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18.
Last Updated:
2024-06-03 18:52:20
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Lycan King's Jaded Mate 19.
As we stepped out of the tense atmosphere of the consulate room, I felt a subtle shift in Chase's demeanor. It was like he’d been trying to hold something in when we were still there. His hand, which had been firm and steady moments ago, now trembled when we got to the cold hallway. He let go of my hand and placed his hands on the wall as he began hyperventilating. His breaths came in ragged gasps, as his chest rose and fell with the effort of each inhalation.I watched in confusion, barely having an idea of what was going on. He had seemed so composed and in control, and now, he seemed like he was practically on the verge of falling apart right before my eyes. It was a startling sight, one that I had never witnessed before in the short time I’ve known him. ‘What’s going on?’ Nia asked, voicing my thoughts.‘I have no idea,’ I replied, beginning to panic. ‘But whatever it is, it’s beginning to affect him deeply.’ “Are you okay?” I asked Chase as he continued hyperventilating. With
Last Updated : 2024-06-12Lycan King's Jaded Mate 20.
For a moment, there was only the sound of our shallow breaths mingling in the silence. His eyes met mine briefly, but he quickly averted his gaze, his expression unreadable. “So are you going to tell me what just happened?” I asked when I noticed he was a bit calmer. “It’s nothing,” Chase said as he got to his feet and began to button his shirt. “It’s not nothing. You looked like you were in genuine pain or on fire.” I tried to stop myself from staring at the length of his torso, but it was pointless. He looked extremely gorgeous, and I tore my eyes away when he caught me looking. He sighed as he fixed his cuff links, and for some reason, I found the act endearing. He looked so sexy, and I wondered what it would feel like if he…‘Earth to Zara,’ Nia called out, dragging my attention back to what was happening. I blinked, suddenly aware of the heat rising to my cheeks as I tore my gaze away from Chase's body.“What happened, Chase?” I asked again. Chase exhaled deeply, his expre
Last Updated : 2024-06-12Lycan King's Jaded Mate 21.
CHASE.Zara’s hand was still clasped in mine, and even though we sat in the perfectly air-conditioned car completely silent, there was something that moment had done to us. The gentle sound of the car engine and the cool air from the air conditioner did nothing to get rid of the tension that had settled between us. It was not a tension born of discomfort, but one that had stemmed from a bond we had both shared. She’d seen me at my worst after overextending myself and my power, and she’d glazed past it like it was just a normal Tuesday in her life. It was easy being with her and talking to her. It was easy being myself around her and that was especially hard given the responsibilities I had and who I was. As a leader, I was used to wearing a mask, and always presenting strength and assurance. I never wanted to live like that even with the woman I was betrothed to. This was partly why I had not connected at all with Sabrina and didn’t think I could wed her. But with Zara, the mask s
Last Updated : 2024-06-20Lycan King's Jaded Mate 22.
ZARA.After dinner, I leaned back and watched with genuine interest in my eyes as the entire family laughed and shared inside jokes, the feeling of warmth surrounding me. I’ve never experienced this kind of familial love, and it felt entirely new to me. It felt like I was watching the scene play out while I was in an entirely different room. ‘Is this what it feels like?’ Nia asked from within me and I instantly knew what she meant.‘Yeah! This was what we missed out on,’ I responded. Growing up, I’d watched other people find their way back to family no matter the storm they encountered on the way, it was always a given. Fuck up, family. Break up, family. Graduation, family. First turning, family. Mating, family. Marriage, family. Whatever happened, there was always family at the end of it, and I never had that. Not since my mother died…‘I think we’ve seen enough,’ Nia said. ‘Yup,’ I agreed and pulled myself to my feet, holding my glass of wine with me. Whatever was in it was p
Last Updated : 2024-06-24Lycan King's Jaded Mate 23.
We both stood on the balcony, sipping from our glasses and looking up at the sky, not a word spoken, and yet I couldn’t be any more comfortable. It was weird how safe I felt with Chase especially after his nephew had completely shattered my heart. Maybe I deserve this mark on my wrist telling the whole world who I really was. “Does it seem eerily quiet to you?” Chase asked, breaking the silence before I could go through my usual rabbit hole of self-deprecation. I was spending more and more time in that hole and I completely hated it. I shook my head. “I’m starting to have a migraine and I need to sleep.”Chase stretched and stood upright. “Time to go then.”I placed my empty wine glass on the small table on the balcony and walked into the house and sure enough, it was pretty quiet. Suddenly, Ryan bounded down the stairs, his eyes darting around as if he’d stolen a cookie from the cookie jar that no one was supposed to touch. “We’re about to leave,” Chase started. “Where’s everyon
Last Updated : 2024-06-24Lycan King's Jaded Mate 24.
Silence descended upon the room, thick and heavy. This would be our second time sharing a room, sharing a bed and somehow every other person under this roof thinks we’re going to have sex. Was that what they expected of me when I got married to Chase? ‘Of course! You guys are married. That’s literally the most basic expectation,’ Nia said, rolling her eyes. Chase and I hadn’t spoken about sexual expectations and I had no idea if that was what he expected. As the silence thickened, I couldn't help but feel like I had to talk to fill it. “It's... um... quite a room,” I finally mumbled, trying to break the tension. Chase chuckled nervously, his eyes avoiding mine. “Yeah, it's... something. They can be a lot sometimes.” His voice trailed off, but his gaze lingered on me for a moment too long, sending shivers down my spine. “Yeah,” I said dryly, tearing my gaze from him. “I can sleep in the living room if you want,” Chase said, reaching to grab a pillow. “No, please don
Last Updated : 2024-06-24Lycan King's Jaded Mate 25.
CHASE.As soon as I closed the bedroom door behind me, I pressed my back to it and took in a deep breath. The cool wood did a lot to calm the heat that had been building up within me.‘What the fuck did you just do?’ Drew growled, very displeased with my decision. Both our blood had been boiling and it had taken all the self-control in me to leave the room tonight. All I wanted to do this evening was to draw Zara close and kiss her, to lose myself in the feeling of her warmth. Her scent had filled my nostrils all night and her presence had been intoxicating. It made me drunker faster than the wine we had all drank. But I couldn’t help but beat myself up about everything that had happened.When we were kissing, I forgot everything that clouded my mind for a minute. It felt right, natural, and like it was supposed to happen. But then, even in the haze of passion, I felt a nagging doubt creep in. I couldn’t help but think if I was doing this for the right reasons, or if I was just doi
Last Updated : 2024-07-01Lycan King's Jaded Mate 26.
‘Zara doesn’t think you’re a freak,’ Drew said, dragging me back to the present. I sighed. ‘I know.’I heard footsteps coming down the stairs and Margaret came down. “Are you okay? I heard pacing,” she asked. “I don’t know if I can do this,” I blurted out before I could stop myself, knowing that there was nothing I could hide from Margaret. “Do what?”I sighed for the millionth time that night. “I think Zara is my real mate. No, I’m sure, but I have to wait for three months so that the bond can truly solidify.”“Oh, my Lumus. That’s great news, Chase!” Margaret said. “How did that happen?”I narrated my findings to her, starting from the first time I’d met Zara and how I always felt around her. It felt good to finally open up to someone about all this. She nodded when I was done. “You should know that the bond isn’t going to treat you nicely when you’re next to her.”I ran my hand through my hair. “That’s why I’m down here. I couldn’t bear to be next to her without holding her.”
Last Updated : 2024-07-01
Latest chapter
Lycan King's Jaded Mate EPILOGUE
I gripped the leather of the car seat so tightly I was certain my nails would leave marks. The pain I felt was one I’d never felt before in all my life and I was trying… and failing terribly… to keep it together. I couldn’t catch my breath. My vision blurred with tears, and all I could do was gasp, clutching my belly as if I could somehow contain the ache that tore through me. Okay, I’d heard tales about childbirth and even Margaret had scared me with one a couple of days ago, but I didn’t think that it would be this painful. Beside me, Chase was handling the whole situation even worse than me. He was practically yelling at the frightened driver and I was just hoping that we don’t end up driving up a tree with how much tension filled this car. “Can’t you go any faster?” Chase said to the driver, his hand reaching for mine. I could feel his worry, but I couldn’t comfort him right now, not when I was clinging to what little composure I had left. He rubbed my hand. “It’s okay,
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 88.
ZARA. My heart was pounding when Chase and I got into the car, making our way back to the airport. This entire day has come as a shock. I mean, I had no idea that Chase was planning this. I sat in the car, watching the gorgeous trees in the kingdom I'd call home all my life blur past. Tears were stinging my eyes, but they were not falling. I simply held my husband's hand and from time to time, felt him give me a reassuring squeeze. Still, in the midst of everything, I was still in disbelief and couldn't wrap my head around the fact that Asher and Lina had gone to those lengths to get rid of me. They had been having an affair since the beginning of our relationship and I had no idea because Asher had gone extra lengths to make sure I wouldn't know he was cheating. And I almost married him. Almost merged my life with his. And to rape me? Really? Had I never meant a thing to them? Had I always been a thorn in their sides? Was that it? Had they hated me that much? To be able to g
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 87.
I took a step away so that everyone could focus on the bouncer as I walked behind Zara’s chair to keep her company for a while. My hands found her shoulders and began gently massaging. She seemed so stiff and in shock and I wanted to do anything to make her feel better. Maybe a kiss. Or a hug. Anything to take off the tortured look on her face. I leaned down to her ear as I whispered. “I’m sorry.” She squeezed my hand on her shoulders and blinked, the words she said shocking me a bit. “I love you, Chase. More than you’ll ever know.” “You’re not upset? I did this without you knowing?” She looked up to smile at me. “I love that you’re protecting me and that’s all that matters.” I squeezed her shoulders again and lifted my head to face everyone once more. “You can speak now!” I ordered the bouncer. “I was hired to make Zara…” I cut him off quickly. “That’s queen Zara of Betnerd to you.” He cleared his throat. “I was hired to make queen Zara look compromised,” he said, look
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 86.
CHASE. Lina’s voice cut through the council again, shrill and annoying and I was seriously getting tired of her screaming. “So that’s it, isn’t it?” she spat. “You’ve always been the whore. You and Chase, together that night, carrying on like you had some claim to him.” The whore word again? When was she going to learn? Maybe never, because that was why she opened her mouth to Edward and told him about Zara cheating on the bond when they visited. It was why he had the guts to insult her moments before I killed him. And now, even after being caught in a lie with her vile husband, Lina was still going to war for him. I was very impressed by how loyal she was no matter what was thrown their way, but she’d called my wife a whore and I wasn’t going to let that slide, not even one bit. Before she could spit out another vile word, I was already moving. I held out my hand as I grabbed Asher by the collar, and before anyone could blink, my fist crashed on his jaw again. He gasped in pain,
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 85.
Chase held the pendant, looking around as his eyes met mine. “This necklace held a spell that stopped Zara from feeling any pain when Asher was cheating on her. It was why she never knew.” I swallowed, the hurt and betrayal becoming more painful by the second. “All of these are lies,” Asher spat out, but Chase was not yet done. “Shut your mouth before I order the kingdom priest to step in,” Chase said. “You can do that then,” Asher mumbled, even though I could tell he was scared. “I will. But I also spoke to the priest's daughter who said that he’d made this spell for you, Asher. And how this spell was shattered on the night of Zara’s bachelorette party.” I sucked in breath without moving as the priest was ushered into the room. He’s old and had been the priest of the kingdom for as long as I could remember. The priest greeted the king by bowing his head as he sat on the table with us. Asher and Lina looked petrified. “So, what do you have to tell us about this?” Chase as
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 84.
ZARA. Excuse me? It took me a moment to process what I had just heard. A whole moment to figure out the rate of my heartbeat. This whole thing looked like a badly written movie script and I had no idea how much I could take in before I began to scream. It started like a play, with Chase revealing Lina’s branded mark, and how everything was slowly making sense. I replayed the night of the bachelorette party in my head, pieces of the puzzle slowly clicking together. I hadn’t been black out drunk that night… at least, not in the way I made myself believe. The truth was, I wanted to fall into someone else’s arms, to escape, even if just for a moment. It was a farewell to my freedom, a desperate attempt to hold on to something I could control before I got into a marriage that felt like a trap. Even if at that moment, I hadn't thought of it that way. Months before that, maybe even a year, Asher became a completely different person. I slowly started noticing that he was not the man I’
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 83.
Gasps filled the room as everyone took in the mark on her wrist, the shock most evident on Asher and Lina’s faces. But they didn’t gasp or flinched because they’d both known this all the while and had kept it a secret. I let go of her wrist as she tried to regain her composure. I looked at her and then Asher with satisfaction on my face. “Would you like to explain why you’re wearing a mark that only appears when someone’s slept with another wolf that isn’t their mate?” Lina’s eyes flashed with anger. She tried to hide her hand deeper into her coat, but everyone else had already seen it. The damage had already been done. “What are you playing at, Chase?” My brother yelled, clearly pissed. “What sick game is this?” “You!” Lina screamed at me, her index finger pointed shakily at my face. “You did something to me. You… you’re trying to set me up. That mark you just showed up now. It isn’t real.” “Then why are you desperately trying to make them believe you? Take out your hand and
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 82.
CHASE. The meeting hadn’t begun officially, but I was already livid. I couldn’t wait to put Asher and Lina in their place and make them pay dearly for everything they’d put Zara through. In a way, I was grateful for them because they were the main reason I was able to find my mate, the love of my life. My queen and the mother of my child. Hopefully, children. But still, it doesn’t dismiss what they’ve done and how much they’ve made her a laughing stock in her own kingdom. ‘Make sure to put them in their damn places,’ Drew growled. I tightened my palms together until it turned into a fist and clenched my jaw. ‘I fucking intend to.’ I knew that organising this meeting meant digging up past trauma for Zara, but it had to be done. Especially given the fact that she had no idea what I was doing. Seeing their ashen faces was the highlight of my mood right now. Gripping the table more, I asked again. “I asked you both a damn question!” I snapped. “Would you like to do the honors or
Lycan King's Jaded Mate 81.
I blinked at nothingness as the words kept repeating in my head. I was struggling so hard to come to terms with what I had just heard. It has been months since I've been back here, after I was thrown out like scum of the earth and then Chase had stood up for me. But now, I had no idea why I was here. I decided to leave Zakori behind and never look back, but for some reason, that didn't happen. For the longest time, this place had felt like home to me and I didn't know anywhere else. I barely traveled out of the kingdom and state because I didn't need to. I was content with the life I had here. Until the day of the wedding. The day my entire world came crashing down and I couldn't stop it. The place I'd grown up in, the place that used to feel like safety. Now felt like judgment. Like I was stepping into a trial. I wasn't ready for that again. I turned to Chase now, my eyes filled with questions. "Why are we here? I thought we were going to a tropical state or something?" My voi
