Chapter 5

Prince Kealen's pov

I sat in my office, the pink stone glowing faintly on my desk. The room is quiet except for the faint ticking of the clock and the scratching of my pen against a parchment. Stupid reports from the border, requests from council about if I had found my mate yet. Like those fools aren't aware that I've not.

I lean back, pressing the bridge of my nose. "They are mocking me," I mutter, picking up the pink stone on my desk. It flickers faintly as if in response. "I'm possibly cursed. A twenty three years old royal wolf with no mate, definitely cursed." I could feel the ache burning in my heart, reminding me of the fact that I'm not complete.

I grab my necklace pendant, rubbing it against the pink rock. "Why did it lead me to you? What mystery is hidden…"

"Huh?" I sniff noisily like a hungry dog as a scent, soft and sweet like jasmine mixed with wild honey and a pint of cinnamon waffles through the air, sharp enough to make my throat close.

My pen slips from my fingers as I freeze. My muscles lock as the scent wraps around me, invading every corner of my office.

Just then, a familiar feminine hum sounded behind me and I look around to see…

"Eliza?" I called.

She startles slightly from where she was arranging scrolls by the shelves. I did not even notice her entering. She turns, dressed in the familiar blue uniform for palace maids, her brown curls pinned neatly, a faint smudge of dust on her cheek.

"Yes, Your Highness," she says quickly, moving a bit forward and bowing her head. "Forgive me, I didn't mean to disturb. The Head Maid said to clean your study before dinner."

My heartbeat stumbles as the scent intensifies the moment she steps closer. Eliza was my playmate when my mother was still alive until she suddenly changed on her eighteenth birthday and started staying away from me, mostly avoiding me like a plague.

"Eliza," I say again, slower this time. "You… smell different."

Her hands paused mid-movement, the cloth crumpling between her fingers. "I beg your pardon, sire?"

"That scent," I murmur, my gaze sharpening. "It's… Mine."

"Eliza…" I breathe out her name, half in awe, half in disbelief. "It's you. You're my mate."

Her eyes widened for a second — just long enough for me to see the flicker of panic there — before her expression shifts.

"Your Highness—"

"It's you," I repeat, rising from my chair. The words came out rough, unsteady. "The reason I've never felt the bond… is what I don't understand when you have been right here all along."

She steps back, shaking her head. "Please, don't."

"Eliza." My tone softens. "You feel it too right? I know you do."

Her breathing quickens. "It doesn't matter what I feel."

"It does to me."

"No, it shouldn't!" She snapped. She takes another step back, glaring angrily at me. "You think fate makes the choice for us? You think I will let some stupid bond decides who I love?"

"Eliza—"

"I'm in love with someone else," she blurts.

"…What?"

She clenches her fists. "I love your brother. I want him, not you."

For a moment, I swear I did not hear her right.

"You're joking." I laughed

"I'm not."

"Eliza." I spat, my voice coming out sharper than I intended, "You don't love him. You can't love him. You're mine."

"I don't belong to anyone!" she snapped back, her eyes blazing. "Maybe him, but definitely not to a weak man like you. I choose who I love."

I take a breath and a step closer despite my hurting heart. "When?" I ask quietly. "When did this happen? You've known we're mare for a long while" I stated

Her gaze falters for the briefest second. "It doesn't matter."

"Tell me the truth."

She exhales shakily, eyes darting to the door, then back to me. "When I clocked eighteen. I'm sorry but your brother, he's everything I want in a man."

"Eliza…" My voice drops, almost a whisper. "I can be whatever you want in a man, please …"

"But you'll never be."

I shake my head slowly, my heart pounding too loud. "What you have is a lie. You're my mate, Eliza."

"A term I hate so much. Do you know how far I had gone just to hide it?"

I blink. "Hiding it?" I thought she had just been good at avoiding me.

She lets out a bitter laugh, "I've been taking a acotinum every moon to mask my scent, to keep you from noticing."

My blood runs cold. "You've been— what? That's dangerous for your health. Where did you get it?"

She lifts her chin up. "I got it from the witch market. Burned in my quarters and brewed into bitter tea. Anything to stay invisible to you."

"You've been poisoning yourself just to avoid me?"

"To avoid this," she spits. "This ridiculous claim that I'm meant to spend my life chained to someone I don't love."

"I can't stop," I say quietly. "The bond won't let me."

"Then you'll have to reject me. I can't reject you because of your royal blood but you can reject me to spare us this shit"

I reach for her arm before I can stop myself. "Please. Don't go."

She jerks back like my touch burns her. "You don't understand. He loves me and I love him too. That's something you can't force."

She turned, gathered her cleaning cloth with trembling hands, "I'll be awaiting your rejection my lord." and slammed the door behind her.