Chapter 43

Cora

The ghost of Kingston’s scent still clung faintly to my skin, and I could recall it all vividly every time I closed my eyes. As I went about my morning, the echo of my wolf’s voice haunted me as well, fragile, tentative, and gone far too soon.

I rushed through my routine in a haze, replaying her whisper over and over. Those few words had sliced through me like a lightning strike, illuminating everything and nothing all at once.

I barely remembered the commute to work. At my desk, I tried to ground myself. Kingston wasn’t in yet. Probably smart, considering what happened last night.

The things I’d said under the influence of Daisy’s drug—the confession I couldn’t take back—had cracked something wide open between us. And after what followed… God.

But that all paled in comparison to the faint whisper of a part of me I hadn’t known existed. My wolf.

I closed my eyes and focused inward, tuning out the chatter and bustle of the office. I tried to find that hidden space within myself, the place where my wolf used to live.

I reached again. Harder. Deeper.

Nothing.

Frustration welled up in my throat. The silence was a void. I’d always lived without my wolf, but for some reason, she had chosen now to rise up and make herself apparent. Even after years of abuse from Zach and cruelty from Daisy, she had been silent.

But now… now I knew she was there. Somewhere.

And Kingston had woken her up.

All at once, I felt it. A flicker.

I gasped and almost knocked over my coffee.

There.

Just for a heartbeat, I felt her again. Faint but undeniable, like catching a scent on the wind.

Cora… The voice was weaker than before, fading in and out. You must listen.

“I’m here,” I whispered, ignoring the weird glance I got from the intern walking past.

I was sealed… long ago. Too much pain. Too much fear. I… could not return.

“Why now?” I asked, my voice trembling. “Why did I hear you that night?”

Her answer came slowly, as though drawn from a place buried deep within my soul. Because your heart opened. Because you are ready to find your true mate now.

I froze.

No.

“You’re wrong,” I whispered, shaking my head. “That can’t be true.” Because if it was true, that would mean…

Only with him… will I return in my entirety. Only then… will we be whole.

And then, silence.

The line went dead inside me once again. I reached, panicked, clawing at the link with my mind. But it was like chasing mist in the dark.

She was gone. Again.

I slumped back in my chair, trembling.

True mate.

The words echoed inside me like a prophecy I didn’t want. Because if my wolf was right, if I needed my true mate to bring her back, then who was it?

I had to dismiss the obvious. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be Kingston. He had a child with Daisy. He was the Alpha King. A strong, busy, powerful leader. And besides that, he was complicated and sometimes terrifying.

As much as I wanted it to be him, it couldn’t be. We were not matched in our power, and he belonged to another. He had never implied feeling any mating pull to me either.

Still, it would have been nice.

The man who stayed by Riley’s hospital bed. The man who made my heart beat faster when he simply walked into a room.

But if he wasn’t… why did my wolf stir for the first time in years when I was with him?

I stood abruptly, ignoring the questioning glance from that same overly curious intern, and made my way across the executive floor. My legs felt heavy, like the truth I didn’t want to face was dragging me down with every step.

I passed Kingston’s office, heart hammering. He wasn’t inside. Good. I wasn’t ready to face him. Not like this. Not with a hurricane of feelings and possibilities churning inside me.

Instead, I walked into the women’s restroom, locked the farthest stall, and sank onto the toilet seat. My hands trembled as I covered my face.

What if Kingston was my mate?

It didn’t make sense. Weren’t true mates supposed to be perfect for each other? Like puzzle pieces that clicked into place? Not messy, complicated, and full of secrets. Not people who’d hurt each other—intentionally or not.

But then again… who had ever made me feel the way he did?

He got under my skin like no one else. And when he touched me last night, it felt like coming home to a place I didn’t know I’d lost.

“Stop it,” I whispered to myself, standing up.

I had no proof. Only a half-heard whisper from a part of me that had been missing for too long. And even if it was true… even if he was my mate… that didn’t mean he wanted to be.

I straightened my clothes, splashed water on my face, and left the restroom, walking with a little more control, even if my insides were a storm.

By the time I returned to my desk, Kingston had arrived. His door was closed, but I could feel his presence like static on my skin. I sat, stared blankly at my screen, and wondered what the hell I was supposed to do.

All of the sudden, Kingston was beside me, his hand on the back of my chair. “I wanted to check in.”

I swallowed. “I’m fine.”

His eyes searched mine, and I hated how easily he saw through me.

“You heard her again,” he said softly. “I can tell.”

I flinched. “Just once. And then nothing.”

Kingston leaned forward. “That’s more than nothing, Cora. How are you feeling?”

“But what if that was it? A fluke? A—” I stopped myself, blinking hard. “She said she was sealed. That she needed… a true mate to come back.”

He was quiet for a long moment. “And that scares you.”

I nodded. I couldn’t bring myself to outright ask him the question that had been plaguing my mind since.

Because what scared me more than the bond I felt pulling me to Kingston… was the terrifying possibility that he might actually be the one who could unseal it. Even just standing there, I had to wonder against my better judgment. But he didn’t seem to be feeling it too, as though confirming my theory that it was not him.

In fact, he didn’t seem to be all that affected by the fact that we had spent a passionate night together just days ago. He must have been used to it as the Alpha King—having women throw themselves at his feet.

“You shouldn’t be frightened by this. All of it is a good sign. Having a mate to lean on is a good thing,” he said, his smile strangely tight. “We just have to find him.”

My stomach clenched, looking up at him.

Because if he really was my mate… if he really was the key to bringing my wolf back… I had a choice to make.

Hide from it.

Or run toward it—and risk everything.