Chapter 63

Draven's POV

“It was my sixth birthday, and my father held a grand ball for me. Everyone from the kingdom and the neighbouring villages came,” I breathed, and my chest tightened as I relived the pain.

It was as fresh as if it happened just yesterday, and that pricked my heart more. It was a memory I would never forget; it would forever haunt me for the rest of my life.

“Are you alright?” Aveline asked, and I nodded stiffly.

“Coincidentally, that was also the night of the full red moon. To everyone in the pack, it was a double celebration, but they all… didn’t know what awaited them.” I said, and I hiccuped terribly.

I couldn’t get the words out even if I wanted to, and that made me realise I had never grown out of what happened that night. I was still that young prince who had been more horrible than a monster.

“It was supposed to be…” I started, but I stopped, shivering as the horror, the agony, and the endless screams of my parents roared back through me.

The bloodshed… it was just too much.

“It was just supposed to be a birthday ball, but it became horrible… I…”

I closed my eyes. I couldn’t hide it. Not from her.

Not after the way she had clung to me, trusted me, let me see every vulnerable part of her when she pulled me close and kissed me like she needed my breath more than her own.

“You don’t have to beat yourself up, Draven. If you can’t say it now, I will be here to listen to you,” she said, and that eased my worries a bit.

“I wasn’t supposed to… feel this much,” I said quietly.

It felt wrong, admitting it. Weak, even. But her hand slid down to my chest, resting right over my heartbeat wild, uneven, completely out of control.

Her touch steadied me and unravelled me all at once.

“I’m an Alpha,” I whispered. “I’m supposed to keep control. I’m supposed to protect you, not…”

My throat tightened.

Not fall apart because your lips made me forget every rule I ever lived by. Made me forget the pains that held me captive.

She shifted closer, her forehead pressing against mine, her breath warm and soft. “You’re not falling apart,” she murmured. “You’re finally letting yourself feel.”

Her words hit harder than any battle wound.

I let my fingers trace the curve of her back, slow, reverent nothing like the urgency from before. This touch felt like speaking a truth I’d never had the courage to say aloud.

“I don’t want this to ruin you,” I said, voice raw. “Being with me… us being together… it comes with danger. With consequences.”

I breathed shakily as I touched her face, not wanting her to feel burdened with what was going on inside me.

She lifted her head, eyes fierce and tender all at once. “I don’t know what you’re scared of, and it doesn’t seem like we can run away from it,” she said.

Her lips brushed mine, so soft it nearly destroyed me.

“But I choose you anyway. I don’t know what we’ll have to go through together, but I want to remind you that whatever happens, I won’t desert you.”

My chest clenched. A deep, aching swell of emotion rose where the hunger had been minutes ago. Not lust. Not dominance.

Something worse.

Something better.

“I don’t deserve you,” I murmured, pressing my hand to her lips.

She smiled small, sad, beautiful. “Maybe not. But you’re the one I want.”

I pulled her into my arms then, holding her tighter than I meant to, burying my face in her hair, breathing her in like she was the only thing keeping me alive.

Because maybe she was.

“Stay,” I whispered, the words I’d never said to anyone. “Just stay with me. Don’t go anywhere. No matter what, I will protect us… I promise you.”

Her arms wrapped around my waist, warm and sure. “I’m not going anywhere.”

And for the first time in years, the fear in my chest eased… replaced by something far scarier. Hope.

A feeling a monster like me should never harbour, but with her, I wanted to feel. To be loved.

“You are everything I live for, Aveline,” I whispered as I hugged her tightly, closing my eyes as I listened to our heartbeats, seeming to rhyme. With nothing to worry about, or maybe just choosing not to we fell asleep together.

I woke the next day in the cave to find the bed empty, and when I looked around, there was no sign of Aveline. Panic clawed at my chest.

Her words from last night echoed in my mind, and I wondered if she had gone back on them. Maybe she had left, not wanting to deal with a man with so many baggages and secrets.

“Aveline!” I called, running out of the cave, forgetting my mask, sprinting toward the lake. My heart eased when I saw her standing at the water’s edge, staring at it.

The slit indigo colour of the morning sun shone on the lake, turning it serene, and Aveline stood out beautifully against the backdrop.

“Mate is so beautiful,” Ryder purred.

“Aveline!” I called again, and she turned to me, her eyes filled with fear, making my concern spike.

“Why are you here? I thought you left?” I murmured, pulling her into my arms tightly.

“Why do you think I would do that?” she asked, but I couldn’t reply. I just hugged her tighter.

We stayed like that for a long time, both harbouring fears we couldn’t voice. But I knew as long as we had each other, things would only get better.

“Your Majesty,” she called softly.

“Hmm,” I answered.

“What if we can’t actually stay together? Shouldn’t you be worried about that?” she mumbled, and her question intrigued me.

“Why are you asking such things?” I asked, tilting her chin up to look at me.

“Maybe because I’m being realistic, and I figured it was time to face reality,” she said with a faint smile, and my shoulders slumped. Something about the smile made suspicion bloom in my chest.

“This… you are Aveline, right?” I asked, and she only chuckled.

“What do you think?” she retorted with a wink, leaving me dumbfounded.

What was going on with her?