Seraphina’s POV
The moment I saw Holly at Caden’s door, I mind-linked Frank and Shelton to come immediately. It was time for them to see her for what she truly was—a shameless manipulator.
Holly’s panic set in quickly. “Seraphina wants to kill me! If you hadn’t come in time, she would’ve ripped my throat out! How can she do this to her Luna?”
The guards glanced at me, uncertainty in their eyes, but I stood tall. “How dare you call yourself Sid’s Luna? What kind of Luna sneaks around trying to seduce another man while her mate is away?”
Elder Shelton gasped, his face a mix of shock and anger.
“What the hell is going on here?” Frank demanded, stepping forward.
I pointed directly at Holly. “She knocked on Alpha Caden’s door dressed like that, asking him to ‘have fun’ together. She blatantly tried to seduce him!”
A collective gasp rippled through the room. Holly’s face paled as she stammered, “T-that’s not true! This is just what I wear most of the time! And I was only here to discuss serious business matters with Alpha Caden. I swear—nothing weird was going on!”
“I doubt that,” Caden said coolly, his voice laced with disdain. “You told me you weren’t wearing any underwear and said I’d been missing out by not hooking up with married women. Those were your exact words, Luna Holly.”
The room erupted into murmurs of disbelief. Holly’s face turned ashen, her stammering defenses crumbling.
Caden turned to Frank, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Is this how your pack greets its guests? By sending your Luna out to entertain? But let me make one thing clear—I don’t sleep with other people’s wives. Especially not ones like her.”
Frank’s face flushed with embarrassment. “N-no! This has nothing to do with us. This was entirely her own doing…”
“Luna Holly, how could you betray Alpha Sid like this?” Shelton shouted, his face red with anger.
The guards’ expressions shifted, their trust in her visibly eroding.
I seized the moment. “And you’re still planning to follow her lead? She betrayed Sid! Who knows what else she’s lied about? Maybe she’s not even his true mate!”
“NO! Stop it!” Holly suddenly broke down, covering her face as she sobbed. “Sid and I are mates! How can you doubt that? You were all there when he acknowledged our bond! He said it himself—you can’t question that!”
“But what you did today—”
“I was just scared! Sid’s not here, and I’ve been left to lead this pack all alone. I was overwhelmed and insecure,” she cried. “When Alpha Caden arrived, I thought he might be here to invade us. So I dressed provocatively and approached him to find out his intentions. But I never would’ve actually slept with him!”
“BULLSHIT!” I snapped, my voice laced with fury.
“Believe what you want. But Sid entrusted me with Emerald Howl Pack, and that’s a fact no one can deny,” she said through gritted teeth, brushing past me and storming out.
“Are you seriously letting her walk away?” I asked Frank and Shelton in disbelief.
The two elders exchanged weary glances.
“She’s still our Luna,” Shelton sighed. “And Alpha Sid’s orders were clear—she’s in charge while he’s away.”
“Maybe she’s found a way to manipulate Sid!”
“How? Sid’s a mature, powerful Alpha. Holly is just one woman. What could she possibly do to force him? I know this is hard for you to accept, Seraphina, but Sid really did choose her. I was there,” Frank said, shaking his head.
I glared at them, seething with frustration, but Caden stepped in, his tone calm but cutting.
“Letting an outsider control your pack hardly seems wise,” he remarked.
“That’s our internal matter, Alpha Caden,” Frank replied stiffly. “We’ll handle it ourselves.”
With that, they dispersed the guards and left.
Caden pulled me into his room before I could protest. My anger boiled over as I turned to him.
“Can you believe how stubborn they are? The proof was right in front of them, but they refused to see it—”
“Were you jealous?” Caden interrupted, his voice sharp yet curious.
I froze, my words caught in my throat.
“Why were you so angry when you saw Holly outside my door?” he pressed, his piercing gaze locking onto mine.
My cheeks burned under his scrutiny. “B-because Sid is my friend, and I don’t want to see him betrayed—”
He tilted my chin up with his fingers, his eyes narrowing. “So it’s because of another man? It has nothing to do with me?”
I trembled under his touch, Liam’s earlier words echoing in my mind: What’s really holding you two back, Seraphina?
It was my own insecurity. Sooner or later, I’d have to overcome it.
Caden waited for my answer, his gaze unwavering. But when I stayed silent too long, disappointment flashed in his eyes, and he let go of my chin.
Before he could pull away completely, I grabbed his hand.
Low and hoarse, I whispered, “Maybe… Maybe I was a bit jealous.”
