Chapter 31 More Trouble
Isabella’s POV
THE NEXT DAY
I was carrying a tray of freshly brewed coffee down the corridor, minding my own business, when I heard it—
The loud, exaggerated click of heels behind me.
Too sharp.
Too slow.
Too… intentional.
Sierra.
Of course.
I felt her presence before she even spoke. Her perfume — thick, sugary, and headache-inducing — floated into my space like poison.
“Well, well, well… look who it is,” she drawled, voice dripping with fake sweetness.
I turned slightly, keeping my expression neutral. “Good morning.”
She smirked the way someone smirks right before starting a war.
“You walk too confidently for a maid,” she said, stepping around me so she could block my path. “It annoys me.”
I blinked. “I didn’t realize existing offended you.”
Her eyes narrowed. Her three minions who'd visited let out gasps like I’d slapped their Alpha.
Sierra stepped closer until the tip of her nose was almost touching mine.
“You think you’re strong, huh?” she whispered. “Because Leon allows you to walk around freely? Because you pour his wine and fold his clothes?”
I said nothing.
“You’re nothing but a servant,” she hissed. “And I’ll make sure you remember that.”
She suddenly shoved her shoulder into mine and intentionally bumped me so hard the tray wobbled.
I steadied it.
I didn’t spill a single drop.
Sierra’s face twisted with irritation.
“You’re really testing me.”
“I don’t want trouble,” I replied calmly. “I just want to work.”
“But I do want trouble.” She smiled coldly. “Especially with you.”
I tried to walk past her — but she snatched the tray from my hands.
“Sierra—”
Before I could finish, Sierra tipped the metal tray forward and—
SPLASH.
Coffee — hot but not boiling — poured all over her own chest.
She shrieked dramatically, staggering backward.
“Oh my Goddess—AHHH! My skin! You stupid maid!” she screamed. “You burned me!”
I stared at her, speechless.
She really did that.
She actually poured it on herself just to frame me.
Melanie, Rhea and Kora immediately panicked.
“Someone call Rogers!”
“Oh my Goddess, Sierra, your dress!”
“She’s injured!”
And just like that, feet thundered from every direction.
Two guards rushed over. And then, stomping down the hall with fury shaking the air—
Rogers.
The third Lycan prince.
Tall. Brutish. Hot-tempered.
His eyes landed on Sierra’s drenched dress and fake tears, and then snapped to me.
“What did you do to her?” he growled.
“I didn’t—”
SLAP.
The force of his hand knocked my head to the side. Pain exploded across my cheek, ringing in my ear.
“You dare touch her?” Rogers roared.
“I didn’t touch her!” I snapped back, holding my burning cheek. “She poured it on herself!”
Sierra gave a wounded, shaking whimper. “R-Rogers, she’s lying… it hurts… it hurts so much…”
My wolf growled deeply inside me.
“You think she would do this to herself?” Rogers barked.
“I watched her do it,” I said firmly. “If you don’t believe me—”
“ENOUGH.”
That one voice froze the entire hallway.
Leon.
He appeared behind Rogers like a shadow turning solid — tall, calm, terrifying. His golden eyes scanned the scene once and his expression darkened.
“What happened?” he asked coldly.
Before I could speak, Sierra leapt in front of Rogers.
“M-My King… your maid threw burning coffee on me… I don’t know why… I tried to greet her and she—”
“Sierra,” Leon said flatly, “don’t insult my intelligence.”
She blinked rapidly.
“M-My King?”
Leon didn’t even look at her. His gaze locked onto me — and anger flashed in his eyes the second he saw my cheek swelling.
He stepped closer. “Did he hit you?”
I swallowed. “Yes.”
Rogers stiffened. “She hurt Sierra, Leon—she—”
Leon turned his head slowly, dangerously, toward him.
“You hit my maid.”
Rogers growled. “She attacked my wom—”
“You. Hit. My maid.”
The force of Leon’s voice shook the walls. Rogers’ lips clamped shut instantly.
Leon took another step, now towering over his brother.
“You don’t lay hands on people in this palace without my permission. Ever.”
Rogers clenched his fists, humiliated. “She deserved—”
Leon didn’t let him finish.
He slammed Rogers against the wall with one hand, forearm digging into his brother’s throat, lifting him half-off the ground like he weighed nothing.
Sierra screamed.
“Leon! Stop!” Rogers choked out. “You’re overreacting—”
“You touch her again,” Leon said quietly, voice like ice,
“and I will break every bone in your body.”
The hallway was silent. Everyone held their breath.
Leon dropped him abruptly. Rogers landed hard, coughing.
Then Leon turned toward Sierra — and she immediately tried to look delicate and injured again.
“I— I was only trying to protect myself—”
“You poured the coffee on yourself,” Leon said coldly. “I heard everything from down the hall.”
Sierra’s mouth fell open.
“But— but— your Majesty— I—”
“Enough.” Leon gestured to the guards. “Escort her to the healer. Make sure she’s treated.”
“I don’t need a healer!” Sierra protested desperately. “It wasn’t that hot—”
Leon raised a brow.
Sierra froze.
Because she had just admitted it.
Leon turned away from her entirely, dismissing her existence like dust.
Then he approached me.
Slow. Controlled. Dangerous.
He lifted a hand and gently brushed his thumb against my bruised cheek. Heat shot through my entire body.
“Who gave you permission to get hurt in my palace?” he murmured, voice low.
My breath caught.
“I’m fine,” I whispered.
“You’re not.”
For a moment…
only his touch existed.
Only the warmth of his fingers on my skin.
He lowered his hand, but his eyes remained soft — something I’d never seen from a Lycan.
“Go to your room,” he said, voice firm again. “I’ll send a healer.”
I nodded and started walking away.
Behind me, Sierra started crying harder.
“Rogers, do something! He embarrassed me! For a maid—”
Leon paused.
And without even turning, he said,
“Sierra. Know your limits.”
Her sobs went silent.
I didn’t look back.
I walked away, heart pounding, cheek burning — and my wolf practically howling.
He defended you.
He touched you.
He chose you over her.
“Shut up,” I whispered under my breath.
But even I knew the truth.
Something was happening.
Something dangerous.
Something I wasn’t ready for.
And whatever it was—
It wasn’t going to stop.