Chapter Seven: Restless Night
968 Words
ANGEL’S POV
I don’t know how long I stayed there.
Leaning against the wall. Trying to breathe.
My chest wouldn’t slow down. My hands shook. My throat felt tight.
Everything felt wrong.
The palace didn’t feel like the same place anymore. It felt cold. Like I didn’t belong here.
Like I was stuck.
My wolf wouldn’t rest.
Mate… mate… mate…
I pressed my palm against my chest.
“Stop…” I whispered.
It didn’t.
His scent was still there. On me. Around me. I could still see his eyes—cold, sharp, like I was something he didn’t want.
My chest tightened again.
I pushed away from the wall and started walking.
I didn’t know where I was going. I just needed to move.
The hallway was quiet now. Too quiet. The music was gone. The laughter too. It was like nothing had happened… but everything had.
My heels echoed softly on the floor.
Each step felt loud.
Each step reminded me nothing was normal anymore.
I turned a corner and stopped.
I didn’t even notice when the tears came.
I wiped them quickly.
“No,” I muttered. “You said you won’t cry.”
But tonight wasn’t like before.
Clinton.
Linda.
Alex.
Mate.
The word alone made my stomach twist.
I let out a shaky breath and kept walking.
Then I saw him. My brother
Kingsley.
The moment he looked at me, his expression changed.
“Angel.”
I didn’t answer.
I just walked straight into him and grabbed his shirt.
That was all it took.
Everything broke.
The tears came fast this time. My body shook as I tried to breathe through it.
He didn’t ask questions. Just held me. One hand on my head, the other around me.
“It’s okay,” he said softly. “I’m here.”
I shook my head against his chest.
“It’s not okay,” I whispered. “Nothing is.”
He pulled back slightly, looking at me.
“What did he do?” His voice dropped.
I hesitated.
“He didn’t do anything,” I said quickly.
His eyes narrowed.
“Angel.”
“I’m serious,” I said. “He just… told me to stay.”
“That’s all?”
I nodded.
It wasn’t a lie.
But it wasn’t the truth either.
Kingsley exhaled slowly, like he was holding something back.
“I don’t like this,” he said. “Any of it.”
“Me too.”
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then he asked quietly, “Do you feel it?”
I stiffened.
I knew what he meant.
The bond.
I looked away.
“…Yes.”
He cursed under his breath.
I wrapped my arms around myself.
“It won’t stop,” I said. “No matter what I do.”
He ran a hand through his hair, pacing.
“This shouldn’t be happening,” he muttered. “Not like this. Not with him.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
He stopped.
“You don’t know Alex,” he said.
I swallowed.
“I think I do.”
The cold eyes. The anger. The way he looked at me like I ruined everything.
Kingsley shook his head.
“That’s not all he is.”
That didn’t help.
If anything, it made it worse.
Before I could ask more, I heard footsteps.
Slow. Heavy.
My body reacted instantly.
My heart sped up. My wolf stirred again.
Kingsley turned.
And then—
He showed up. The Alpha
Alex Donald
He walked toward us like nothing touched him.
Calm. Controlled.
But something felt different.
His eyes moved from Kingsley… to me.
And stayed there.
I felt it again.
That pull.
Stronger now.
Harder to ignore.
I looked away.
I couldn’t take it.
Not again.
“What is she still doing here?” he asked.
His voice was low.
Kingsley stepped in front of me.
“She’s my sister.”
“And she’s my mate.”
The words landed quietly.
But they stayed.
Kingsley didn’t move.
“She’s not staying here tonight.”
My heart skipped.
Alex stopped walking.
Then—
“She is.”
Just like that.
Kingsley let out a short laugh. No humor in it.
“You don’t get to decide that.”
“I already did.”
The air shifted.
Tense.
Heavy.
I felt it building between them.
“Kingsley…” I called softly.
He didn’t look at me.
“This doesn’t concern you.”
“It does,” Alex said.
His voice dropped.
“She belongs here.”
My chest tightened.
That word again.
Belongs.
“I’m not an object,” I said.
They both looked at me.
My heart was racing, but I kept going.
“I’m not something you pass around or fight over.”
Silence.
Kingsley glanced at me, surprised.
Alex didn’t say anything. Just watched me.
Then he stepped forward.
“One night.”
Kingsley frowned. “What?”
“She stays one night,” Alex said. “Tomorrow, we decide what happens next.”
Kingsley studied him.
Like he didn’t trust him.
Honestly… neither did I.
But this felt like the only option.
Kingsley looked at me.
“You’re okay with that?”
I hesitated.
I wasn’t.
But I didn’t have a choice.
“…It’s fine.”
He didn’t look convinced.
But after a moment, he nodded.
“Fine. One night.”
He turned to me.
“If anything happens, you call me. Immediately.”
I nodded. “I will.”
He held my gaze a second longer… then walked away.
And just like that—
I was alone.
With him.
The silence came back.
Heavy.
I could feel his eyes on me.
I didn’t look up.
I didn’t want to.
“Follow me.”
His voice broke through.
I swallowed.
And followed.
- Writer
