They Call Me Luna (Book 2 of They Call Me Series)

Chapter 16

After a while, I grunted and shifted from one side to the other, and Ethan opened his eyes and looked at me, raising an eyebrow in question while he studied me. I didn't say a word to him and slowly blinked, silently waiting for him to move away from me so that I could shift back into my human form.

Ethan bit back a small snort and rolled his eyes, and a small smile flickered on his lips when he realized what I wanted him to do. 'You know, you can talk to me like this, right?' he asked through our link before he moved away from me so that I could shift into my human form. 'I don't know why you silently told me to move away from you when you have a voice and can use it to talk to me.'

I bit back a small snort and rolled my eyes, biting back a small growl of annoyance. I shifted into my human form and sighed, moving a hand through my hair and across my face. "Don't worry about it, Ethan," I said coldly, pursing my lips in annoyance while I shook my head. "I just did it."

"I know," he said before he moved closer to me as soon as I was sitting on the ground, comfortable. He sighed and laid his head on my shoulder, and I laid my head on his while I closed my eyes, pressing my lips into a thin line and enjoying the peace and quiet.

After a while, Ethan shifted to get my attention and tapped my leg, and I opened my eyes and glanced at him from the corner of my eye, waiting for him to say something. "So, do you want me to start, or do you want to start going over what has happened and why you got so angry about Lorcian not answering your question when you wanted him to?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

I bit back a tired sigh and moved a hand through my hair and across my face, shaking my head. "Not really, no," I said and shook my head some more. "I do not want to talk about it." I folded my arms across my chest and scowled, pressing my lips into a thinner line. "I don't know why you want to talk to me about this or whatever you think we need to talk about because we don't need to talk about anything, Ethan."

Ethan let out an annoyed sigh and rolled his eyes, pursing his lips in annoyance. "Because I know that you need to talk to someone, or else you will do much more damage than this." He gestured around us, where a lot of trees were knocked over and dirt was piled around where there used to be grass.

I scoffed a laugh and rolled my eyes, scowling. I didn't say a word and closed my eyes, setting my jaw while I placed my head back on his shoulder, and he placed his hand on mine while he waited for me to say something because he knew I would.

I always did when it came to talking to him, Sam, or Anastasia about whatever it was that was going on through my mind...

Finally, I sighed and shook my head, breaking the silence that had fallen on us. "What is he hiding from me, Ethan?" I asked and rubbed my hands together. "Why did he get scared of me knowing something?"

Ethn shrugged and grimaced while he shifted on the ground, growing nervous, anxious even, about what I would do to him if he didn't answer my question. "Unfortunately, that is a him question," he said before he paused and licked his lips, hesitating ever so slightly. "I am not able to answer that question for you." He hesitated before he bowed, submitting, even though he didn't pull away from me. "I am sorry, Your Highness," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I hope you can forgive me."

I growled and narrowed my eyes at him when he called me by my actual title and not the one that we had used for years, or even by my first name. "Do not call me that, Ethan," I said and bared my teeth in warning while I pulled away from him so that I could look him in the eyes. "Why do you insist on calling me "Your Highness," when you know that you do not have to?"

Ethan bit back a small smile and tucked his head closer to his chest, and amusement flashed through his eyes while he stared at me. "It's because I know that you will not push me if I call you by your actual title and not your name or Commander, Jo." He paused and licked his lips, nervously, and his cheeks grew red while he bowed. "Well, I hope that is still the case," he said. "I know that was the case way back when, and I hope that it is still the case now."

I bit back a tired sigh and moved a hand through my hair and across my face before I rubbed the bridge of my nose and shook my head. "And unfortunately, that is still the case," I said before I cleared my throat while I shifted on the ground. "I will not push."

Ethan breathed a small sigh of relief and slowly nodded. His whole body became relaxed, and I could tell that he was happy that I wouldn't push him to tell me what my mate was hiding from me. He bowed his head and submitted. "I want to tell you, Jo. I hope that you know that, but this is something that your mate needs to do and tell you, and it can not come from me."

I pursed my lips in annoyance and folded my arms across my chest while I stared at him with a hard look on my face. "You know I hate that, right?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question, and he bit back a small laugh and nodded in confirmation.

"I do," Ethan confirmed and nodded, "and I told Lorcian that, but that doesn't stop the nervousness that he is feeling." He paused and shifted, trying but failing to get rid of the nervousness that he was feeling. "He doesn't know if you will like it or not, and he has basically convinced himself that you will hate it, which is why he doesn't want to show you."

I rubbed the bridge of my nose and bit back an annoyed growl. "Is that true?" I asked and lifted my head so that I could talk to Isen, earning a playful growl from Ethan, even though he didn't say a word. "Has Lorcian basically convinced himself that I will hate whatever it is he made or planned for me?"

Isen didn't respond or show himself, much to my annoyance. He stayed near but not near enough for me to be able to do anything to him, and I couldn't help but growl while I gritted my teeth together.

"Isen," I warned and bared my teeth in warning, and my eyes flashed to a different color. I growled and gritted my teeth tighter together while I narrowed my eyes further into slits. I turned to look in the direction I had a feeling he was in and stared at the spot hard, hoping that he would appear. "Would you answer my damn question and show yourself? I know that you are there. I will have Ans call you and tell you to appear whenever I call for you. I am sure that she can do something like that to you, even though I have no idea how that will happen."

Isen gasped in shock and appeared in front of us. He scowled and narrowed his eyes while he stared at me with a hard look on his face. "You wouldn't dare," he said and narrowed his eyes further into slits while his eyes flashed in warning, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes. "You wouldn't use her against me, Jo. You don't have it in you."

I raised an eyebrow in question and tucked my head closer to my chest, biting back a small smirk. I didn't say a word while I stared at him, slowly blinking with this look in my eyes that basically said, "are you sure?"

A look of hesitance and nervousness flashed through his eyes as if he realized what he had said was probably wrong. "Ummm... ya, I do not know why I said that. She would tell me to appear whenever you call for me..." He shifted on his feet and rubbed the back of his neck while he smiled and tucked his head closer to his chest. "But anyway, what is your question again? I forgot."

Oh, Goddess, give me strength...