I slowly turned around to face him, my heart beating in an erratic rhythm as his gaze met mine. My whole body surrendered to him just at the sight of his face—I had gone through this feeling before but in those moments it would be in fear and the reason for those moments was undoubtedly my mates. 

However,  on the other hand, Nate's presence always had a gravitational pull, an undeniable force that enveloped me entirely. In the past, facing figures like Maximus and Leonardo filled me with dread, but with Nate, it was different—something extraordinary, something I cherished deeply and didn’t want to lose at all costs.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered, my fingers tracing the contours of his neck as I leaned closer. "Shouldn't you be buried in work?"

"I took care of it. Turns out, it's exactly what we suspected—the rogue group from seven years back," he murmured, his breath mingling with mine as our foreheads touched. "They're after our pack, our land."

"I don’t fucking get it why the hell those motherfuckers don’t stop," I sighed, frustration stirring within me. "Why must they run after our pack? There are plenty of other packs they could target."

"It's simple, love—they see us as vulnerable now, a chance to strike. They think they have a chance of winning against us and they certainly do, don’t they?” Nate explained, his voice tinged with a bit of distress. "We lost so much in the last attack, our family, our strength. We're rebuilding, but until then, we're a prime target and we will remain a prime target until we gain back what we have lost. And It’s not just the rogues, today it might be just the rogues but tomorrow it could be any other pack who are trying to get extra land and become more powerful. It’s actually tough to survive when you don’t have the power you used to have—we had a lot and now we have nearly nothing but that doesn’t mean it’ll always be like that—we will get through it, all we need is just a bit of caution and choose our steps wisely.”

"Is it too risky to proceed with the ceremonies then? We can delay them if it means keeping you safe," I suggested, apprehension etching lines into my features, “I don’t want you to go through any sort of pressure. It can be too much to handle.”

"Hey, we've been through worse, remember? They won’t stop no matter what we do so why let their ill intentions hinder our plans and our moments?” Nate's smile was a balm to my worries as his thumbs brushed gently against my cheeks. "We're safe for now. Trust me."

"Okay," I relented, drawing closer to him, seeking solace in his embrace.

"Before you dive into the ceremony frenzy, let me remind you of one thing," I whispered, my voice muffled against his chest. "You're stuck with me for eternity, there will be absolutely no way for you to leave me after the ceremony, got it?"

Nate chuckled softly, his laughter resonating through me like a comforting melody. "Wouldn't have it any other way," he replied, “And, I can promise you that I am never ever going to leave you even if I die, trust me, my ghost will be all around you.”

"Shh... let's not talk about such morbid thoughts," I murmured, silencing him with a gentle touch over his lips. "I've gone through that loss once—losing the only person who loved me, Nate. Losing my dad, the only one who truly cared for me... I can't even bear the thought of losing you too," my voice quivered, "Please, don't even speak of death."

"Okay," Nate nodded, understanding softening the lines of his face as he intertwined our fingers.

I nestled closer, relishing the warmth of his embrace, finding solace in his arms. It was in his presence that the chaos of the world dulled to a whisper, where I only found serenity. I could stay like this forever and never even once think about pulling away.

"What were you up to? Reading a book?”Nate's voice broke the tranquil silence, his fingers threading through my locks, twirling them gently before releasing them with a featherlight touch, “Have I ever told you that your hair always smells fucking divine? It's like a constant, intoxicating fragrance. God, I can without a single doubt bury myself into your scent.” he buried his nose into my hair, inhaling my scent.

A soft laugh escaped me, "Yes, you did and I remember it very clearly. It was the very first day of my fifth year here. I had just finished showering and happened to bump into you. As I hurriedly apologised, my hair decided to introduce itself to your face, and there went your compliment."

"Ah, I can remember it now," Nate chuckled, the memory painting a smile on his lips. "But you attributed it to your shampoo back then. Despite your changes in brands which I have noticed, your hair has that same enchanting scent. So it wasn’t shampoo then—it’s simply you.”

"You sound utterly obsessed, you know?" I teased, unable to contain my amusement as I met his gaze.

A mischievous grin adorned his features as he peppered my face with tender kisses, "Because," he murmured against my skin, his lips tracing a path to my cheek, "I am," another kiss, "indeed," his breath warm against my other cheek, "completely and utterly," a kiss upon my forehead, "obsessed," finally landing softly on my lips.

"You're starting to sound like a lovesick teenager, stop it,” I fought to hide my smile as I pressed my face into his chest, quietly absorbing his scent—there was an inexplicable comfort in it. I couldn't quite describe it, but when he was near, I felt safe. It was a sensation that defied explanation, yet it was undeniably special, much like Nate was to me—he was my light.

"I'm afraid I can't," Nate replied, before doing something unexpected—he picked me up.

I gasped in surprise, instinctively wrapping my arms around his neck to steady myself. "What's this for?!"

"To take you to bed."

"What?" My eyes widened, cheeks flushing red.

"Don't worry, Maya," a smirk played on his lips, "It's not what you're thinking about."

"Hey, I'm not thinking about anything!"

"Those pink cheeks say otherwise," he teased.

"You have a filthy mind, Nate!" I retorted loudly, trying to sound convincing.

"And I believe your mind is very, very pure," he chuckled, setting me down on the bed before retrieving the fallen book from the shelf.

"Are you mocking me?" I raised an eyebrow.

"No, I'm appreciating you," he said with feigned sincerity, barely suppressing his laughter. "I've never met anyone with such a pure mind."

"You can laugh if you want—I can already see you want to," I huffed, crossing my arms and avoiding his gaze. "Fucking jerk!" I muttered under my breath.

“You look cute when you're angry,” Nate remarked, unfazed as he settled onto the bed beside me and pulled me down to lie beside him.

“What are you doing?” I attempted to sit up as he tucked the duvet around me, the book still in his hand as he covered his half with the duvet too.

“It’s a bit chilly today, and I don’t want you getting sick before the ceremony, although even a red nose would suit you,” he teased, tapping my nose playfully, and I swatted his hand away.

“Hey, I'm still mad at you!”

“Doesn’t matter. You look too cute to resist,” he pulled me closer, my head resting on his arm as we lay side by side on the bed.

Before I could protest, he planted a kiss on my temple and inquired, “So, is this what you were about to read? I see.”

God! I was genuinely trying to stay mad at him, and he was making it utterly impossible!

“That’s none of your business!”

“So we curse when we're angry,” he grinned, placing another kiss on my temple, clearly not taking me seriously. “Why don’t you get angry more often? You look like a baby when you're angry.”

This man…

Ugh! I couldn’t resist him.

“This isn't fair!” I cried out in frustration, closing my eyes and gripping his shirt tightly. “I'm trying to stay mad at you.”

He let out a small laugh before pulling me even closer, tilting my face to meet his gaze—his touch making a pout form on my lips involuntarily.

“What are you doing?”

“You know you're too pretty to resist? Every expression you make is so fucking adorable,” he murmured, planting a kiss on my lips. “Now, before I get too distracted just looking at you and forget that we planned to read this book together, let me actually read it, or else I might end up doing something else we're not prepared for…” His voice deepened at the last part, and I couldn't help but blush.

I had no clue why I couldn’t stop blushing around him.

“O-Okay…” I stuttered, forgetting all about my anger and my futile attempts to stay mad at him.

A smile played on his lips as he placed one last gentle kiss on mine before beginning to read the book aloud.