Chapter 12
Matte
“Why won’t she sit here so we can have a conversation? I was still upset that she kissed another man, even though she knew she was mine. What was so appealing about that future beta that she chose him over me, a prince and a future king? Jealousy consumed me, especially upon discovering that Clay was her first kiss. I sensed it the moment our lips met. She seemed unsure of how to react, and that mutt took away her first kiss from me.
Despite my imperfections, I’ve had intimate encounters with a she-wolf and a female Lycan beyond mere kissing. However, I thought it would be special if I were her first kiss. I desired to be the first man for everything with her, so I warned her to follow my lead, but she remained defiant. I didn’t realize she could be so stubborn. This wasn’t the Freya I knew, the one who always kept her head down.
“Sit, Freya,” I insisted again. “No,” she retorted.
“Why can’t you just sit there?”
“I didn’t want to sit on the bed your woman occupied just a little while ago,” she replied. Are all women like her?
“I kissed you right after that mutt kissed you too!” I exclaimed. “Just sit so we can talk.”
“I didn’t ask you to kiss me. Why bring that up now?” She replied, clearly angered. “You know what? I should go home. If you want to talk, come to me when you’ve cooled down,” she added, walking toward the door.
“Come back, Freya; don’t test my patience.” Her eyes reflected pain, but I resisted consoling her. We needed to talk to understand each other. I wanted to know why I couldn’t smell her or detect her scent. If I wanted answers, I had to maintain a cold demeanor.
“I hate you,” she said tearfully.
“Damn it!” I reached her, gently pinning her to the door, not to harm but to make her face me. “Shh… don’t cry, baby,” I comforted as I wiped her tears. We were so close; I could feel her breath on my face as she looked up.
“Fine, let’s talk,” she said after pushing my hands away and sitting on the bed. Her expression hardened, perhaps still thinking about Eunice lying on the bed earlier. “What do you want to talk about?” She was so shrewd. How could she act this way now?”
“Why didn’t you inform me?” I inquired.
“If you were in my position and I was the princess with a man beside me, could you tell me that I am yours?”
“Absolutely! And I would eliminate that son of a bitch for touching you!” She rolled her eyes and retorted, “It’s easy for you to say because you’re not the one who would be rejected,” she explained, and I understood her point.
“Why did you let him kiss you?”
“I already mentioned that I have given up, and you will realize that I am your mate,” she replied.
“Why is it so easy for you to give up on me? Do you know that Lycans have difficulty finding their destined mates?”
“Yes, that’s why I gave up. It’s natural for your kind because you are free to choose your mate. After you finish whatever you’re doing or want to accomplish here, you will leave the pack and might not return.”
“That’s why you had to let me know.”
“I already explained the reason, and besides, you are always intimate with that female Lycan, so more or less, you are already planning on choosing her as your mate.”
“No.”
“Don’t lie. That woman wouldn’t act that way if you had clarified that all you wanted from her was plain intimacy. You gave her hope. That’s why she thinks you’re hers.” I couldn’t say anything. She might be correct, but
“Do you know why you are glowing?” I asked, and I noticed her confusion. “I don’t get it. What do you mean?”
“You are attracting Clay, Alec, and later, other males. You are turning.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your wolf didn’t tell you something was happening to her.”
“I can tell even if she didn’t tell me. She’s the most compassionate wolf I’ve ever met. She was always in control, but after five months of seeing you, she became agitated even about the smallest things.”
“Because she was starting to turn into a Lycan.”
“But you are not marking us yet.”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s happening because I started to look for you.”
“What do you mean looking for me?”
“The time you called for me, that’s when I knew my mate was in this pack.”
“I am not the one who did that; it was Pi. I would never do that if I were her,” she said. “You are hurting me, you know that?”
“I was just telling the truth.”
“Why didn’t you look at me? Why do you always have your head down whenever you talk to me? I would have found you easily if you had looked at me.”
“It’s Pi, and I’m afraid she’d jump at you if I let her see you.”
“You mean you jumped at me?”
“It’s Pi and not me,” she insisted, and I chuckled. She looked at me, raising her brow. She must have thought that I was making fun of her.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.
“Baby,”
“Don’t call me that; I am not that woman.”
“Come on, I want to call you that.”
“Then do you want me to call you Clay?”
“Over my dead body.”
“So do I.” She’s hard-headed and always talks back. I was still thinking about what I should call her when she said again, “Freya.”
“What?” I inquired.
“Call me Freya, that’s my name. I’d prefer you address me by it.” I hesitated. “Come on…”
“It’s non-negotiable,” she asserted, rising from her seat. “Our conversation is over, right?”
“You don’t get to decide that,” I countered, realizing she had taken control of our dialogue. She arched a brow at me. “But, yes, we’re finished talking,” I conceded, opting not to provoke her further, anxious that she might reject me.
“I’m heading home now.”
“Fine,” I pondered, feeling a peculiar powerlessness in her presence. This wasn’t ideal; I needed to take action. In a matter of months, I would be the next king, and I couldn’t allow her to assert dominance over me. Yet, I found myself questioning what I could actually do when I seemed to be firmly in her grasp.