Chapter 20

Mine

The ballroom silence lasted less than three seconds after Cassian kissed Lyra’s hand.

It still felt long enough to start wars.

Lyra noticed the shift immediately.

Not because anyone stopped dancing.

They didn’t.

The musicians kept playing. Nobles continued moving through conversation circles. Servants still crossed the ballroom carrying silver trays of wine and desserts.

But instinct moved faster than etiquette.

And every predator in the room had just noticed another one become dangerous.

Cassian released her hand slowly.

Not hurried.

Not apologetic.

His expression remained calm enough to border on suicidal.

“You should probably go,” he murmured.

Lyra stared at him.

“That’s your advice after causing this?”

“I said probably.”

Useless man.

Across the ballroom, Kael had gone completely still.

Not frozen.

Contained.

Which somehow looked worse.

Fenrir appeared beside him almost immediately, speaking low enough that no one nearby could overhear.

Kael didn’t respond.

His attention remained fixed entirely on Lyra and Cassian standing together near the center of the dance floor.

Lyra suddenly understood something awful:

Kael wasn’t angry politically.

This wasn’t about court image.

Or rival territories.

Or respect.

Whatever burned through him right now looked far too instinctive for that.

Cassian noticed too.

“Well,” he said quietly, “that confirms several theories.”

“I really need people to stop speaking like cryptic forest witches around me.”

That finally earned a real laugh from him.

Short-lived though.

Because Kael started walking toward them.

The atmosphere parted instinctively around him.

Dancers subtly shifted away. Nobles stepped aside without fully realizing they were moving. Even the servants changed direction automatically.

Kael crossed the ballroom like a storm someone could hear approaching before seeing.

Lyra’s pulse quickened despite herself.

Not entirely from fear.

That was the problem.

Kael stopped directly in front of them.

Close enough now that Lyra caught the familiar scent of cedar, smoke, and winter air clinging to him beneath the ballroom heat.

His expression remained unreadable.

Which meant he was furious.

“Enjoying yourself?” he asked.

The question sounded calm.

Too calm.

Cassian folded one hand behind his back lazily.

“Your wife dances well.”

Kael’s jaw tightened visibly at the word wife.

Not because Cassian used it.

Because Cassian had touched her while saying it.

The silver marks beneath Lyra’s skin stirred faintly with sudden warmth.

Kael noticed immediately.

Of course he did.

His eyes dropped briefly toward her wrist before snapping back toward Cassian.

And then—

something shifted.

Lyra felt it before she fully understood it.

A sharp pulse of possessiveness slammed through the air around Kael hard enough that even nearby wolves near the ballroom entrance lifted their heads instinctively.

The room temperature seemed to drop.

Not literally.

Instinctively.

Kael stepped closer.

Too close now.

Cassian’s posture sharpened immediately in response.

The charming eastern Alpha vanished beneath something more dangerous and territorial.

“Careful,” Cassian said softly.

“About what?”

“About behaving like an unmated wolf in front of half the northern court.”

The silence afterward felt razor-thin.

Kael smiled then.

Which terrified Lyra instantly.

Because it wasn’t amusement.

It looked like restraint slipping.

“You kissed what belongs to me.”

The words landed low and rough between them.

Not political.

Not performative.

Animal.

Several nearby nobles went completely still.

Fenrir closed his eyes briefly somewhere behind Kael like a man spiritually preparing paperwork for homicide.

Cassian’s expression lost some of its humor finally.

“Interesting choice of wording.”

“You should leave the ballroom.”

“Or?”

Kael took another step forward.

And this time—

Lyra actually saw it happen.

His pupils narrowed sharply.

The scent of wolf flooded suddenly through the air around him strong enough that nearby northern wolves began growling under their breath near the walls.

The instinct rolling off Kael now felt overwhelming.

Ancient.

Possessive.

Terrifyingly close to losing control.

“Kael.”

Lyra said his name quietly.

No response.

Cassian straightened fully now.

“You’re frightening her.”

That finally did it.

Kael moved.

Fast.

Too fast.

One second he stood beside her.

The next his hand had closed around Cassian’s throat hard enough to slam the eastern Alpha backward against the nearest stone pillar.

The ballroom erupted instantly.

Music stopped.

Several nobles shouted.

Guards surged forward before stopping abruptly when Fenrir barked:

“Don’t.”

Cassian grabbed Kael’s wrist with a curse, eyes flashing gold briefly beneath the ballroom lights.

For one horrifying second, it genuinely looked like two Alpha wolves were about to tear into each other in the middle of a diplomatic gathering.

And Kael—

Kael barely seemed aware of anyone else in the room.

His wolf sat too close to the surface now.

Lyra could see it in the way his breathing changed.

The way his grip tightened.

The look in his eyes.

“Mine.”

The word escaped him low enough that only the people closest heard it.

Still—

it silenced the air around them anyway.

Lyra’s heart slammed painfully against her ribs.

Because that wasn’t court language.

That wasn’t politics.

That was instinct speaking out loud.

“Kael.”

This time she stepped forward while saying his name.

Closer.

Close enough to touch him.

The silver marks beneath her skin glowed suddenly bright beneath the ballroom lights the second her fingers wrapped around his wrist.

The reaction hit instantly.

Kael froze.

Not gradually.

Completely.

The entire ballroom remained silent.

Waiting.

Watching.

Kael looked down slowly toward Lyra’s hand against his wrist.

Then toward her face.

And finally—

awareness crashed back into him hard enough Lyra physically saw the horror appear afterward.

Not because he’d threatened Cassian.

Because he’d nearly frightened her.

His grip loosened immediately.

Cassian staggered backward coughing hard while several guards rushed toward him.

Kael didn’t even look in their direction.

His attention stayed entirely fixed on Lyra.

The ballroom suddenly felt unbearably quiet.

Too many eyes.

Too many questions.

Too much instinct hanging visibly in the air between them now.

Kael stepped back once.

Then again.

Like distance had become necessary for survival.

And for the first time since meeting the Black Wolf King—

Lyra realized he wasn’t merely afraid of what she was becoming.

He was terrified of what she was turning him into.