Chapter 335
Chapter 336
3rd Person’s POV
Lylah pulled the phone away from her ear, her expression tightening with quiet disgust. The old her? The words lingered like something sour on her tongue. She despised the way Rowan clung to a past she had long since buried-how he spoke as if that version of her still existed, waiting to be reclaimed.
It didn’t.
She had destroyed that girl with her own hands.
And yet, the audacity of him-sounding wounded, as though he hadn’t been one of the very reasons she’d changed-made her wolf stir beneath her skin, restless and sharp.
Before she could respond, Ezra moved.
He had listened to every word in silence, his presence steady as a mountain at her side. But this time, something in his gaze shifted.
Without hesitation, he took the phone from her hand.
“Nothing has changed,” Ezra said, his voice calm, but threaded with quiet dominance that didn’t need to be raised to be felt. “Her gentleness isn’t gone. I decide where it’s given and where it’s not. You simply lost the right to ever see it again p>
And then he ended the call.
It wasn’t jealousy that drove him. Not insecurity. Rowan posed no threat.
But Lylah’s mood had shifted, her scent tinged with irritation, her wolf unsettled-and that alone was enough. He did not tolerate interruptions.
Not to her peace. Not to what was his.
On the other end, the line went dead.
For a heartbeat, Rowan stood frozen.
Then the storm broke.
His hand tightened around the phone before he hurled it across the room. It struck the glass table with a violent crack, splintering it into jagged shards.
Cora flinched.
“Rowan…” she asked carefully, her voice small against the suffocating pressure in the room. “Was that Lylah’s
mate p>
She had heard the voice-clear, controlled, carrying an authority that pressed instinctively against her wolf, demanding recognition whether she willed it or not. It was nothing like what she had expected. Not from a low-ranked stray she had assumed stood beneath them.
Finished
“That bastard,” Rowan’s eyes burned, his wolf surging dangerously close to the surface. “He must be enjoying this. Twisting her against me, corrupting everything she used to be-” His jaw clenched. “And then he dares say nothing has changed?” His fist tightened at his side. “He’s turned her into someone I don’t even recognize p>
Cora’s breath caught.
His reaction… it was too intense.
And it had only taken a few words from Lylah’s mate to provoke it.
Cautiously, she stepped closer. Ignoring the warning edge of his aura, even as her instincts screamed at her to keep her distance.
“Who is he?” she pressed softly. “Lylah’s mate… You know him, don’t you? More than just a name or rank. He’s not just anyone, is he p>
For a moment, Rowan said nothing.
Then, reluctantly-
“Even so? He’s still beneath me. A leech clinging to his family name, pretending it gives him weight.” His voice hardened, defensive pride lacing every word. “I’m angered by his audacity, not because I feel threatened p>
So Cora’s suspicion was confirmed-Rowan didn’t just know of Lylah’s mate. There was something deeper there.
Still… it didn’t matter.
In Rowan’s eyes, that male remained beneath him. Beneath them. And that was all Cora needed.
Aquiet breath slipped past her lips, tension easing from her shoulders as relief settled in.
Carefully maintaining her tear-streaked face, Cora stepped into him, pressing herself against his chest as though she had nowhere else to go.
“I’ve lost everything, Rowan.” she murmured, “Father is furious with me… Mother won’t even speak. They’ve cast me out. I have no one now…” A soft, practiced cough followed. “After everything I’ve done for them, after being the perfect daughter they always wanted, was I really so easy to discard p>
Rowan was her only leverage now. The fastest path back to everything she’d lost. If she wanted to reclaim everything, then he was the fastest path back to it. And Cora would play whatever role was necessary to secure that.
Soft. Fragile. Devoted.
Whatever he liked to see.
His hand slid into her pale, snow-soft strands. “You think I’ll let Eldric play saint and do that p>
Her lashes lowered, pressing closer as if seeking comfort. But hidden from his view-
A smile unfurled across her lips.
2/3
Finished
George Orwell