Chapter 38 My stomach tightened. Here it comes. "Why did you agree to this marriage? She paused, letting the weight of her question settle. Is it because you're using Caelan as an escape from Darrell? The words hit like ice water. Or are you treating him like a backup plan? A safe choice?" I opened my mouth to protest, but she wasn't finished. "Because if that's the case, it's not fair. Worry flickered in her eyes. 'I heard about what happened during Gabriel's surgery today. A Lycan King giving his blood for a complete stranger…" She stopped, letting the implications hang in the air. 'You know what that means, don't you? You realize he did it for you, not for Gabriel?" My coffee cup froze halfway to my lips. My eyes went wide. The truth of her words crashed over me like a wave. I'd been so focused on Gabriel's recovery that I hadn't fully processed what Caelan had done. What it meant. Silence stretched between us. I stared at the table, my thoughts spinning. Finally, I spoke. "At first… maybe it was like that." My voice dropped to almost a whisper. "When Darrell betrayed me, it felt like my whole world collapsed." I looked up to meet Kate's concerned gaze. "Going back to Dad, accepting this marriage - it seemed like the only way out." "I thought I could maintain a… friendly partnership with Caelan." The words felt hollow as I said them. "Like political marriages are supposed to be." "I thought we'd be respectful roommates, living separate lives. We've known each other for years, and I always saw him as a brother, family." Tears pricked my eyes. "I never imagined… never thought he could actually love me. And I just came out of a failed relationship. I wasn't ready to enter another one." Kate's voice remained gentle but insistent. 'What about now? Do you still think that way?" 1 shook my head firmly. "No…" But then the guilt crashed back in. Tears spilled down my cheeks. "Kate, I feel so selfish." "I'm bringing a broken heart to accept his love." Is that fair to him? I wiped my nose with a napkin. I'm even scared of him…" Kate frowned. 'Scared? Why?" 'I'm afraid I don't know the real him. My voice trembled. "Yesterday at the hospital, when Darrell tried to hurt me… "Caelan kicked him. Kate, I'd never seen him like that." "That violence, that killing intent… it terrified me." 1/4 7.20 pm Chapter 38 Kate's eyes filled with tears too She gripped my hands tightly Honey, let me tell you a story Her voice grew softer When my brother was sick. You gave me all your savings "Do you know what I was most afraid of then? I looked up, confesion in my eyes. "I was afraid to accept your help because it meant admitting I was powerless. Kate's voice broke slightly. 'I was afraid of owing you, afraid that someday yunk for payback." 7 was afraid to believe that unconditional kindness really existed in this world." Tears shid down her cheeks. But you know what? Accepting your help was the best decision of my life." "Because real kindness doesn't expect returns. Real love doesn't demand you become someone else." She wiped her eyes, her voice growing stronger. "Just now at the hospital, I saw how His Majesty looked at you." Like you were his entire world." Kate's expression grew serious but warm. "Do you remember what I told you before your first surgery?" I shook my head. The biggest medical tragedy isn't surgical failure." Her voice carried the weight of experience. "It's refusing to try to save a life because you're afraid of failing. "Love is the same way, Sable." "Don't refuse to be loved because you're afraid of getting hurt." "Don't let past shadows steal your future happiness." I stopped crying, really considering her words for the first time. Maybe she's right. Maybe I've been so focused on protecting myself that I forgot how to accept something real. Kate reached across the table again. Whether you're Dr. Sable or Queen Sable…" "You'll always be my dearest friend." Vie stood simultaneously, meeting in a fierce hug. I breathed in her familiar lavender perfume, memorizing this moment. "Take case of yourself, I whispered against her shoulder. "You too. And table? She pulled back to look at me. Be brave. You deserve to be happy." I drove back to the hotel with Kates words echoing in my mind. The city lights blurred past the windows as I drove through downtown Moonridge. Traffic was light at this hour. Just me and the occasional taxi weaving through empty streets. 2/4 7:20 pm) Chapter 38 Then it hit me. A wave of heat crashed through my body like wildfire. My heart hammered against my ribs so hard I could hear it over the engine noise. "What the hell? 1 gripped the steering wheel tighter My skin felt like it was burning from the inside out. Every nerve ending came alive with electric awareness. My shirt suddenly felt too rough, too restrictive against my hypersensitive skin. The car drifted toward the center line. 1 yanked the wheel right, overcorrecting. The car swerved back into my lane with a screech of tires. Focus, Sable. Drive. But focusing was impossible. Heat pooled low in my belly, spreading outward in waves that made my thighs clench involuntarily. My underwear was getting damp. This feels like… like heat. But that's impossible. Female wolves only went into heat during specific lunar cycles. I'd gone through it once at eighteen - the most humiliating week of my life. But this wasn't the right time. And I hadn't experienced heat since I'd been with Darrell. The sensation intensified. My hands shook on the steering wheel. Every breath felt labored, like the air was too thick. A gas station appeared ahead. Bright fluorescent lights cutting through the darkness. I pulled into the parking lot, barely managing to avoid the fuel pumps. My hands trembled as I shifted into park. "Breathe," I whispered to myself. "Just breathe." But breathing made it worse. Each lungful of air seemed to fan the flames inside me. My body was screaming for something. Someone. Coelan. The thought of him sent a fresh surge of heat through my core. I could picture his hands on my skin, his mouth against my neck, his body pressing me into the mattress. No. Stop thinking about that. Esme stirred restlessly in my consciousness, her presence stronger than usual. Find our mate. We need him. Now." What? "The bond is active now. Really active. Your body recognizes him as our true mate. Her voice carried an urgency I'd never heard before. This is what should have happened with Darrell but never did." Why didn't this happen with Darrell? "Because he was never our real mate! Just a young mate, a practice run! But Caelan… Esme's excitement blazed through our mental connection, "Caclan is our TRUE mate This overwhelming need, this desperate craving it was the mate bond in its purest form. What Ed had with Darrell was nothing compared to this. 3/4 7:20 pm From Substitute To Queen