All Chapters of Claimed By The Lycan King: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

I stood by the bar, watching Theo interact with his minister with an authority that was firm yet measured. There was something different about him—something I couldn't quite name but felt in the subtle warmth spreading through my chest whenever our eyes met. My wolf, Artemis, paced restlessly within me, broadcasting her certainty with the persistence of a stubborn child: ‘Mate. Good mate. True mate. Nothing like Benjamin.’ The contrast between her unwavering confidence and my lingering doubts created a strange dissonance within me, like standing with one foot on solid ground and one on shifting sand.The night had taken an unexpected turn. What had begun as a diplomatic summit had transformed into something far more personal, more consequential. I found myself standing at the edge of possibility, studying this Lycan king who was, against all odds and centuries of division, my second-chance mate.Theo's reaction to Minister Bennett's dismissal of the displaced werewolf packs had been i

I watched Artemis through Aeson's eyes, her white fur gleaming like captured moonlight against the dark forest floor. My Lycan's senses registered every detail with heightened clarity – the subtle rise and fall of her sides as she breathed, the occasional twitch of an ear picking up sounds beyond even my perception, the particular wild-honey scent that was uniquely hers. Two centuries of waiting, and now she sat beside me, this magnificent creature who carried half my mate's soul. My claws tingled with residual energy from our run, but I felt a warmth in my chest, an expanding heat that I recognized not as guilt, but as its opposite – hope.Beside us, the lake stretched dark and still, mirroring the star-studded sky above. The natural clearing where we'd settled offered a perfect vantage point – forest at our backs, open water before us, the night air cool against our fur. The quiet symphony of night creatures had resumed after our energetic arrival, crickets and night birds providing

The moonlight traced silver along Artemis's white fur as she bounded ahead of me through the trees, her paws barely disturbing the forest floor. My own Lycan form moved with less grace but more power, each stride covering twice the distance of a normal step. The night air carried her scent back to me—wild honey and mountain herbs, intoxicating in its newness. My mate. The thought still sparked disbelief beneath the certainty, a king who had finally found his queen in the most unexpected of places.We approached the clearing where we'd left our formal attire, slowing to a trot. Artemis glanced back at me, her yellow-green eyes luminous in the darkness, before veering right toward the massive oak that held her gown. I turned left, heading for the pine where my royal garments waited.Behind the broad trunk, I allowed the transformation to begin. Heat rippled through my fur, bones reshaping with practiced ease as I shifted from Lycan to human form. The night air, previously comfortable ag

I'd overslept, my body still recovering from the night run with Theodore and the overwhelming sensations of the mate bond we'd discovered. My fingers trembled slightly as I finished the call with Liam, our senior security trainer back at Blood Moon. The weight of responsibility never quite left, even here in the gleaming heart of the Royal City, hundreds of miles from my territory's borders. I hung up, my stomach growling a reminder that I'd missed the first half of breakfast, and that a certain Lycan King would be waiting.The hotel suite felt too grand, too foreign – all polished marble and moonstone accents that caught the morning light in ways that made my eyes ache. I smoothed down my blouse, a deep crimson that matched our pack colours, and tried to quiet the restless pacing of Artemis within me. She'd been insufferably smug since recognizing Theo's Lycan as her mate, projecting memories of their moonlit run with the persistence of someone proving a point.’We found our true mat

As we approached, I caught the shift in Stavros's expression—the flash of disdain that preceded his response. "I fail to see why a pack that can't secure its own borders deserves Crown intervention. Perhaps if they spent less time enabling females to play at being warriors—""Minister," I interrupted, my voice carrying the full weight of royal authority.Stavros turned, his expression smoothing instantly into practiced deference. "Ah, my King." He bowed his head in the traditional gesture of respect, though the movement held the stiff formality that had always characterized our interactions. When he straightened, his gaze flicked contemptuously toward Emma. "I was just explaining to this... gamma... why her request for military engineers cannot be accommodated."His emphasis on "gamma" carried layers of dismissal—of her rank, her gender, her species. But it was his next words that ignited my temper."You also might instruct your subject on proper protocol, Your Majesty," he added, ges