Ghost of Her Skin

“Raphael,” I said, and for a second, I was just lost for words. My voice sounded thin, even to my own ears, like a ghost of the man who had walked into this pack only days ago. I never knew my phone wasn't off. The realization made my blood run cold. I had been sitting here, pouring my darkest fears into the empty air, not knowing that my closest friend was listening to every word of my spiral. Just look at me wandering like a lost wolf just because I came to take back my inheritance. I was supposed to be the predator here, the one reclaiming a throne, but instead, I was falling apart over a woman who carried the scent of my enemies.

“Alpha Lucian, you called me back but went calm and I heard that word from you,” Raphael said. His voice was steady, but there was a sharp edge to it, the kind of tone he used when he was analyzing a battlefield. Raphael went still on the other end, the silence stretching out between us like a physical weight, but then he continued, “Man, what went wrong this time?”

I coughed a little, trying to clear the tightness in my throat and strategizing myself. I pulled my shoulders back and fixed my expression, even though he couldn't see me. I had to get my head back in the game. I don't want him to notice what I'm fighting. I have known Raphael for too long, and I know how his mind works. He was the Beta of the Shang Pack, the place that took me in when I was nothing but a boy with a broken name. He wouldn't dare take it lightly if a single strand of my hair was lost, let alone if my mind was being clouded by a Harvey.

“Raphael, sorry, it was just something else,” I said, trying to brush it off. I stood up from the desk and began to pace the room, my bare feet silent on the carpet. I needed to move, to burn off the restless energy that Sophia had left behind.

“Something else? Hey, yesterday was your Alpha ceremony and sorry I never made it, but come on, a mate was chosen for you?”

I could feel him holding his laugh from the phone like he was surprised at how it turned out. Raphael had always been the cynical one when it came to the Moon Goddess and her fated matches. He believed in steel, in contracts, and in the strength of one's own will. To him, the idea of fate picking a partner was like letting a stranger choose your weapon for a duel.

“Yeah, Raphael, that was the tradition, you know,” I tried to make him understand. My voice was tight. I know the tradition, and I knew the laws of the Raven Pack better than anyone, but the tradition turning out that I have to mate with the Harvey blood is something I can't accept. It felt like a sick joke played by the heavens. How could the Goddess pair the survivor with the seed of the killer? It was a contradiction that threatened to tear my wolf apart.

“Yeah, I know, but you, Lucian, accepting a woman from nowhere? Come on?”

I gripped the phone tighter. I know Raphael was surprised, but what can I say? How could I explain that when I touched her, the world seemed to stop? How could I tell him that my wolf, the part of me that should hate her most, was currently whining because she had walked out the door?

“And yes, I accepted. But you don’t know me too well this time around,” I said, and I laughed, a short, barking sound that held no joy. I was almost trying to forget the tough reality of the marks on my neck and the heat still lingering in my bed. I had to play the part of the cold, calculating leader. I had to pretend that last night was just a transaction, a necessary evil to secure my throne.

“Oh yes, Lucian, I’m getting to learn you just now,” I could feel Raphael laughed. He has been my very good friend since I left the pack for fifteen years and rebuilding myself in their own territory, the Shang Pack. They were the ones who taught me that power isn't just about claws and teeth; it's about technology, influence, and money. They were the reason I was able to build Greynet Technologies into a global giant while waiting for the right moment to strike back at the Raven Pack.

But Raphael continued, his tone shifting back to business, “I just arrived this morning, Lucian. I just left the airport to your company for you to sign the contract we’re collaborating together.”

He was talking about the Aegis Neural Link Project. It was the most important deal in the history of Greynet Technologies. It was a partnership between my company and the Shang Pack’s tech division to create a secure, encrypted communication network that only wolves could use. It was meant to be the backbone of our new alliance, the thing that would make us untouchable by rogue packs or human interference.

Now I remembered I had a crucial matter to attend to. The mention of the Aegis project acted like a bucket of ice water, clearing the fog from my brain. I needed to focus on the future of Greynet. I needed to throw my energy towards the company and not something related to Harvey. Sophia was a distraction, a beautiful, dangerous distraction that I needed to lock away in a dark corner of my mind.

“I’m coming right away to the company, Raphael, I almost forgot...” I started to say, already looking for my shoes and a clean shirt. I needed to be Alpha Lucian Grey, the CEO, not Lucian the confused mate.

Halfway to end the call, Raphael interrupted immediately, his voice dropping into a teasing, knowing lilt that made my jaw clench.

“You were busy bonding with your mate throughout the whole night, Lucian, how could you remember this?”

Hearing this, my stomach twisted into a knot of guilt and fury, and that made me to hiss angrily. The image of Sophia leaning against the wall, her eyes wide and her lips parted, flashed through my mind again. I could still feel the phantom sensation of her skin under my hands. I was lost of words, which I could feel that Raphael detected through the silence. He knew me too well. He knew that if I was this quiet, it meant he had hit a nerve that was raw and bleeding.

I forced myself to breathe, to push down the image of her, and to find the cold iron of my resolve again.

“I’m coming right away.”