THE LOVE OF A LYCAN

434 TEN YEARS OLD

Hope was dabbing a pink color of lipstick on her lips and tried to curl her long straight black hair. Kace was sure that the 'tools' that she used was coming from Serefina's bedroom, because there was no way she would get it by her own.

Hope was startled as she whipped her head toward the door and stared at Kace wide- eyes. She jumped from her seat and rushed toward him.

"You have to knock before you enter my room." Hope pushed Kace and closed the door. Afterward, there was a soft 'click' sound that indicating she just locked her door.

Kace was standing right outside the locked door with blank expression, for a minute he just couldn't wrap it in his head.

What the hell happened to his baby girl!?

It was almost a year since the last time Kace met Hope, because he was busy cashing after Gluttony and avoiding Jedrek's people, for the later he wondered why his brother didn't just let him alone?! It had been decades! What else did he want from him?!

Yet, Kace knew what exactly Jedrek wanted was; Serefina. The witch.

Why Jedrek had not yet found his mate? So, he could stop his infatuation toward that quirky witch. But, then Kace was afraid that he had managed to kill his mate.

Whatever it was, Kace didn't mind, as long as he didn't touch his mate. But, for Jedrek that wouldn't be the case… he had issued an order to kill his mate after all.

However, what the hell happened to his baby girl!?

When she started to use those make up and tried to make herself pretty? No. She was already pretty! But, why she did that?

Hope had never closed the door right before Kace's face like this before. Usually, she would jump to him and demanded to see his wolf cutely.

So, what is it now? What happened during this year?

Kace was dumfounded for another minutes until the door was opened and produced Hope from behind it.

Fortunately, she had wiped away her pink lipstick, but the curls were still there. Kace found himself lost for words.

"What is it little one?" Kace asked softly. He could tell that his mate was starting to regret her action earlier.

Hope fluttered her lashes and looked at Kace with pout tugged on her lips. "I am not little anymore…" she said timidly, barely a whisper, yet Kace could hear it clearly nonetheless.

Kace's eyebrows rose questioningly. Despite there were no words that came from his lips, he stared a hole on her head.

"Is that Serefina's?" Kace asked after he watched how his little mate started to feel uncomfortable with the silence that stretched between them.

Hope nodded timidly.

"Did Serefina know that?" Kace tousled her hair like he always did and he could feel Hope became relax. She was afraid that Kace would get angry at her.

Hope shook her head. "She will get mad if she knows you touched her things." Kace knew that witch well, she would get fussy over Hope was touching her things and coming into her room.

It was a good thing that Serefina was away while Lana, after she opened the door for Kace, she disappeared again, like usual.

"I know." Hope answered timidly. She bit her lips nervously.

"So? Why did you take that from her?" Kace grabbed her hand and led her to the kitchen where he made a glass of warm chocolate.

"Because my friends use that too…" Hope was sitting on the barstool, playing with her curls.

Kace had to admit that she looked so cute with that hair style, yet in his eyes she looked very cute whatever she did, thus that judgment couldn't be justified.

"They used that inside of school?" Kace raised his eyebrows. Was that allowed?

"No." Hope lifted her head and looked at Kace. "They tried to wear their mother's make up in their house and took pictures of it. They tried to dress up like their mother."

"And they showed it those pictures to you?" Kace guessed it right when he saw his little girl nodded. "And then you want to try it too?"

"Yes." Hope admitted, but then her expression turned sad. "But, I don't have mother, so I think Serefina is the closest one to it, that's why I…" Hope stopped, but Kace knew what she wanted to say.

"Drink this." Kace pushed the glass of warm chocolate toward her and sat across from Hope as he took a sip from his own glass.

As children reached the age of ten, many would start to think of themselves as being almost teenagers, while some would start looking and acting more mature, others would remain more child- like, both physically and emotionally.

Kace though, the former reason was what happened to Hope. She started to imitate and admire someone older than her.

The problem was; since Hope was very rare to go outside and met other people, the only adult with strong presence in this house was only Serefina.

Kace just regretted that his baby girl has to take the witch as her rolled model.

"Are you angry with me?" Hope sipped her chocolate, fluttering her lashes from behind her glass.

"Angry? Of course not." Kace chuckled. "You have grown up well" he stretched out his hand and tousled her hair, but stopped when she frowned because he had ruined her curls.

Kace sighed.

"I just want you to stay like this a little bit longer." Kace murmured, retracting his hands from her, unknowing to him, Hope was still frowning because she lost the ticklish feeling that she liked it. "Let's buy the things that you want when you got a little bit older, okay?" he didn't want Hope got trouble with Serefina because of this.

"Okay!" Hope replied cheerfully.