Lilienne
My heart is ringing in my ears, my eyes are wide as I widen them at Kaelen. He looks furious, his glare is dark and menacing, and I can practically see his wolf growling at me from within.
"What... are you talking about?" I finally manage to ask, though my voice is so quiet, that if Kaelen wasn't so close, he might not have heard it at all.
"Serina came to me in tears and told me that you and other Lunas called her a dirty omega and a lowly rogue slave!" My husband's voice is so low and cold, that my blood runs cold. I don't remember the last time I've seen him so angry. Not at me, at least.
"She lied," I swallow hard and try to regain my composure. It's hard to endure the rage of his wolf without the support of my own beast. But I'm doing my best, and Kaelen sees through it. He used to respect that, but now, it seems that it only makes things worse.
"Do you think I have nothing better to discuss with the Lunas than your lover? She might be the center of your world now, but not mine. Unlike you, I don't lose track of what's important over useless things."
Kaelen frowns, but that doesn't last long. Soon, he scoffs, bitterly so, and takes a small step away from my body, giving me some room to finally breathe in.
"Useless?" He chuckles again. "Of course, someone as cold as you might see love as a useless distraction. That's why you've never been warm to me. And that's why I have the right to be protective of the only person whose affection is real; whom I don't have to beg for the scraps of love either."
Love? I can barely hold myself back from laughing, too. Werewolves can learn to love their chosen mates––that love can be so strong that it surpasses the fated mates' bond and makes it obsolete.
When neither of us found our fated mates, I was convinced that what I've been feeling for Kaelen was true love. But over the years, I've grown tired of being the only one who had to give love without getting any back.
So how dare he claim that I'm incapable of loving when he was the one who had never shown me love?!
"Your mistress is your concern," I finally say through gritted teeth. "You brought her here, so she is your responsibility, not mine. If you don't want others to talk about her, then make it so yourself. She is no one to me."
And it looks like... you're turning the same, too.
A flicker of disappointment flashes over my husband's features, but the bitter smile that tugs his lips reveals his true emotions. "You've changed. You've been cold before, but this... This is not you, Lily."
I bite my lip in frustration, but still try to keep my glare on his. "It's not me? Then what is me?"
"Forget it," he snaps and stalks back to the door. "I don't want you causing Serina any trouble from now on. Be careful, Luna."
With that, he shuts the door behind him, leaving me standing in complete silence.
Slowly, I feel my knees giving up, and before I know it, I am on the floor, my back pressed against the cold wall in quiet desperation, hot tears rolling down my cheeks.
It's not me who's changed. It's Kaelen.
Women have tried to seduce him in the past, too, but he has never paid them even a sliver of attention. But she... that woman has managed to do what others never could.
Fated mates or not, there are such things as loyalty and duty. And it looks like my husband has no idea what they mean.
I pull my knees to my chest and hug them with my arms, my chin drops heavily on top of them. I've lost my wolf so many years ago, and yet, this is the first time I'm truly feeling weak and powerless.
I wish I could just run away. Just leave everything behind and disappear. But I can't. If I ask for a divorce, the Wolf Council will strip me of my title and rank, and I will lose everything. My packmates, my power, my authority, my money...
No, I can't abandon my people. I can't simply hand over everything I've worked for to satisfy the crown. To satisfy Kaelen.
It's not fair. It's not fair that I have to be the only one to lose everything if I choose to leave. The mere thought of that woman taking everything that used to be mine with her dirty, greedy hands...
No. Never.
I bite my lower lip again, my stinging eyes lazily scanning the room as if to take in everything that belongs to me here.
Suddenly, my gaze stops on my coffee table, where a square, neatly folded piece of paper is resting on a small golden platter.
"Right, I've never thrown that note out", I hear myself thinking aloud as I slowly get up and make my way toward the table, as if hypnotized by the side of that note.
My fingers grab the paper and carefully unfold it, while my eyes scan its contents once again.
I feel like I have memorized every single curve of the handwriting––that's how many times I have read this note over the past two days. It's somewhat embarrassing, really, but I can't help it.
I've never thought something so insignificant could hold so much emotional value for me.
Someone must have played a strange joke on me, I think, as a soft chuckle escapes my lips. I wonder if it's a servant's child... Some wolves can shift early, but their beasts remain small till they turn fifteen. Hopefully, one day, I will find out who my new mysterious friend is.