Chapter 86: Chapter 86

Adelie

Our game continued, a dance of chivalry. I led, he followed, no questions asked.

When we reached the river, I paused, and he hung back, observing from the tree line.

I slipped off my shoes, letting my toes skim the water’s surface. It was chilly, but I’ve never been one to shy away from the cold. My cape fell to my ankles, discarded.

I removed the lone hairpin that held my hair, now too long to wear down daily.

The silk ribbons at my chest slipped through my fingers as I untied them. Gradually, I let the sleeves slide off my shoulders, welcoming the wind’s touch on my skin.

I glanced at him for the first time. He stumbled, caught off guard. Was I too much for him? His face turned a shade of red, realizing his clumsiness had disrupted our game.

I couldn’t blame him. This was bold, even for me.

But I held his gaze as my dress pooled at my feet, leaving me in just my lingerie.

I stepped into the water. The cold enveloped me, raising goosebumps on my skin. But I knew the quicker I submerged, the sooner I’d adjust.

And so, I went under, letting the autumn chill cleanse me.

After a few moments, I surfaced and looked towards the shore. Kairos stood there, hands in his pockets, a smirk playing on his lips.

My head was the only part of me above water. “Are you joining?” I called out.

Still grinning, he kicked off his shoes and began unbuttoning his shirt. I couldn’t help but watch. My conscience wouldn’t let me turn away from the sight of his skin glowing in the darkness.

Soon, he was down to his underwear. He claimed to dislike cold water, but he waded in as if it was nothing.

As Kairos dove in, I swam further out, towards the river’s deeper end. The silence stretched on, so I turned around. The water was still.

“Kairos,” I called, foolishly thinking he could hear me underwater.

I dove under, hoping to spot him, but it was too dark. He’d been under too long.

Just as fear began to creep in, he surfaced beneath me.

His arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close. I let out a startled yelp.

I pushed him away instinctively, but he was back in an instant, arms encircling me. Our bodies pressed together, noses almost touching. “What?” he chuckled.

“Do that again and I won’t save you when you actually drown!” He just laughed in response.

His gaze shifted the longer he looked at me. “You won’t escape me that easily.” His husky voice, always capable of making my knees weak, didn’t disappoint.

“Could I ever?” I countered.

“Only if you stab me.” Was he surrendering to me?

“Would you fight back?” I asked. Was he still playing our game, or was this real? His words felt genuine. How well could he pretend?

“No.” His honesty was almost frightening. “But promise to look me in the eyes when you do it. Let me feel what you feel.”

His scent of pine and peppermint lingered in my nostrils. I’d thought without my wolf, I wouldn’t be able to smell him.

Or perhaps the memory was so potent, I couldn’t shake it. So be it. “What if it was out of love?” What if my adoration for him drove me to madness?

“Do it.” He didn’t hesitate.

My heart pounded, struggling to control my breathing, to suppress my desires. “Would you do the same?” I asked.

“It’s just a tiny death. The one I dream of with you. Just us. What no one else has seen, what no one else has felt.”

“Then I want to die a million more times.” I couldn’t hold back, couldn’t restrain myself. “Kill me again, without mercy.”

He seized the back of my neck, crashing his lips onto mine.

And he transported me to another realm. Where his hands only knew the contours of my body. My boundaries ended where he began.

Feeling as though I was beneath his skin, my body rested on the shoreline. He stirred my body to move in sync, with no one else in the world but us.

And he revealed more than he ever had before. I hadn’t thought there could be more.

Back in our bed, the surface didn’t feel as soft. With his hair in my hands and his head on my chest, the breeze from the open window rustled my damp hair.

We didn’t worry about anything. We stopped thinking about time.

Gradually, I drifted off to sleep. It felt like only a moment before I opened my eyes. It was still dark, but my mind was already awake.

I rubbed my eyes to fully wake up and only then identified the sound that must have roused me.

It was Kairos. He wasn’t in my arms, which was how I remembered falling asleep. Was he snoring? No, he was murmuring something.

I couldn’t decipher what he was saying, but he seemed to be repeating something. I gently tapped his shoulder and he stopped.

But then he woke up and suddenly began to kiss me. Was he even awake? His hands roamed my body eagerly, then his touch shifted. His hand moved slowly but differently.

Now it was gliding up and down my side. I halted our kiss, gently pushing him away, only to realize that he was staring past me at the pillow next to my head.

His pupils were dilated, but he wasn’t blinking.

I waited and after a moment he climbed off me and laid down on his back, falling back asleep.

Should I be frightened? If I should, then I was. Was that really him?

Was it a nightmare? I had never seen him have one. Was he under too much stress? Was this a side effect of his anxiety?

I cautiously snuggled back against his side, resting my cheek on his shoulder. He was okay. Maybe tired, maybe too disoriented at the time. Just a nightmare, I reassured myself.

“I’ll chase away the bad dreams,” I whispered.

It was obvious that being his mate didn’t let him rest, with everyone after me. Our love wasn’t easy. Did that make it more precious? We battled through everything.

But would it ever end…?

I heard someone moving in the room. Something must have fallen. I was instantly alert. Looking towards the noise, I saw Kairos on his knees picking something up.

There was a shattered flowerpot scattered across the floor. He looked at me. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“For the pot or for waking me?” I asked, burrowing under the covers but keeping my eyes open.

He sighed. “I bumped it with my shoulder.” He looked at me again. “But I am sorry for waking you.”

“I never hear you leave our room.”

He chuckled. “It takes twice as long to be careful enough to be quiet.” He exhaled deeply. “The things we do for our Lunas.”

He stood up and began collecting the dirt from the broken pot.

“Hmm...so what’s making you so clumsy today?” I already knew the answer. The King was arriving today. We still had our training, but after that Kairos would have everyone on high alert.

He walked over to me, bent down, and kissed me. It reminded me of his nightmare…or was it a dream? I wasn’t sure. But I didn’t bring it up. He already had enough on his plate.

The training passed quicker than usual, perhaps because I was watching Kairos the entire time.

Perhaps because I was thinking about Kairos’s vacant stares. Or maybe it was my soul that was troubling me.

Once the training session wrapped up, Kairos urged everyone to put their best foot forward. He tried to play it cool, but I could see a hint of insecurity in his demeanor.

It was a side of him I never expected to witness.

In the hours that followed, Kairos was a whirlwind of activity, only pausing when we spotted a group emerging from the forest and onto our territory.

The Alpha King was in the center of the group, appearing like any other man, except for his confident stride and the way he held his head high. It was clear who the king was among them.

Kairos and I stood at the front of our home, watching as they approached. Soon, Nathan joined us, standing by Kairos’s side.

He was the one Kairos referred to as his Beta. But did he truly deserve that title? “You should have invited Maeve,” I murmured to Kairos. He turned to look at me.

“She’s an Omega,” he replied, giving me a strange look.

“That reminds me. Would you mind if I discussed our pack’s rank restructuring with the Alpha King?” I asked.

“What’s bothering you?” he questioned.

“I don’t like how so many Omegas are underutilized when they have so much potential,” I explained.

“You’re referring to Maeve, aren’t you?”

“Primarily her, but…haven’t you noticed that some Omegas are better fighters than those of higher ranks?” I asked.

“Why bring this up now?” I could tell he was getting annoyed.

I couldn’t help but smile. “So you don’t have time to overthink it.”

“I appreciate…your involvement in this,” he said. “We do promote those who show initiative.”

“And yet you lose so many powerful individuals because they’ve been conditioned to be weak. Or they depend on those who aren’t as strong as they seem,” I countered.

“That’s how all packs operate,” he defended.

I met his gaze head-on. “But we don’t have to be like every other pack, do we?”

“We’ll discuss this later,” he said. “In private,” he added, as if he’d forgotten my position as Luna.

“If you insist.” I knew he’d argue, but the Alpha King was already upon us.

Kairos wanted a fresh start, and I was offering him the best way to achieve it. To overhaul the system. Kairos might believe he had the final say, but I might not get another opportunity to speak with the king.

Now was the perfect time to begin.

“Adelie, don’t,” he cautioned, a mix of anger and worry in his voice.

As the King was just a few steps away, I whispered back to Kairos, “Stop me.”