VESTA'S POV Lucius hadn't shown his face since the bewildering apology and the even more baffling bouquet of lilies.I refused to give him the satisfaction of my worry. He wouldn't see me crumble, wouldn't witness the fear gnawing at my insides. Instead, I adopted a façade of aloof indifference, immersing myself in books and trivial pursuits.One particularly tedious afternoon, as I was attempting to lose myself in a historical romance novel (anything to distract myself from the reality of my situation), the door creaked open. I glanced up, fully expecting a maid with a tray of untouched delicacies.Instead, Lucius stood there, his face an unreadable mask. My stomach clenched, a primal reaction I couldn't control."Vesta," he began, his voice devoid of warmth. "May I come in?"I raised an eyebrow, skepticism lacing my voice. "May you? Isn't this your palace? Isn't this your wing? By all means, Alpha King, make yourself comfortable."He ignored the sarcasm, entering the room and closin
ALPHA LUCIUS'S POV I paced back and forth in the dimly lit room. Dom. Vesta's new flame. The poor fool didn't know what he'd gotten himself into. But then again, none of them ever did.Nana, my trusted advisor, stood by the door, her arms crossed over her chest. "Lucius, you need to let him go," she urged, her voice a mixture of concern and frustration. "This isn't going to end well for any of us."I stopped my pacing and turned to face her, my gaze cold and unyielding. "I'll decide what's best for my pack, Nana. And right now, what's best is for Vesta to come back to where she belongs."Nana shook her head, her expression grave. "But forcing her hand like this? You think she'll just forgive you for kidnapping her lover?"I scoffed, the sound sharp in the silence of the room. "Vesta knows how this works. She knows the consequences of defying me.""She also knows how much you've changed," Nana countered, her voice softening slightly. "She loved you once, Lucius. But now? Now she's afra
ALPHA LUCIUS'S POV I adjourned to the dining room to have my breakfast before I left for the meeting I was having later today. I got to the dining and it was already set with the maids standing at the corner to serve me. I was hoping to meet her there but she wasn’t there and it was like she was avoiding him for some reason, it wasn't like I didn’t know what it was. Last night she also didn’t show up for dinner and I was begging to be worried. She was ready to push everything aside as long as it would result in her not seeing me. I sat down and loosened the button of my shirt and sat down with an impatient aura lingering around. After the maid was done serving my food, she was about to turn to leave when I called her back. “Serve that plate too.” I gestured at the side of the table where Vesta was supposed to be seated. The maid hesitated for some reason and I was pissed. “Didn’t you hear what I said? I said you should serve that plate! Are you trying to go against me?” I sna
VESTA'S POV I stirred from my slumber, blinking groggily as I tried to make sense of the figure standing in the dimly lit room. Lucius. My heart skipped a beat as I sat up, my mind racing with a thousand questions. Why was he here? And why did he look so serious?"Lucius?" I asked, my voice still thick with sleep. "What are you doing here?"He didn't answer immediately, instead fixing me with a piercing gaze that made my skin prickle with unease. "Vesta," he said, his voice low and measured. "Do you want to say goodbye to Dom?"My heart lurched at the mention of Dom's name, a pang of guilt washing over me. I hadn't seen him since Lucius had taken him captive, and the thought of him leaving without so much as a farewell filled me with a sense of sadness I couldn't quite shake."I-I don't know," I stammered, torn between wanting to see Dom one last time and dreading the inevitable confrontation with Lucius.Lucius nodded, as if he had expected my response. "He's leaving tonight," he sa
VESTA'S POVA bony hand clamped over my mouth, stifling the scream that threatened to erupt from my throat. The world swam into focus, revealing Nana looming over me, her usually bright eyes narrowed with a strange intensity. "Luna," she rasped, her voice barely a whisper. "Silence." I blinked, disoriented. Sleep clung to me like cobwebs, remnants of a dream both vivid and unsettling. Nana, the palace sage, hadn't visited me since I… since Lucius… The memory sent a fresh wave of nausea rolling through me. "Nana?" I croaked, my voice hoarse. "What are you doing?" She removed her hand, her gaze unwavering. "Get dressed, Luna. We have a walk to take." I stared at her, my initial panic ebbing into a dull ache. What did she want? What walk? I hadn't the energy, or the will, to argue. The fight had been slowly draining out of me with each passing sunrise, replaced by a weary acceptance of my fate. Lucius might be a brute, a barbaric alpha who'd claimed me with more force than finesse, b
ALPHA LUCIUS'S POVFrustration gnawed at me like a persistent wolf pup. Dinner with Vesta had been a tense affair, the air thick with unspoken words and simmering resentment. I'd hoped for a flicker of warmth, a hint of the old Vesta who used to challenge me, tease me, even defy me. This new Vesta, silent and withdrawn, was a stranger cloaked in the familiar scent of honeysuckle. "Tired already?" I asked, a touch of annoyance creeping into my voice as she pushed back from the table. The barely touched meal mocked our strained attempt at civility. "Yes," she replied, her voice devoid of its usual fire. "The journey back was long." There it was again. The distance. The constant reminder that I'd taken her away from her life, her pack. But it wasn't like she'd had a choice. The pull of the mate bond was undeniable, a primal force that transcended mere desire. She was mine, and I was hers, an unbreakable tether that stretched across the miles. "Very well," I rumbled, pushing myself out
ALPHA LUCIUS'S POV I had a meeting I needed to attend, which unfortunately I wouldn’t be able to ignore like the rest. It was about the Packs security and the moment a mistake happened there it was a risk even I wasn’t willing to take. I had a strict deadline by which everyone present had to be there because I was not letting anyone in after my entrance, which was an insult. I checked the time on my watch and I still wasn’t convinced that I was supposed to be this early so I sank back into my chair. There was a knock on my door and I frowned in annoyance, this wasn’t a time for me to attend to anyone and the conference meeting was the only one in my schedule today. I ignored whoever was knocking on the door till I suddenly remembered that I asked a maid to call Vesta in for me. “Who’s that?” I inquired coldly. “It’s me, you called for me.” She replied calmly: I was convinced and I asked her to come in. She walked in with a surprisingly calm countenance on her face and shut the
ALPHA LUCIUS'S POV I wondered why she hated me. Every time I looked at Vesta, the raw pain in her eyes was a constant reminder of my own shortcomings. Two years. Two years I'd watched Vesta fight our bond with every fiber of her being. Two years of clenched jaws and strange stares, a constant reminder of the past I desperately wanted to amend. Vesta sat by the window, her back was rigid, her silence a wall I desperately wanted to breach. With a deep breath, I approached with a bouquet of wildflowers clutched tightly in my hand. “Vesta," I began. "May I come in?" I was greeted with silence. I was beginning to get frustrated but I forced it down. This wasn't about me. This was about making amends, however flimsy they might seem. I pushed the door open further, stepping into the room. "I brought you these," I stated, extending the bouquet towards her. They were violets and lilies, her favorites. It was a long shot, a gamble, but her reaction was worth the risk. Surprised crossed her