Confused

Amelia POV

Tension lingers in the air like a fog that refuses to lift. My heart is still pounding, but it’s quieter now, the adrenaline slowly fading as I stand on the balcony beside Lucas. The cool night air brushes against my skin, calming, but I can’t shake the heavy feeling in my chest. Even after I sliped out of Lucas’s arm, the warmth of his body quickly replaced by the coolness of the evening.

I steal a glance at him, his face unreadable. The calm, collected Lucas everyone sees, and yet... I know there’s more to him than what he shows. I’ve seen glimpses of it, in the moments we’ve shared, in the way he was so quick to defend me tonight.

Snow is pacing inside me, her energy restless. “That idiot,” she growls, referring to Ethan. “He has some nerve.”

I nod silently, agreeing with her. My emotions are a tangled mess, and part of me wants to scream at Ethan, to make him understand that he doesn’t get to control me anymore. But there’s another part of me, a part that aches—a part that still remembers what it felt like to believe in that bond, that mate connection. Before everything went wrong.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lucas’s voice pulls me out of my thoughts, his gaze soft, but intense. His blue eyes search mine, and for a moment, I feel seen. Not in the way Ethan used to look at me, but something different. It’s almost unsettling.

“Yes I’m fine,” I manage to say, my voice quieter than I expected. “I just... I need a minute.” I sigh.

Lucas nods, and I’m thankful he doesn’t press me further. I turn away, leaning against the balcony railing as I stare out into the night. The sky is dark, clouds blotting out the stars, but there’s a faint light from the moon peeking through. Snow is quiet now, though I can feel her presence, steady and strong. She’s angry, but more than that, she’s confused.

“Why did he say we’re still his mate?” she murmurs, almost to herself.

I don’t have an answer for her. I don’t know why Ethan would claim me now, especially after rejecting me in front of everyone. After everything that’s happened.

Lucas steps closer, leaning against the railing beside me. The silence between us is comfortable, but there’s an undercurrent, something unspoken. I don’t know if it’s just the weight of the situation, or if it’s something else entirely. We still haven’t talk about that time we spend the night together and a part of me is secretly glad he hasn’t brought it up. But another part of me hoped he did bring it up.

---

*Lucas’s POV*

As I stand beside Amelia, watching her stare out into the night, my mind is pulled back to earlier this week. Back to the hotel room, where we spend the night together. Back to the call from my father.

---

I had woke up in bed alone, after spending a passionate night with Amelia. She had slipped out escaping, leaving me alone. I was thinking about her when my phone began ringing, the sound sharp in the quiet room. I look at the screen to know who it was—my father rarely called unless it was important. And when I answered, his voice was clipped, business-like, as always.

"Lucas, quite a few years have passed," my father had said, his tone laced with disappointment. “You still haven’t found a Luna. Time is ticking, and you know what’s at stake.”

I’d clenched my jaw, knowing full well where the conversation was headed. My father had made it clear for years—if I didn’t find a Luna soon, if I didn’t solidify my position, he would have no choice but to name someone else as Crown Prince. Someone more... capable, in his eyes.

“I’m working on it,” I’d replied, though even I wasn’t sure if I believed my own words.

My father’s sigh had been loud over the phone. “Working on it isn’t enough, Lucas. You know the law. You need to secure a mate, a Luna, or your position will be taken from you. Do you understand me?”

Before I could respond, he’d hung up, leaving me with nothing but the sharp sting of reality. No room for argument. No room for failure.

End of flashback

I Stare at the girl beside me, I’ve have always watched her, her beautifull smile, her bright eyes and honey smooth skin. I felt an unexplainable pull towards her and even Titan feels it. Even when she was with Ethan, he was not perfect for her. My cousin is no good and I hoped she would have seen that. Hearing about the rejection, gives me an opening to approach her. Things escalated between us that night, I did not expect it to happen. With what happen between us and my father adamant about finding a Luna. I pitched the idea of a contract marriage to her. And now, here I am, standing next to Amelia, after announcing her as my fiancée in front of everyone. I should feel victorious, I should feel like I’m finally making progress. But when she slipped out of my arms earlier, there was something else. Something that felt... wrong.

I hadn’t shown it, of course. I couldn’t. But the moment she put distance between us, it was like a coldness settled over me, and for the first time, I wondered—what if this isn’t enough? What if even this arrangement isn’t enough to keep my title? To keep her?

Titan, my wolf, had growled low in my mind. “She’s pulling away.”

“She’s confused,” I’d told him, though I wasn’t entirely sure I believed that either.

“She’s ours now,” Titan had rumbled. “She can’t pull away.”

I shook my head, brushing the thought aside. It wasn’t that simple. This was a contract, not a real bond. And yet... It bother me so much.

---

*Amelia’s POV*

I can feel Lucas’s eyes on me, but I don’t turn to face him. My mind is still racing, still stuck on what Ethan said. His words play on repeat in my head—*She’s my mate.* The possessiveness in his tone, the way he claimed me in front of Lucas... it didn’t make any sense.

“Snow, why did he say that?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

Snow is quiet for a moment, her growl deep in my mind. “I don’t know. But I don’t trust him.”

Neither do I. And yet, a part of me is still... shaken. What if he didn’t mean to reject me? What if—

“Don’t even think about it,” Snow snaps. “He’s not our mate anymore. He rejected us.”

I nod to myself, silently agreeing with her. It doesn’t matter what Ethan says. He made his choice, and now, I’ve made mine.

“Amelia,” Lucas’s voice is soft, breaking through the turmoil of my thoughts. “I know this is... complicated. But we’re in this together now. I won’t let him hurt you again.”

His words catch me off guard, and I turn to look at him, surprised by the sincerity in his eyes. There’s a quiet strength in the way he stands, in the way he holds himself, and for a moment, I feel... safe.

But I can’t let myself get too comfortable. Not yet.

“Thank you,” I say, offering him a small smile. “But I can handle Ethan. I’m not the same girl he rejected.”

Lucas nods, but there’s a flicker of something in his expression. Hurt? I can’t be sure. Before I can dwell on it, though, he turns his gaze back to the city lights beyond the balcony.

---

*Lucas’s POV*

As Amelia thanks me, I feel that same coldness creeping in again. She’s so strong, so independent, and part of me admires that. But another part of me... well, Titan isn’t pleased.

“She’s pulling away again,” he growls.

“She’s been through a lot,” I remind him. “Give her time.”

Titan huffs, clearly unimpressed. “She’s ours now. She needs to understand that.”

I sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. This was supposed to be simple—a contract, an arrangement to help us both. But every time I’m around her, it feels... different. And I’m not sure how much longer I can pretend it doesn’t.

As we stand there, side by side in the quiet night, I can’t shake the feeling that this is only the beginning of something much more complicated.

And somehow, I know Ethan isn’t going to let this go easily.