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The drive to the hotel hotel took three hours of me singing my heart out in the car. Ashton sighed, probably losing the rest of his patience or sanity as I blasted Dynamite by BTS for the millionth time.

When we finally got there, he handed the valet his keys. At first glance, it was clear to see that the hotel was definitely five stars. It was massive and I even spotted a celebrity walking around with his partner.

After we checked in, I was still gaping in awe at the majesty of the place when Ashton pulled me closer to him in a hug.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do this."

I hugged him back with a large grin. "Let's have fun today!"

We decided to go to the pool first. Ashton insisted on going to one of the private indoor pools that I didn't even know was a thing.

I got changed into my swimsuit and pulled on a cover-up. I did my hair in another high ponytail since Ashton had ruined the first one. I stepped out of the bathroom to see him already lounging by the pool, and went to sit beside him.

His eyes raked over my body and a slow smile formed on his lips. "It's definitely worth it being with you here."

"You're such a flirt," I teased as color swirled to my cheeks. He leaned in and placed a kiss on my lips.

"Didn't I tell you to let your hair down?" he whispered and I shivered as his warm breath seduced my skin. His nose trailed down my jaw as his lips came to rest on the place just below my ear.

I knew where this was about to go, so I slipped into the water and giggled at his confused expression. He scoffed and his eyes twinkled with mischief and he slid off into the water. I waded away from him as fast as I could, but when I looked back I didn't see him.

"Aah!" I screamed as I was hoisted out of the water. I glared down at Ashton who was holding me on his shoulders and laughing.

"Let me down!" I screamed, kicking the water at him as he waded out further to the deep end until the water was bobbing against his chin.

"I'll let you go right here," he announced and I looked down at the deep water uncertainly.

"I think I'm good up here, so no thanks," I chuckled, but he had other plans.

"Ashton, no!" I screamed as he submerged himself in the water and slipped me off his shoulders. Before I could sink like the non-swimmer that I was, he caught me and held me by my waist.

"Are you trying to drown me on my birthday?" I yelled, splashing water in his face as he laughed.

"I'm going to get you back!" I shouted as I bobbed in the water.

"I look forward to it," he grinned.

He pulled me closer to himself, gazing into my eyes before leaning down to kiss me again. This kiss was so passionate I almost completely forgot how to breathe. He lifted my hips so that I was wrapping my legs around him and he held me close with his arms. I pulled back to look at him uncertainly and his eyes were so dark, they looked black.

He had told me that the kiss we'd shared at the restaurant was real, but I was hesitantly wondering if this one was.

"Your dad-" I started but he closed the distance with his lips again.

"He has nothing to do with this. It's just you and me." His breathing had become heavier and his voice was slightly deeper.

The sound made my knees go weak and if I hadn't been holding on to him, I might have just collapsed. I sighed contentedly as he held me tightly against his body and his lips wandered around my neck, setting every cell on fire.

I wrapped my arms around his neck as we kissed. Ashton was the only guy who ever made me feel this way. When I was with him, everything felt right. It felt special. Every piece fell into place.

He groaned as I kissed him back with intensity. My fingers knotted in his silky hair, pulling him even closer.

After a while, he abruptly pulled away from me, panting hard, and loosened my legs from his hips.

"If I don't stop now..." he breathed. "I don't think I'll be able to control myself."

He rested his forehead on mine as we tried to catch our breaths.

"You make this feel so easy," I said after he'd helped me out of the water. I sat on the edge of the pool as Ashton tread the water.

"I have to be careful when I'm with you. It's so easy to just get lost in these feelings," he frowned.

"Aren't you getting out?" I asked.

"You might want to look away if you'd like to keep your eye-ginity. But then again, I don't mind if you take a peek," he winked.

"A peek at what?"

"You do Biology, figure it out," he smirked as he pushed himself out of the pool.

I quickly averted my eyes and my face heated up once more as I realized what he was talking about.

"Ashton!" I yelled at him as I threw a towel in his direction. He caught it and chuckled as he headed off to the showers.

I went to go wash the chlorine out of my hair. My cheeks were still burning despite the cool pray of the water. Ashton came back after a few minutes and I cautiously shielded my eyes with my hands.

"Relax Miss. Innocent. That shower was cold enough to give me frostbite."

I hesitantly let down my fingers and glared at him while he continued to tease me, clearly amused by my reaction. I went back to my room to get dresed while Ashton ordered lunch for us. We ate and talked and then went to explore the hotel grounds.

By nightfall we had been all over the place and it was so much fun. Just being with him was enough to put a never fading smile on my face. Dinner was amazing too. Ashton's parents had pulled out all the stops. They had rented an entire section of the restaurant just for us.

I didn't know how I could thank them for such an expensive present, but Ashton told me not to worry about it. He was still obviously angry with his dad.

In order to celebrate me turning eighteen, I took a sip of the wine he'd ordered and gagged immediately. Ashton scoffed at me as he downed a glass.

"Is that all you can handle? One sip?"

"Hey, you're one to talk. You don't get drunk easily, but I will," I retorted. "Plus, there's something I want to do tonight and I want to be sober for it."

"Oh?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Get that thought out of your mind, Ashton. It's not happening."

"What thought?" he asked innocently as he downed another glass.

"Are you actually enjoying that?" I asked, scowling at the wine. "It tastes bitter."

"That's your uncultured taste buds talking," he laughed. "It's an acquired taste"

"Says the guy who doesn't like candy apples."

"Candy apples are seriously not that good," he insisted and then pulled something out of his pocket. "There's something I have for you."

My eyes lit up in happiness as he produced my necklace. Nicole had damaged the clasp when she had popped it off her neck, and I guess Ashton had kept it so that he could have it repaired. I reached over to take it, but he pulled his hand back.

"Not so fast," he said. "You're on your second strike, you know."

I gave him a sheepish grin. "It's not my fault. The necklace is so great, everybody wants it."

He still glared at me despite my attempt to butter him up.

"I won't lose it again," I promised. "I'll guard it with my life."

"You better," he warned. "This is important to me."

I cocked my head to the side. "You said that before, but you didn't explain."

He sighed as he swirled his glass around with his free hand. "Yeah. I'll tell you tonight. You see, in my mom's kingdom it's kind of a tradition for the male to give his soulmate an accessory to show that he intends to honor the soulmate bond. It's supposed to be like a good luck charm to keep his soulmate safe. Our kingdom doesn't have anything like that, but I still wanted to do it, because I felt like it was the right thing to do. The king tries to stop us from following my mom's customs too, so it was a double win for me."

"I didn't know it had such a deep meaning to it." I frowned as I thought about how upset he must have been when he found out I lost it.

"Now that you know, don't you dare lose it."

I traced my fingers over the delicate shape of the small rose. "I won't."

I took his hand and led him out of the restaurant to the beach where we'd come earlier. I had spent some time hunting for seashells and Ashton didn't really have much of a choice but to join in. His superb eyesight was useful and I ended up collecting a huge jar of them.

Now, the beach was dark except for the moon and stars shining their light down.

"Where are we going?" he asked as I pulled him along.

"I told you that I had something to do tonight," I answered and his brows creased quizzically.

The last time we were at a beach together at night, it didn't end well and I was hoping that tonight would be better. I led him to a rocky part of the beach that had a small cliff surrounded by extensive boulders.

"Ashton," I spoke. My voice bounced off the rocks.

"It echoes?" he asked curiously. His voice came back to him three times.

"Yeah, I found it while you were over there," I pointed to the shore.

I breathed in the warm, salty air, letting the taste linger in my throat for a moment, before exhaling. I looked him in the eyes. It was now or never. I had thought about this for months now and I finally made a decision.

"Listen up, because I'm only going to say this once," I gestured holding up one finger.

Once, my voice echoed.

I walked away from him until were a few feet apart. Ashton stared at me, partly in confusion and partly in anxiety. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in.

"I like you Ashton DeLorentes!" I shouted.

"Elizabeth-" he started, but I didn't give him a chance to finish.

"I agree to start dating you!" I yelled. "So will you be my boyfriend?"

My face was as red as a cherry and was still heating up considerably. Ashton was over to me in seconds and he pulled me to him.

"Of course," he smiled. "I did ask you out months ago." He searched my eyes hesitantly. "Are you sure?"

"You're asking me if I'm sure?" I laughed, relieved to finally to get my feelings out in the open. "What if I change my mind?"

"Then I'll just wait until you decide to choose me again," he answered. "I want to make sure that you're doing this of your own free will."

"I am. I thought about it a lot. It's all that's been on my mind," I admitted. "I'm not sure about becoming the queen of the kingdom, but for now I do know that I want to date you. Whether you're my soulmate or not, it's you that I want."

Ashton's eyes softened as he looked down at me. "But-"

I didn't let him finish that. Instead, I caressed his face and kissed him. He was surprised by this because it was the first time that I had been the one to initiate a kiss. I felt him smile against me as he held me close and kissed me back.

This kiss, unlike the one we shared earlier, was slow and passionate. I could feel his emotions bunched together and I kissed him with the reassurance that together, everything would be okay.

I look up at him through my lashes. His dark blue eyes met mine and he smiled the most heart tugging smile ever. "Thank you."

I smiled back and snuggled closer to him as he sat down on a rock and lowered me onto his lap. I cuddled against him as he placed a tender kiss on my forehead.

I felt like the happiest girl in the world. I'd confessed my feelings to the first guy I ever liked and was now officially dating him. The waves crashed rhythmically against the rocks.

"Who would've thought that there would be an us," I smiled.

He gazed down at me, his perfect features illuminated in the smiling moonlight. He smirked his trademark smirk.

"It was only a matter of time before you fell for me."

I hit him playfully. "Hey, I didn't ask to be mated to an arrogant Alpha jerk."

"Who're you calling a jerk," he fake pouted as he reached down to tickle me.

I giggled, as I tried to catch his hands. "Arrogant Alpha jerk," I teased.

He nuzzled my hair. "Innocent human nerd," he teased back.

I glanced up at the sky as a shooting star danced across it.

"Make a wish!" I told him, tugging at his shirt, but he just smiled and placed another kiss on my forehead.

"Everything that I could wish for is already here."

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Mated to the Arrogant Alpha Jerk

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