Chapter Fourteen: The Unspoken Defiance

Nicholas's POV

The mansion felt particularly empty tonight. The vast dining room, with its long, polished table set for an echo of a grand feast, remained untouched. Every minute ticked by with an oppressive slowness, each second a relentless reminder of Emma’s defiance. I glanced at the clock, the dim light casting a long shadow over its timeless face.

Where was she?

Rearranging the silverware out of sheer impatience, I tried to concentrate on the wine glass before me. Her eating dinner with me every night was, something explicitly outlined in the contract. Had she still not read the contract? Or was she purposely trying to provoke me?

“James!” I called out, my voice resonating throughout the mansion.

Within moments, my beta and closest confidant appeared at the doorway, his expression a neutral mask. “Yes, Alpha?”

“Go fetch Emma. Dinner's getting cold.”

James hesitated, something he rarely did. "I was on my way to tell you, alpha. Emma said she would not be joining you for dinner."