Chapter 90 Chapter 90
LUCIAN’S POV
I woke before dawn with Ailsa wrapped in my arms. The room was still dark and the world was still quiet. I looked at Ailsa who turned slightly in her sleep, her hair spilled across the pillow. She must be very tired after I wore her out yesterday.
After having her on my desk, I couldn’t resist having her again on our bed. I smiled when I remembered how she begged me yesterday to let her come after teasing her and the pleasure on her face when she finally came. My cock stirred.
Don’t do that now. I was talking like it could understand.
I couldn’t start today with a hard on. Ailsa’s hand moved against my chest, her fingers warm. The bond thrummed between us. I allowed myself to feel this moment for just a little while before I left.
I leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead, gently enough not to wake her. Her brow creased and she shifted without opening her eyes, a soft sound escaping her throat as if she sensed my movements. She sounded sexy even in her sleep and I wanted nothing more than to let myself go in her warmness and then I realized something I had been scared to admit.
I loved Ailsa.
I didn’t want to admit it all along. Perhaps, I was scared that she would leave after I confessed my love to her just like Elara. I knew she was nothing like Elara. My chest tightened. But I couldn’t tell her yet, I didn’t know if she felt the same way. I couldn’t bear it if she didn’t love me.
I finally let all those thoughts go as I made my way into the bathroom. I took a shower and got dressed before leaving, I went beside Ailsa and leaned closer.
“I’ll be back soon, my love” I murmured. I hope that the meeting won’t take much of my time and I would be back to Ailsa.
I promised to protect Ailsa and I was going to do that with my life. I’d make sure she feels safe as I leave today. I gave her one last kiss on her lips and she moved again but she didn’t wake up.
Good. I didn’t want her to wake up to see me leaving because if she told me to stay. I might just ditch the meeting to stay back with her. I left the room without looking back already missing Ailsa’s warmth.
I went to my office to put on my armor. I prepared for the meeting the same way I prepared for war. Silently and precisely with no room for hesitation. The armor went on piece by piece. I stood before the mirror only long enough to meet my own eyes.
The door opened and Aiden walked inside.
“You’re leaving earlier than planned” he said.
“I want to be back before nightfall” I stated simply.
“You always stay an extra day before”
“That was when I had no one to come home to. I just want to be done with this meeting”
“Understandable. You know he’ll be there right?”
I knew the he, he was talking about. Frankly, I didn’t care.
“I know. I’ll wait for him to bring up the topic first” Aiden nodded. Then he spread different files on the desk and I scanned them without needing explanations.
“Ailsa would come up in the meeting. You know the elders would be there. Some Alphas would support, while some would remain neutral. The elders would try to make you give in to their demands too”
“I don’t care about that too. Tell me something else. Which packs are still whispering about her being a rogue?”
“More than before. Your resistant to denounce her had made some of them angrier, they see it as provocation to the elders” I gave a humorless laugh.
“As if I care about what they think”
That was the truth. I was the boss of myself and I listened to no one. Making Ailsa Luna was me choosing myself over the pack. I realized that more than the pack, I cared for Ailsa greatly. There was no chance I was letting her slip through my hands. The Moon Goddess, wouldn’t have made her my mate if she didn’t want her to be a Luna.
I leaned back against the table, my arms brazed and my gaze distant.
“If the elders move together, they won’t come for me directly” Aiden nodded.
“They never do”
“They’ll dress it as law and tradition, meant to create balance. They’ll come for her” my voice hardened. Silence stretched between us. Aiden broke it carefully.
“If they force a trial or demand bloodline verification, you won’t be able to shield her” I straightened.
“Then they won’t get the chance”
“You’re walking into that meeting knowing they might all be against you?”
“Yes. I’m the Alpha. If I don’t walk into the fire, I have no right to rule. If they are going to declare war, then so be it”
“I stand with your decision” Aiden said.
“It’s time for me to leave. Mind link me only if it’s an emergency. Emphasis on only if” Aiden nodded.
“I’ll hold things here”
I took two guards with me and shifted at the edge of the forest. My wolf bust free, brown and big, hitting the ground with great speed.
The meeting was already underway when I arrived, I shifted back into human form. I took my place without saying a word to anyone. My presence alone was enough to draw attention. And then I saw Lorcan.
His gaze snapped to mine immediately,a slow and ugly smile spreading across his face. I ignored him. The meeting dragged through disputes over borders, trade routes and patrol agreements. I contributed when necessary and the meeting was going well. Until someone made the mistake.
“What of your Luna?” An older Alpha asked. “There are concerns….” My gaze snapped up, cold.
“That topic is not open for discussion”
Silence fell. Then Lorcan laughed. A harsh sound that irked me.
“Still so defensive, Lucian?” He drawled. “Funny how you always settle for less” my wolf growled making me rise to my feet.
“Say that again” Lorcan’s grin widened.
“You heard me. You always settle for…” I moved before he completed that sentence.
The first blow knocked Lorcan off his feet. The second broke the bone in his nose. Rage flowed through my blood tore through me as I dragged Lorcan up and slammed him back down. Blood splattered the ground.
Other Alphas surged forward, trying to pull me away from him but I had already given my wolf control, every strike fueled by years of hate. It took three Alphas to tear me away from Lorcan. He lay bleeding and coughing, his eyes wild.
“This isn’t over, not by a long shot. The next time you might not be too lucky” I snarled.
“That’s enough, Lucian” another alpha said but I laid no attention to him.
The meeting ended after that. There was no resolution, no alliance. Just fractured power and simmering hatred. Lorcan looked at me with his bloodied face. My wolf was not satisfied seeing that he was still breathing.
As I moved away from the scene, another alpha caught up to me.
“Lucian, you have to avoid Lorcan. He’s reckless and dangerous” I scoffed.
“So am I”
He began to tell me how Lorcan tried to fight him for a piece of land in his pack and started scaring his pack members. He had to pay him so he could leave them alone. He then spoke about alliance between our packs but my attention fractured suddenly and violently.
Pain exploded through my body. It was primal. Then I felt a shift in the bond. I was trying to concentrate on one thing at a time because I began to feel dizzy. Aiden’s voice hammered against my mind, urgent and relentless.
Lucian, open the link. Now.
I staggered, my breath tearing from my lungs. I opened the link…
You have to come back now
“What happened?” I demanded about to shift.
Just come back
I didn’t hesitate. My bones snapped as I changed to my wolf. I didn’t mind the alpha who was calling me, I ran. The ground blurred beneath me as my wolf tore through the forest, my heart pounding and my blood roaring. The night deepened around me, the moon rising high as fear sharpened into something cold.
By the time, the pack house came into view, it was past midnight. Aiden was waiting. I shifted back, already moving.
“Where is she?” Aiden swallowed.
“The healers house”
I froze.
“Why?”
“She…she lost her child” his voice broke.
The world tilted. Baby. How? When? How come I didn’t know about this.
‘Now I understand why her scent was stronger’ my wolf said. He felt bad that we didn’t realize soon enough.
“No” I whispered.
“I’m sorry” Aiden didn’t look away.
I turned and ran.