125 A Calm Morning
Lucian
Mara looked adorable-curled up with a sandwich in her lap, completely absorbed in her food like it was the only thing that mattered. I’d never seen her eat like this. After the chaos, the stress, and the throwing up, she deserved to inhale every bite.
There was a streak of mayo on the side of her mouth. I leaned in, brushed a hand along her cheek, and licked it off. She blushed, her eyes flickering down, but when I kissed her, she melted into it-just like always.
I didn’t want to go to breakfast. I wanted to stay in this bed, with her, pretending the world outside didn’t exist. But my father had called for a formal sit-down. We couldn’t blow it off. The attack had caught us off guard-it was too calculated, too well-timed. We were lucky we hadn’t lost more.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the prisoners we’d taken. Wolves who’d rather die than be captured? That kind of loyalty didn’t come from fear. It came from belief. Purpose. There was someone powerful behind this. Likely an Alpha. Only someone like that could inspire such fanaticism. And if we didn’t figure out who, we’d stay vulnerable.
“We need to get ready,” I told Mara.
She groaned in protest, burying herself deeper into the sheets like a child hiding from school.
I grinned, scooped her up over my shoulder, and carried her into the bathroom.
“I get it,” I said, setting her down with a laugh. “You inhaled four sandwiches like a starved rogue. But we have to honour
the invitation. My father won’t be impressed if we show up late.”
I peeled off the only thing she was wearing-my shirt-and paused. She looked up at me with those wide, knowing eyes, and I felt my control start to slip. Her bare skin against mine, her smile, the spark in her gaze-it hit me like a pulse of heat.
I leaned in, resting my forehead against hers. She smiled slowly, her body brushing mine, and that was it. The tension
broke.
I turned on the shower, lifted her into my arms, and she wrapped herself around me like she belonged there.
What passed between us wasn’t rushed-it was full of need, comfort, and something deeper than either of us said aloud. She opened to me like she was waiting, and I gave in, holding nothing back. Every sound she made, every breath, was a
reminder we were still here-together.
I held her until she fell apart in my arms, and only then let myself follow. I stayed inside her for a moment, grounding us
both.
When I finally set her down, her legs trembled, but the dazed smile on her face told me everything I needed to know.
She was satisfied. And I was whole.
We dressed in silence, a quiet kind of intimacy lingering between us. As we stepped out, I reached for Mara’s hand, lacing my fingers through hers. She gave my palm a gentle squeeze as we made our way to the right wing.
Everyone was already seated when we entered the breakfast lounge. I pulled out Mara’s chair, helping her sit before taking my seat beside my father. We exchanged greetings with him and Martha, followed by the rest of the table offering
murmured welcomes.
But what caught my eye-what caught everyone’s-was Darian.
: ཚ ༑
He was serving Tiffany.
1/3
125 A Calm Morning
+15 P
No fanfare. No explanation. Just placing her plate in front of her like it was the most natural thing in the world. I wasn’t the only one who noticed the shift. Whatever happened during the fight must have knocked something loose in my brother-maybe clarity, maybe surrender. He looked like someone who had finally stopped chasing ghosts and decided to
hold on to what was real.
Under the table, I touched Mara’s thigh. She shifted slightly and spread her legs for me-subtle, wicked. I bit back a smirk.
Then my father spoke.
“Mara.”
His tone held something rare-warmth.
“I want to commend your quick thinking. It saved lives.”
“Thank you, Alpha Vander,” she replied politely.
He frowned.
“Thank you, Father,” she corrected herself, the word sticking in her throat, but she said it. That alone earned my admiration. My father gave her a nod of approval.
“Thanks to Mara’s curfew order, the enemy lost their reinforcements. It gave us the upper hand,” he explained to the table.
“We also captured two intruders. We’ll begin interrogations today.”
The room went quiet. A familiar kind of quiet-the one that settled whenever my father tried to turn breakfast into a strategy meeting. Still, no one interrupted. His authority always had that effect.
He turned to me. “Have you decided how to proceed with the interrogation?”
I nodded. “Yes. As soon as breakfast is over, Darian and I will go down to the cells. We’ll find out who sent them and why.”
He turned to Mara then, a trace of pride softening his otherwise unyielding face.
“And you, Luna? What will you be doing today?”
“I’ll be going to the office. There’s a backlog I need to clear,” she said calmly.
He gave a satisfied nod. No further questions.
For the first time in a while, breakfast passed in peace. No arguments. No passive-aggressive remarks. Just food and
quiet-until my father brought up Lacy.
“I think it’s time Lacy resumed her internship,” he said casually, though the tension under his words was unmistakable.
Mara didn’t flinch. Didn’t even blink. It was like she’d expected it. She simply nodded and returned to her coffee.
That told me everything I needed to know. She was bracing herself.
My eyes moved to Martha, glowing beside my father, her scent practically tangled with his. The man was clearly under her
spell again. Whatever she’d done-whatever she’d said-it worked. The heat between them was recent. Obvious.
It was pathetic, watching him let her in again after everything. But I couldn’t judge him. Not really.
I looked at Mara.
I would forgive her anything.
And that was what scared me.
