Page 47 of A Silent Prodigy for the Lycan Princess

“There was a detonation,” I say. “Well, first, there was a fire. I was in a restaurant, and due to technical issues, a fire began to spread. I made it out with everyone else. At the time, I was eleven years old. I hurried back into the building because a woman and a child were still in there.”

“You went in there to save them?” Aurelia concludes, sounding impressed. “That’s amazing, Arden! You were only eleven, yet ready to save someone else. Like a true leader.”

“I did help them get outside, but I stumbled. And then, there was an explosion too close to me. That’s how I lost most of my hearing.” I sigh. “For a human, that might not have been the worst outcome, but for a lycan? At first, my father hoped that Cato would be able to heal me.”

“But he can’t repair what has been destroyed,” Aurelia mutters. “The injury was probably too deep.” She understood it immediately.

“Yes, the same way our wolves can’t grow back a limb. There are limits, and this was Cato’s and mine.” I pause. “The worst for my dad was that Cato had the same hearing ailment. An alpha lycan who can barely hear.”

“Again, your father is an idiot,” she mutters. “He should have been proud of you and encouraged you, helped you train your other senses. It’s true that a hearing impairment is not a goodpredicament for an alpha, but you wouldn’t have needed to rule on your own.”

“Clearly, I don’t need to rule alone because the goddess mated me to you,” I say. “She knew what she was doing.”

“She did,” Aurelia agrees.

“I know you are going to inherit the alpha position,” I say.

“Arden, I know it’s the elephant in the room, but we don’t have to talk about that now.”

“We do,” I say. “Eric talked a lot about you. And I know the pack you are from and that you are not going to leave it behind. I don’t want you to do that, either. My father will never make me an alpha, and to be honest, I don’t mind. I think my brother would be at least as good as I am. What I am saying is, I don’t mind coming with you and supporting you. I’m not sure if I’m made for the task of a luna or lune, but I could be—”

“My co-alpha?” she suggests.

“If that’s what you want,” I say. “I could also be an advisor to you.”

“We don’t need to make any decisions immediately,” she says. “I’m glad to have you at my side, either way. You’re not—” she pauses. “You are not just saying all that to appease me?”

“No,” I reassure her. “I’m saying all that because that’s how things are, and that’s how I want them to be.”

I bet she finds it weird that I have no real emotional connection to my pack, and that I chose this logical approach. This reminds me that I also didn’t get her flowers or anything. “I should have gotten you flowers,” I mutter, feeling like an idiot. Coralie used to make fun of my inability to be romantic.

Aurelia laughs. “What, why?”

“For you, as a gift, because you are my mate.”

“What would I do with flowers here?” she asks me.

“I have no idea.”

“By this logic I should have gotten you flowers as well,” she says.

I frown. “Right, why didn’t you?”

She laughs, playfully punching my shoulder. “I like breakfast,” she says and takes her second croissant. “You got me coffee and food. That’s pretty much my love language. And you stood up for me in front of your father.”

“I don’t always get these things,” I admit. “I mean, between a guy and a girl. So, if you ever feel like I’m not paying enough attention to you or your feelings or your needs, tell me. I promise I will never make fun of you when you do that. Just hit me with a brick here and there.”

She bends forward, her hand at the back of my head to pull me closer. “Okay,” she says before I can lean into the kiss. “Just remember my birthday and our anniversary.”

“Just to be sure,” I say. “Our anniversary… is that today or yesterday?”

“You accepted me as your mate today,” she says. “So, let’s make it today.”

Chapter sixteen

Truths

*AURELIA*