A Sterling by Name
624 Words
Chloe held the diamond band up to the morning light, watching the precision-cut facets catch and scatter the sun. During the chaos at the end of the wedding, Silas had forced this ring onto her finger. While Tiffany had been screaming in the background and her father had been trying to interfere, Silas had seen only her. At that moment, she had almost believed the fit of the ring was a promise.
But Chloe remembered the truth: when he slipped it on her finger, he was thinking of a ghost—his Fated Mate.
"This wasn’t meant for me, was it?" she asked, her heart sinking. Whether it was his sudden bursts of protection or his animalistic impulses, everything felt hollow in the face of this ring. She needed to wake up; a Lycan only has one fated mate, and she wasn't it. If they could at least be allies, that was enough. To push for more would break the rules they both lived by.
Silas’s breath hitched. He sat up, staring at the ring as he pulled away from her. He smoothed down the ruffled fur on his tail and gave a dry laugh. "Little hunter, you really know how to kill a mood".
The tension snapped. Chloe looked at the faint scars on her wrist and then at Silas’s rigid profile. "Silas, you're a Lycan. I don't want human rules to force you into a cage you never asked for".
His tail froze mid-air. This wasn't how a Vance was supposed to act. The Vances were hunters; they didn't show mercy or empathy to "beasts". If they had, the Great Purge would never have happened.
But Chloe’s mother had been different. Despite being a top-tier hunter, she had searched for a third way—a world where Lycans had their own space. That philosophy had bled into Chloe.
"A human wedding shouldn't chain a wolf," she said, gently placing the ring back into his palm. "Your kind is meant to be free, to love and hate without reservation. You shouldn't have to give up your fated mate just to be tied to me by human laws".
Silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating. Silas’s tail was still wrapped around her ankle beneath the hem of her dress, stroking her skin as if he were trying to hold on to her while his mind fought the urge.
"You're too naive," he finally said. He took the ring and slid it back onto her finger. "If it were that simple, the Purge would never have started". He paused, his tone softening as he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "But... you're right".
It was the first time he had truly acknowledged her since they met. Chloe didn't feel as happy as she expected. She offered him her hand. "Then let’s be partners. For the sake of a better future for both our kinds".
Silas didn't take her hand. He stared into her eyes and spoke almost instinctively. "Partners sounds too distant. You're Mrs. Sterling now. You're a Sterling".
He froze as soon as the words left his mouth. He clenched his fist, the ring on his own finger biting into his palm. Why had he said that?. For a moment, his control had slipped entirely.
"Really?" Chloe’s eyes brightened with a hope that made his heart ache.
Silas turned away. "Don't overanalyze it. I have my reasons, and explaining them is a waste of time". He stood up, his voice returning to its cold, corporate edge. "Stay at the estate. My PR team is handling the scandal, and you just need to follow my lead".
"By the way," he added, "there’s a gala in three days. You're coming with me".
- Writer
