Chapter 155

DAMON

“Don’t be mad at me,” she murmured, staring up at me with puppy-dog eyes. As much as that usually affected me, I couldn’t let it work this time.

“Why are you so hell-bent on getting yourself into trouble? What is your problem, Clara? Can’t you see that I’m trying to protect you?” I said harshly, gritting my teeth to control my anger.

“Don’t be mad at me, please. I’m just trying to help you…”

“Help me by putting yourself in trouble?! How exactly does that help me, Clara?!” I yelled, clenching my fist. She said nothing.

“Answer me!” I yelled. She immediately began to cry.

“How can I speak when you’re yelling at me?” she wailed. My eyes widened.

“Okay, I’m sorry. Shh, that’s enough. I’m sorry,” I said hurriedly. I knelt in front of her and kissed her tears away.

“I don’t want you to be mad at me, Damon,” she murmured, and I sighed.

“I’m not mad…”

“You are; you just yelled at me,” she pointed out, and I sighed again.

“Shouldn’t I be mad? You’re so hell-bent on putting yourself in trouble despite how many times I’ve warned you. I’ll take care of everything; you don’t have to involve yourself. Why won’t you listen to me?” I asked. She pouted.

“Because I know if worse came to worse, you’d risk your life to save me and our unborn children, and that’s the last thing I want, Damon. I cannot live without you, and I don’t want to,” she murmured, and my heart softened.

“My love,” I whispered before kissing her. I couldn’t reassure her completely because I was, in fact, ready to sacrifice myself to save her. She couldn’t fathom how much I was willing to lose for her happiness and well-being.

“I already told you I’m not leaving you, didn’t I?” I asked softly, pulling away from the kiss. I cupped her face and wiped away her tears with my thumbs.

“I don’t believe you. You’ve started keeping things from me ever since this all started. I just want to help; I just want to share your burden,” she explained, and I nodded.

“I understand, but the one thing you can do to help me is keep yourself safe. As long as you’re safe, I’ll be invincible. Please don’t try to contact your uncle again; just trust me. Can you do that?” I asked. She pouted before nodding.

“I guess I can, but you have to include me in everything. I have to be sure you’re not putting yourself in danger,” she said, and I chuckled.

“I promise. And if you still contact your uncle, I’m going to tie you up until our children are born. If you don’t believe me, you’re free to test it,” I warned, and she pouted.

“So, not only are you yelling at me now but also threatening me?” she asked, and I chuckled.

“Anything to keep you safe,” I replied, kissing her forehead before carrying her in my arms.

“Let’s head back to bed. No more sneaking around, okay?” I asked. She nodded, resting her head on my chest.

Later that day

“Okay.” The minute we got cuddled up in bed, I fell asleep. When I woke up, Clara was already awake.

“You’re awake,” she pointed out, smiling down at me. I smiled back, checked the time, and groaned.

“Baby, it’s already late. Why didn’t you wake me up?” I asked, sitting up slowly.

“Because I want you to spend the whole day with me. Come on, just take a day off, please?” She pouted, giving me those puppy-dog eyes.

“Weren’t you the one who said I needed to give you space the other day?” I teased. She huffed.

“Well, you’ve given me enough space, and I miss you. Just spend the day with me,” she said, and I sighed.

“I can’t afford to slack off, Clara. Not now. I have to train with the others; they’re not where they need to be yet,” I explained. She nodded.

“For today, Luca can handle the training, can’t he? It’s just for today, please, Damon,” she pleaded, and I sighed.

“You know it’s very hard to say no to quality time with you. Come here,” I murmured. A bright smile broke out on her face as she crawled to me and settled in my arms.

“The baby has been kicking a lot lately,” she said suddenly, and my eyes widened.

“Really?” I asked softly. She nodded, took my hand, and placed it on her stomach.

“Can you feel it?” she asked. My eyes widened when I felt the little kicks, almost as if they were responding to my touch.

“That’s beautiful. My babies,” I murmured, kissing her stomach and then her lips.

“Do you really think you can win against the Lycan King now that he’s immortal?” she asked. I sighed, seeing the worry lines on her forehead. I smoothed them out with my thumb before looking into her eyes.

“I’ve seen the consequences of defying Mother Nature and the Moon Goddess. We weren’t meant to be immortal, and those who achieve it through wrong means usually get punished. I know Sebastian has a weakness; I just need to find it,” I said. She frowned.

“You’re not going to his territory,” she stated, and I chuckled.

“I will never defy you, my Queen. There are other ways to obtain that information. You just need to trust me,” I told her, and she smiled.

“I do trust you, but what if you don’t find a weakness? What if he is truly immortal? Do you still think you can win?” she asked. I considered her question.

“As long as you’re not threatened, not used as bait, I will win. Immortality won’t save him when I finally unleash the death viper…”

The passage is significantly improved with consistent grammar, punctuation, and paragraph breaks. The dialogue is clearer and more natural. The use of em dashes is reduced for better flow. Sentence structure is streamlined.