Page 82 of His Fated Luna

Had it worked?

Aiden had just made a choice, whether he admitted it or not. He’d chosen to sacrifice the truth of his feelings for Lexia to make this whole act more believable—for me. It could cost him later, and he still did it.

I should’ve reminded myself that this was all pretend. That I needed to stay grounded.

But instead, I leaned into the smallest, most dangerous thought:

I liked being first.

Even if it was only for now.

So, I pushed the guilt down and let the butterflies in my stomach take over as Aiden’s fingers lingered in my curls for a few more minutes before he pulled away and started digging into his main course. The second his arm left my shoulders, I felt like I could breathe again. My head started clearing and I began looking around the room again.

That’s when I noticed a pattern: the single alphas were seated together at various round tables, while the couples were grouped together. And the couples? All madly in love, obviously mates. Their body language said it all. Apart from Mr. Evans, most looked like they were under fifty-five. Just a handful of graying couples.

“Everyone’s young,” I murmured under my breath. Aiden took a bite of his steak, and my eyes betrayed me, watching his lips move around the fork. The amount of pheromones buzzing around this place was seriously affecting me. Still, wasn’t it my job tonight to look attracted to him?

“Most alphas retire early,” he replied. He nodded toward Mr. Evans, who was now seated again with his wife, eating quietly. “Alistair’s the oldest here at fifty-five. You need to stay fit if you want to keep your alpha status. Someone’s always ready to challenge you.”

“Why hasn’t Mr. Evans retired yet? I mean, not that he doesn’t look... fit. He looks... pretty ripped,” I said, my eyes flicking over to the man in question. For his age, he did look strong.

“He would’ve if he had a son,” Aiden said. “Lexia’s his only child. His wife’s been sick for years, couldn’t have more kids. Lexia came after two miscarriages and a lot of trying. Even after that, more miscarriages. Doctors eventually told her to stop.”

I didn’t need to ask how Aiden knew all this. Of course, he knew—he’d been close to Lexia.

“And now they’re upset that Lexia doesn’t have a mate to inherit the pack,” I said, keeping my voice low. “What if she never mates? I mean—just as a hypothetical.” I stumbled over the words, trying not to make it sound like I was saying Lexia couldn’t mate. Aiden raised an eyebrow at me. “Couldn’t she just become alpha herself?”

“Alphas are always male,” he replied with a patient smile, gently setting his fork down. “And Alistair is stuck in the old ways. He wouldn’t let a female become alpha.”

I should’ve known that. But Aiden didn’t make me feel stupid. He just explained things calmly, probably realizing how out of my depth I still was.

“Alistair’s worried someone will challenge him and take the pack. He wants to keep it in the family, but now that our mating ceremony is public knowledge, people are circling. Before, alphas were hesitant because I was tied to Lexia. With me protecting her, no one dared challenge him. Now? He’s fair game. That’s just how our world works. Alliances don’t stop power plays. Even allied alphas can challenge weaker ones.”

“Who’s he most afraid of right now?” I asked. Maybe I could help somehow—make up for the chaos I’d caused his family.

Aiden tilted his head, a little amused. “Me.”

“You?” My voice pitched up in surprise. He reached for another glass of champagne—how many had he had already?

“I’m younger, probably stronger. Our territories border each other. And if I won, he doesn’t have a son to challenge me. I have the most to gain from taking over his pack.”

“Oh, well, then he doesn’t have to worry. You’d never do that,” I said quickly, reassuringly.

“I wouldn’t?” he asked, his tone unreadable.

“Well…I mean…” I looked around nervously. I couldn’t bring up Lexia with all these ears around.

He laughed. “You’re right, Princess. I’d never do that. He’s just paranoid.”

I tried to return his smile, but mine didn’t quite reach my eyes. If he hadn’t loved Lexia, would he have challenged Mr. Evans? It wasn’t illegal. It wasn’t even unusual. Every werewolf loved land. The law allowed open challenges. Barbaric, but normal.

Or maybe… maybe that had been his original plan. Was that why he’d started dating Lexia in the first place? If they mated, he’d automatically become Alpha of Silver Creek, merging both their lands.

“But you wanted to,” I whispered. My mind was spinning. It all made sense now.

Aiden turned to me sharply.

“I want to,” he corrected, voice low. “The wolf in me does. But I won’t.” He glanced around quickly. He knew people might be listening. And he wasn’t wrong—werewolf hearing made eavesdropping way too easy. Suddenly, it made sense how everyone seemed to know so much about everyone.