ZANE’S POV
The coronation was over, the celebrations had died down, and I was alone in my chambers, staring at the ceiling with an empty feeling in my chest.
I should have been happy, because I had just been crowned Alpha prince, the pack had accepted me, and I had found my mate.
But I felt nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
When the mate bond snapped into place with Aurora, I had expected to feel something, according to what I used to hear it feels like, like warmth, connection, the pull of fate.
But all I felt was emptiness, and the entire time, my eyes kept searching for Aria.
I sat up and ran my hands through my hair, feeling frustrated and confused.
Why did I feel nothing for Aurora?
Why did I keep thinking about a woman I had spent only one night with?
A woman whole full name I did not even know until today.
A Sinclair.
Tristan had told me that much.
But now, I knew more.
She was Aurora sister, the forgotten one, the one everyone over looked, and I could not stop thinking about her.
The door opened and Tristan walked in, with a wide grin on his face.
He looked at me with amusement, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
“Well, well, well,” he said, leaning against the doorframe.
“Look at you.
The official Alpha Prince, fresh off his coronation, and you have also found your true mate.
You must be weak with excitement.
I expected you to be glowing, not brooding like a man who just lost his best friend.”
“I am not brooding,” I said stiffly.
“You are brooding,” he said and walked closer.
“You have been standing there for an hour, staring at the sky.
That is the definition of brooding.”
I sighed and rubbed my temples.
“Look, I am just tired.
It has been a long day.
Tristan studied me for a moment.
The his expression softened slightly and asked, “Alright what is going on?
You have not been your self since the ceremony.”
I hesitated, then decided to be honest with him.
“I feel nothing for her, Tristan.
When the bond snapped into place, there was nothing.
No warmth and no pull.
It just felt empty.”
Tristan raised his eyebrow and said calmly, “You need to give it time, Zane.
She is your mate.
Aurora is beautiful, charming, and the pack already adores her.
She is the perfect candidate for a Luna.
Do not throw that away because you are over thinking things.”
I knew he was trying to help but the words did not ease the heavy weight in my chest.
She wore a beautiful gown and carried herself like she already belonged to the palace.
“Zane,” she said warmly and her voice inviting as she stepped closer to me.
“I just wanted to introduce myself properly.
I am Aurora Sinclair, your mate.
I know this is all new, but I am so happy.
I have been dreaming of this moment for so long.”
She moved closer and stretched out her hand to touch my arm, and her fingers felt soft and gentle.
“I know you must be tired after everything today, but I wanted to see you.
I wanted to feel your presence, to be close to you.
It is such a relief to finally have you here.”
I forced a polite smile on my face and stepped back gently, creating a small distance between us.
“Thank you, Aurora.
I appreciate you coming to check on me.”
She smiled widely, obviously not noticing my retreat, and took another step forward.
“I know this is a lot to take in, but I want you to know that I am ready to be by your side.
I have been preparing to be a Luna my whole life and I will make you proud.
We can talk about everything, the ceremony, the future, anything you want.
I just want to get to know you better.”
I felt the breath leaving my chest.
Her eagerness, her sweetness, it was all too much and I needed space.
I needed air.
I can not pretend to be excited about something that felt so wrong.
I held up my hand gently, stopping her from taking a step closer.
“Aurora, I appreciate your enthusiasm.
Truly, but I am exhausted and I need sometime alone to process everything.
It has been a long day and I need to rest.”
The smile on her face shook for just a moment, and a flicker of something passed through her eyes before she quickly recovered.
“Ofcourse, Zane.
I understand.
You must be overwhelmed.
I just wanted to see you, to let you know that I am here for you whenever you are ready.
I will come by tomorrow, so we can talk properly.
Good night, Zane.”
Then she turned and walked out, closing the door softly behind her.
I let out a breath of relief, and stretched my limbs.
Tristan raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.
“You just sent your mate away, Zane.
Not exactly a strong start.
She was being sweet and you pushed her away.”
I turned to him and said firmly.
“I need time to think, Tristan.
I can not pretend to be excited about something that feels wrong. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
I do not care about how sweet she was.”
Tristan shook his head and said, “you are overthinking this.
Give it time.
Things will fall into place.”
I said nothing.
I knew he was trying to help, but nothing he said made me feel better.
The only thing I could think about was Aria.
The woman frommthe bar.
The one who had looked at me like I was her only hope.
The one I could not stop thinking about no matter how hard I tried.
I moved to the window and stared out at the dark sky.
Somewhere out there, she was sleeping, or maybe she was awake, thinking about me too.
I did not know, but I needed to find out.
“Tristan,” I said quietly.
“I need you to help me find someone.”
“Who?”
“The Sinclair household,” I said quietly.
“I need to go there.”
“Tristan widened his eyes in shock.
“Zane, that is dangerous.
Aurora is your mate.
If anyone sees you—”
“I do not care,” I said firmly.
“I need to see her.
I need to understand why I can not stop thinking about her.”
Tristan studied me for a moment, then nodded.
“Fine.
But be careful.
Aurora has eyes everywhere.”
I grabbed my jacket and slipped out of the palace, moving through the dark streets until I reached the address Tristan had sent to me.
The Sinclair household.
I stopped at the edge of the property and looked up at the windows.
One of them had a soft light glowing through the curtains.
And my heart stopped.
She was awake, I could feel it.
I did not know what I would say to her.
I did not know if she even wanted to see me.
But I knew I had to try.
I had to see her face, hear her voice, and understand why she is the only one who made feel anything.
I took a step forward, with my eyes fixed on the glowing window, wondering if she was thinking about me too.