CHAPTER 68: MY POSSESSIVE QUEEN’S MOST IRRATIONAL FEAR

"Your mom," she said, the words barely audible. "She’s very beautiful."

"What?"

"And you two seem very... close now." She swallowed hard, forcing herself to continue. "After your private walk."

"Are you... Natalia, are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?"

"I’m not suggesting anything," she said, her voice brittle as she remained facing away from him. "I’m going to bed."

"Look at me," Satori said, his tone suddenly commanding

Against her better judgment, Natalia turned. Satori’s face had transformed—gone was the confusion, replaced by an intensity that made her breath catch in her throat.

He crossed the distance between them in three long strides, backing her against the wall .

"You think I’m trying to seduce my own mother?" His voice was dangerously low. "Is that what you’re implying?"

Heat flooded Natalia’s cheeks, spreading down her neck, turning her fair skin a mortified shade of pink. "I—"

"Answer me," he demanded, placing one hand on the wall beside her head, effectively caging her in with his larger frame. The scent of him—that unique blend of spice and something distinctly Satori—surrounded her.

"You told me about your Covenant," she whispered, her voice small but defiant, eyes flickering between his face and the floor. "About needing exceptional women. And she is... exceptional."

Something flashed in Satori’s eyes. The corner of his mouth twitched, and then his lips curled into a smile that was somehow both mocking and tender, a combination only he could master.

"My beautiful, possessive queen," he murmured, his free hand coming up to cup her cheek, his thumb tracing the delicate line of her cheekbone. The gentleness of the touch contrasted with the intensity of his gaze. "You’re actually jealous of my relationship with my mother."

Natalia wanted to deny it, to slap his hand away and storm off to her room with what little dignity she could salvage. "You were gone for hours," she said weakly. "Holding hands when you came back."

"Because we were talking about my long-lost father and the conspiracy that might have gotten him killed," Satori said, his thumb brushing across her lower lip in a gesture that sent shivers down her spine. "Not planning an affair."

"It sounds stupid when you say it like that," Natalia muttered, averting her eyes.

"It is stupid," he agreed, but his tone was gentle, almost tender in its mockery. "Completely insane."

"Then why are you smiling?" she challenged.

"Because you’re so afraid of losing me that you’re jealous of my own mother." He leaned closer, his breath hot against her ear, sending a cascade of goosebumps across her skin.

"It’s the most absurd and yet strangely flattering thing I’ve ever heard."

A shiver ran down Natalia’s spine. Her body betrayed her, responding to his proximity despite the mortification burning through her. "You don’t own me."

"No?" His lips brushed her earlobe, the feather-light touch sending sparks of electricity through her body. His voice dropped to a whisper. "Then why does the thought of me with another woman drive you crazy? Even when that woman is my mother?"

Natalia pushed against his chest with both hands, creating space between them, needing distance to clear her head from the intoxicating effect of his proximity. "Stop it. It’s not funny," she sad.

"I’m not laughing," Satori saidy. "I’m flattered. Disturbed, but flattered."

"I should go to bed," Natalia said, face burning with mortification, unable to maintain eye contact. Her hand came up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear, a nervous gesture she couldn’t suppress. "We can pretend this conversation never happened."

She tried to slip past him, eager to escape to the sanctuary of her bedroom where she could die of embarrassment in private, but Satori caught her waist with strong hands, pulling her back against him with an authority that made her pulse quicken. "No more running away," he said firmly, his fingers pressing into the curve of her waist. "Look at me."

Reluctantly, Natalia met his gaze, steeling herself for the mockery she expected to find there.

"Kimiko is my mother," he said, enunciating each word clearly, his tone leaving no room for misinterpretation. "She is not a potential Pillar. She is not a target. She is not competition." His eyes bore into hers, intense and unwavering. "Do you understand?"

Natalia nodded, unable to speak past the lump in her throat.

"Good." His expression softened slightly, the hard edges of his features relaxing into something more familiar. "Though I must admit, your jealousy is both completely irrational and strangely arousing."

"You’re sick," Natalia muttered.

"Says the woman who just accused me of trying to seduce my mother." His hands slid lower. "We’re both a little sick, Natalia. That’s why we work so well together."

Despite everything, a small laugh escaped her. "God, we’re messed up," she said, a weight lifting from her shoulders as the absurdity of the situation fully registered.

"Completely," he agreed, his thumbs tracing small circles on her hipbones. "Now, do you want to continue this absurd conversation, or would you prefer I take you to bed and remind you exactly who you belong to?"

The heat in his eyes made her breath catch, her body responding instinctively to the promise in his words.

"Bed," she whispered, her earlier fury melting away under his touch, replaced by a need that consumed all rational thought.

Satori smiled as he took her hand, leading her toward his bedroom. "Just to be absolutely clear," he said, "this is a strictly stepsibling affair. No parents involved."

Natalia pinched his arm, hard enough to leave a mark. "Shut up. I’m still mad at you," she said, though the flush on her cheeks and the quickening of her breath told a different story.

"No, you’re not," he said confidentl. "You’re embarrassed because you let your imagination run wild. There’s a difference."

She wanted to argue, to maintain some semblance of dignity in the face of her absurd jealousy, but they both knew he was right.

Instead, she squeezed his hand. She let him lead her away from her shame and into the dark comfort of his room. At least for now, she was the only woman in his world.