Chapter 48
48
~Elara’s POV
The room froze. Ronan stopped breathing, and Lira’s face drained of colour.
And my heart… well… it did something I still don’t have a name for.
He stepped fully into the room, and the temperature dropped. Even I felt it.
Darlon wasn’t shouting… which somehow made it worse.
His eyes were cold. Too cold.
“Ronan,” he said, his voice steady but sharp, “what gave you the right to sit beside my wife and compliment her p>
Ronan’s mouth opened… closed… opened again. “Alpha… I… I didn’t mean anything wrong. I was just p>
“Just what?” Darlon asked, taking a slow step forward. “Just flirting with another man’s woman? And not just any man. My woman p>
Ronan swallowed so loudly it echoed.
I felt it in my teeth somehow.
“You’re brave,” Darlon said quietly. “Or stupid p>
“I wasn’t p>
“You were,” he cut in. His voice stayed calm, but there was something underneath, something sharp that made the air feel colder. “And you did it in front of me. In my company. In my territory p>
I didn’t breathe for a second.
Lira tried to shift behind Ronan, but Darlon’s eyes slid to her like he already knew every trick she could try.
“And you,” he said. “You spoke to her like she was dirt p>
She trembled. Just slightly. But enough.
It was strange, watching them shake while he didn’t even need to raise his voice. He didn’t threaten. He didn’t roar. He didn’t even look bothered.
He just… existed.
And that was enough to scare them half to death.
Then he pulled out his phone, still staring straight at them.
“Rowan,” he said once the call connected. “Good. You picked up p>
A pause.
His jaw tightened. “I want Ronan fired. Today. Now p>
Ronan gasped, actually took a step forward like he wanted to grab Darlon’s arm. “Alpha Darlon, please p>
Darlon lifted a hand without looking at him. Ronan froze like someone had pressed pause on him.
“If he’s not fired,” Darlon said into the phone, voice dropping even lower, “you can forget the small shares you hold in this company. I will take them. All of them. And you know I can p>
The silence from the other end stretched long enough for me to feel a flutter of pity for Rowan.
Then Darlon nodded once.
“Yes,” he said. “Good. Handle it p>
He still wasn’t done.
“And remove Lira from the fashion gala. I want someone competent in charge, not someone who throws insults around like a starving child. Fix it p>
And with that, he hung up.
The click of the call ending might as well have been a gunshot, because the room went completely dead.
Lira looked stunned. Like she had just watched her entire future crumble into dust at her feet.
Ronan looked like he might faint.
“Alpha, please,” Ronan whispered. “Please don’t do this p>
Darlon finally turned his head. One eyebrow lifted slightly. “Do you want your life to be cut short p>
Ronan stopped breathing.
He shook his head so fast it was almost painful to look at.
“No, Alpha,” he whispered. “I don’t p>
“Then leave,” Darlon said. “Both of you p>
They didn’t wait for a second invitation. They practically stumbled out.
The moment the door closed behind them, everything in his face shifted. The anger dissolved. The sharpness softened. He turned to me like I was the only thing in the room now.
“Elara,” he said gently. “Are you okay p>
I nodded… then shook my head… and before I could even blink, the tears were already slipping out.
I hated that. Truly. Crying like that… it made me feel small. Like a child who didn’t know how to hold herself together.
I tried to swipe them away fast, hoping he wouldn’t notice, but of course, he did.
He took one small step forward. “Come here p>
There was no force in it. No command, it was just a quiet invitation that somehow melted everything stiff inside me.
I didn’t think.
My legs moved on their own.
I stepped into him, and the moment his arms wrapped around me, something inside me just… broke open.
The crying got worse, deep and shaky, the kind that comes from a place you didn’t realize had been hurting this whole time.
His chest was warm. His hand slid up and down my back in slow strokes, and I held onto him like someone afraid of slipping off a cliff.
Minutes passed. Or maybe more. I honestly wasn’t counting. I just stayed there until the trembling stopped and my breath finally calmed.
He pulled back only a little, enough to see my face. His hands came up gently, framing my cheeks like they were something delicate.
“Elara,” he whispered, “why did you allow them to talk to you like that? Why didn’t you say anything p>
I looked down. My throat tightened again.
“I p>
The words stuck, but I forced them out. “Because what they said… It’s true p>
His eyes hardened instantly. Not at me. At the thought itself.
“What part of it is true?” he asked quietly. Too quietly.
I felt embarrassed saying it out loud, but I did anyway. “I’m shapeless,” I whispered. “And… not pretty. They’re just saying what everyone sees p>
For a moment, he just looked at me. Then he stepped closer, as if the space between us offended him.
“Elara,” he said slowly, almost like he couldn’t understand how I even formed those thoughts, “don’t ever say that about yourself p>
“But it’s p>
“No,” he cut in, firm but gentle. “It’s not true p>
His thumb brushed my cheek, wiping a tear I hadn’t even realized was still there.
“You’re not shapeless. You’re not ugly. You’re not whatever nonsense they tried to put in your head p>
I tried to look away, but he held my chin lightly, guiding my eyes back to his.
“You’re bold,” he said, his voice softer now. “You’re beautiful. You walk into a room, and you don’t even realize people look at you p>
I shook my head weakly, not believing him. “You’re just p>
He lifted my chin, forcing my eyes to meet his.
“I’m not flattering you,” he said. “I don’t waste time lying. You know that p>
I did know that.
That was the strange part. He didn’t talk just to make someone feel better.
“You see yourself in the worst way,” he continued. “Maybe because people like Lira wanted you to feel small p>
I swallowed hard.
“But you’re not small,” he said. “You just… haven’t learned to look at yourself properly p>
I felt something warm settle in my chest. Something soft, almost scary.
“And next time someone talks to you like that,” he added, “don’t stay silent. Don’t shrink. If you don’t want to defend yourself, then use my name. Use it as your shield p>
My breath caught.
“Use my authority. You’re my wife. You have every right p>
I blinked at him. “Won’t that… cause problems p>
He shook his head. “No. That’s why it’s there. Protect yourself. Defend yourself. Even if I’m not around p>
He brushed my cheek with his thumb. “You’re allowed to be strong. Don’t hide behind fear anymore p>
I nodded slowly. “Okay… I’ll try p>
“Not try,” he said, his voice softer. “Do p>
“I don’t want the woman beside me thinking she’s less than she is,” he finished quietly. “Not ever p>
And for a moment p>
I forgot how to breathe.