Chapter 225 Take My Hand!

Chapter 225 Take My Hand!
Noah didn’t get engaged that day, but Lord Blackwood told Amelia to pack all the food and hand it over to the guests when they leave. He was so embarrassed that he didn’t even leave his room all this time.

"You did this because—" Akin voiced, joining me from behind while I waited for Pamela to sort stuff out and leave the mansion.

Lord Vasquez had said in clear words that he doesn’t want me in his mansion again.

I shrugged, still angry about his affair and false concern. "Because it was the right thing to do."

A hint of a smile flickered across Alexander's face. "I thought Ember liked honesty. You did this to save my business... I must say, it was a clever plan."

His words caught me off guard. I hadn't expected him to see through my motives so easily.

I crossed my arms over my chest and looked him straight in the eye. "Does this mean you're finally ready to help me figure out what they did to him?"

Alexander closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, as if I'd just asked him to move a mountain with his bare hands. "Ember, I know you feel invincible right now, but you need to think about your safety! I can't involve you in this mess because I know exactly how dangerous it would be for you." He straightened his suit jacket and stepped aside as Amelia approached.

Just as Alexander seemed ready to retreat into the mansion, Ethan emerged, striding past his older brother to where Amelia and I stood.

"Amelia Garcia!" Ethan's voice carried a commanding tone I rarely heard him use. "My driver will take you to the café."

The way he emphasized "you" made it clear he didn't want me riding along. Amelia nodded quickly and handed me a small wicker basket filled with food. But before I could properly grasp it, Ethan snatched it from my hands and gave it back to her.

"Don't worry about her," he said with a dismissive wave. "I'll drive her home myself."

I glared at him. Who the hell did he think he was, making decisions for me?

Amelia looked between us, her expression suddenly anxious. She'd never seemed particularly concerned when Alexander tried to talk to me, but something about Ethan's presence clearly troubled her. She reluctantly walked toward the waiting car, glancing back repeatedly until she disappeared from view.

"I'll walk," I announced, turning away from Ethan.

"You're going to walk all the way back to town?" Ethan called after me, his voice laced with amusement. "In those shoes?"

I kept walking, ignoring the pinch of my heels on the gravel driveway.

"Ember, he can't hurt me or take away my Alpha King status for seeing my mate," Ethan said, his words stopping me in my tracks. "I'm not Dominic."

I turned slowly, considering his words. "What do you mean?"

Ethan sighed, running a hand through his hair. "The only reason he could do that to Dom was because everyone knew Dom released the weredragon, Devin. But we all have our crowns now. We're the rulers of our own territories. He doesn't get to make decisions for us anymore."

He looked genuinely frustrated as he tried to make me understand I could be with him without getting into trouble.

"But we were almost step-siblings—" I started to explain my fears.

Ethan shook his head, cutting me off. He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward his car, opening the passenger door. I stared at his face for several seconds before finally getting in. He quickly moved around to the driver's side and started the engine.

As we drove away from the estate, the silence between us felt charged with unspoken words. Finally, Ethan broke it.

"Thank you," he said softly, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. "For helping us even though you got shit for it last time. I'm... I'm really sorry about that night. I can't imagine how you must have felt."

His unexpected apology left me momentarily speechless. I watched his profile, trying to gauge his sincerity.

"Can I be honest with you?" I asked cautiously.

Ethan's lips curved into a small smile. "I'd be honored if you were."

I took a deep breath. "I don't remember that night. It's like..." I paused, struggling to find the right words. "When I came to live with you guys, I felt lost. I'd never seen the world outside my cabin. I was like a little bird with clipped wings, afraid of the monsters beyond the walls of my cage."

Ethan slowed the car, turning onto a quiet country road lined with tall trees.

"My mother..." I continued, my voice dropping lower. "She wouldn't even let me watch TV, and then suddenly she left me with these strangers she wanted me to call step-brothers, but my—my wolf kept calling them mates. I didn't know what to do."

I stared out the window, watching the landscape blur past. "Then suddenly I started feeling something. Like I'd found a light on a dark path, but as I walked that path, I changed. I became someone who was always greedy, jealous, and in pain. I'm not proud of that phase. Every morning I'd wake up promising myself I wouldn't go back to those ways, but then I'd feel this pull—this strange attraction to the darkness—"

I abruptly stopped, realizing I was rambling. What the hell am I doing? Oversharing with Ethan of all people?

Ethan slowed the car further, eventually pulling over beside an empty field. He turned to face me, his expression unusually serious.

"I don't think you understand," he said, his voice soft yet intense. "That Ember you hate? That's the real you. Cool, confident, not giving a fuck about anything, not afraid to take what she wants."

I frowned at his words.

"This world isn't a place for good examples," Ethan continued. "No one follows them anymore. They only follow success and power. As long as you do great things, no one cares. If you're good or bad."

I didn't like what Ethan was saying. I didn't want to be a bad person.

"Ethan, you don't understand. I don't want to be that desperate person chasing after mates and giving up easily. I want to be considerate and—"

"And boring?" Ethan interrupted, raising an eyebrow. "Because Ember, you used to be amazing. You don't have to be like other good girls. No one likes them anyway." He shrugged, then sighed when I shook my head again.

He reached out his hand, his eyes softening. "Just be with me, and everything will be fine."