Chapter 63 PACK DRAMA
(Adam's POV)
I like Kael. If you exclude the werewolf thing, the pack drama, the Star Moon nonsense… I really like him. But you can't exclude those things. He's a werewolf and he's a pack leader, and there's Star Moon pack fighting his pack because of me even though I know little to nothing about why.
I always knew my luck is shitty, so yeah, when love decided to find me, it came with abnormalities for me to sort my way through. But Kael, he's nice to me, so I've decided to sulk it up and blend into his world… good or bad.
But do his pack members make it easy? No.
They've actually started stalking and watching my every move.
I noticed it first in the way people stopped talking when I entered a room.
Not loud stops. Not dramatic. Just a pause that lasted half a breath too long, like everyone was waiting to see if I would do something wrong just by existing.
I was walking down the inner hall when a servant carrying linens nearly dropped them. She bowed too fast and too deep.
“Sorry,” she said quickly. “Forgive me.”
“I didn’t—” I started, then stopped. “It’s fine.”
She didn’t meet my eyes. She rushed away.
I kept walking.
Two guards stood outside the library doors. They weren’t usually there. When I slowed, one of them straightened.
“Alpha’s mate,” he said. “We’re assigned here.”
“Assigned for what?” I asked.
“For protection.”
I nodded. “From what?”
He hesitated. Just a flicker. “Just routine.”
Routine now had eyes.
Later, in the courtyard, I heard another gossip against my wish... I wasn’t even trying to listen. I was just sitting on the stone edge, feeding crumbs to the birds, when voices drifted from behind the hedge.
“If he turns into something else…”
“The Alpha won’t see it coming.”
I sighed…
Another voice, lower. “I don’t even understand the boy. Is he a human, a hybrid, or a made-up demon?”
There's a brief pause. Then someone scoffed. “We all did want a Luna, but I don’t remember praying for something like this.”
My chest felt tight, not from pain. Pressure. Like my ribs were being pressed inward by too many thoughts at once.
I stood up too fast and the voices stopped. Leaves rustled. Footsteps moved away.
I went back to our chambers with my heart beating too loud.
Kael was there, reading near the window. He looked up and smiled immediately. That easy, open smile that still surprised me every time.
“You disappeared,” he said. “I was about to come look for you.”
I shut the door behind me. “They’re watching me.”
He blinked. “Who?”
“Everyone,” I said. “Servants. Guards. Council aides. They stop talking when I walk in. They bow like I’m going to bite.”
He set the book down. “Adam—”
“I heard them,” I said quickly. “I heard what they said.”
He stood. “What did you hear?”
I swallowed. “They don’t think I’m human. They don’t think I’m anything they understand. They think I’m evil.”
Kael crossed the room and took my hands. “Fear makes people say foolish things.”
“This isn’t just fear,” I said. “This is planning… probably to fucking kill me. This is them waiting for something to go wrong so they can say ‘we told you so.’”
He squeezed my fingers. “No one is planning to hurt you.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do,” he said softly. “They’re loyal to me.”
“That’s what scares me,” I said. “Their loyalty is to you. Not to me.”
He frowned. “Those are the same thing.”
“They’re not,” I said. “Not to them.”
Kael brushed his thumb over my knuckles, grounding, warm. “Adam, the people in this house have roles. They’re close to power. That makes fear louder.”
“So you admit they’re afraid.”
“Yes, I've never denied that,” he said. “But afraid doesn’t mean dangerous.”
I pulled my hands back. “It does when fear turns into belief.”
He tilted his head. “Belief in what?”
“That I’m a curse,” I said. “That I’ll turn into something and hurt you and your people. That getting rid of me is the only way to protect the pack.”
“That’s not true,” he said immediately.
“I know,” I snapped. “You know. They don’t.”
He sighed. “You’re focusing on the wrong group.”
“What does that mean?”
“The pack is bigger than this house,” Kael said. “This is the palace. The city spreads beyond it. Hundreds of people. Families. Traders. Children.”
“And?” I asked.
“And they want a Luna,” he said gently. “They want their Alpha mated. They want stability. Celebration.”
“With someone like me?” I asked.
“With my mate,” he said. “You.”
I looked away. “They don’t know me.”
“They will,” he said. “On the day of the official mating ceremony. When I present you properly. When the bond is honored publicly.”
“You think that will fix it,” I said.
“I think it will show them who you are to me,” he replied.
I shook my head. “You keep thinking love is enough.”
He smiled sadly. “It usually is.”
“Not for politics,” I said. “Not for fear.”
He stepped closer. “You’re not giving them time.”
“I’m giving them observation,” I said. “And I don’t like what I see.”
Kael rested his forehead against mine. “You’re safe.”
“For now,” I whispered.
He kissed my brow. “Always.”
I let him pull me into his arms. I rested my head against his chest. His heartbeat was steady. Familiar.
He stroked my hair. “You’re tired.”
“I’m angry,” I said. “And tired.”
He chuckled softly. “That’s my mate.”
“Don’t joke,” I muttered.
“I’m not,” he said. “I love you when you’re sharp and when you’re scared.”
I closed my eyes. “They don’t want me here.”
“They don’t decide that.”
“They might,” I said. “If they think you’re blinded.”
He kissed my temple. “They won’t challenge me.”
“They won’t have to,” I said. “They’ll just wait for something to happen or make something happen.”
Kael didn’t answer right away. He just held me tighter.
“I wish you’d trust them,” he said finally.
“I wish you’d listen to me,” I replied.
He pulled back enough to look at my face. “I am listening.”
“You’re hearing,” I said. “There’s a difference.”
His expression softened. “You’re not alone.”
I wanted to believe that.
He guided me to the bed and sat with me, arms wrapped around my waist, chin resting on my shoulder. He kept touching me like he was afraid I’d vanish if he stopped.
“You’re overthinking,” he murmured.
“Maybe,” I said. “Or maybe I’m seeing really clearly.”
He kissed my neck. “I’ll protect you.”
“I know,” I said.
That wasn’t the problem.
I leaned into him anyway. Let myself be held. Let his warmth sink in.
But even in his arms, with his breath steady against my skin, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the eyes outside our door were waiting for me to become exactly what they were already calling me.