too horribly today.

Lina was just in a bad mood, after waking up to her Uncle's harsh lecture and having her entire life threatened. That, and she was turning angry by the second due to hunger.

"I'm listening," Kaden said, his voice lowering dangerously.

"I-I—" Lina struggled to say it.

Lina had never told anyone about this ability. She was terrified of what they'd say. People might not believe her and call her crazy. Even worse, she could be thrown into a psychiatric ward.

Suddenly, her head began to hurt. The thought of a psychiatric ward sent her ears ringing. Her eyes blurred and she suddenly felt dizzy.

Lina staggered, tripping over her own two feet. It hurts. Everything hurts. It felt like a horse was violently stomping on her forehead.

In the distance, she heard shouting. Her eyes rolled back, and her legs gave out.

"...Dove."

"...Lina!"

Lina couldn't concentrate. She was beginning to see black dots. The last thing she felt was a strong pair of arms caught her. Then, everything went black.