Page 171 of Chased By My Grumpy Alpha
“When it comes to you, yes, I am.” He walks around his desk and approaches me slowly.
I smack him in the chest as he pulls me into his arms. “Do you know how worried I was?!”
“I was trying to get you to take pity on me.”
I try to shove him away, but he refuses to let me go. “I knew it was strange that four shifters had managed to get the best of you. I knew there was something not right about your little story.”
He kisses me on the nose. “And yet, you bandaged me up and made it all better.”
“Jerk,” I say.
However, I’m laughing as I say it, and he grins. “You can’t leave me now, Astra. You and I are tied together for life.”
As he kisses me, I melt in his arms.
My hands shake as I stare at the moon, hanging full and bright above the palace gardens. We’re finally outside. Tonight feels different. Electric. Like something inside me is finally ready to break free after years of lying dormant.
“You’re nervous.” Lucian’s voice carries the familiar warmth that never fails to make my pulse quicken. He steps behind me, his arms circling my waist and pulling me back against the solid wall of his chest.
“Terrified,” I correct him, leaning into his embrace. Through our completed bond, I can feel his amusement mixing with his own anticipation. “What if I can’t do it? What if my wolf is too weak?”
His lips brush against my temple, right where I know my wolf’s mark will eventually appear. “She’s not weak, love. She has been sleeping, waiting for the right moment. And tonight feels right, doesn’t it?”
I nod because it’s true. Ever since we executed Harper and Gareth two weeks ago, ever since the last of the traitors were dealt with, something inside me has been stirring. Growing stronger. The Eclipse Born power that once felt foreign and terrifying now hums beneath my skin like a familiar song.
“I can feel her,” I whisper, closing my eyes. “She’s...restless.”
“Good.” Lucian’s hands slide down my arms, his touch sending sparks along my skin. “That means she’s ready.”
I turn in his arms, looking up into those blue eyes that still take my breath away. “Will you stay with me? When I shift?”
The question is stupid. Of course he’ll stay. But the vulnerability in my voice makes his expression soften, and he cups my face between his hands.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he murmurs, his thumb tracing across my cheekbone. “I’ll be right here. Always.”
The sincerity in his voice and the absolute certainty of his love make my heart clench. Four months ago, I was nobody. A pack outcast running for my life. Now, I’m the future queen of the Wolf Kingdom, mated to the most powerful man I’ve ever known, learning to use abilities I never dreamed I possessed.
Sometimes, it still doesn’t feel real.
“Astra.” Lucian’s voice draws me back to the present. “Stop overthinking. Trust your instincts.”
He’s right. I’ve been overthinking everything lately—the healing lessons with the royal physicians, the etiquette training that may never end, the political briefings that make my head spin. But this…This is supposed to be natural. Instinctual.
I close my eyes and reach for the restless energy inside me. It responds immediately, rising like a tide through my blood. My wolf. She has been quiet for so long, but she’s there. Waiting.
Ready? I ask her silently as I slip out of my dress.
The answer comes not in words but in sensation—a wild, joyous howl that echoes through my very bones.
“I think—” My voice catches in my throat as something inside me snaps. Pain explodes through my body, but it’s good pain. It feels right. Like breaking free from chains I’ve worn my entire life.
“That’s it,” Lucian encourages, his voice strained with his own wolf’s excitement. “Don’t fight it.”
My bones begin to shift and crack, the sound echoing through the garden. But instead of terror, I feel relief.
Finally.
Finally, this is happening.
