19 - Unspoken Ties

Aria POV

The scent of roasted potatoes and venison filled the small dining room, curling in the warm air above the wooden table. Aria sat across from her sister, their father at the head, carving a piece of meat with the same precision he used in surgery. The soft glow of lantern light flickered against the walls, casting dancing shadows across the oak floor. It was the kind of cozy scene that should have felt comforting.

Familiar.

But Aria couldn’t relax.

The home was quiet, expect for the clinking of cutlery and the occasional creak of the old beams overhead. Outside, the wind rustled through the pine trees surrounding their cottage, whispering secrets that only wolves could hear.

“It’s good to have you both home for dinner,” Dr. Aldric Thorne said, setting a slice of venison on each of their plates. “The house has been too quiet lately.”

“Probably peaceful without us bickering in the halls,” Lyra teased, reaching for the bowl of roasted vegetables. “Admit it, you’ve missed the chaos.”

Aldric chuckled, his eyes twinkling. “More than I care to admit.”

Aria offered a faint smile, but her mind remained elsewhere—still tangled in hospital charts, in Ryker’s half-teasing smirks, in the way Kael’s eyes had locked onto hers as if he’d seen her soul before she ever spoke. Days had passed since that tension-filled encounter, but the memory clung to her like a second skin.

“How’s Ryker doing?” Aldric asked, settling into his seat with a satisfied sigh. “He was still half-feral when I checked his sutures yesterday.”

“Less feral now,” Aria said, poking her fork at a carrot. “Still stubborn. Still flirtatious.”

Lyra let out a loud laugh. “That sounds about right. Has he started trying to charm you again?”

Aria didn’t answer, which only made Lyra’s grin grow. “Oh, he has,” she said knowingly.

“Gods, I miss it,” Lyra murmured, her voice wistful. “Being in the infirmary. The routine of it. The people. It was exhausting, but at least I felt like I had a purpose.”

“You have a purpose,” Aldric said gently, not unkindly.

Her smile dimmed. “You mean being mated to Alpha Theron? That purpose?”

Aldric set down his glass and looked at her with a quiet steadiness. “I mean being mated to a man who leads with his entire soul. But yes—Theron is part of your path now. The Goddess rarely chooses lightly.”

Lyra’s shoulders slumped as she picked at her food. “He barely speaks to me, Father. It’s been weeks. Aside from one tense dinner and a walk through the southern fields, we haven’t spent any real time together. He acknowledges the bond—barely—but that’s it. No warmth. No effort.”

Aria glanced at her sister, surprised by the openness in her tone. Lyra rarely admitted how much it hurt.

“He’s a complicated man,” Aldric said gently. “And your presence unsettles him—for better or worse. But you’re his mate, Lyra. The Moon Goddess chose you, and he knows it. Sometimes, the most powerful wolves are the most afraid of what they can’t control.”

Aria watched as her sister’s face softened slightly, though her gaze stayed distant. Her fingertips traced slow circles on her napkin, as if searching for something to hold onto.

“I don’t know how to reach him,” Lyra whispered.

“Then try knocking louder,” Aldric said with a small smile, pushing back his chair. “The door might open.”

He kissed Lyra’s temple as he passed, then gave Aria a nod, leaving the room.

When he disappeared into his office down the hall, Lyra slumped in her seat with a groan. “Knock louder. He makes it sound so easy.”

“Theron’s not an easy man,” Aria offered sympathetically.

“No,” Lyra said. “But at least he’s not Nightclaw.”

The room fell still.

Aria’s fork paused halfway to her mouth. The air shifted between them, thickened by implication. Lyra’s words weren’t just casual—they were deliberate.

Aria felt her sister’s gaze like a blade.

Lyra didn’t waste time. “Speaking of Nightclaw… how was it? Meeting their Alpha?”

Aria exhaled slowly, setting her utensils down. “Intense.”

“That’s all you’re giving me?” Lyra arched a brow. “You’ve been weird since that day. Quiet. You barely blinked when I mentioned Ryker’s flirting, which is usually your cue to complain.”

Aria debated lying. But Lyra would see through it in seconds.

“He wasn’t what I expected,” Aria said finally, voice low.

“Kael?”

She nodded.

“He was respectful. Calm. He didn’t throw his weight around, didn’t make demands. He introduced himself, spoke to Ryker politely… then left.”

Lyra tilted her head. “And?”

“And…” Aria hesitated. “He looked at me like he already knew me. Like I was… important.”

Lyra’s expression shifted—curious, but wary. “Did something happen?”

Aria swallowed. Her fingers found the rim of her plate again, tracing it absently. “He’s the one from my dreams.”

Lyra blinked. “The glowing-blue-eyed wolf?”

“Yes.”

“Aria,” her sister breathed. “You’ve been dreaming about him for months.”

“I know.”

“And now he’s here. Real. Alpha of our rival pack.”

Aria gave a small, bitter laugh. “Isn’t fate charming?”

Lyra sat back slowly, her brows drawn together. “Have you told Father?”

“No,” Aria said quickly. “And don’t you dare.”

“I won’t,” Lyra promised, but her tone was thoughtful now. “Still… this is big.”

“I don’t even know what it is yet,” Aria admitted. “The bond—it’s there. I can feel it. Like a string around my ribs, pulling me toward him. But I don’t want to be pulled anywhere.”

Lyra’s voice softened. “You don’t trust it?”

“I don’t trust him,” Aria sighed and pushed her plate away. “It doesn’t make sense. Why would the goddess mate me to the Alpha of our enemies? Why tie me to someone I’m supposed to hate?”

“Maybe it’s not about hate,” Lyra said. “Maybe it’s about healing more than just wounds.”

“That sounds like something Father would say.”

Lyra smiled. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

The sisters fell into a thoughtful silence. The meal sat half-eaten, but neither seemed to care. The weight of the conversation had shifted them, pulled something vulnerable to the surface.

Finally, Lyra leaned forward, her voice quiet but firm. “So what are you going to do?”

Aria stared down at her hands. “I don’t know.”

“Are you scared?”

“Yes,” she admitted. “But not of him... Of what it means. Of what I’ll have to become if I let this bond grow.”

Lyra reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “Whatever happens, I’m here. Even if you end up the Luna of a rival pack.”

Aria snorted. “Don’t say that.”

“Hey,” Lyra grinned. “I’ve got to get my jokes in before it’s a prophecy.”

They both laughed, the sound rough and real, cutting through the tension.

Outside, the wind picked up, brushing against the windows like fingers drumming a warning.

Inside, two sisters sat at a table, Alpha’s mates, possible future Lunas...wondering what the future held.

And deep down, Aria knew the truth: no matter how much she resisted, the moment Kael’s eyes had met hers, her path had changed.

The Moon Goddess had to have a reason.