Kael couldn't focus on anything. The council members droned on about border disputes, but his mind kept drifting to dark eyes and gentle hands.
"Alpha King?" someone prompted.
"Hmm?" Kael blinked, realizing everyone was staring at him.
His beta, Alex, cleared his throat. "Your thoughts on the proposal?"
"I... need time to consider it," Kael muttered, shuffling papers he hadn't read.
After the third meeting, where he'd completely lost track of the conversation, Alex cornered him.
"What's going on? You've been distracted all day."
Kael ran a hand through his hair. "Nothing important."
"It's that Omega, isn't it?" Alex said knowingly. "The small one from Ridge Pack."
"Her name is Belle," Kael corrected automatically, then cursed himself for confirming Alex's suspicion.
"Be careful," his beta warned. "Getting involved with another pack's Omega is complicated."
Kael nodded, but as soon as he was alone, he found himself walking toward Belle Pack territory. He told himself he just wanted to check if she'd enjoyed the berries they'd collected.
The scent hit him before he reached their tree line for the pack house garden - blood, pain, and underneath it all, her distinct scent. His wolf surged forward, nearly taking control as rage filled him.
Someone had hurt her. Someone had dared to harm what was his.
Wait. His? Since when did he think of her as his?
Kael paused at the edge of the forest, struggling to regain control. Whatever was happening between them, he couldn't storm into another Alpha's territory demanding explanations.
But he wouldn't forget this. And he definitely wouldn't let it happen again.
But as he reluctantly turned back toward the castle, one thought remained crystal clear: whoever had hurt Belle would answer to him.
Belle was startled when she heard a deep voice behind her. 'You're quite the skittish one, aren't you?' Kael said with a slight smirk. Belle's heart raced as she turned to face him.
'I-I didn't expect anyone to be there,' she stuttered.
Belle's cheeks flushed hot. Kael stood there, moonlight catching on his muscular frame, making him look even more imposing than usual.
"I was just..." she trailed off, not knowing how to explain her midnight wandering. Kael chuckled, his tone softening. 'You're different from the others, I like that.'
His amber eyes caught the moonlight as he stepped closer. The forest around them seemed to hush.
"What are you doing in my pack's territory?" she asked, trying to sound brave despite her trembling voice.
Kael ran a hand through his tousled dark hair. "Couldn't sleep. Thought a run might help." He inhaled deeply. "Then I caught your scent. It's... interesting."
Belle's mouth opened, then closed, not knowing what to say. Finally, she asked, "Interesting how?"
"Like wildflowers after rain," he said, then looked embarrassed at his own words. "Not what you'd expect from the big bad Alpha King, huh?"
A small smile tugged at her lips. "No, not really."
Kael glanced up at the moon. "Everyone in my pack is always so serious, always trying to impress me. But you..." His eyes found hers again. "You look at me like I'm just another wolf."
"Aren't you?" Belle asked before she could stop herself.
Instead of getting angry, Kael laughed - a genuine sound that made her stomach flutter.
"Maybe around you, I can be." He moved beside her, careful to leave space between them. "Mind if I join you for a bit? Promise I won't bite."
Belle knew she should say no. This was the Alpha King - powerful, dangerous, and definitely not someone a weak omega wolf like her should be alone with in the moonlight.
But something in his eyes looked almost... lonely.
"I guess that would be okay," she said quietly.
Kael stepped closer, his eyes narrowing as they fixed on a little blood spot on Belle's top. "Who did this to you?" His voice dropped dangerously low.
Belle instinctively backed up a step bumping into a tree with a slit hiss. "It's nothing—just a training accident."
"Don't lie to me." His words were soft but firm. He reached out, gently turning her around to examine her back better. "I couldn't sleep thinking about it."
"You were thinking about me?" The words slipped out before she could stop them.
A half-smile played on his lips. "You've been on my mind more than you know." His thumb brushed across the shoulder, sending tingling down her spine. "The Alpha King doesn't typically worry about a single wolf, yet here I am, tracking you through the woods at midnight."
"I can take care of myself," she mumbled, though her racing heart betrayed her.
"Can you?" He raised an eyebrow. "Then tell me who I need to punish for laying hands on you."
Belle swallowed hard. "Why do you care so much?"
Kael's eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. "That's what I've been asking myself." He moved closer, his scent enveloping her. "There's something about you, Belle. Something that calls to me."
For a moment, they just stood there, the forest quiet around them, nothing but the sound of their breathing between them.
But as Kael took another step closer, something inside Belle snapped. Panic flooded her system like ice water. What was she thinking? Being alone with an Alpha King? Her pack would have a fit!
"I—I have to go," she blurted, her voice jumping an octave higher. "I just remembered I have to... um... check on my sister! She's sick! Really sick!"
Kael's eyebrows shot up, confusion clear on his face. "Your sister? I didn't know you had—"
"Super sick! Might be contagious! I should go!" Belle backed away, nearly tripping over a root. "Like, right now!"
Kael reached out a hand. "Wait, I could help—"
"No need! Thanks though! Bye!"
Before he could say another word, Belle spun around and bolted into the forest, her paws barely touching the ground as she ran. Branches whipped at her face, but she didn't slow down.
What was that strange flutter in her chest? Fear? Attraction? Whatever it was, she wasn't sticking around to find out.
Behind her, she thought she heard a deep chuckle carried on the wind, which only made her run faster.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," she muttered to herself as she sprinted. Getting friendly with an Alpha King? That was just asking for trouble.
Yet even as she ran, the memory of his amber eyes in the moonlight followed her all the way home.