CHAPTER EIGHT
793 Words
Kael didn’t sleep.
By dawn, his mind was a storm that refused to settle, each thought sharper than the last.
He had given Selene time. He had given her space. And in return, she had given him silence.
When he finally went to their chambers, she was sitting near the window, still in her nightgown, a book in her lap that she wasn’t reading. The morning light softened her features, but Kael knew beauty could be a mask.
“Selene,” he said quietly.
She glanced up, her expression unreadable. “You’re up early.”
“I never went to sleep,” Kael replied. He stepped closer, stopping just short of her chair. “We need to talk.”
Her gaze flickered briefly to the book before meeting his eyes again. “About?”
“About the gardens.”
For a moment, the air between them felt like stretched glass — ready to shatter with the wrong word.
“You were there again last night,” Kael continued, his tone low but laced with steel. “And you weren’t alone.”
Selene didn’t flinch, but her lips pressed into a thin line. “So you had me followed.”
“I had you protected,” Kael said sharply. “There’s a difference.”
Her laugh was soft and bitter. “No, Kael. There isn’t. Not when it comes to you.”
He took a step closer. “You met with Lucien. Again. After I warned you about him. Do you have any idea—”
“Yes, I do,” she cut in. “I have every idea. I know exactly what I’m doing.”
That stopped him cold. “Then explain it to me. Because from where I stand, it looks like you’re letting him drive a wedge between us.”
Her eyes narrowed. “There’s already a wedge, Kael. He didn’t put it there — you did.”
He stared at her, stunned by the force in her voice. “Me?”
“Yes, you,” she said, rising from the chair. “You shut me out. You bury yourself in your role as Alpha and think that’s enough. You think protecting me from outside threats is all I need, but you don’t protect me from the loneliness inside these walls.”
“That’s not true,” he said, but the words felt hollow even as they left his mouth.
“It is true,” she insisted. “You guard me like I’m your possession, but you don’t talk to me. You don’t let me in. You expect loyalty without giving me trust.”
Kael’s chest tightened. “And you think Lucien will give you trust?”
She didn’t answer right away. Her silence was worse than any confession.
“He listens,” she said finally. “That’s more than I can say for you lately.”
Her words struck deep, but Kael didn’t let the pain show. Instead, he forced his voice steady. “You think you’re finding answers with him, Selene, but you’re walking into a trap. He’s not interested in listening — he’s interested in winning. And if you can’t see that, then—”
“Then what?” she demanded. “You’ll lock me away until I agree with you? You’ll decide who I can speak to and where I can go?”
Kael’s jaw clenched. “I’ll do whatever it takes to protect you. Even if that means protecting you from yourself.”
Her breath caught, and for a second, something raw flashed in her eyes. “You don’t hear yourself, do you? You sound just like the kind of Alpha you swore you’d never be.”
The words were a blade, and Kael felt the cut deep. But he didn’t back down.
“This isn’t about control, Selene. This is about keeping the person I love safe.”
Her gaze softened just slightly — but it wasn’t enough to close the chasm between them. “Love without trust is just a cage, Kael. And I don’t want to live in a cage.”
They stood there, the silence between them now jagged and painful. Outside, the first light of morning crept higher, bathing the room in pale gold. But inside, the warmth didn’t reach them.
Finally, Selene turned away, walking toward the adjoining room. “I’m going to get dressed,” she said quietly. “We can talk again when you decide to actually listen.”
The door closed softly behind her.
Kael stood there, feeling the weight of every unspoken word pressing down on him.
He had faced rival Alphas, wild rogues, and threats that would send fewer wolves running. But this?
This was the kind of battle he didn’t know how to win.
- Writer
