Chapter 190 - 190
Adina stood in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection as Thessara's words washed over her once again. It had been hours since then, but she hadn't been able to get the words out of her mind.
Was it even possible to do so?
Adina had cried, unable to keep her tears at bay. She had let it all out fully. Her heart hurt for her mother, whose entire life had been devoted to the goddess only to be ruined so tragically. Her heart hurt for the man who was her father, a man she'd never met but who played such a big role in her life. Her heart hurt the most for her mate, Thorne.
Where would she even begin with him? Hadn't the gods done enough? Hadn't they punished him enough? How could she even begin to—
Her thoughts were paused when the door groaned open. She quickly wiped her tears, but she wasn't fast enough. Thorne's brows furrowed, and in an instant, he was next to her, helping her sit down, his face pinched in worry.
"What happened? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Tell me where it hurts. Did someone say something? Do something?" The questions tumbled out of his lips.
Adina shook her head, tears long dry now. "I'm okay, just…emotions," she settled on.
Thorne didn't look convinced in the slightest. He leaned back, his gaze on her. "You were with Thessara, she was to check up on you. Did she say something? Is that why you're in tears? Did it hurt that bad? I can tell her to—"
Adina clamped her hand over his, stopping him. "I'm fine, I swear by the gods."
He seemed to relax slightly at this, but his eyes didn't let go of the worry fully. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it gently.
Adina couldn't let go of the word he'd said, though. He was well aware she was going to Thessara's, yet he had not bothered to come…
She swallowed hard, forcing the words out of her mouth. "You knew I went to Thessara?" She asked.
Thorne stared at her with an equally serious expression. "I know everything that concerns you, Adina," he confessed.
"So why?" She asked suddenly, and he blinked, slightly confused.
"Why…"
"Why didn't you come with me? Why did you not ask of me for hours? Why did you just let me—" she paused, reeling in her feelings slightly. The words had just been tumbling out of her lips without a pause.
Thorne's expression had turned even more serious. He held her hand tight, his gaze intense. "Adina," he called, but she shook her head.
"Are you… Did I…" her voice faltered. "Did I do something wrong, Thorne?" she asked quietly. "Did I make you angry?"
"What? No!" Thorne blanched hard, panicking hard. "You could never."
He'd been so caught up with the nobles, the leads on Carter, the woman whose body had been discovered in the tiny village. All fingers pointed to the former head councilman. He had been so occupied, trying to find the man and bring him to his knees before he could face Adina. His wolf, his Lycan were damaged…guilt suffocating him from within. The self-blame and loathing were something he hadn't gotten rid of. He was pouring everything into this. Into finding Carter and destroying whatever plans he had on bringing Khaos back to life. To finding that darn witch that was at the crypt.
Seeing Adina, his sweet, loving Adina pregnant. No matter how much he denied it. It reminded him of Roseanne. It was almost like history was about to repeat itself. And that was one thing Thorne would never let happen.
He wanted to keep Adina safe, but instead, he'd made her doubt his intentions. He'd hurt her unknowingly.
He inhaled shakily, rubbing his thumb over her hand. His mind was made up. Earlier, he'd been overthinking it. Wondering if it was the right time to spring it up on her, but now…after this. He was certain he was doing the right thing.
"No, Adina," he began. "You did nothing wrong. It's me. I've just had too much on my mind." He paused, his gaze softening. "But none of it—none of it is more important than you. I got so caught up in everything, but I swear to the gods I would never let it happen again. I— I'm sorry."
She looked at him through wet lashes, unsure if she should believe him.
He leaned forward, brushing a tear from her cheek. "Tomorrow," he said quietly, "we'll be mated. Officially."
Adina's eyes widened drastically. "What?"
"Tomorrow, with Thessara, our bond will be official. You'll be my mate in every sense and the Queen. I'm done waiting, Adina. Done letting everything else steal time from us."
Adina's throat clogged up, she swallowed hard, trying to make sense of it all. After everything that's happened in the past few weeks, was getting mated the right thing to do? The people, would they ever accept her after what she'd done? The nobles, councilmen?
"A-Are you sure about this, Thorne? Getting mated after what has happened…" she shook her head. There was way too much to be done. "The people won't accept me. Not after what I did, and I— Thorne, are you sure about this?" Her mind was a conflicted mess.
Thorne looked at her earnestly, his eyes filled with so much emotion that she'd never seen in his eyes. His soul bore openly to her, unashamed. He held her hand in his.
"Even if I doubt anything and everything in my life, the one thing I am confidently sure of is you, Adina. I don't care how fast, how soon, how much time has passed. I don't want to waste any more time with you. I've done enough of that already. So if you'll have me…."
A soft smile stretched on her lips as she nodded. Thorne smiled back, kissing her hands repeatedly and thanking her, like he had to thank her for anything.
The more he kissed and smiled at her like he's won the lottery, the more her throat clogged up.
She should tell him, right…
This was her chance to tell him who she is…
And yet… watching him talk about how Thessara would bind them… she couldn't do it. She couldn't ruin her happiness yet again. She desperately wanted to be selfish this one time.
Even if she was Khaos' daughter, it didn't matter.
Her happiness was just right in her grasp, they had their pup on the way, would be mated officially tomorrow. She couldn't ruin hers and his happiness.
He shouldn't know she's the daughter of the man who killed his first love and pup.