The Alpha King's Contracted Luna by Nelson Claudia

Chapter 145

-Grayson’s POV

That phone call with Isabella had been the moment everything graveled the moment I could no longer deny what had been right in front of me all along.

Her words had lingered in the air, heavy and inescapable, echoing in my mind like the haunting refrain of a songs

“Lilian is in love with you.”

Even now, I could still feel the weight of those words pressing against my chest, suffocating yet liberating. I’d spent so long running–running from my feelings, from her, from the very idea of love. But yesterday, something shifted.

Ava. In love with me.

It was like a floodgate opening, a deluge of emotions I’d kept buried for far too long. The memories came rushing back–the way she’d always looked at me, like I was more than my flaws, more than the darkness I carried. The sound of her laugh, bright and full of life, echoing in the spaces I’d thought were irreparably broken.

The way she believed in me.

And I’d realized, with a startling clarity, that I might not fully comprehend the feeling but if it was supposed to feel like this then I loved her too.

I wasn’t sure when it had happened, when she’d slipped past my defenses. Maybe it had been inevitable, like a tide slowly pulling me in no matter how hard I fought against it. But it was there, undeniable and overwhelming. Ava had my heart.

Just like Alaric had said but I had refused to focus ok then until now.

That was why, without hesitation, I’d booked the next flight home. Somewhere between the departure gate and takeoff, I’d called Isabella again, seeking her advice one last time. Her words had been simple: “Just show up.”

So, I did.

I had once told myself that Ava Pierce was beautiful, but it was a sentiment I had barely cared to acknowledge. At the time, İ had convinced myself it didn’t matter–it couldn’t matter. But even then, I knew I had lied to myself. I could lie no longer.

Ava wasn’t just beautiful. She was out–of–this–world beautiful. The kind of beauty that made the world pause. The kind that left me speechless. And I couldn’t even remember the last time I had been rendered so utterly lost for words. When I saw her tonight, standing there with her quiet confidence and an elegance that felt almost ethereal, the only words I could

muster were,

“Happy birthday.”

Utterly pathetic.

almost thankful she had stepped in. She became the buffer I desperately

was the secret I carried. I still hadn’t decided whether to tell her about her twin–the sister she didn’t even know existed. The sister who, wherever she was, happened to be my fated mate. The weight of that truth gnawed at me, growing

her go, watching her retreat into the

Mon,

Chapter 145

accord, seeking the cool night air like it could calm the storm brewing in my chest. I leaned against the railing, staring

her was the only way to break the curse that had haunted my bloodline for generations. It was

I didn’t

heavy with frustration, and made a silent decision to shove the thought aside. I would deal with it only

going to let her

startled me, pulling me from my thoughts. I turned my head to find Evelyn standing a few feet away, her

of it all–the woman who had given birth to my fated mate. If anyone knew where her daughter was, it would be her. But I didn’t answer her question. She already knew the answer. Instead, I asked the question even though

know she’s a

shown when I told her Ava had gotten her wolf back at the restaurant. This was something deeper, something visceral. Her lips parted slightly, and for the first time,

Ava didn’t know.

my voice low. “That’s why you hate me so much. Giving birth to a child fated to me was the

have no idea what you’re talking about. Ava

lying?” I interrupted, my tone sharp. “We both know you gave birth to two children, and only one could

snapped, her voice rising with a sudden anger. “One would just

“Because the one you the one who would never measure up in your world. So you spent years forcing her

there and lecture me about how to raise my daughter. If it weren’t for your cursed bloodline, I wouldn’t have had to make that choice! My daughters would have been normal. One wouldn’t have been born t hold

I just stared at her, letting the silence stretch

took one of my children, you went and took the other. You might not have been responsible for the first because we cannot fight

become.”

only gave her the chance to be who she was always meant to be. And for someone who lacks a heart, it’s sad—even to me -that you can’t see Ava is