Chapter 60 Elara's POV
I was walking back from Elder Miriam's quarters, my mind still reeling from everything she'd told me about Kaden's past, when I heard voices coming from the main hall.
One of them was Kaden's. The other was unfamiliar, deep, smooth, with an accent I couldn't place.
Curiosity drew me closer. I stopped at the entrance to the dining hall, not wanting to interrupt but unable to resist looking.
Kaden sat at the head of the long table, his posture tense. Ethan stood beside him, and across from them sat a man I had never seen before.
He was striking. Tall, with dark hair and sharp features. Dressed in expensive clothes that screamed power and wealth, everything about him radiated authority.
An Alpha I could sense even from here.
The stranger's eyes shifted to me the moment I appeared in the doorway. A smile crossed his face.
Kaden's head snapped toward me. Something flashed in his eyes, surprise, concern, and something else I couldn't identify.
The stranger walked toward me before Kaden could say anything else. He moved with the kind of confidence that came from never being told no.
He took my hand before I could react and brought it to his lips and kissed my knuckles gently.
The sound that came from Kaden was somewhere between a growl and a snarl.
His chair screeched loudly as he stood abruptly. He was across the room in seconds, his hand gripping Xavier's shoulder and pulling him away from me.
"That's enough." Kaden said, his voice tight with barely controlled anger.
Xavier released my hand, amusement dancing in his eyes. "My apologies, Alpha Kaden. I didn't mean to overstep. It's customary in my pack to greet all members with respect."
"She has been greeted and now steps back."
The tension in the room was suffocating. Ethan had moved closer as well, his hand resting on his weapon.
Xavier held up his hands in a gesture of peace and took several steps back. "Of course. I meant no disrespect."
Kaden positioned himself between me and Xavier, like a physical barrier.
"This is Elara." Kaden said stiffly. "A member of my pack."
"Just a pack member?" Xavier's eyes swept over me with interest. "She must be quite important for you to react so... protectively."
"Her importance is my concern, not yours."
Xavier's smile widened. "Fair enough." He looked at me directly. "Tell me, Elara, are you mated?"
The question hung in the air.
Kaden's entire body went rigid. I could see his hands clenching into fists at his sides.
I opened my mouth to answer though I had no idea what I was going to say when Ethan suddenly stepped forward.
"Alpha Xavier." Ethan interrupted smoothly.
"Perhaps we should discuss another reason for your visit? You mentioned urgent business regarding threats to the packs."
Xavier's eyes lingered on me for another moment before he turned back to Ethan. "Yes. Of course. Though I must say, I find the company here quite... intriguing."
"The business," Kaden said firmly.
"Very well." Xavier moved back to his seat at the table. "I came to warn you about Erebus's movements. They've been more active in the southern territories. Three packs attacked in the last month alone."
As they began discussing strategy and threats, I quietly slipped out of the hall. My presence was clearly causing tension, and I had no desire to complicate whatever political discussion they were having.
I made my way back to my quarters, my mind spinning.
Xavier had asked if I was mated. The question had been innocent enough on the surface, but the way Kaden had reacted...
He didn't want Xavier to know about our bond and didn't want to claim me publicly.
I should have known that nothing had changed despite his promises to make things right.
But what Elder Miriam had told me kept echoing in my mind.
Kaden's past, his history, the things that had shaped him into the man he was.
His mother died when he was young. His father grew cold and distant in his grief, barely acknowledging his own son. And his twin sister Kaden had a twin sister who had disappeared just vanished one day and was never found.
Kaden had grown up alone surrounded by pack members but fundamentally isolated. Expected to be strong, to be Alpha, to never show weakness or need.
No wonder he had panicked when the mate bond felt too strong. No wonder he had pushed me away rather than risk being vulnerable.
It didn't excuse what he had done but it helped me understand it.
A knock on my door interrupted my thoughts.
"Come in." I called.
Kaden entered, looking exhausted. "I wanted to check on you after what happened with Xavier."
"I'm fine he was just being polite."
"He was testing boundaries seeing how far he could push before I reacted."
"Why would he do that?"
"Because that's what Alphas do, we test each other to look for weaknesses."
Kaden moved further into the room. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
"You didn't but you also didn't tell him about the bond."
Kaden was quiet for a long moment. "No. I didn't."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't have the right to claim you publicly when you have made it clear you can't forgive me. I won't trap you into being recognized as my mate if that's not what you want."
The honesty in his voice surprised me.
"What if I said I wanted to try?" I asked quietly.
His head snapped up. "What?"
"What if I said I was willing to give our bond another chance? Not because I have forgiven everything. Not because I trust you completely. But because..."
I placed my hand on my stomach. "Because our baby deserves to have both parents. Deserves to grow up in a home where we at least try to make things work."
Kaden stared at me like he couldn't quite believe what he was hearing. "You mean that?"
"I mean I'm willing to try for the baby's sake. That doesn't mean it'll be easy. That doesn't mean I won't have moments where I remember the rejection and want to run. But I'm willing to see if we can build something. If you can prove you've really changed."
He crossed the room in two strides and dropped to his knees in front of me and took both my hands in his.
"I will prove it," He said, his voice rough with emotion.
"Every day for the rest of my life if I have to. I will prove that I'm worthy of you and our child."
"Kaden-”
"Thank you," he whispered.
"Thank you for giving me this chance."
I looked down at him, at this powerful Alpha kneeling before me, and felt something shift in my chest.
Maybe this could work, maybe we could find a way forward.
For our baby's sake, I had to at least try.