Chapter 10
1074 Words
Kael POV
The night air in the Silverfang gardens was cold, but Kael barely felt it.
Selene stood a few steps away from him, her expression caught between confusion and irritation after the way he had pulled back from her so abruptly.
Moments earlier she had kissed him.
For years, that had been normal between them.
Comfortable. Familiar.
Expected.
But tonight something had been different.
Something had felt… wrong.
Kael dragged a hand through his dark hair as he paced slowly across the stone path.
Fenrir was restless inside his mind.
No.
Restless wasn’t the right word.
The wolf was furious.
She is not our mate.
Kael clenched his jaw.
“I know.”
Selene folded her arms.
“Well?” she demanded, clearly annoyed now. “What was that?”
Kael stopped pacing.
“What?”
“That,” she snapped, gesturing toward him. “You practically shoved me away like I burned you.”
Fenrir growled.
Because she does.
Kael exhaled slowly.
“Selene…”
But he didn’t know what to say.
For years she had been part of his life. His childhood companion. The woman everyone expected him to eventually choose as Luna.
Yet the moment her lips touched his tonight, something inside him had resisted.
Not because of Selene.
But because of Lyra.
The thought irritated him.
He shouldn’t care.
He had made his decision the moment Lyra arrived.
The bond meant nothing.
It was just instinct.
Selene stepped closer, her sharp eyes studying him carefully.
“This is about her, isn’t it?”
Kael said nothing.
Selene laughed bitterly.
“That girl has been here barely a few days and she’s already getting under your skin.”
Fenrir snarled in Kael’s mind.
Careful.
Kael’s patience thinned.
“You’re imagining things.”
“Am I?” Selene said quietly.
Her voice lowered.
“Then why were you coming out of her room just now?”
Kael froze.
Selene had seen him.
Of course she had.
The packhouse overlooked the garden in several directions.
Fenrir stirred again.
She watches too much.
Kael turned away.
“I went to check on her.”
Selene’s eyes narrowed.
“Check on her?”
Her voice carried disbelief.
“You mean the girl who insulted you in front of the entire pack?”
Kael’s jaw tightened.
The memory of Lyra calling him a manwhore still burned in his mind.
But so did something else.
The moment he saw the mark on her neck during dinner.
The visible proof of what he had done.
Fenrir spoke quietly.
You hurt her.
Kael ignored the voice.
Selene stepped closer again.
“Kael,” she said more softly now.
“You know what the pack expects.”
Her fingers brushed lightly against his arm.
“You know what we planned.”
Kael looked down at her.
Selene had always been beautiful.
Graceful.
Elegant.
Everything a Luna should be.
But tonight when he looked at her…
He felt nothing.
Fenrir growled.
Because she is not ours.
Selene leaned closer.
“You can’t let a contract bride destroy everything we built.”
Kael didn’t respond immediately.
Instead, his thoughts drifted unwillingly back to Lyra.
The way she stood in the dining hall with her head held high.
The way she refused to look at him.
The fire in her eyes when she argued.
Even the trembling breath she took when his fingers touched her neck.
Fenrir’s voice softened.
Mate.
Kael exhaled sharply.
“This is temporary,” he muttered.
Selene smiled faintly.
“Exactly.”
She reached up and kissed him again.
This time Kael allowed it.
Not because he wanted her.
But because he was trying to prove something to himself.
If the bond with Lyra meant nothing…
Then this shouldn’t matter.
But the moment Selene’s lips pressed against his again—
Fenrir exploded.
Enough!
A powerful surge of instinct crashed through Kael’s body.
His wolf fought violently for control.
The kiss broke as Kael jerked back suddenly.
His eyes flashed gold for a brief second.
Selene stared at him in shock.
“What the hell was that?”
Kael turned away quickly, breathing harder now.
Fenrir’s voice echoed fiercely in his mind.
Do not touch her.
Kael rubbed his temples.
“This isn’t the time for this conversation.”
Selene frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“It means,” Kael said firmly, “I need space.”
Her expression hardened.
“You’re choosing her.”
“I’m choosing nothing.”
But the doubt in his own voice made the words feel hollow.
Selene watched him carefully.
Then her lips curled slightly.
“This isn’t over.”
She turned and walked back toward the packhouse.
Leaving Kael alone in the garden.
For several minutes he simply stood there, staring up at the moon.
The Silverfang territory stretched quietly around him, the distant forest whispering with night creatures.
Fenrir was still restless.
“You’re being dramatic,” Kael muttered.
You kissed the wrong female.
Kael scoffed.
“There is no wrong female.”
There is only one.
Kael didn’t answer.
Instead he looked toward the upper floors of the packhouse.
Toward Lyra’s window.
The light inside her room was still on.
His chest tightened slightly.
“Why does she affect me like this?” he muttered quietly.
Fenrir’s answer was simple.
Because she is ours.
Kael stared at the window for a long moment before finally turning away.
“Nothing changes,” he said firmly.
But the words sounded less convincing now.
⸻
Upstairs, Lyra had moved away from the window.
The pain in her chest from earlier had faded, leaving behind a dull emptiness.
Nyx lay quietly within her mind.
Neither of them spoke for a long time.
Finally Lyra lay down on her bed, staring at the ceiling.
Her thoughts drifted slowly.
To her father.
To the moment she was taken from her home.
To the way Kael had rejected their bond.
And to the kiss she had just witnessed in the garden.
A bitter smile touched her lips.
“Mate bond,” she whispered softly.
The words felt almost laughable now.
Nyx stirred slightly.
Not all bonds are simple.
Lyra closed her eyes.
“Maybe.”
Her voice was quiet.
“But this one is already broken.”
Outside, the moon continued its silent watch over the Silverfang pack.
And somewhere deep within the forest…
A distant wolf howled.
A warning of storms yet to come
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