CHAPTER 90: HESITATE TO END YOU

"Who is your Luna? You can’t possibly be finding a mate at this age!" Angelica screamed, her voice shrill with disbelief. "I’ll kill her, I swear I will!"

Before the last word could leave her lips, Lucien’s hand shot out, clamping tightly around her throat.

"Don’t even think about it," he growled in a dangerously low voice. "You know exactly what kind of man I am, Angelica. I won’t hesitate to end you if you do anything that pisses me off."

Her nails clawed at his wrist as she gasped for air, her eyes widening in panic. Just when she thought she might lose consciousness, Lucien released her.

Angelica stumbled back, coughing violently, her breaths shallow and ragged. She clutched her throat, her eyes wide with shock and fury.

"You..." she managed to say between coughs.

"Stay out of my life," Lucien snapped, brushing past her without a second glance. "Be the dutiful princess everyone expects you to be. But if you cross me again, I promise you’ll regret it."

Angelica clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms. Her wolf stirred restlessly within, and her eyes shimmered with a golden hue. "You dared to lay hands on me, Lucien. You think I’ll let that go? I’ll show you what Angelica truly is."

Lucien didn’t respond. He strode away without looking back, returning to his quarters where Caleb was already waiting for him.

"I just saw you with your hand around the princess’s throat," Caleb said with concern. "What if someone else had witnessed it? That could have ended very badly."

Lucien’s jaw tightened. "Do I look like I care? She crossed the line. She threatened to harm Leia."

Caleb’s brows shot up. "She knows about Leia?"

"I told her I found my mate," Lucien muttered, pacing the room, his fury barely contained. "I didn’t say it was Leia, but she started getting angry. And knowing her, she’ll try something reckless."

Caleb sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "What now? Also, you found mate in Leia!?"

"Not actually found. But I consider her my mate," Lucien replied.

"Hmm. I will take my leave. Good night," said Caleb and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Lucien rested on the bed, and picked up the phone from the bedside table. He saw a missed call from Leia and called her.

"Hello," Leia spoke from the other side.

"Hi. I had gone for a stroll," said Lucien. "Do you have to say something to me?"

"No," Leia refused. "Ronan isn’t speaking with me," she said after a pause. "You said I should give him time. Are you sure? Is there any way I can approach him and he won’t be angry?"

"You should try to understand it yourself," Lucien said. "Like I told you... Ronan isn’t used to love or being cared for. That’s probably why he’s keeping his distance. But you... you have this way of reaching into people’s hearts, Leia. It’s not easy to ignore."

Leia smiled softly at his words. "Did that happen with you, too?"

Lucien exhaled a faint laugh. "It did. I ended up telling you things I’ve never shared with anyone. And we kissed... which means something’s definitely changed between us."

Leia’s face flushed. "Can you not keep bringing that up?" she mumbled, lowering her gaze. "But... since I kissed you, doesn’t that mean you should stop smoking? I really don’t like smokers."

Lucien grinned, amused by her sudden shift in tone. "Alright. I’ll try to quit. Just for you."

There was a pause before Leia spoke again, her voice tender. "Your parents must be proud of you, Lucien. You’ve looked after everyone around you so well. Not everyone has that kind of strength."

Lucien chuckled quietly, caught off guard by the sincerity in her tone. Compliments from Leia weren’t common, and that made them all the more heart-fluttering. "Why are you suddenly saying things like that?" he asked, his voice softening.

Leia smiled, but didn’t answer. Some feelings didn’t need to be explained in words.

Not hearing her response, Lucien checked the screen, but the call wasn’t disconnected.

"I miss you," Lucien whispered, his voice barely above a breath. "I don’t know if you feel the same, but it’s strange... not having you by my side tonight." After a brief pause, he said, "Goodnight, Leia. Have sweet dreams."

As the call disconnected, Leia slowly lowered her phone. A gentle smile tugged at her lips. "Something has definitely changed between us," she murmured, the warmth in her chest lingering.

She stepped out of her room, mind swirling with thoughts about how to approach Ronan. But as she descended the hallway, her steps came to a halt.

"Kieran?" she called softly, eyes widening slightly.

There he was, sitting in the living room under the dim, warm glow of a side lamp. Papers were spread across the table, and he still had his glasses on, brows slightly furrowed in focus.

"Why aren’t you asleep?" Kieran asked, taking off his glasses and tilting his head to look at her.

"Ah... it’s not that late, that’s why I’m still up," Leia replied, walking over to him. Her gaze swept over the scattered papers. "But why are you working out here instead of in your room?"

Kieran leaned back slightly in his seat. "Well, there was some pending work left. Since Lucien’s away, I need to handle the affairs he normally takes care of. I’m just preparing everything so he’ll only need to review the files when he’s back."

"Oh." Leia settled onto the sofa chair across from him and casually picked up one of the files, her eyes scanning the contents. "Should I help you then?"

Kieran looked up and smiled faintly, putting his glasses back on. "No, you should get some rest. I don’t want you waking up tomorrow with dark circles under your eyes. You’re already losing sleep because of everything that’s going on."

Leia pouted slightly. "You’re always so concerned about me."

"Of course I am," Kieran said, but he didn’t look up from the papers.

Leia watched him for a moment longer, then set the file back down. "I’ll stay for just a bit. Sometimes, it’s nice to have someone around while working."