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Moonlight Betrayal-Chapter 87
Chapter 87: Chapter 87
Chapter 87
Astrid’s POV
I paused as the words washed over me. Did he just call me baby? I turned to him and noticed that there was mirth in his eyes. Was he playing with me?
"What is it?" He asked me.
I blinked trying to comprehend what was going on. He could be messing with me but on second thought, Kaeleen wouldn’t joke about things like this especially when I was so sensitive to affection even if I craved it from him. And the fact that he said it so casually, a simple statement of fact as he smiled down at me.
Perhaps it wasn’t a slip of the tongue; it was spoken with an easy confidence, as if he’d called me that a thousand times before. My heart, which had been pounding from the exertion of our spar, gave a completely different kind of beat if that was even possible. It was a hot, dizzying flip that sent warmth rushing through my veins, all the way to the tips of my fingers and toes.
Sheena, my wolf, purred loudly in my mind, a sound of pure, unadulterated delight. She preened under the endearment, soaking it in like a cat in a sunbeam. I, on the other hand, felt my cheeks flame with a blush so intense I was certain I must be glowing. I was momentarily speechless, my mind a blank slate wiped clean by that single word.
"Are you okay?" He asked me when he noticed how red I was.
His brow furrowed as he stared at me with concern. He was acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, which only made me feel more flustered.
"I... work?" I finally managed to stammer, my voice sounding breathless. I cleared my throat, trying to regain some semblance of composure. "I thought the Phoenix was finished. That everything was finalized."
"Almost," he corrected, his tone shifting back to business, though the playful light never quite left his eyes. "The car is done, but the launch is a massive undertaking. There are logistics, security details, and a hundred other small fires to put out before the gala. It never really ends."
My heart did a little plummet. Of course. He was an Alpha and a CEO of a massive company. His work was never truly done. The bubble of our intense morning, the connection forged in the sparring ring, seemed to pop. Reality came rushing back in. He had a world to run, and I was just one small part of it.
I forced a smile, trying my best to mask the sudden, sharp pang of disappointment. I wanted more of this. More of him. The sparring, the easy camaraderie, the way he looked at me with that fiery pride in his eyes. I wasn’t ready for it to end.
"Oh. Right, of course," I said, my voice hopefully sounding brighter than I felt. I took a small step back, creating a distance that felt like a chasm. "Well, you should go. Don’t let me keep you from your work." I gave him what I hoped was a casual wave. "I’ll see you later this evening, then."
I turned to leave, my shoulders slumping slightly as soon as my back was to him. The vibrant energy of the morning felt like it was draining out of me, leaving a hollow ache behind. It made no sense that I was sad he was going to work. Perhaps I had enjoyed his company so much that him being apart was messing with me.
I wonder how I was going to get through the rest of the day. I never even felt this intense pull with Leon. I didn’t care if Leon was leaving for work which was mostly to attend to pack duties but...
"Astrid."
His voice stopped me in my tracks, interrupting my thoughts. I paused, but didn’t turn around.
"The work isn’t that urgent," he said softly from behind me. "The fires can wait an hour or two to be put out."
I turned slowly, my heart giving another hopeful flutter. He was watching me with a look of such open tenderness it stole my breath away. He had seen right through my flimsy attempt to hide my disappointment. He had seen it, and he had chosen to stay.
A wide, brilliant smile broke across my face, and I couldn’t have hidden it if I tried. The hollow ache was gone, replaced by a bubbling, joyful warmth. "Really?"
"Really," he confirmed, his own smile returning, deeper this time. A sudden, restless energy seemed to spark through him. He rolled his shoulders, his eyes drifting past me towards the edge of the pack lands. "All that sparring has me itching for a real run."
His gaze met mine, and it was a challenge, a silent invitation full of wild promise.
Before I could even form a reply, he took off.
He didn’t jog; he sprinted, his powerful legs eating up the ground with an explosive speed that was purely werewolf. He ran towards the back of the pack house, towards the vast, open space that served as our territory’s heart. novelbuddy-cσ๓
Without a second thought, pure, unadulterated excitement surged through me, and I ran after him. My laughter bubbled up, carried away by the wind as I chased the Alpha of the Emerald pack across his land.
The training grounds gave way to a manicured lawn, which in turn melted into the wild. We burst from the treeline into a space so vast and open it made my spirit soar. It was a massive, rolling meadow that stretched as far as the eye could see, a sea of tall, green grass and vibrant wildflowers under an endless blue sky. The field was bordered on the far side by the deep, dark line of the ancient forest, and a gentle breeze sent ripples across the grass like waves on an ocean. It was a place of absolute freedom.
Kaeleen was several yards ahead of me, a powerful silhouette against the bright morning sun. He didn’t slow down. As he ran, a shimmer began to envelop him, a distortion in the air like heat rising from pavement. His human form blurred, bones shifting and reforming in a process that was too fast for the human eye to truly follow.
And then, where the man had been, there was a wolf.
I skidded to a halt, my breath catching in my throat. I had seen other wolves, but I had never seen him. Not like this. Not in his true form.
He was magnificent. Ryker was enormous, larger than any wolf I had ever laid eyes on, his shoulders thick with muscle. His fur was not just black, but the deep, rich color of midnight, a living shadow that seemed to drink the sunlight. His eyes, were a startling, intelligent gold, burning with the power and authority of a true Alpha. He stood there, his head high, his powerful presence a tangible force that radiated across the field. He was king of this land, and every fiber of his being proclaimed it.
He turned his massive head and looked at me, his golden eyes locking onto mine. He let out a low, rumbling sound not a growl, but a call. An impatient summons.
’Come on.’
Sheena surged forward inside me, no longer content to be a passenger. She was ecstatic, drunk on the sight of her Alpha, her mate, in his primal glory. She craved the run, the wind, the feeling of earth under her paws.
I didn’t fight her. I welcomed her.
I pushed off the ground, running again, and this time, I let go. The change was like diving into cool water on a scorching day. It was a release, a homecoming. The world shifted, colors becoming more vibrant, scents exploding into a complex tapestry of information. The smell of the rich soil, the sweet nectar of the clover, the musky scent of a rabbit that had passed by hours ago, and above it all, the powerful, intoxicating scent of my Alpha.
My bones flowed into a new shape. I landed on four paws, shaking my head as the world settled into a new perspective. Sheena was in control, and I was joyfully along for the ride.
Ryker watched my transformation, his tail giving a slow, deliberate wag. He dipped his head in a gesture of approval, then turned and bolted.
A happy sound escaped Sheena’s throat, and I launched myself after him. We ran. We flew across the massive field, two blurs against the green grass. He was faster, stronger, but he paced himself, staying just ahead of me, urging me on, challenging me to keep up. The wind flattened our fur, the sun warmed our backs, and the sheer, unadulterated joy of the run was a wild song in our blood. This was freedom. This was us. And as I ran beside my Alpha, my mate, my heart soared with the certainty that this was exactly where I was supposed to be.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺