In His Arms

Chapter Ten: In His Arms

Nora’s POV

I shut the door behind me and leaned against it, my chest heaving. My cheek still burned where his mother’s hand had landed.

The Luna stole slid from my shoulders onto the floor, but I didn’t bend to pick it up. I couldn’t. My knees were too weak. My heart too heavy.

I sank down against the wall, curling into myself. The voices still echoed in my head, omega, disgrace, shame, Cynthia.

I pressed my hand over my mouth to stifle the sob that broke free, but another followed, and another, until the tears poured hot and endless down my face.

A knock came at the door. Firm. Steady.

“Nora.” His voice. Axel’s.

I froze, my throat aching.

“Nora, open the door.”

I shook my head even though he couldn’t see me. My voice cracked. “Please… just go.”

Silence for a moment. Then another knock, sharper this time. “I’m not leaving you like this. Open it.”

My fingers dug into the fabric of my dress. I couldn’t face him. Not after what his parents said. Not after they spoke of Cynthia—the girl who was meant for him.

“Don’t make me force the door,” he warned, his voice low.

“I don’t care!” I shouted back, my sobs choking the words. “Leave me alone, Axel!”

The next sound was the click of the lock breaking. The door swung open with a heavy push.

And there he was.

His eyes found me instantly, red-rimmed and small on the floor. His chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, but he didn’t hesitate. He stepped inside, shutting the door behind him.

For a moment, he just looked at me. And something in his face… it wasn’t the Alpha. It wasn’t the son of powerful parents. It was just a man, helpless and hurting because I was hurting.

I turned my face away, wiping my tears with trembling fingers. “Why?” My voice cracked. “Why did you drag me into this mess when you already had someone? When your parents already chose for you?”

His brow furrowed. He moved closer, kneeling down in front of me.

“You think I wanted this to happen tonight?” His voice was rough, almost breaking. “You think I planned for them to walk in, to shame you like that?”

I laughed bitterly through my tears. “You don’t get it, Axel. I came from one mess to another. From Kade’s lies… to this. I thought…” My voice faltered. My chest ached as though the words themselves were knives. “I thought maybe I finally mattered. But it was all another lie.”

He reached for me, but I flinched back. “Don’t.”

His jaw clenched. He looked at me like he was fighting with himself, then suddenly his hands gripped my arms, pulling me up to my feet before I could resist.

I gasped, stumbling into his chest, but his arms tightened around me. “Then cry,” he whispered fiercely. “Cry all you want. Scream. Break. But do it here—in my arms. Because I am not letting you face this alone. Not now. Not ever.”

My body shook against him. “You don’t understand…”

“I do.” His voice was firm. His hand cupped the back of my head, pressing me closer to his chest. “I know what it’s like to feel caged. To have expectations shoved down your throat until you can’t breathe. But listen to me, Nora…” He pulled back just enough to look into my eyes, his thumb brushing away my tears. “I don’t care what they say. I don’t care about their Luna or their rules. You are not a mistake. You’re not nothing. You’re mine.”

The words hit me like a storm, tearing down the walls I had built.

My sobs broke free, harder, louder, but this time I didn’t push him away. I clung to him, burying my face in his chest as if I could disappear there. His arms wrapped around me, steady, unyielding, holding me together when I was falling apart.

I don’t know how long we stayed like that. My tears soaked his shirt, my cries raw and ugly, but he didn’t flinch. He didn’t let go.

And slowly, through the blur of pain, a strange warmth spread through me.

For years, I had been alone in my suffering.

But here, in his arms, for the first time… I wasn’t.