Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 195: Grace: Buzzles

Out of nowhere, Caine was suddenly in a downright awful mood and wouldn’t stop glowering at his Lycan friends. But at least he finally left, even if he did basically stomp out of here with a dark cloud hanging over him.

I stand in the doorway watching them go, my feelings a jumbled mess of relief and something that feels suspiciously like abandonment. The camper seems emptier without his overwhelming presence filling every corner. Quieter.

Lonelier.

My eyes follow Caine’s broad shoulders as he marches away with his men, his entire body rigid and his fists clenched at his sides. Even from here, I can feel the waves of anger radiating off him.

Suddenly, he stops, spins on his heel, and strides back to me with purpose in every step.

I stiffen.

Did he notice how I felt?

My heart jumps into my throat as he looms in front of me, one step below where I’m standing. Close enough I could reach out and brush my fingertips against his long, silky eyelashes, with the perfect amount of curl mine require tools to replicate.

"Don’t worry about what they said," he murmurs, his voice pitched low so only I can hear.

I blink down at him, mouth opening to explain that his terrible acting is what I’m worried about—but he’s already gone, stalking back the way he came.

His shoulders look even more tense than before, if that’s possible.

I rub my face with my palm and sigh. This is going to be a lot harder than I thought. Caine playing the role of "not my mate" looks an awful lot like Caine is my mate and going to murder people if they hurt my feelings.

Not exactly subtle.

A few yards away, several Blue Mountain wolves linger, watching everything unfold. Their faces carry familiar expressions, the kind weighing me down year after year. I didn’t realize how oppressive they all were until I’d left.

Smug superiority. Disgust. Disdain.

But for once, those looks don’t make my stomach twist with shame.

One of them—a shifter I vaguely recognize but can’t name—catches my eye deliberately. His lip curls in a sneer, and he spits on the ground, giving me a smirk before sauntering away.

My terrible, plummeting mood rises immediately.

It worked. Our terrible acting job actually worked.

Fighting the smile threatening to curve my lips, I step back inside and close the door, watching as more Blue Mountain shifters stare with smug, awful faces in our direction.

They’d started out curious and now look down on me. They’d never do that if they were scared of the Lycan King’s reaction.

Caine’s inexplicable bad mood out of nowhere saved the day.

The brief victory is great, even as it feels hollow. I know what comes next—the insults will get bolder, the "accidental" shouldering in hallways harder, the whispered comments louder. They’ll push until they find my breaking point, and I’m not exactly looking forward to living under this pressure again.

this treatment my entire

be

best life away from the oppression of the Blue

heck was that?" Sara asks the moment the door clicks shut, her red

"Aren’t you the Queen?

legs. Thankfully, no ears sprout out of her hair today. We’ll have to keep her inside as much as possible so they

easier to explain away. But

It’s starting to feel like

me with varying degrees of bewilderment. Even Ron has joined

voice to steady. "That was weird,

skinny arms over her chest. "But

his voice rising to ear-piercing decibel. "Which is totally crazy because we just met him! Now I have to call

Ron just looks curious.

fly came in at some point, and now she’s trying to catch it. Without breaking eye contact, Sara pulls her off the table and sets her on the ground, leaving her

Caine and I

"So you’re our mom?"

idiot." Jer gives Sara a disgusted look. "She said

mom? Ron,

a faint smile twitching at his

I start, but Sara beats me

said she’s not our

he’s our dad, Grace is

in, "Yeah, she’s

the older kid shakes his head. "You two are the idiots. She’s definitely the

Jer challenges. "Maybe he’s

the mom, Jeridiot." Ron bares his

Sara looks thoughtful. "I think Jer’s right. Owen’s the

frequent since my new life with children. "I don’t know about that, but the important thing is this pack doesn’t need to know anything about us and Caine, okay? If they think I’m in a relationship with him, I’m not going to learn what I’m here to...

awkward and convoluted even

unison. Sara and Jer both look very serious, but

face scrunches. "But why is he our

the people here don’t like humans very much. They especially don’t like me. But they’re afraid of Caine. If they

because you’re human?" Sara asks, something flickering

grew up here. They never really accepted

stupid," Jer declares, his loyalty heart-warming. "You’re

My throat tightens. "Thanks."

up, grateful for the distraction. Her weight is solid and warm, grounding me as she

she says clearly, patting my cheek

sweetie. We’re just

more forcefully

"I think she thinks you’re