Free Web NovelChapter 133: Chapter 133 Luna Queen
Caesar’s POV
As Sylvia was led away by the project manager, I caught the man’s eyes. He gave me a nervous nod of acknowledgment before hurrying off with her. I maintained my composure until they disappeared around the corner, but the moment they were gone, I allowed myself to exhale deeply.
The room behind me erupted in collective sighs of relief. My team had been holding their breath, literally and figuratively.
Dylan, my Beta and right-hand man for over a decade, dramatically clutched his chest. "Jesus Christ, Caesar, can we please stop playing these ridiculous games of hide and seek? My wolf is about to have a heart attack."
"You think your heart’s racing? Try being the one who had to lie to her face," I muttered, loosening my tie slightly.
The executives who moments ago had been hanging on my every word were now slumped against the wall, looking like they’d just run a marathon. They’d scattered like startled rabbits when we spotted Sylvia approaching, and most had been pressed against the conference room door, eavesdropping on my conversation with her.
"Next time your mate decides to play detective, maybe warn us," one of them grumbled.
"She’s not officially my mate... yet," I corrected, though my wolf growled in disagreement. He’d recognized her as ours from the moment we first scented her.
Dylan closed the conference room door and fixed me with a hard stare. "This charade has gone on long enough, Caesar. You’re the goddamn Wolf King. You own Vertex Group and half the corporate skyline in this city. When are you going to tell her the truth?"
I ran a hand through my hair, feeling the familiar tension headache building. "It’s complicated."
"It’s really not," Dylan countered, crossing his arms. "You open your mouth and say, ’Hey Sylvia, I’m actually your business partner and the Alpha King of all North American werewolves. Want to grab dinner?’"
The other executives wisely began filing out of the room, sensing an argument brewing between us. Dylan had been with me since we were pups, which meant he was the only one who could speak to me this way without fear of having his throat ripped out.
Once we were alone, I turned to face him. "You don’t understand her history."
"Then enlighten me, oh mighty Alpha," he said with a mocking bow.
"Sylvia was betrayed by Zane Thorne," I growled, feeling my canines extend slightly at the mere thought of that pathetic excuse for an Alpha. "She spent three years pretending to be something she wasn’t, only to be discarded the moment his so-called true mate showed up. She’s been lied to by everyone she’s ever trusted—her mother, her sister, her pack."
Dylan raised an eyebrow. "And your solution is to... lie to her more?"
"I’m not lying," I argued. "I’m waiting for the right time."
"The right time was probably before you started sleeping with her," he pointed out bluntly.
"I need her to love me for me, not for what I am," I explained, pacing the room. "If I tell her now, she’ll think everything—our connection, the project deal, the way I pursued her—was all because of power and politics."
"Isn’t it, though? At least partially?" Dylan challenged. "You’ve been orchestrating this whole situation from the shadows. You arranged for Frostline to get the Vertex contract. You’ve been manipulating events to be close to her."
I slammed my fist on the conference table, causing a spider web of cracks to form in the glass surface. "I did those things because I recognized my mate and wanted to help her succeed. Not because I wanted to control her."
Dylan didn’t flinch. After years of my temper, he was immune. "And how do you think she’ll feel when she discovers you’ve been pulling strings in her life without her knowledge?"
"That’s exactly why I can’t tell her yet," I insisted. "Sylvia values honesty above all else, and she’s terrified of being manipulated. If I reveal everything now, she’ll see the mate bond as just another force compelling her to be with someone. She’ll think what we have isn’t real."
"What you have is built on deception," Dylan said flatly. "Every day you wait makes it worse."
I growled low in my throat. "I’m giving her time to know the real me—not the Wolf King, not the CEO, just Caesar. Once she truly loves me, the rest won’t matter as much."
Dylan threw his hands up in exasperation. "That’s the most backwards logic I’ve ever heard! You’re scared, Caesar. The mighty Alpha King is afraid his mate might reject him if she knows who he really is."
"I’m not afraid," I lied, even as my wolf whimpered at the thought of Sylvia turning away from us.
"Bullshit," Dylan snorted. "You’re terrified. For the first time in your life, you can’t control the outcome. You can’t intimidate her into submission with your Alpha voice. You can’t buy her loyalty with your billions. And it’s making you act like a lovesick teenager instead of the most powerful werewolf in the country."
His words hit too close to home, and I felt my control slipping. My eyes flashed crimson as I stalked toward him. "You’re overstepping, Beta."
Dylan held his ground. "Someone needs to tell you the truth. Your mate deserves better than this deception, no matter how well-intentioned." freewebnøvel.com
We stood there in tense silence, neither willing to back down. Finally, I exhaled sharply and turned away.
"I’ll tell her," I conceded. "But on my terms, when the time is right."
"And when exactly will that magical moment arrive?" Dylan asked sarcastically.
"When I’m sure she won’t walk away." The admission cost me, making me feel vulnerable in a way I despised.
Dylan’s expression softened slightly. "Caesar, if she’s truly your mate, she won’t be able to stay away for long. The bond is too powerful."
"That’s exactly what I don’t want," I said quietly. "I don’t want her bound to me by some mystical force she can’t control. I want her to choose me."
Dylan shook his head. "For someone so intelligent, you can be remarkably dense."
Before I could respond, his phone buzzed. He glanced at it, his expression immediately shifting to concern.
"What is it?" I demanded.
"Reports from the Northwestern territories," he said grimly. "Alpha William Blackwood’s scouts have detected unfamiliar wolves crossing their borders. They’re asking questions about you—specifically trying to confirm the existence of the Wolf King."
I straightened, instantly shifting from frustrated lover to ruler. "How many?"
"Small groups, moving separately." Dylan reported. "William thinks they might be from the European packs."
The politics of werewolf territories was complex and ancient. For centuries, the North American packs had operated independently from our European cousins, who had their own hierarchical system. If they were sending scouts into our territory without formal notification, it could only mean one thing—a challenge was brewing.
"Send a team of royal guards to reinforce William’s borders," I ordered. "Make it clear this is a courtesy, not an escalation. I want these intruders identified and monitored, not engaged unless they pose a direct threat."
Dylan nodded, already typing the commands into his phone. "And what about Sylvia? If European wolves are sniffing around, she could become a target if they discover your interest in her."
The thought made my blood run cold. "Increase her security detail. Quietly. I don’t want her to notice."
"She’s sharp. She’ll notice eventually," Dylan warned.
"Then make sure ’eventually’ isn’t today," I growled. "And Dylan, I want you personally overseeing her protection when I can’t be there."
A smirk spread across his face. "Babysitting our Luna Queen. How did I get so lucky?"
"Because you’re the only one I trust with her life," I said seriously.
That wiped the smirk off his face. "I’ll keep her safe, Caesar. You know I will."
"Good." I straightened my tie and headed for the door. "Now get out. I have a company to run."
Dylan laughed as he followed me out. "You’re so screwed when she finds out."
"Thank you for that insightful analysis," I said dryly, but inside, I knew he was right.
The longer I maintained this charade, the more complicated things would become. But the thought of losing Sylvia before I’d truly won her heart terrified me more than any challenge to my throne.
My wolf was growing increasingly restless with each passing day. *Mark her,* he urged constantly. *Claim her properly. Make her ours forever.*
But the man in me knew better. Sylvia Frost wasn’t a prize to be claimed, she was a queen to be won. And I would win her, even if it meant playing this dangerous game a little longer.
