Page 46 of The Wolf Prince's Mate

She cast me an accusatory look while adjusting her clothes, her lips swollen, her lids heavy with lust, and her face flushed. I finally caught a whiff of it. She was going into heat. This was my moment.

I got off the throne, taking a step forward, but she took two backward, arms stretched out. “Stay away from me.”

“Mira…”

“No, Griffin, you don’t get to toss me away and have me back when you feel like it. Besides, you are married.”

“We’re getting a divorce.”

Her brows furrowed in confusion. “Why?”

I heaved a sigh, hating to recount the story, but Mira deserved an explanation. “She wasn’t who I thought she was. I also found out about the pheromones. I’m sorry for not believing you.”

She drew in her lower lips, sinking her teeth into them. “I’m sorry about that.”

This was the first honest moment we had. There were no walls in sight or ulterior motives—just truth and vulnerability.

“Why are you here? You hate this palace.”

“My friend was murdered. She was a maid here. Her death was dismissed as an accident, but I can’t shake off the feeling that someone here is responsible, possibly the same person who tried to kill me.”

Someone here. She didn’t need to call the name for me to know who she was speaking of. I didn’t doubt her. There was very little I would put past Lilith. What I found puzzling was how no death was reported to me.

“When did this happen?”

“Two weeks ago. She was supposed to leave with me, but I called and was informed of her death.” Her voice broke as she spoke, and I pulled her into a hug, placing a soft kiss on her head. “I’ll get to the bottom of this, I promise.”

“Thank you,” she replied but made no attempt to break out of the embrace.

“Is this why you’re getting married to Victor? To avenge your friend?” I felt her stiffen before she drew back into her walls, effectively pushing me away.

“I’m getting married to Victor because I want to.” Her eyes were cold and hard as she spoke. “He cares about me and goes out of his way to make sure Noah and I are safe. Whatever happened between us was a mistake, a moment of weakness, and I would love for you to keepyour distance from me and respect my obligations to your brother. Goodbye, Mr. Thorne.”

Mr. Thorne. I couldn’t bring myself to stop her if I wanted to. I was too stunned to speak or move. Pain, raw unfiltered pain exploded through me, numbing my senses.

“I am getting married to him because I want to.” The words echoed in my head as I watched her slip through the door.

She didn’t say she loved him. We still have a chance,my wolf pointed out. But even that did not make me feel better. She felt a sense of gratitude and loyalty toward him for what he had done for her, and that was worse in my book.

I needed to devise a means to save her from him before it’s too late.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Mira

“I got this for you. I thought you’d look beautiful in it,” Victor said, placing the most beautiful diamond I’ve ever seen around my neck and clasping it. He took a step back to admire his masterpiece, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

“Pardon my mistake, you don’t look beautiful in the necklace. It looks beautiful on you. You make everything beautiful my love.”

I gave him a smile in return, taking in my reflection on the mirror. “It’s breathtaking. Thank you.”

“You’re breathtaking,” he replied, not taking his eyes off me. My heart dipped, and I could feel guilt eating away at the seams of my consciousness.

Victor was a gentleman. He was sweet, and he loved me. Yet, barely a month into our engagement, I had already cheated with his brother. As strong as I was, I was no match for the pull I felt toward GriffinThorne. I had neither the will nor the power to fight him off. He defeated me at every turn.

After our encounter in the throne room, I could sense the onset of my heat. Determined not to let things take the turn they did the last time, I took a few tabs of suppressants. It’s how I’ve been getting by for the past years. I let my wolf and hormones get the best of my reasoning years ago, and now I was determined to make sure we didn’t have a repeat.

Victor ran a finger down my cheeks, hooking it down my chin and lifting my eyes to his. “Is everything alright, love? Did I say something wrong?”

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