LUCIAN’S POV
I walked into my chambers, already loosening my collar, and stopped dead in my tracks.
My mother was pacing the room like a caged animal, with her arms crossed, and her jaw tight.
Jace was leaning against the wall, watching her with the kind of amusement that told me he had already been entertained for a while.
I blinked in shock.
“Mother?
What are you doing here?”
She spun around to face me and looked at me sharply.
“What am I doing here?
What are you doing, Lucian?”
I frowned.
“I don’t follow.”
“Do not play dumb with me,” she said, pointing a finger at my chest.
“Why did you interrupt my matchmaking?
Why did you have to bring pack matters into it and take those men away?”
I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Mother—”
“I was in the middle of something important,” she continued, her voice rising.
“I had them
right where I wanted them, and you swooped in like some territorial wolf and ruined everything.”
I laughed, but there was no humor in it.
“Territorial wolf?
Mother, I was saving you from embarrassment.”
“Embarrassment?” She repeated, her eyes widening in surprise.
“How was I being embarrassed?”
I stepped closer and lowered my voice into a whisper.
“How are you so sure she even liked those men?”
Greta blinked.
“What is not to like?
They are well in their prime and respectable.
They are lords.
They have land, titles, good reputations—”
“And yet,” I cut in, “she did not interested.
She was polite, but that was all.
Polite.
You know what that means, Mother?
It means she was being nice to you, Not to them.”
Greta’s mouth opened and closed like a fish.
“You do not know that.”
“I know it,” I said simply.
“I watched her face when she looked at them.
There was nothing there.”
“Nothing?
How can there be nothing?
They are handsome, accomplished, and kind.
Any woman would be lucky to have them.”
I shrugged.
“Maybe.
But she does not want them.”
Greta scoffed.
“And you know what she wants?”
I did not answer.
I could not.
Because I knew exactly what she wanted.
And I wanted her back.
“Besides,” Greta continued, waving her hand dismissively, “even if you did not want to help me, you could have at least let me finish before you took the men away.”
“Finish what?
Watch you parade them around like pride horses?” I asked, with a smirk tugging at my lips.
Greta’s face flushed.
“They are not horses, Lucian.
They are eligible bachelors.
There is a difference.”
“Is there?
Because from where I am standing, it looked like you were trying to sell her to the highest bidder.”
Jace snorted behind me, and I shot him a warning look.
He help up his hands in apology, but his grin did not fade.
Greta narrowed her eyes and spluttered, “I was trying to help her, Lucian.
Something you clearly have no interest in doing.”
“Maybe I have other interests,” I said calmly.
“Like what?” She demanded.
I opened my mouth to answer, but she was already off again, pacing and muttering under her breath
“And Lord Harry,” she continued, gesturing wildly.
“He is the perfect gentleman.
So respectful.
So charming.
He would treat her like a queen—”
“He is also boring,” I said flatly.
“He is not—” Greta started, then stopped.
“Well, he is a bit quiet, but that is because he is thoughtful.”
“He is so thoughtful he barely speaks,” I countered.
“How is she supposed to fall in love with a man who talks less than a stone?”
Jace was laughing openly now, and I made a mental note to throw something at him later.
Greta’s eyes twitched slightly.
“Fine.
What about Lord Christian?
He is strong, decisive, a natural leader—”
“Boring,” I said again.
“He has the personality of a brick.
A well-mannered brick, but a brick nonetheless.”
Greta threw her hands up.
“You are impossible!
Every man I present, you find something wrong with him.
What do you want, Lucian?
A poet?
A warrior?
A prince?”
“I want her to choose,” I said sharply.
“Not you.
Not anyone else.
Her.
And if she does not want them, then she should not have to be forced into it.”
Greta stared at me, her eyes searching my face.
“Since when do you care so much about Nora’s love life?”
“Since she became my guest,” I said carefully.
“I want her to be happy.
But that does not mean she has to be happy with whoever you pick.”
Greta huffed and muttered something under her breath, and then she slipped up.
“Well, Lord Harry is not that bad.
He reminds me of….well, he is just….”
Then she froze.
I froze.
Jace froze.
The room went completely silent.
I stared at my mother, with my brain trying to process what she had just implied.
“Reminds you of who, Mother?”
Greta’s face had gone pale.
“I…I do not know what you mean.”
“You said Lord Harry reminds you of someone,” I pressed, stepping closer.
“Who is it?”
“I said nothing,” she said quickly, backing away.
“I do not remember what I said.”
“You said, ‘He reminds me of…’ and then stopped,” Jace added helpfully, clearly enjoying the show.
Greta shot him a look that could have melted iron, and snapped, “I said nothing of importance.
I was just rambling.”
“No, you were slipping,” I said, my eyes narrowing.
“Who is he, Mother?
Who does Lord Harry reminds you of?”
Greta’s hands were shaking now.
“It’s nothing.
I was just—”
“You were comparing him to someone,” I said, stepping into her path.
“Who.
Is.
It?”
She pushed past me, her voice high and flustered.
“I have to go.
I just remembered I have….something to do.
Somewhere else.”
I blocked the door.
“Mother.”
“Move aside, Lucian.”
“Not until you tell me what you meant.”
Greta’s eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape.
“I do not have to explain myself to you.
I am your mother, not a suspect.”
“You are acting like one,” I said flatly.
Then she shoved me aside, surprisingly strong for someone her age, and yanked the door open.
“I have no idea what you are talking about?”
Then she was gone, her footsteps echoing down the hallway.
I stood there, staring at the empty doorway, with my mind spinning.
Jace let out a low whistle.
“Well.
That was….unexpected.”
I turned to glare at him and hissed, “Shut up.”
“I am just saying, your mother has been a widow for a long time.
So it is natural she might have…needs.”
“Shut up,” I repeated.
“She has been alone for years,” Jace continued, with a huge grin on his face.
“She properly gets lonely.
There is no shame in—”
I picked up a pillow and threw it at his head.
He caught it, laughing.
“Your mother has a secret lover,” he said, shaking his head.
“Your mother?
The prim and proper Luna Dowager?
The woman who lectures everyone on propriety and tradition.
She has someone on the side?”
“Do not say it like that,” I growled.
“It makes it sound dirty.”
“Because it is dirty,” Jace said, wiggling his eyebrows.
“Good for her though.
She deserves some happiness.”
I groaned, and dragged my hand down my face.
“I am pretending I did not hear any of that.
That was a fever dream.
It never happened.”
Jace laughed again.
“Fine, fine.
Let us talk about something else.
Where have you been?”
I sighed and walked over to the window.
“I went to see Nora.”
Jace grin faded from his face instantly.
“And how did that go?”
“Complicated,” I admitted.
“She is still pushing me away.”
Jace nodded slowly.
“Well, the palace is a ticking time bomb right now.
Your mother has a secret lover, you are a obsessed with her best friend, and Nora does not want anything to do with you.
This whole place is about to explode.”
“Thanks for the encouragement,” I muttered.
“I am just being honest,” he said with a shrug.
“So, is there anything you can do to make her yours?”
I shook my head.
“I do not know.
The only way is to tell my mother and claim her publicly.
But Nora does not want this.
She is still running.”
Jace studied me for a long moment.
“And that attraction between you two…is it just sexual?”
“No,” I said immediately.
“I have been with enough she wolves to know the difference.
Thsi isn’t just about her body.
It’s more than that.
I can’t explain it.
But it’s different.”
Jace tilted his head.
“True.
But you haven’t been with her size before.
Mayne This is just a new conquest.
Something new and exciting.”
I clenched my jaw tightly.
“It’s not that.
I’m not that shallow.”
Jace held up his hands in surrender.
“Alright, alright.
So what are you going to do now?”
I looked out at the dark sky.
“I asked her to meet me later tonight.
Somewhere private.
I intend on breaking her defenses so I can finally penetrate that cold heart of hers.”
Jace nodded slowly.
“And what if she doesn’t come?”
I was quiet for a long moment, with the words tasting bitter on my tongue.
“Then I will truly leave her alone.”
Jace studied me, with a sad look in his eyes.
“You really do love her, don’t you?”
I didn’t answer.
I didn’t have to.