Chapter 110

Thorne’s POV

My wolf prowls just below the surface, feeling protective and a bit on edge as Aurora talks with the Lycans. He knows they’re not a threat to her, but we’re both still on edge after what happened.

However, as they talk, Aurora doesn’t seem worried or afraid. She’s calm and easily holds conversation with her new family, which is very different than how she was acting when we first brought her back.

I’m not sure exactly what she went through, other than what she told me, but I have a feeling she’s holding back. Whether it’s because she can’t talk about it or doesn’t want to, I want to make sure I’m here if she begins to fall apart.

After being kidnapped and tortured, I’m worried that there will be lasting effects. I know strong men in my pack who couldn’t endure what she went through and come out alright on the other side. Then again, I don’t want to push her to talk about what happened or bring it up because that could upset her.

So, I merely settle for holding her while she talks with her father and aunt.

“What was my mother like?” Aurora asks softly as she leans back into my chest. I brush my fingers down her thigh, the way she likes when she wants to be soothed. King Grayson clocks the movement, but he doesn’t say anything.

“Your mother was beauty and grace personified,” King Grayson says. His tone softens and his eyes go distant as he thinks of his mate. Then he chuckles and looks at Aurora. “Though, she wasn’t always. When I first met Elizabeth, she was clumsy and awkward. We were kids who were forced by our parents to hang out together during the summer.”

“You didn’t like her at first?” Aurora asks curiously.

King Grayson shakes his head. “I thought she was a clingy and annoying little girl who was always butting into my business, but mind you, she was actually only two years younger than me.”

Aurora laughs at that, but there’s something strained about the sound. I admire her strength at being able to push through her trauma, but the more I listen, the more I find little things that are off.

“Every year from the time I was seven to the year I turned eighteen, our parents forced us to spend the summer together,” King Grayson says. “And each year, we both hated that time together. Since you don’t find your mate until late teen years, we had no idea that we would turn out to be mates.”

“What happened when you found out?” Aurora leans forward so she doesn’t miss his answer.

King Grayson smiles and leans in as well, mirroring her. “Well, I should preface this to say that there was only one summer we didn’t meet. The summer she turned seventeen and I turned nineteen, she was out of the country with her father. The next summer, she was eighteen and I turned twenty. I hadn’t seen her for almost two years at this point, and I had started to miss her.”

“Awwww,” Aurora coos, leaning back into me again.

“I suppose I’d grown to love her over our summers together, and because I hadn’t found my mate, I was… eager to see her,” he says, and Aurora wiggles excitedly. I hold her still by her hips, gritting my teeth and taking deep breaths.

She glances back at me and cringes, whispering, “Sorry,” before she turned to look back at her father.

“I knew the moment she arrived in our territory. There was a shift in the air, and I could just tell that she was here,” King Grayson says. “Then, I saw her, and it was like my world expanded infinitely in one moment. She smiled and all the colors became brighter. My wolf was going wild inside me, and I was holding myself back from grabbing her and claiming her as mine. I wasn’t sure she felt the mate bond yet, but when she stopped in front of me and reached up to touch my cheek, she simply said, “Hello, my handsome mate.” And I was a goner from then on.”

“That’s so cute,” Aurora whispers, turning and laying her head on my chest. A yawn pulls at Aurora, and she curls further into my chest like a kitten looking for a warm place to sleep.

King Grayson watches her for a moment before standing, “We should let you rest. I’ll be back soon to visit, and if you need anything, all you need do is call.”

Aurora nods, yawning again as he tenderly touches the top of her head. Luna Ashford follows her brother out of the house. Anders clears his throat from the other side of the room before excusing himself.

“Call me if you need anything,” he says before he also disappears out the front door.

Once they’ve all gone, Aurora peers up at me with curious eyes. She stares at me, and I chuckle.

“What is it?”

“Can I ask you something?”

Nodding, I shift my arm beneath her and turn her body to where it’s easier to look at me.

“Did you know I was your mate the first time you saw me?”

We hadn’t really had this conversation yet, but I still answer honestly, “I did.”

Her eyes widen, “Really? And you still offered to form the contract with me? Why did it take so long for you to tell me?”

“I wasn’t sure how to feel about a human mate,” I admit, feeling guilty now. “It took some time for me to realize how stupid it was for me to misjudge you, but I always felt affection for you. I wanted to help you, keep you safe, and keep you to myself.”

She giggles and shakes her head.

“And what about me?” She questions staring up at me seriously.

“What do you mean?”

“Do I get to keep you all to myself? Or are you going to be forced to marry some girl werewolf that your parents choose?”

Right. So much has happened that I never got to tell her.

“The wedding is off,” I say, dropping a kiss on Aurora’s forehead. “I told my father that I would either marry you or no one. He didn’t like my ultimatum, but I didn’t give him or my stepmother a choice in the matter. You are my mate, and I won’t be with anyone else.”

“You really told them that?” She asks, her eyes wide and watery. A tear slips down her cheek, and I reach up, brushing it away.

“I did, and I will tell them over and over again until they accept you,” I whisper, leaning in and touching my forehead to hers. “Besides, the werewolf issue isn’t a problem anymore since you’re now a Lycan, and a princess, at that.”

Aurora pauses for a second before asking, “Could we keep that to ourselves? I don’t want people to accept me only because of my new identity. I want genuine acceptance.”

This woman is amazing.

After everything she’s been through, she’s still such a kindhearted and soft heart. Anyone else would have broken under the pressure she endured, and even though I think she still might, I hold out hope that she will continue to endure.