MASON
I tried to ignore it. I tried to ignore the way my mind kept going back to the moment we shared behind the curtain. The way she fit so perfectly against me, and the sound of her breath when I pulled her closer to me. It was nothing. It should have been nothing but my mind wouldn't let it go.
Now that I was standing in the hallway, I clenched my fists. This was ridiculous. I had more important things to focus on, and they were things that actually mattered. Yet, the moment I turned a corner and nearly bumped into her, it was like all my thoughts went blank and my head became empty.
Isobel stopped in her tracks, and her eyes widened slightly. "Oh," she mumbled and quickly looked away.
She wasn't the only one who was struggling. My body tensed up immediately as I remembered how soft she felt against me, and how her scent had invaded my nostrils and messed with my head.
I should have walked past her or I should have said something normal and kept going where I was supposed to be but I didn't. Instead, I stood there like a fool, watching her and waiting.
She looked up, and for a second but in that second, I saw the confusion and hesitation her eyes like she was feeling the same thing I was feeling.
I didn't know who moved first, but before I could know what was going on, we were too close again. I could feel the warmth of her body and her breath against my skin.
And then—
"Alpha Mason!"
A sharp voice cut through the moment and brought me back to reality.
I turned to see one of the pack guards standing a few feet away. His face was serious, and he stood stiffly. "The Luna is seeking your presence."
I frowned immediately I heard about my mother. "For what?" What did she want me for?
"She didn't say why," the guard responded. "But she asked for both you and Isobel."
At that, I felt Isobel's body tense up beside me. Neither of us moved at first. We were both thinking the same thing, why?
I didn't trust my mother, and Isobel had every reason not to but there was no way out of this. I didn't like that she was paying so much attention to Isobel and I also didn't like that she was constantly reminding me that I hated her father.
I sighed deeply and turned to leave first. If my mother was up to something, the last thing I wanted was for her to see me and Isobel together, acting like we can't survive without each other.
Isobel seemed to understand and she followed behind me after a few seconds, but she walked separately like nothing we weren't just eating each other up with our eyes.
When I reached the center of the gathering, the frown on my face deepened when I realized what was going on. There were too many people present.
Pack members stood in a circle, and they were taking in low voices but I could see the confusion on their faces. My mother stood in the middle, looking calm, and for some reason, I couldn't help but feel like I wasn't going to like any second of this.
Something was definitely off, and I needed to get to the bottom of it because I didn't trust my mother one bit.
I walked forward, not doing anything to hide my displeasure. "What's going on?" I asked my mother.
Ophelia turned slightly and she looked into my eyes and then she smiled, and her smile made me uneasy. "Just watch." She simply said
Before I could say anything else, the guards took Isobel to the center of the gathering and made her stand there like a common criminal that was waiting for judgement.
I immediately froze and I could feel my heart race. The pack members murmured as she walked forward and didn't like this one bit.
Then, Ophelia, my mother and the present Luna raised her hand, and that was enough to make everyone become quiet.
"A few weeks ago," she began calmly but her voice was enough to grab the attention of the crowd, "we all heard about the tragic deaths of some of our students. It was a huge loss, and in the heat of the moment, we blamed the wrong person for their deaths."
She turned to Isobel. "Everyone thought it was her but it wasn't."
The murmuring returned and it was mixed with guilt that they accused her wrongly and doubt as they didn't believe from the pack members
"But after further investigation," Ophelia continued, "we have discovered that Isobel is not responsible for those deaths. In fact, we now know the real culprit was a rogue."
The crowd gasped loudly but that didn't stop Ophelia from giving her speech.
"Recently, we have saw several rogues near our territory," Ophelia went on. "We don't know their plans yet, but not to worry, Alpha Mason will protect you all."
She turned to me, and her expression was unreadable. "Just as he stood up for Isobel when no one else did and saw the truth when others didn't."
The murmurs became louder and while some nodded in agreement, others looked at each other in doubt.
I didn't react. I kept my face blank, but my body was tense. I slightly turned toward my mother and lowered my voice. "What are you doing?"
She didn't look at me but she replied. "I'm doing the right thing."
I didn't believe her, not for a second. I remained quiet as I watched her, and then I looked at the crowd, and then at Isobel.
I had no idea what my mother was planning, and I could tell that she had carefully planned it out but one thing was sure, I didn't trust her and I wouldn't let any harm come to Isobel because she's my mate whether I liked it or not.