Leland walked mindlessly toward his chamber, far away from Sophie's. He felt a mix of emotions at the same time fill his chest. Relieved because he had successfully established the mate bond with Sophie.
Sad because he could tell she dreaded the experience and felt uncomfortable around him after they did the deed.
Sadder because they did it when she was already pregnant. So, even though he came inside her, he couldn't even hope for a possibility that she would become pregnant with his child.
Before he reached his door, Leland's steps were halted. He saw snow fall slowly from the sky. The moonlight illuminate each and every single snowflake that caught his eyes. It looked really beautiful.
For a moment, he stood still, watching the snow. Suddenly, his heart was no longer feeling upset. He always loved snow because the falling snow actually reminded him of warmth.
Many years ago, when Anne Hansley found him trapped in a fox trap, wounded and scared, she could immediately tell the pup was not a regular wolf pup. Leland would always remember the moment like it was yesterday.
Anne picked him up gently and carried him in her arms. Soon, her husband joined her from the woods. He brought a fat deer on his back. Anne was craving venison. She was heavily pregnant with Sophia and always craved many different things.
Most of the time, Jack would hunt the animals his wife wanted for food, or he would hunt more and sell the meat to Hauntingen and buy whatever it was that Anne craved.
They were dirt poor, and their house was just a small hut on the edge of the haunted forest, but they were happy, loving, and had the warmest home.
Anne loved watching the snow from her window, and she would put Leland on her lap to enjoy it together. Jack would work extra hard to chop firewood so his wife could still feel warm despite the cold.
This habit rubbed off on Leland and he enjoyed seeing the white nothingness. It brought him a sense of calmness.
So, even until today, snow actually reminded him of warmth.
***
Sophie was dazed after Leland left. She needed some time to pull herself together and then she climbed down her bed. Shaking, she washed up herself with a wet towel and then got dressed.
It was really cold, but her mind was too much of a mess to pay attention to the chilling temperature and the howling wind outside. She took a nightgown from the closet and covered herself with an extra layer of a wool sweater after she got dressed.
Finally, she went back to bed and covered herself all the way to her neck with the blankets, and tried to sleep. It took many hours before she finally could fall asleep.
While Sophie was sleeping, Leland took off all his clothes and went outside. He stood still under the moonlight and let the snow fall down on his naked body.
It was like getting a cold shower to get his mind off of Sophie and their consummation earlier.
He needed this, otherwise, he would go crazy with lust.
***
On the next day, Sophie woke up when the sun was already high in the sky. She took a long time before she could get a wink of sleep and thus made her body feel so tired. She was embarrassed by this. Usually, she would wake up early and do so many things before the sun was even up.
Now, she felt like a lazy woman, still in bed at this hour. Sophie made her bed and changed her clothes to go to the dining room for breakfast, She hoped Duke Romanov had gone out or was busy so they didn't have to see each other in the dining room. It would feel awkward.
She tried to pretend that last night didn't happen but it was so damn hard. She couldn't get rid of the memory from when she had sex with Duke Romanov.
When Sophie finally came out of her room, she saw Dinah was waiting for her outside with a bright face, She seemed to be in a really good mood. Dinah was happy Sophie finally mated with their alpha. She was now their luna, even though it was not yet announced in the pack officially.
The female lycan thought it would be beneficial for her to have a good relationship with the luna. So, she was determined to serve Sophie as well as possible,
"My lady, would you like to have breakfast in your chamber?" Dinah asked politely.
"Oh… Can I?" Sophie asked reluctantly. "I mean… what about Duke Romanov? Has he eaten breakfast?"
"Yes, my lady. He is currently very busy with other affairs. So, he already had breakfast and went out," Dinah replied.
"I see," Sophie nodded. "Well, then, I would like to eat here."
"Okay, we will bring the food here," Dinah said. She went out and returned not long after with piping hot food and a pot of tea. Sophie ate mindlessly. She didn't have an appetite but she forced herself to eat something to give nutrition for her child.
The perception Sophie had about Duke Romanov slowly began to change after that because even though the two of them did it, it never felt like Duke Romanov and she were truly husband and wife.
When Sophie expected to be brought for any specific event related to nobility just as the man once told her, she would find herself alone in the castle with only Duke Romanov heading into the capital or other social gatherings.
Dinah was always around and as always, remained her steadfast friend… but the treatment towards Sophie also changed. Everyone looked at her with reverence since she was now Duke Romanov's wife.
However, Sophie was truly unaware that it was because they could now tell that she was officially the Luna of the Blood River Pack. The mate of their Alpha and to whom they would serve and respect.
After their consummation, the duke almost never spent alone time with Sophie. He was always busy. Unaware and curious about where Duke Romanov was and why he was extremely busy and even distant, Sophie found herself wondering about the man far more than she wanted to.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺