The Lycan’s forbid desire

Chapter 2

Elara Pov

The palace glittered like something from a dream.

I stood at the entrance holding Father's arm while carriages rolled up one after another. Women in silk and jewels stepped out laughing. Men in fine coats followed them, everyone looked like they belonged here.

I felt like a fraud.

"Stand up straight." Father adjusted my shawl. "And smile."

"Why? Everyone knows I'm engaged."

"Myrlander wants people to see what he's getting. Don't embarrass me."

I bit back my response and followed him inside.

The ballroom took my breath away. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling throwing light everywhere. Musicians played in the corner, long tables held food I couldn't even name.

"Stay close." Father's grip on my arm tightened. "Don't wander off."

We moved through the crowd. Father stopped to talk with other merchants. I stood beside him trying to look pleasant while they discussed trade routes and profit margins. Nobody asked my opinion. Nobody even looked at me directly.

I was decoration. Something to display.

"Garrick." A woman's voice cut through the conversation. "Is this your daughter?"

Lady Pemberton smiled at me but her eyes were calculating. She wore emeralds that probably cost more than our house.

"Yes. Elara. She's recently engaged to Darius Myrlander."

"How lovely." Lady Pemberton's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Third wife is quite an honor."

The other women tittered. My face burned.

"If you'll excuse me." I pulled away from Father. "I need some air."

"Elara wait."

I didn't listen. I pushed through the crowd toward the edge of the ballroom. My omega senses screamed at me. Too many scents. Too many bodies pressing close, the music was too loud. Everything was too much.

I found an alcove near the windows and pressed my back against the wall. Deep breaths. In and out.

"Are you alright dear?"

An older woman stood nearby holding a glass of wine. She had kind eyes and gray hair.

"Just overwhelmed."

"First ball?"

I nodded.

"It gets easier." She sipped her wine. "Though I can't say I enjoy them much myself anymore, too much peacocking."

"Peacocking?"

She gestured at the room. "Look at them. All those girls preening and posing. Their mothers calculating which alpha has the most money. It's exhausting."

I followed her gaze. She was right. Young women stood in clusters wearing their finest dresses. They laughed too loud and touched their hair too much. Their mothers hovered nearby watching the room like hawks.

"They're hoping to catch the prince." The woman said it casually. "Though he's not even here."

"The prince?"

"Prince Thorne. Queen Matilda's son. He's supposed to choose a bride soon. Every family with an unmated daughter is circling like vultures."

I looked around the ballroom again. Now I understood. This wasn't just a party. It was a market. And all these girls were products on display.

Just like me.

"The prince isn't here?" I asked.

"Not yet. He hates these things apparently, his mother insists but he always arrives late if he comes at all."

So the Lycan Prince was conspicuously absent. The entire ball was being held for him but he couldn't even be bothered to show up on time.

"I need to leave." The words came out strangled.

"The gardens are through that door." The woman pointed. "Much quieter."

"Thank you."

I slipped through the crowd toward the glass doors she'd indicated. Nobody stopped me, nobody even noticed.

The garden was dark and cool. Lanterns hung from trees casting soft light on stone paths. I could still hear the music but it was distant now and muffled.

I walked deeper into the garden. Past hedges shaped like animals. Past fountains with statues of gods I didn't know. The air smelled like roses and night blooming jasmine.

Finally I could breathe.

I found a bench hidden behind a tall hedge and sat down. My dress pooled around me like water. It was the prettiest thing I'd ever worn. Borrowed from a cousin, pale blue silk that made my eyes look brighter.

One night. That's all I'd asked for, one night to feel normal.

But I couldn't escape it. Even here in the quiet I felt the weight of my future pressing down. Three weeks until I belonged to Darius Myrlander. Three weeks until I became wife number three.

I closed my eyes and tried to pretend I was anywhere else. Anywhere but here, anywhere but trapped.

The music from the ballroom drifted on the wind. Violins and cellos playing something beautiful and sad, it matched how I felt inside.

I opened my eyes and stared at the hedge across from me. The leaves rustled in the breeze, stars peeked through gaps in the foliage above.

This was nice. This was peaceful.

For the first time all night I felt like I could think clearly. I could breathe without someone watching. I could exist without being judged or measured or appraised.

I leaned back against the bench and let the cool air wash over me. My shoulders relaxed, my jaw unclenched. The tightness in my chest eased just a little.

Maybe I could stay here all night. Hide in this garden until Father came looking for me. Until the ball was over and everyone went home.

Maybe I could pretend for just a few more hours that my life wasn't already decided.

The breeze picked up and brought a new sound with it. Coming from somewhere deeper in the garden.

I froze.

"Anyone could see us." A woman's voice, she sounded reathless.

"Let them look." A man's voice, he sounded deep and commanding. It made something low in my stomach tighten.

I should leave. I should go back to the ballroom right now, this was none of my business.

But curiosity held me frozen or maybe it was something else. Something I didn't want to name.

The voices were coming from just beyond the hedge. Close enough that I could hear them clearly but far enough that they probably didn't know I was here.

I should announce myself. Cough or make some noise so they knew they weren't alone.

But I didn't.

I sat there on my bench in the shadows and listened to those voices get closer.

My heart pounded. My hands felt cold. Every instinct told me to run.

But I stayed.

The woman laughed. Low and sultry, the man said something too quiet for me to hear.

Then I heard footsteps and movement. They were right on the other side of the hedge now.

I only wanted silence. I only wanted one night to breathe freely without duty crushing me.

But as I stood up slowly and moved toward the gap in the hedge I realized I was about to see something I was never meant to witness.