Home / Werewolf / His Mate, His Enemy / Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 80

Lahat ng Kabanata ng His Mate, His Enemy: Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 80

150 Kabanata

Chapter 71

SAPHRA'S POV The next day, Lucien arrives just before sunset. I know it’s him before the door opens. The bond gives him away.It always does.A quiet shift beneath my ribs. A flicker of awareness like someone brushing against the edge of my thoughts. My wolf lifts her head instantly, alert in a way she never is for anyone else.I’m seated on the window bench with my knees drawn up, pretending to read again. It has become a familiar routine between us—me with a book, him arriving after finishing his duties.For a moment I consider hiding the book entirely, just to avoid looking like I’ve been waiting.But that would be a lie.And worse, it would confirm something I refuse to admit.The door opens.Lucien steps inside carrying a small stack of books against his chest.The sight alone is enough to surprise me.“You’re starting a library up here,” he says casually.My eyes drift to the books in his arms.They are not the usual ones from the palace collection.The covers look older. Worn.

Chapter 72

LUCIEN’S POV The storm begins as a distant rumble. At first I barely notice it. The evening had followed the same careful rhythm it always does now. I arrived just before sunset, brought a bottle of wine from the kitchens, and sat with Saphra near the tower window while the sky dimmed beyond the forest. Routine....predictable and safe. At least, as safe as anything between us can be. But the first thunderclap shakes the tower walls hard enough to draw both our attention. Saphra glances toward the window. A flash of lightning slices across the sky, illuminating the dark forest below in a stark white glow. The rain begins seconds later. Not a gentle drizzle, a wall of water slamming against stone and glass with startling force. “That escalated quickly,” Saphra mutters. I stand and move toward the window. The storm is worse than I expected. Sheets of rain blur the forest entirely, and the wind howls hard enough to make the tower creak faintly. Another lightning strike cra

Chapter 73

SAPHRA'S POV Night settles over the palace. The corridors outside my tower room grow quieter as the guards change shifts and the servants retreat to their quarters. It is the hour when even the palace seems to sleep. Which makes it the safest time to LEAVE. I wait until the footsteps outside my door fade completely before I move. The room is dim except for the dying embers in the fireplace. Rain from last night’s storm still clings to the stone outside the window, leaving the air cool and damp. Lucien left an hour ago. His scent still lingers faintly in the room, I push the thought away quickly. Focus. I cross the room silently and begin gathering what I need. Bread from the tray the servants left earlier. A small wedge of cheese. Dried meat wrapped carefully in cloth. The herbal salve Lucien’s healer left and another bundle of herbs I stole from the infirmary two days ago. Medicine for Eira. I tie everything into a cloth bundle and sling it over my shoulder. Then I move

Chapter 74

SAPHRA'S POV Lucien arrives at sunset with dinner in his hands. The door opens and his boots cross the floor. And the scent of cedar and leather fills the room. “I brought dinner,” he says. I glance up slowly. He’s carrying a tray with two plates, a bowl of fruit, and a bottle of wine. My eyes narrow immediately. “That’s suspicious.” He raises an eyebrow. “Bringing food is suspicious?” “Yes.” “Why?” “Because you never do it.” “I have done it before.” “Once.” “That still counts.” I set the book aside and study him carefully. “Why tonight?” Lucien sets the tray on the small table beside the window. “I wanted to make sure you were eating properly.” “That sounds like a lie.” “It’s not.” “You poisoned it.” He exhales sharply. “I did not poison your dinner.” “You’re the Alpha. You could have someone else do it.” “Why would I go to the trouble of personally delivering poisoned food?” “I don’t know maybe because you enjoy drama.” Lucien stares at me for a long mom

Chapter 75

SAPHRA'S POVThe storm begins just after midnight.I wake to the sound of thunder.Not distant thunder or the low, rumbling kind that rolls across the mountains and fades.This thunder cracks.Sharp and violent.The tower windows rattle as if something enormous has slammed into them.I sit up instantly.My heart is already racing.For a moment I tell myself it’s nothing.Just a storm.Just rain.But then lightning splits the sky outside the tower.White light explodes through the window.And the thunder that follows shakes the stone beneath my feet.My breath catches.No.Not again.Rain begins to hammer the glass.Hard.Relentless.The wind howls around the tower like a living thing.I swing my legs over the side of the bed and stand, trying to calm the sudden tightness in my chest.It’s just a storm.You’re not eight years old anymore.You’re safe.Another flash of lightning.Another crack of thunder.Closer this time.The sound hits something deep inside my chest and squeezes.I mo

Chapter 76

SAPHRA'S POV The storm never stops. It continues through the night, rain hammering the tower windows, wind clawing at the stone walls, thunder rolling endlessly across the valley. But inside the tower… Inside the circle of Lucien’s arms… The storm feels far away. I’m still pressed against his chest. My cheek rests over his heart. The steady rhythm of it has become the anchor keeping me from drifting back into fear. I don’t remember when my breathing slowed. Or when my fingers stopped clutching his shirt like a lifeline. All I know is that neither of us moved. And now hours have passed. The fire in the hearth burns low, casting soft orange light across the room. Rain slides down the tall windows in endless streams. Lucien’s arms are still around me. Not tightly anymore. Not trying to protect me. Just… there. Holding me because neither of us has chosen to let go. My fear faded a long time ago but I haven’t moved away and neither has he. Which means something else h

Chapter 77

SAPHRA'S POV His hand moves to my chin.The touch is gentle– barely there even. Just the lightest pressure of his fingers beneath my jaw.My breath catches as he tilts my face upward.As if asking permission without speaking.My fingers remain curled in the fabric of his shirt.The warmth of his hands still frames my face.Our foreheads separate slowly.Only an inch.But the space between us feels suddenly enormous.Lucien moves closer.Slowly.Carefully.Giving me time to stop him.My pulse roars in my ears.The entire world has narrowed to the small space between his mouth and mine.His lips hover above mine.So close I can feel the warmth of his breath.Less than a breath away.I inhale sharply.His scent floods my senses again.My eyes flutter shut before I can stop them.The darkness behind my eyelids feels thick.Heavy with anticipation.I shouldn’t want this.I shouldn’t even be here.But my body betrays me.My head tilts upward slightly.Just slightly.Closing the final fract

Chapter 78

SAPHRA'S POVThe silence stretches for long. It presses against my ears like a physical weight.Lucien sits on the edge of the bed exactly where I shoved him, shoulders rigid, hands loose on his knees. His eyes are still on me dark, wounded, and searching in a way that makes something twist painfully in my chest.I hate that look.I hate what it does to me.Because for a moment earlier, those same eyes were soft and gentle. Close enough to see every flicker of emotion inside them.Close enough to kiss.My stomach turns.No.I shove the thought away violently.I push off the wall, my boots scraping the stone floor.“Don’t look at me like that.”Lucien blinks slightly.“Like what?”“Like you’re the victim.”The words slice out sharper than I intend, but I don’t pull them back.Something inside me has snapped.The dam holding back years of rage and grief finally breaks.“You don’t get to sit there and look hurt,” I continue, my voice rising. Lucien straightens slightly.“Saphra..”“No.”

Chapter 79

SAPHRA'S POV For a long moment after he asks the question, neither of us moves.The silence that follows feels heavier than the storm ever did.My throat aches. My hands tremble. My lungs pull in sharp breaths that don’t seem to fill them completely.Lucien stands in the center of the room, chest rising and falling hard, eyes locked on mine.My legs finally give out first.I stumble backward until my shoulders hit the stone wall behind me again. This time I don’t try to hold myself upright. I slide down slowly until I’m sitting on the cold floor, my back pressed against the rough stone.The chill seeps through my clothes immediately.Across the room, Lucien exhales slowly.The fury that had filled his face only moments ago drains away like water after a flood.He drags a hand through his hair and turns slightly before lowering himself to the floor as well.He sits against the opposite wall.As far from me as the room allows.The distance between us is only a few strides.But it feels

Chapter 80

SAPHRA'S POVThe first day Lucien doesn’t come, I tell myself I don’t care. The tower is quiet....too quiet.I wake early, expecting to hear his footsteps outside the door like I have every morning since the storm. Expecting the quiet knock. The tray of food he always brings himself even though he could send servants.But the knock never comes.Eventually a guard opens the door just enough to slide breakfast inside.I stare at the tray for a long moment.Then I eat.The tower feels bigger when he isn’t here. Emptier. The silence stretches through the stone corridors.I try reading, I finish two of the books by midday.Then I start pacing.By evening I’m walking circles around the chamber like a caged wolf.“This is ridiculous,” I mutter to myself.I shouldn’t care if he visits or not.After the argument we had, it’s better this way.Better for both of us.By the next day the boredom becomes unbearable.The tower chamber suddenly feels too small.I’ve memorized every crack in the stone

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