CHAPTER 6

ESMERAY

The first rays of the new dawn felt gentle on my skin through my window, as did the lingering troubles from last night.

I took a deep breath and cupped my hands around my face, lazily lying in bed.

My fingers tingled around my lips as memories of last night with my friend flashed through my mind, and I was overcome by a wave of surreal emotions.

Just as I was lost in thought, the door to my room swung open, and Miriam entered with my breakfast, snapping me back to reality.

This morning, I decided to have breakfast in bed because I didn't feel like going downstairs just yet. Plus, I wanted to avoid a certain someone who is probably at the dining table right now.

"Here's your meal, Esmeray," she said, placing it neatly on the bed and sitting beside me, her eyes fixed on me.

"What?" I asked, spooning some food into my mouth.

She remained silent, rolling her eyes and propping her hands beneath her chin.

I put down the spoon and crossed my arms over my chest, still in my nightwear. "What's with the look, Miriam?"

"Gosh... don't keep me in suspense. Tell me what happened yesterday. And why did I see you coming back in Beta Leon's arms?"

As Miriam asked her question, the troubles that had weighed on my heart suddenly felt lighter.

And now the troubles I had felt seemed light on my heart, weighed down once again after Miriam's question.

I let out a deep sigh and lifted my gaze upwards, staring into nothingness. "It was magical, Miriam. The kiss was magical. My mate doesn't hate me," I exclaimed with enthusiasm.

"Although Leon followed me to his tent and caught us together," I added in a low voice.

"You kissed the alpha?"

"And he liked it, Miriam. Well, until..."

"Until what? Don't leave me hanging."

"Until he threw me out," I said quietly. "But I can swear, from that kiss, there's a chance for us to be together."

"Esmeray, he threw you out after kissing you, and that tells you something about the kind of man he is. What makes you think you have a chance with him after that?" Miriam's irritation was evident as she got up from the bed.

"Because the man I kissed was different from the one who rejected me in the chambers, and different from the one who threw me out," I pleaded.

"Esmeray..."

"Look, I know it sounds foolish, but I'm worried about him."

"What?" Miriam exclaimed, placing her hands on her waist with a shocked expression.

"Yes, I feel like he carries a heavy burden in his heart that he can't share with anyone, not even with me, his fated mate," I said, cupping my cheeks with my hands. "But if I can reach his heart, I can change that."

"Esmeray, this alpha is ruthless. You don't even know his name or anything about him. Maybe I shouldn't have helped you see him last night." Her gaze fell to the ground, sadness reflecting in her eyes as she crossed her arms.

"Miriam..."

"I'm only worried about you, princess. You're too young to experience your first heartbreak."

"You talk as if we're not the same age, Miriam."

"Well, actually, I'm older by a few months," she said, lifting her head high.

"Nice try, and yet you haven't found your mate," I chuckled, noticing a glare forming on her face. "Besides, I was already heartbroken the moment my mate rejected me."

"And now that hole is getting deeper, Esmeray." Miriam stepped forward, clasping my hands in hers. "Isn't it time to let it go? You're young, and there's a possibility that he won't win the Alpha Fist, and the alpha who does will be your true mate."

"And what if he does win? I'll be even more heartbroken that I didn't follow my heart and get him to claim me."

"Alright, Esmeray." Miriam raised her hands in surrender. "I give up. Don't say I didn't warn you."

I gently held Miriam's soft cheeks in my hands and met her gaze. "Miriam take it easy." And I saw a faint smile appeared on her lips.

"Up, up, up, sister! Get up!" I said joyfully.

"What is it? Why are you suddenly so enthusiastic?"

"Mother just mind-linked me. She says I should get dressed and meet her and Father at the king's chambers. They're going to address the surviving alphas. It's also a chance for me to see my mate again," I said, overflowing with excitement as I spoke.

Recently, I found myself frequently placing my fingers on my lips, and I continued the habit while walking down the stairs in my red marble gown, heading towards the king's chambers. The kiss I had shared with my mate kept replaying in my mind since last night.

The smile on my face, lost in thought, disappeared the moment I spotted Leon entering the royal palace through the main door. I considered asking him where he had come from, but after he had caught me with my mate last night, I had been avoiding conversations with him.

I tried to quicken my pace, attempting to evade his steps and reach the passage that led to the chambers before him. However, his remarkable agility allowed him to catch up to me.

"Esmeray, we need to talk," he said, gripping my arm and forcing me to face him.

"Leon..."

"What were you doing with Caesar when I found him naked in the warriors' chambers last night?"

"Who is Caesar?" I asked, genuinely not knowing the name.

"Don't play dumb. The alpha whose tent I traced your scent to," he retorted.

Hearing the name for the first time, I twitched in response to Leon's question, failing to provide him with an answer.

He sighed and ran his hands over his forehead in frustration. "Come on, Esmeray. Do you realize what your father would do to that alpha if I told him I caught you with him last night?"

I gasped at the thought, my eyes widening. "No, Leon, you cannot tell my father that you found me at Caesar's tent."

He placed both hands on his waist. "So now you're defending him?"

I averted my gaze from his without uttering a word.

"Tell me what you're hiding between you and Caesar," he insisted.

I couldn't control the situation any longer, especially since Leon had been my childhood friend since we were kids. I couldn't keep this secret from him, especially after he followed me to my mate's tent last night.

Aware that the walls had ears and I didn't want anyone to know about my fated mate just yet, I grabbed his wrist and motioned him back up the stairs with me to my room, the same ones I had just descended.

"Listen, Leon, you can't tell my parents what I'm about to reveal to you," I said after closing the door to my room behind us.

"Okay, I'm listening," he said, his hands returning to his waist as his eyes remained fixed on me.

I took a deep breath to steady my emotions at that moment. "I found my mate before the Alpha Fist is over."

"What?" he said, his expression blank.

"I know it sounds crazy, even to me. But when we met in the chambers, Fox howled 'mate'."

"So, who is he? Caesar?" he asked, pointing his hand towards the door with a glare.

I shifted my gaze and nodded.

"Are you happy for me, Leon?" I asked, bringing my gaze back to his icy blue eyes.

"Happy? This could be a curse, Esmeray."

"No, it's not. Why would you say that?"

"You're the first princess to find your mate before the Alpha Fist, and you think that's a good sign?" He squeezed his forehead, pacing back and forth in front of me.

"I know it has never happened before, but it definitely doesn't feel like a curse, Leon," I replied, my face reflecting determination.

"And how would you know that? Are you some kind of goddess?"

"Because our kiss was magical, Leon."

"Fuck!" he exclaimed, frustration evident in his voice. "You're kissing him now?" he yelled, both hands running through his hair vigorously.

"What's wrong with you, Leon? You're supposed to be happy for me here."

"I'm not okay! And that's because I don't want you to be cursed. Don't you understand that?"

"The only thing I understand is that I've longed for a mate, and I finally found one. I'm not giving him up just because I wasn't mated to him the same way my predecessors mated their Alpha."

"Caesar can't be good for you, Esmeray," he said, pointing his finger.

"You're not the one to decide that, Leon!"

I stormed out of my room, slamming the door behind me without giving him a backward glance. And for the first time in a long time, my childhood friend and I had an argument because of my mate.