POV Luella
The feast celebrating our successful hunt stretched into its second day. Throughout both evenings, I stayed close to Tobias, who seemed pleased with my constant presence.
At least someone appreciates me being here. After what happened in the forest, I need this normalcy.
"You're absolutely beautiful tonight," he murmured, lifting my hand to press a gentle kiss to my knuckles.
"The wine is making you sentimental," I teased, though the mate bond made his attention feel warm.
He's had quite a bit to drink tonight. His scent is heavy with alcohol, and his movements are looser than usual.
"Tell us again about the moment you realized the boar herd was trapped," requested Lord Aldrich.
"That was all Luella's instinct," Tobias replied, raising his wine cup to me. "Her tracking skills are extraordinary."
The praise continued throughout the meal, with courtiers asking for more details about the hunt. Tobias kept his hand on mine as he answered, occasionally refilling his wine cup. As the evening progressed and the wine affected him more, his affections became bolder.
He began pressing soft kisses to my lips right there at the high table, completely unashamed of the public display.
My wolf purrs at his attention, but something feels strange about this. He's never been so openly affectionate before.
"Tobias," I whispered, my cheeks burning. "Everyone is watching."
"Let them watch," he replied, his voice slightly slurred. "Let them see how devoted I am to my future queen."
This is nice. This is what I should want from my future husband.
Yet even as I enjoyed Tobias's attention, I caught myself seeking out Kyrell's presence across the hall. Despite my fear of him after the hunt, I couldn't stop looking for those black eyes.
Why do I keep looking for him? He terrorized me in the forest. I should be grateful he's staying away from me tonight.
When he finally left his seat and disappeared into the castle's depths, I felt strangely hollow.
I shouldn't feel disappointed that he's gone. I should feel relieved.
"I think I need some air," I told Tobias. "The hall is getting quite warm."
"Shall I come with you?" he offered, though his words were slurred.
He's too drunk to be good company right now. And I need space to think.
"Stay and enjoy yourself," I replied, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek.
I declined Celeste's offer to come with me, needing solitude. As I wandered through torch-lit corridors, my thoughts centered on Tobias.
His soft lips, his gentle words, his careful hands. Everything about him should make me happy. The mate bond confirms we belong together.
How many other women had experienced those same lips? Those same practiced compliments?
But the mate bond quickly soothed such concerns.
The bond says he's mine. That should be enough to quiet these doubts. So why do I still feel like something is missing?
My peaceful thoughts were suddenly interrupted by soft sounds echoing from a side corridor—quiet moans that made my pulse quicken.
What is that sound? I should mind my own business and return to the feast.
But instead, I moved closer, instinctively hiding behind the heavy tapestries. What I saw made my breath catch and heat flood my entire body.
Kyrell had a woman pressed against a wooden table, her skirts bunched around her waist and her head thrown back in obvious pleasure. His mouth worked at her throat while his hand moved between her legs with practiced skill.
I should leave. I shouldn't be watching this.
But I couldn't move. I could see everything. How his fingers went inside her, the way she responded to his touch, the concentration on his face.
My wolf is responding to this. My body is responding.
A strange warmth began building in my own body as I watched. Now I understood why Kyrell had such a reputation with women.
He knows exactly what he's doing. Every movement is meant to bring her maximum pleasure. This isn't like the gentle, careful touches Tobias gives me. This is raw and intense and powerful.
The woman's final cry of pleasure startled me from my trance, and I tried to step away quietly. But my foot caught in the heavy curtain, and my sharp movement sent the fabric crashing to the floor.
No. No, no, no.
The woman gasped, covering herself and fleeing immediately. Kyrell, however, simply turned to look at me with those half-lidded black eyes, completely unashamed.
He's not embarrassed at all. If anything, he looks amused by my presence.
"Did you enjoy the performance?" he asked, his voice carrying that familiar cruel edge. "Or were you hoping for a more... educational experience?"
I could only stare at him, my cheeks burning with embarrassment and something else I didn't want to name.
"Tell me," he continued, adjusting his clothes with casual indifference, "does my brother satisfy you? Or do you find yourself wanting something more... substantial?"
How dare he ask me that?
His crude question left me speechless, my gaze fixed on his handsome face even as shame coursed through me.
"And stop staring at me all the time," he said suddenly, his tone turning sharp with disgust. "It's pathetic and I'm disgusted by it."
Pathetic? The word stings more than I expected.
The insult hit something raw inside me, and suddenly my embarrassment transformed into fury. My wolf snarled, wanting to show him exactly how unpathetic I could be.
"Disgusted?" I laughed, the sound sharp and cutting. "That's rich coming from someone who clearly has to resort to meaningless encounters because no woman would willingly stay in your bed once they see what a pathetic excuse for a prince you really are."
Without waiting for his response, I turned and ran toward the castle gardens, desperate for cool air to calm the fire burning in my cheeks and the confusion raging in my heart.
Why did seeing that affect me so much? Why can't I stop thinking about his hands, his mouth, the way he made that woman respond to his touch?
My wolf was restless, pacing inside me with an energy I didn't understand. The mate bond with Tobias should have been enough to quiet these feelings.
So why do I feel like something is missing?