Lycan's Imposter Luna

Saira~5

“I...I accept you.” The Lycan Heir blurted with a heated gaze.

His words were barely discernible, but I heard them loud as a bell, as I’m sure he meant for me to hear. “Yeah, well. You’re not my soulmate.” I replied in a firmer tone.

An awkward silence settled between us. Since our Bonding Ceremony, Idris Raed treated me with respect and took care of my needs before I even voiced them. The sarcastic jokes he cracked sometimes gave others the impression that he was a careless and laid-back Lycan.

However, one week was enough for me to realize the man was far more complex than he appeared. And I...wanted nothing to do with him.

He sighed and dragged a chair from the other side of the room. “If you ask me, I think we make a better couple than Caira and Einas.”

I swept a mocking glance over him. “Ya think?”

“Well, yeah, I mean...”

“That was meant to be sarcasm.”

“Oh.” His voice, dampened by what I could only describe as dismay, couldn’t hide his disappointment. After a moment of strained silence, he sat beside me with natural ease.

This Lycan...he really didn’t know how to take a hint and reduce his presence to the barest minimum.

He placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin in his palm. His ebony black waves framed his dark orbs as he stared at me with imploring eyes. “Saira, can you see the Lycan Leader with me tomorrow?”

“Why should I? I hate that man as much as I hate you.”

“I know. But as my wife, you’ll have your own share of responsibilities for the Moon Dance.”

When I registered the meaning of his words, I sneered, and opened my mouth to tell him to screw himself. But then, a lightbulb went off in my head.

The beauty trap didn’t work on him. But could I use this opportunity to show Einas Raed my abilities? If I revealed I was more than just a pretty face, the arrogant commander would beg me for a second chance, right?

“Okay, I’ll see the Lycan Leader with you. However, not as your wife, but as your Luna.”

His knee brushed my thigh. I frowned at the slight tingle the contact spiked up my limb. The damn connection from the Bonding Ceremony was growing stronger. I needed to speed up my plans before it became a stumbling block in my way.

“Is there a difference between the two?” The Lycan asked.

If he felt what I felt, he did a good job of not showing it.

“There is.” I sighed, finishing the last stitch and turning off the sewing machine. Rising out of my seat, I cut the hanging thread with scissors and held the dress in front of me. “I wasn’t born to be your wife. But I was born to be a Luna.”

His smile faltered, then completely disappeared. Good. The last thing I wanted was to perform wifely duties for a man who forced a mate bond on me.

“Take the tray. I’m not hungry.” Flinging the finished dress over my shoulder, I packed my sewing machine and took it back to the closet. Though simple, the size of the walk-in closet could rival a bedroom in one of those fancy apartment complexes.

I stuffed my machine at the bottom of my branded bags and chose a dark nightdress to change into. Entering the bathroom, I removed my make-up, washed my face, and brushed my teeth, before taking a quick shower and slipping on the nightdress.

It pooled to the floor, leaving no skin exposed. The long-sleeves were a little cumbersome, but a she-wolf in a den of Lycans only had herself for protection.

I walked out of the bathroom wringing my wet hair. The Lycan was gone, and thankfully, so was the tray. It must be nerves, but I truly wasn’t hungry. I towel dried my hair and climbed the king-sized bed to settle for the night.

“You should stop obsessing on that d**k and give this one a chance. I also think you two make a better couple.” The wolf in the back of my mind spoke up at this time, with a trace of bitterness in her usually resentful voice.

“Shut up, Zaria. No one asked for your opinion.” I snapped and shoved her back into the mental cage I created for her, before she could respond.

I knew. She never meant what she said. As the mate of Einas Raed’s wolf, she was more anxious than me to get him back. However, she would never confide this to me.

Honestly, I wished our relationship was different. Werewolves and Lycans in the supernatural world were greatly envied for the other entity they always had on their side, in every situation and place. An entity that shared body and mind with them. A confidant who would never let them feel lonely.

Before my sixteenth birthday, I thought Zaria would be that confidant for me. The one I could confide my past with, share my troubles and worries for the future, and then plan an escape together. However, all this changed in the two years leading up to my eighteenth birthday.

“I’m the Goddess of all she-wolves. The awesome Princess and beloved Empress of the damn Lycans!”

Talk about narcissism. Zaria was roaring in my mind, even when I shut her out.

Turning on my side, I pulled up the blanket to my chin and saw my phone blink twice from under my pillow. I hesitated for a moment. Since the disagreement with my dad, I neither picked up calls nor read messages from the Evergreen Pack.

However, Sofia was still there. With a helpless sigh, I grabbed the phone and swiped the screen, going to my messenger app.

“Hey, girlfriend. Am I forgotten or what? It’s been an entire week since I last heard from you.”

I smiled and texted back. “You’re not forgotten. Just ignored as a punishment for your Alpha’s actions.”

“You know how much my Alpha loves. If you have any doubt, you can think about how you got the status of an Alpha Heir.”

“Not going there, Sof. You know how much finding my mate meant to me. “

“I know, love. However, I’m on the Alpha’s side on this issue. I heard he wanted to make you his mistress.”

There it was. The word they despised so much they would rather have me be some random Lycan’s mate. They just didn’t understand. None of them did, and they never would. After all, in their world, their honor, self-respect, and pride meant everything.

But to a woman who wouldn’t even have a future without her soulmate, honor, self-respect, and pride were merely fancy words without meaning.

I smiled bitterly, and sent, “Will you be here for the Moon Dance?”

“You know I will! It’s been like, what, forever since I saw you!”

I smiled gently at that. “I miss you too, Sof.”

“You’re not going to stop, are you?”

“Why are you asking, when you already know?”

“Sai, he’s dating someone else, isn’t he? It’s morally wrong to chase a taken man. What’s more, you’re a married woman!”

“You know what’s wrong?” I sent, bristling with fury. “That my mate rejected me for another female! He’s mine! He was supposed to be mine! The Moon Goddess weaved our fate, and yet, he rejected me for a woman whose mate might also be searching for her somewhere out there. No, Sof. I’m not doing anything wrong by fighting for what’s mine. I’m only strengthening the threads the Goddess already weaved!”

“But Sai, this isn’t the way to go.” Sofia tried to persuade me.

But I was having none of it. “There’s no right way to go when fighting for what’s yours. Isn’t there a saying, ‘everything is fair in love and war?’

Only I was fighting for something far simpler.

I was fighting for a chance at life.

“Consider this a war.” I sighed, and turned off my phone. Though my goal was simple, I knew I had a long way to go.

The last thing I needed was a lecture on moral ethics.