Marked By The Lycan King, Betrayed By Fate

CHAPTER 16

(Selene’s POV)

“Hey, why are you crying?”

His hand touched my cheek, wiping away the tears that had fallen. And I had a reason for my tears.

“I’m just touched by how sweet you are to me, Lucian,” I replied.

“There’s no need to cry, right? I don’t want you to shed tears. Not even a little. I don’t ever want to see your tears fall.”

And now, I found myself crying again, overwhelmed by emotion. “You’re so different from Dexton. You know, he never treated me this kindly. So, of course, I’m crying because I feel so touched by how different you are from him.”

I had been comparing the two of them ever since I noticed the stark contrast between them. It was strange, but at the same time, I was happy to feel and see that there was a man who genuinely tried to make me happy.

“I’m glad you’re happy because of me. Nothing makes me happier than knowing the one I love is happy because of me,” he said, nearly repeating his words.

“Thank you for always caring about me, Lucian.”

He simply smiled, but then his expression changed. I could feel that he had something to say.

“Selene,” he said, calling my name. His hand gently rubbed mine, as if he was contemplating something before finally speaking.

“Tell me,” I finally said. “I know you want to talk to me about something.”

“I want you to agree to let me mark you, Selene. I want us to share a bond so that if you’re ever in danger, I can sense it and come to you immediately,” he said. “I hope you won’t take too long to decide. The sooner, the better.”

I fell silent, unsure of what to say. I knew he had been patient with me—patient with my struggles and my reluctance to be marked so soon.

But unfortunately, what he said was true. No matter what, I couldn’t be selfish, knowing I would soon be his mate. Still, I wasn’t sure if I could do it as quickly as he wanted.

“For now, Harper can be relied on,” he continued, “but there will come a time when he won’t be able to protect you because he’ll have to accompany me for certain duties. Marking you is the only way to ensure you don’t have to depend on anyone else.”

I smiled softly and sighed. He worried too much, and I knew that, especially with the number of people who didn’t like seeing me by the Lycan King’s side.

Being an outcast because I was born from an Omega had made me worthless in the eyes of most wolf packs.

“Don’t worry, Lucian. You know I’m strong. I’m a she-alpha who fears nothing. I can handle danger on my own,” I said.

He looked irritated at my response. From the beginning, he had wanted to mark me as soon as possible, and I had always given him the same answer—that I was strong and that I was a she-alpha.

“Selene, no matter what, you’re still a woman, and I—”

“Lucian, trust me, I’ll be fine. So please, don’t underestimate me.”

He looked even more frustrated at my stubbornness, at my firm decision not to be marked just yet.

I simply wanted to be treated with respect first—acknowledged before all the packs—before the mating ritual took place.

After all, I was an Alpha too. My pride was everything to me. Even if, right now, I seemed lowly in the eyes of those who despised me, those on my side knew my true worth.

“I’m not underestimating you, Selene,” he said, exhaling sharply, anger evident in his tone. “But if you could truly protect yourself, you wouldn’t have let Dexton touch you and leave those hickey marks on you.”

Shocked, I felt a surge of anger at his words. Was he bringing that up? As if he was trying to find fault in me—to prove that I wasn’t capable of defending myself against Dexton’s sudden intrusion.

“I hate that I have to recall that incident, but you need to remember it too. You couldn’t fight him off, Selene. No matter how strong you think you are as a she-alpha, men and women have different levels of strength.”

He was right, and I had to admit it. But admitting it to his face would only diminish my own pride. So I remained silent because remembering that incident only made me angry at myself for not being able to fight back.

The truth was, that male and female strengths were different. At that moment, Dexton was so strong that he easily restrained my hands, as if his bones were ten times stronger than mine.

“And who knows what would have happened to you if Harper hadn’t arrived in time? I might have ended up killing my own son for touching my woman,” he said darkly.

“Well, that was your fault too, Lucian,” I shot back. “You weakened me by constantly making love to me until I was completely drained. I was still in bed, naked, when he arrived. How could I have fought back when I was already weak? Let me remind you—that was your fault!”

He exhaled deeply, trying to suppress his anger as I raised my voice in frustration.

He was truly capable of controlling his emotions, even as I let my own irritation rise. It proved that a man could truly suppress his ego for the woman he loved.

“Alright, fine,” he finally said. “I was wrong for bringing that up. But I still want to have a bond with you. I want to mark you, Selene. I want to be like other mates who can sense their partner’s condition instantly.”

Once again, he returned to the original topic. And I still didn’t know how to tell him that it could wait.

“Not now, Lucian.”

“Selene, I’ve never been this crazy about a woman before. Not even with my ex-wife.”

My cheeks burned with embarrassment. How could he say something like that in this situation? Of course, I felt special to him—especially when he looked as if he was truly losing his mind over me.

“Well, then, you’ll have to hold back this time.”

“My restraint is crumbling because you keep being so stubborn. Please, one last time, let me mark you now.”

I pressed a finger to his lips, smiling shyly as I shook my head, my gaze teasing. “Not now, Lucian. Later. You don’t have to beg—because in the end, I’ll still let you mark me. Just… later.”

He growled and muttered, “It seems you truly enjoy testing my patience.”