Chapter 154: The Scent of Another

Adeline’s POV~

Sierra squeezed me tightly, resting her chin over my shoulder as if she were trying to double-check that I was actually real and not just some ghost standing under the moonlight.

"Oh my gosh, so your mood is actually good right now?! That’s great!" Sierra asked, her voice brimming with pure excitement as she pulled back just enough to look directly into my eyes, her hands resting firmly on my arms.

"Tell me everything immediately! How on earth did your date go? You guys were gone for such a ridiculously long time on that walk! Did he actually talk to you? Was he romantic? Come on, Adeline, give me all the details!"

I looked at her eager face, and a fresh burst of laughter bubbled up in my chest that I couldn’t even attempt to control.

I pressed my palm against my mouth, my chest shaking as I tried desperately to force down the genuine, hysterical amusement threatening to spill out of me.

"Sierra, please, stop asking me ridiculous questions!" I squealed out through my hands, my voice muffled and shaking with laughter as I shook my head at her. "It wasn’t even a date! We were literally just—"

"It’s getting extremely late," Adrian cut in smoothly, his deep, commanding voice slicing right through my sentence before I could accidentally reveal anything dangerous about our walk by the river.

He stepped up right beside us, his face instantly settling back into that perfectly calm, untouchable courtier mask as he looked down at Kai and Sierra with an authoritative glint in his dark eyes.

"If we stand out here on the open road talking all night, we are going to invite unwanted attention."

Sierra blinked, looking between Adrian’s deadpan expression and my red, laughing face, before letting out a soft sigh and throwing her hands up in dramatic surrender.

"Okay, fine, fine, let’s go!" Sierra said, a massive smile still plastered across her face as she turned around and popped open the back door of the car.

"Yeah, we definitely have to drop Adeline back at the Second Throne’s estate before the Dowager Luna’s guards start sending out full search parties to track us down!"

Without wasting another second, we all moved toward the vehicle parked under the dim light.

Sierra climbed straight into the back seat, and I slid in right after her, pulling the heavy car door shut with a solid, echoing thud.

Kai hopped into the driver’s seat, starting the engine with a low, powerful roar, while Adrian smoothly slid into the front passenger side next to him.

As the car pulled away from the curb and began its smooth journey down the dark, winding road back toward the Second Throne’s territory, the cheerful mood in the front seat slowly began to shift.

Out the window, the thick, pitch-black trees of the forest rolled past us in a blur, but the heavy, suffocating feeling of being watched never truly left the air.

Sierra was leaning in close to me on the leather seat, buzzing with a million unspoken questions, but in the front passenger seat, Adrian remained entirely silent, his dark eyes fixed firmly on the side mirror, watching the shadowy road behind us.

The car stopped in front of the tall iron gates of the Second Throne’s estate. The engine went quiet, and for a second nobody moved.

Sierra grabbed my hand before I could open the door. "Adeline, text me the second you get inside, okay?"

"I will," I said, and squeezed her fingers. "Stop worrying so much. I’m just going to my room."

I laughed a little and let her go. Adrian leaned over the seat and gave me a lazy wave. "Get some sleep, little princess. And tell your guards we didn’t kidnap you."

"I’ll tell them you were very polite."

The corner of his mouth lifted. "Get inside the estate, little princess."

I opened the door and stepped out into the cold night air.

I turned and walked toward the gate. I did not look back, because if I did, I knew I would want to run back to that car, where it was warm and safe for some unknown reasons.

Behind me I heard the the engine start, and then the sound of the tires faded into the night until there was nothing left but my own footsteps.

The two guards at the gate stood straight when they saw me.

They didn’t ask anything. One of them gave me a short nod and pulled the heavy gate open, and the metal groaned as it moved.

I walked past them as calmly as I could.

The gate closed behind me with a heavy, final clang.

I walked up the long stone path to the main house. My heart was beating fast, and I kept waiting for something to jump out at me.

I waited for the Dowager Luna’s voice, or her guards stepping out of the shadows, or at least a maid asking me a hundred questions.

But nothing happened.

The front doors opened without a single sound. The hallway was empty. The lamps on the walls were turned low, and long shadows lay across the marble floor.

I stopped and breathed in slowly through my nose, checking for the Dowager Luna’s sharp, cold scent, or her guards, or anyone at all.

There was nothing. Only the faint smell of the flowers in the big vases.

That’s strange. Why is it this quiet?

I climbed the stairs.

I reached my door at the end of the hall. I put my hand on the handle and, for one tiny second, I hesitated. I don’t know why.

I pushed the door open and slipped inside. Then I closed it behind me and leaned my back against the wood, finally letting out the breath I had been holding for the whole walk.

The room was dark. The curtains were half open, and a thin line of moonlight fell across the floor. Everything looked the same as when I left. The bed. The wardrobe.

I let my shoulders drop. I even smiled a little, thinking of Adrian’s hug and Adrian’s face when he said "real smile." For the first time in a long time, my chest felt light.

And then I felt it.

A scent hit me next, slow and strong. It was a scent that made my knees feel weak and my heart want to run at the same time.

Right behind me, a deep voice spoke.

"Took you so long..." the voice said, and I heard a slow, heavy breath, like he was holding back something that wanted to break loose. "And why the hell do you smell like an alpha?"