Adalia, His Mate

Adalia

“What did you just call me?”

His voice was calm, but the question made my entire body stiffen.

My heart lurched… Had I said something wrong?

The fear came so quickly that I didn't even have time to think. My knees instinctively hit the floor almost immediately, and I bowed my head, my hands trembling as I clasped them together.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I’m so sorry. I didn't mean to upset you.”

The words tumbled out before I could stop them.

Please don't be angry.

Please don't hurt me.

With Alpha Jared dead, this young mister was my new master. That was how it worked… At least, that was what I'd been taught. Alpha Jared had made sure I understood that there was only one title I was supposed to use when speaking to him. Master. Every time. No exceptions.

So, since the young mister had taken his place now, shouldn't I call him the same thing? Unless he preferred something else.

Maybe I had already made a mistake. My fingers tightened together. What if he thought I was being disrespectful?

There wasn't enough time to figure it out.

“Please don't send me away, Sir.” The words left my mouth in a rush. I looked up at him briefly before lowering my gaze again. “Please. I can cook. I can clean. I can do the laundry. I can do anything you want.”

My voice shook.

“I don't even eat that much. One portion is enough for me. I won't ask for anything else.”

The young mister only stared at me.

The silence made my chest tighten.

“I can sleep on the floor,” I hurriedly added. “I don't mind. I won't cause any trouble. I promise. Just… please don't send me away.”

My throat burned. The thought of being sent away terrified me more than I could explain.

Where would I go?

Who would take me?

What if someone worse found me?

The young mister mumbled something under his breath that I couldn't quite make out before he said in a firm voice, “Get up, please.”

My body hesitated. For a moment, I remained on my knees, unsure whether I had heard him correctly.

He wasn't shouting.

He wasn't threatening me.

Still, I didn't dare move until I was certain, but not wanting to upset him again, I slowly pushed myself to my feet.

He watched me for a moment before gesturing toward the couch.

“Come and sit down.”

Quietly, I walked toward the couch and sat at the farthest end, leaving as much distance between us as possible.

The young mister sat down beside me.

The difference in size between us made me feel even smaller. His presence was overwhelming in a way I couldn't explain. There was something powerful about him, something that made every instinct inside me remain alert.

Yet he hadn't hurt me… Not once.

“My name is Ronan,” he said after a moment. I looked at him. He gestured toward the man sitting nearby. “And that's Caleb. He's my friend and comrade.”

My eyes shifted toward Caleb, and he gave me a small nod. “Hello.”

I quickly lowered my gaze. “Hello.”

Ronan… The name echoed quietly in my mind.

It was magnificent, strong. Somehow, it suited him.

Ronan studied me for a few seconds before speaking again. “What’s your name?”

My fingers twisted together in my lap. “Adalia.”

“Adalia.”

Hearing my name from his lips felt strange.

“And which pack do you belong to? How did you end up with Jared? And why can't I sense a wolf around you?”

My eyes lifted toward him. There was curiosity in his expression. But beneath it, I noticed a subtle anger… but it wasn't directed at me. Still, my body reacted before my mind could reason with it.

I'd learned to recognize anger in a master. I'd learned it through a really rough experience: A slight tightening of the jaw, a change in the eyes, a shift in the voice. Small signs that often came before something painful.

My gaze immediately dropped to my lap.

“My name is Adalia,” I repeated quietly. “And… I-I can't remember which pack I came from. All I remember is being drugged.”

My fingers trembled as the memories came in broken pieces. “Kidnapped and sold to Master Ja…”

I stopped when I felt a shift from him. I looked up and saw his gaze tightening and quickly corrected myself.

“Alpha Jared.”

Ronan's expression became unreadable as I continued.

“I don't have a wolf.” The words were harder to say. “I lost her.”

Something shifted again in Ronan's expression.

“Lost her?”

I nodded. “During one of the experiments Alpha Jared subjected me to.”

The moment I said it, the memories came rushing back; the research facility, the cold walls, the sharp smell of chemicals, the restraints around my wrists and ankles. The panic that had filled my chest whenever they dragged me into that room.

I remembered being forced onto the stretcher, my body struggling uselessly against the restraints as unfamiliar hands moved around me.

The pain… there was always so much pain.

“Adalia?”

Ronan's voice pulled me back.

I blinked rapidly. He was watching me with concern that had replaced the curiosity in his eyes.

I lowered my head immediately. “I'm sorry.”

“You don't always have to apologize.”

His words confused me. I wasn't sure what to do with them. My hands tightened in my lap.

“I was kept in that room as Alpha Jared's… pet. He kept me there for...”

A low growl suddenly erupted from Ronan's throat.

I froze.

The sound was deep, guttural, and seemed to vibrate through the entire room. Ronan's eyes had changed. For a second, they seemed almost unfamiliar as a fierce possessiveness that I had seen numerous times in Alpha Jared’s eyes flashed in his eyes.

Fear took over before I could think.

I slipped from the couch and dropped onto the floor, curling inward as my hands flew protectively over my face.

I knew what came next whenever I saw such a fierce, possessive glow in Alpha Jared's eyes.

The punishment.

The impact.

My shoulders began to tremble. One arm covered my head while the other shielded my face, especially my eyes.

Please don't hit my face.

Please.

I waited.

One second.

Two.

Three.

Nothing happened.

My breathing grew uneven. I waited a little longer, but still nothing. Slowly, I lowered one hand, and my eyes opened.

Ronan was staring at me.

Not with anger. Not with the rage I expected. He looked… confused, bewildered, almost stunned.

His gaze moved over me as though he couldn't understand why I was on the floor. Across from him, Caleb was staring too with the same stunned expression.

The room had fallen painfully quiet.

Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. I didn't know what I was supposed to do. Slowly, my hand dropped completely from my face.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. My eyes fell to the floor again. “I didn't mean to say anything wrong.”

Ronan's voice tightened. “Adalia…”

I flinched slightly at my name. He stopped. Whatever he had been about to say seemed to disappear.

Every second felt longer than the last. I didn't understand what had happened.

Had I offended him?

Had I misunderstood his growl?

Maybe he wasn't angry at me.

Maybe… I didn't know.

Eventually, Ronan spoke. “Go back inside and get some rest.” I looked at him. His voice was quieter now… almost sounding exhausted. “I'll get you something to eat later.”

Relief washed through me so suddenly that my shoulders sagged.

“Yes.” I quickly nodded. “Thank you, Mas… Ronan.”

His eyes flickered.

I noticed… But I didn't understand why.

Standing carefully, I headed toward the guest room. As I reached the hallway, something suddenly loosened around my foot.

I stopped.

Looking down, I realized my footwear had come undone. Quietly, I crouched and adjusted it, carefully fastening it before straightening again.

Just as I was about to continue toward the guest room, I heard Ronan's deep sigh.

“I need to figure out exactly what happened to Adalia, Caleb… I need to figure out what happened to my mate.”

My entire body went still.

Mate?

The word echoed through my mind. I turned my head slightly toward the living room, barely daring to breathe. For the first time in years, a word I'd only heard in passing suddenly carried an entirely different meaning.

Mate… I was his mate?