All Chapters of Claimed By The Lycan King: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

The evening progressed in a blur of introductions and calculated conversations. As the crowd gradually thinned, Theo leaned closer, his breath warm against my ear. "Would you like some air? There's a private balcony off the east wing with a beautiful view of the gardens."The prospect of escaping the weight of so many watchful eyes was too tempting to refuse. I nodded, grateful when he guided us toward a discreet side door rather than cutting directly across the ballroom floor. The route he chose avoided Benjamin entirely—a consideration that didn't escape my notice.The night air embraced us as we stepped onto the balcony, cool and fresh against my flushed skin. After the perfumed stuffiness of the ballroom, the clean scent of night-blooming flowers and distant pine forest felt like freedom. Above us, stars punctured the velvet darkness with silver light

The promise settled between us, weighted with both challenge and possibility. Aeson rumbled his approval within me, his earlier exuberance settling into steady contentment. ’Good mate,’ he observed with satisfaction. ‘Strong mate. Our mate.’I leaned down, drawn to her as inevitably as tide to shore. Her eyes fluttered closed as our lips met, the contact igniting sparks that raced through my veins like lightning. The bond between us flared brighter, stronger, feeding on our physical connection until it felt like standing at the centre of a star. My hands remained gentle against her face, but the kiss itself deepened, carrying hunger and promise and relief.Emma's arms wound around my neck, fingers threading through my hair as she pressed closer. Th

The sound of the balcony door opening pulled me reluctantly from these reflections. I turned within the circle of Theo's arms to find Elijah, Elena, and Christian stepping outside, their expressions varying from concern to curiosity.Elijah stopped abruptly, his eyes widening as he looked at us. "Goddess," he swore, his voice carrying genuine shock. "That feels weird."I raised an eyebrow at my brother's uncharacteristic reaction. "What does?"He gestured vaguely toward Theo and me, his normally composed diplomatic expression completely abandoned. "It's like yours and Theo's auras have not quite merged but blurred together," he explained, moving closer with cautious steps. "So my wolf recognizes you as Queen and him as the King, but..." He paused, tilting his head slightly as if listening to an internal voice. "I as

I searched the crowd, unable to stop myself from seeking one face in particular. I found him against the far wall – Benjamin Thorne, his expression carved from ice, his gray eyes burning with such hatred that it should have scorched the air between us. As our gazes connected, his lips curled in a sneer of pure contempt, though he remained in the same bowed posture as everyone else in the room, compelled by the weight of our combined auras.The sight of him – my former abuser now forced to bow before me – should have brought satisfaction. Instead, it filled me with a strange mixture of pity and resolve. He seemed smaller somehow, his power over me dissolved not by my elevation but by my healing, by the choice I had made to trust again despite his best efforts to destroy that capacity within me.A voice rose above the others, sharp with outrage.

The weight of diplomatic smiles had left tiny fractures across my composure by the time Theo suggested we call it a night. Three hours of circulating through the ballroom—nodding at Lycan ministers whose eyes evaluated me like I was a curiosity, accepting cautious introductions to werewolf alphas who couldn't quite hide their surprise at seeing me on the king's arm—had hollowed out something in me. Not even the warm pressure of Theo's hand at the small of my back could entirely ease the tension coiled between my shoulder blades."You've made quite the impression," Theo murmured as we slipped away from a cluster of ancient Lycans whose silver-streaked hair seemed to match the antiquated opinions they'd been sharing moments before. "I believe Lord Cassius nearly swallowed his tongue when you corrected his assumption about werewolf territory management."