Page 18 of Lycan Prince's Secret Baby

“Are you staying then?” Lucy piped up, her excitement infectious as she bounced on her toes.

I nodded, my smile returning as she laughed in delight. “We’re going to have a party! We’ll braid each other’s hair.” It was a childhood tradition. Early on, we shifter females developed the ritual of grooming one another that would transfer over into our wolf forms when we groomed one another, too.

“And Leah, you’re gonna tell us everything that’s happened the last month,” Lucy added, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

Anxiety flickered in my chest. I wanted to delay this inevitable discussion, knowing it would require me to weave a web of half-truths and omissions. “That sounds amazing. But first, I’m going to unpack and get changed. I’ve been lying in the same clothes for the last couple of days.”

I began to empty my belongings from the bundled sheet onto my bed. Once I’d moved my clothes to the floor under the bed and remade it, I pulled off my vest, and something tumbled onto the bed. A familiar glimmer caught my eye. A bronze rune-mark pendant on a long black cord lay on the cover. The full moon framed by two crescent moons was the Moonlight Pack’s symbol. Disbelief coursed through me before heat flooded mycheeks. It must have been Kyle’s and slipped into my vest top when—

Flashes of our bodies entwined surged back to me: his strong hands tugging my hair, his lips on my neck, his hands kneading my breasts. I fought to control my breathing as I clutched the necklace, shoving it into my jeans pocket, desperate to block out the memories that threatened.

The rest of the evening unfolded calmly as I settled back into the comfort of my friends’ chatter, song, and caring touch. Mary plaited my hair, and I did hers. Her fingers on my scalp and mine running through her hair in the familiar movements calmed me and gave me a feeling of kinship I’d so desperately missed.

The days once more turned into a blend of work in the kitchens and precious moments spent connecting with my friends. Mary’s radiant health served as a constant reminder of how improved things were for us. It continued to give me contentment to see Elderly Tom and all the rest of my pack members becoming stronger and more able.

I took my medicine daily, effectively controlling my estrus symptoms. It felt almost as if my time with Kyle had been something from someone else’s life. The ache in my heart felt muted as I focused on the present and all it offered.

Yet, a month later, the decision came upon me with sudden resolve. I needed to return Kyle’s necklace. I was in control now, free from the uncontrollable impulses that had dictated my thoughts. I had the scheduled appointment with Healer Maria, which would take me to the infirmary, only a couple of buildings from Kyle’s house. Whereas working in the kitchens on the outskirts of the Moonlight area, the only place I’d gone for thelast few weeks, hadn’t given me any opportunity to see Kyle and return the necklace. I’d been right in my supposition that I wouldn’t see him. We never had any cause for our paths to cross now. With that in mind, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and while I went to my appointment to see Healer Maria, I’d visit Kyle and return his necklace.

I took my medicine on time, effectively controlling my estrus symptoms, too. It was almost as if the time I’d spent with Kyle never happened. With my estrus symptoms being suppressed, I felt so much more in control of myself and my body.

As I approached the infirmary, a sinking feeling tugged at my stomach. A sign taped to the door read: “Sorry, emergency, away for three days.”

Panic surged through me. She must have forgotten about my estrus medication refill. The tightening in my chest amplified as I realized I wouldn’t receive my prescription for another three days. Maria had only been able to provide a month’s worth because that was the maximum the council allowed for Blood Moon patients. I had finished the last three capsules this morning.

Starting tomorrow, I’d be susceptible to my estrus symptoms, and my wolf’s instincts would erupt again. But I still needed to return the necklace. My medication from today still protected me from my symptoms flaring now.

Determination coursed through my veins. My heart thundered as I fought to reach Kyle’s house, the path winding before me. As I walked to his door, memories washed over me—his presence beside me and the security of his grip around my wrist as we’d returned from the Blood Moon quarters together. But I pushedthose thoughts aside, clinging instead to the harsh words he’d uttered,“I don’t need her any longer.”I wouldn’t need him either—not once I’d returned the last token I had of him.

I hesitated as I reached the front door, considering knocking, but Maria’s warnings twisted in my mind. “Prevent anyone from discovering your relationship with Kyle.” It was dangerous to linger out here too long. So, instead, I pushed the door open quietly, slipping into the hushed hallway. All was quiet, but I knew I’d find him in his study, buried in work like always. This was my chance—a final opportunity to return the necklace and reclaim my independence once and for all.

Chapter 10

Kyle

The shadows grew across my study walls as the evening light slipped away. This was the time of day when Leah used to bring me a cup of tea. Even after a month without her, I still found myself half expecting to hear her gentle knock on the door.

Since Leah left, the house felt uncomfortably hollow. To drown out her absence, I lost myself in work. Rationally, I assured myself that it wasn’t any different without her here. After all, I’d spent most of the time when Leah was here alone in this room doing exactly what I was engaged in now—absorbed in reforms and typing up page after page of notes to present to my father.

But it was different. Her absence thudded in the silence. The lack of her light footsteps and soft breaths haunted me at all hours. With my shifter senses, I’d been able to tune into her frequency like tuning into a radio station. And I found myself unconsciously reaching out, even now, to try to hear it.

And her humming as she cleaned.

Goddess, how I miss that.

How many times had I found myself unconsciously humming the refrain from “Blood Moon Rising”? Something tugged at myheart as I wondered whether her mom had sung it to her like my mother had. My chest ached as I remembered the quiver in Leah’s voice as she’d shared with me that her mother had passed away—lost in the war between our packs, just like my mom.

My fingers strayed to my neck, where my necklace ordinarily rested. I’d lost it, and a wave of bitterness swept over me. It seemed that I was losing everything that was precious to me lately. The keepsake of my mother’s was a blow. I’d searched everywhere in my office and all around the house, retracing my steps, but it was nowhere to be found.

But, amidst the loss, I discovered something else. The night Leah and I had kissed, I’d pulled her shirt off her. It had fallen down behind my desk. While hunting for my necklace, I’stumbled upon the fabric lying forgotten behind the desk. It still carried her wildflower scent. I'd kept it, a dirty little secret buried in my desk.

As the quiet of the house threatened to crush me, I reached for it, allowing me the solace it had become. The soft fabric was wearing thinner each time I clutched it to me. The scent was there, but it was a fading sweetness. I gritted my jaw, desperately searching for traces of her perfume. It reminded me of wildflowers in late summer, too close to decay. The scent of my own skin in the fabric had suffocated it. My scent was like the first heavy frost of fall, killing the last of the summer blooms.

Letting out a heavy sigh, I settled the shirt back on the stack of papers beside me, feeling empty like the room itself—an expanse of muted colors swallowed by the encroaching night. The dim desk lamp shivered up the walls. It was clearly time to try to find something else to distract me. Inspired by Maria’s faith in me, I had begun planning our pack reforms. The hostility fromthe last council meeting lurked like a shadow, a reminder of the enormous resistance I would face, fueling me to keep refining my ideas and ensuring I collected the data that would help me win over the council.

After finalizing the last notes, I hit print with a sense of accomplishment. The printer whirred to life, sounding too loud in the silence. I gathered the documents, their weight a comforting anchor. Something that told me I was doing something. I was here, putting in the hard work to make a difference to my pack. I gathered up the documents from the desk, valuable papers with evidence of Sam’s embezzling. I tucked them away in my safe, wondering how long it would be before I got the opportunity to present them to my father. A report had just come in from him and the Moonlights that they were moving in on the rebel Blood Moons. If they were successful, I supposed it could be mere days before I got to present my findings to him.

As I shut over the safe, a knock reverberated on my office door. It must be Mark. Ordinarily, he knocked on the front door, but he had been even more like my shadow of late. Clearly, he was getting comfortable and letting himself in these days. He’d been helping me draft up the reform proposals and plans. We had also been training a lot together. Throwing a few punches with him was the best outlet I’d found to fight my thoughts of Leah.

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