CHAPTER EIGHT: AWAKENING

Mira led me through hallways that seemed to go on forever.

Everything was beautiful. Tapestries showing wolves under moons. Chandeliers dripping with crystals. The stone floors were so polished I could see my reflection.

I looked terrible. Hair tangled. The dress is torn and dirty. Eyes red from crying.

"Here we are, dear." Mira opened a massive wooden door.

I stepped inside and my breath caught.

The room was bigger than the entire servant quarters back at the packhouse. A four-poster bed dominated the space, draped in deep purple silk. A fireplace crackled with warm flames. Huge windows overlooked a moonlit forest. And in the corner was the biggest bathtub I'd ever seen.

"Is this for me?" I whispered.

"Of course." Mira smiled. "You're the king's guest. Only the best chambers will do."

Guest. Right. Not... anything else.

"Let's get you cleaned up." Mira moved to the bathtub and turned golden taps. Water poured out, steaming. She added something that smelled like lavender and vanilla. "Take your time. I'll find you proper clothes."

She left me alone.

I stood there for a moment, not sure what to do. This didn't feel real. Any second I'd wake up back in my tiny room, and this would all be a dream.

But the ache in my chest told me it was real. The rejection. The bond. All of it.

I peeled off my ruined dress. Stepped into the bath. The hot water hit my skin and I almost cried from how good it felt.

When was the last time I'd had a real bath? Servants got cold showers in the basement. This was heaven.

I sank down until the water covered my shoulders. I closed my eyes. I tried to process everything that had happened.

My parents were murdered. I wasn't an Omega. I was Lycan royalty. I had two mates. One who rejected me. One who saved me.

It was too much. My brain couldn't hold it all.

A knock at the door made me jump.

"Aurora?" Kai's voice. Deep. Rough. "May I come in?"

My heart started racing. I was naked. In a bathtub. "I'm... I'm in the bath."

Silence. Then, "I'll keep my eyes closed. I just need to check on you. Make sure you're alright."

Something warm spread through my chest. He cared. He actually cared if I was okay.

"Alright," I said quietly.

The door opened. Kai walked in with his eyes closed. He'd changed clothes. Black pants. A dark shirt that showed off his muscles. His silver-white hair was damp like he'd showered.

He was so beautiful it hurt to look at him.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. "Those guards didn't..."

"No. You got there in time." I pulled my knees to my chest, suddenly very aware that I was naked. Even if he couldn't see me. "Thank you. For saving me."

His jaw clenched. "You don't need to thank me for protecting what's mine."

There it was again. That word. Mine.

"Can you... can you open your eyes?" I asked. I don't know why. Maybe I wanted him to see me. Really see me.

His eyes opened slowly. Golden. Burning. They found mine and held it.

"You're beautiful," he said simply. Like it was a fact. Like the sky was blue and water was wet.

Heat flooded my face. My whole body. "I'm not. I'm just..."

"Perfect." He moved closer. Knelt beside the tub. His eyes never left my face. "You're perfect, Aurora. And anyone who made you think otherwise is a fool."

The way he looked at me. Not at my body. At my face. My eyes. Like I was more than just... flesh.

"The bond with him still hurts," I admitted. "Why does it still hurt?"

"Because the rejection isn't complete. He started it but you haven't accepted." His hand reached out. Touched my wet hair. "And your wolf won't let you. She knows better."

"Know what?"

"That you're meant for something greater than a male who would throw you away." His fingers trailed down my neck. Not sexual. Gentle. Comforting. "That you're meant to be a queen."

My breath caught. His touch left fire in its wake.

"I've never..." I swallowed hard. "No one's ever touched me like this."

His eyes flashed. "Like what?"

"Like I'm not going to break. Like I'm... precious."

A low growl rumbled in his chest. "You are precious. You're the lost princess. The Silver Lycan. The most powerful bloodline." His hand moved to cup my face."And you're mine."

The possessiveness in his voice shouldn't have made me feel this way. Hot. Breathless. Aching.

‘I don't feel powerful,’ I whispered.

"You will." He leaned closer. So close I could feel his breath on my lips. "Tomorrow I'll start training you. Teaching you to shift. To fight. To claim your birthright." His thumb traced my bottom lip. "But tonight, you rest. You heal. You let me take care of you."

"Why?" My voice came out breathy. Needy. "Why do you want me? You could have anyone."

His smile turned dark. Dangerous. "Because the Moon Goddess chose you for me. Because when I saw you in that ballroom, every cell in my body screamed MINE." His hand slid into my wet hair. Gripped. Not hard enough to hurt. Just enough to make me gasp. "And because I've waited three hundred years for my mate. I'm not letting you go now."

Three hundred years. He'd been alive for three hundred years. Waiting. Alone.

"Kiss me," I breathed. I don't know where the courage came from. Maybe from the way he looked at me. Like I was the only thing in the world that mattered.

His eyes blazed gold. "If I kiss you now, Aurora, I won't stop. And you're not ready for what I want to do to you."

Heat pooled between my thighs. My whole body flushed. "What do you want to do to me?"

A rough sound escaped his throat. "Everything." His grip in my hair tightened. "I want to worship every inch of your skin. I want to taste you. Claim you. Make you forget that bastard's name." His lips brushed my ear. "I want to make you scream my name so loud the whole kingdom knows who you belong to."

Oh god. Oh god.

I was trembling. Not from fear. From want. From a hunger I'd never felt before.

"But not tonight." He pulled back slightly. His eyes were molten. His breathing was harsh. "Tonight you're hurt. Healing. And I won't take advantage of that." He pressed a kiss to my forehead. Gentle. Sweet. "When I have you, little wolf, it will be because you're ready. Because you want me as much as I want you. Not because you're running from pain."

He stood up. I walked toward the door.

"Kai," I called.

He stopped. I looked back.

"Stay? Please? Just... until I fall asleep?"

His expression softened. "I'll be right outside your door. All night. Nothing will hurt you while I'm here."

He left. The door clicked shut.

I sank deeper into the water. My heart raced. My body ached. But not from the rejection anymore. From something else. Something hot and wanting and terrifying.

I got out eventually. Dried off. Found a silk nightgown laid out on the bed. It was beautiful. Soft. It felt like sin against my skin.

I crawled into the massive bed. The sheets were like clouds.

My eyes started to close. Exhaustion pulling me under.

But just before sleep took me, I felt it. Through the incomplete bond with Damon. His pain. His regret. His desperate need to find me.

And I felt something else. Something dark. Dangerous.

Marcus. Plotting. Planning.

My eyes shot open.

Footsteps outside my door. Not Kai's. Lighter. Quieter.

The handle turned slowly.

Someone was trying to get in.

I sat up. Heart pounding.

The door cracked open.

A figure in black stepped into my room. Face hidden by a hood. Knife glinting in their hand.

I opened my mouth to scream.

The figure moved fast. Hand clamped over my mouth.

Shh, a woman's voice whispered. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to warn you.

She pulled back her hood.

And I gasped.

Because I was staring at my own face.