Chapter 22\u00a0<\/p>\n
The air in Maximus\u2019s room was thick with a tension I could almost taste \u2013 a mix of anticipation, fear, and something deeper, unspoken. Only a handful of us were there: the elders who knew the truth behind the alpha\u2019s secret about waking up at midnight, Beta Yuan,\u00a0<\/p>\n
and me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
The others were kept away \u2013 it was a private moment, a fragile thread of hope we all dared to hold onto.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Outside, the moon hung high, casting pale silver light through the curtains. It was almost midnight, the hour when everything shifted, when Maximus\u2019s wolf would rise and, maybe, he\u2019d awaken fully \u2013 just enough to take this next step with me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I sat quietly on the edge of a heavy wooden chair, my hands clasped tightly in my lap. My wolf was restless, heart pounding in my chest like the drums of war. Every nerve was alert. \u201cRebecca,\u201d Beta Yuan\u2019s voice was calm but low, a steady presence in the heavy silence. \u201cAre you ready?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I met his gaze and nodded. \u201cI\u2019m ready.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The elders murmured quietly, their words a blessing, a prayer-something ancient, old as the moon itself. I could feel the weight of their eyes, the unspoken hopes of the pack resting on\u00a0<\/p>\n
this moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then, the room shifted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maximus\u2019s eyelids fluttered, trembling at first, then slowly opened to reveal those fierce, fiery red eyes\u00a0<\/p>\n
the eyes of an alpha wolf that refused to be extinguished. Our gazes locked instantly, and the world outside that small room seemed to vanish.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I could see the pain etched deep in those eyes, but also a flicker of recognition \u2013 something that said, You\u2019re here.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRebecca,\u201d his voice was rough, as if scraping through years of silence. \u201cYou came.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I swallowed the lump in my throat. \u201cI promised I would.\u201d,\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
of\u00a0<\/p>\n
He tried to smile, but the effort was clear. \u201cI don\u2019t know how much longer I\u2019ll last\u2026 but I want this. I want us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tears stung the corners of my eyes, but I blinked them back. \u201cMe too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Beta Yuan stepped forward, his voice carrying the weight of tradition. \u201cThe bond between alpha and mate is sacred. Now, you will seal it with a kiss, and mark one another as packmates for life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart hammered as Maximus reached for me, his hand warm and surprisingly steady against my cheek. The heat of his skin sent a jolt through me wolf to wolf, soul to soul.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
Our lips met softly at first, a tentative touch in the quiet room. But then the kiss deepened, fierce and hungry \u2013 like we were trying to pour years of loneliness and longing into that single\u00a0<\/p>\n
06 70\u00a0<\/p>\n
11:39 Wed, Jan 28\u00a0<\/p>\n
81\u00a0<\/p>\n
moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I could feel his wolf stirring inside him, wild and hungry, desperate to reclaim what was rightfully his.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When we finally parted, breathless, he leaned closer and bit gently into my neck mark, a promise sealed in blood and spirit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
the sacred\u00a0<\/p>\n
I returned the gesture, biting into his shoulder. The sharp sting ignited something primal inside us both.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But then, as I pulled away, a sudden cough shook him violently. His body convulsed, and a flash of bright red stained the sheets beneath us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaximus!\u201d I cried, panic crashing through my veins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He gasped, blood trembling on his lips. \u201cIt\u2019s\u2026 it\u2019s nothing,\u201d he insisted weakly, but I could see the truth in his eyes\u00a0<\/p>\n
the poison was still there, clawing at him from inside.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
Beta Yuan moved quickly, stepping to his side, pressing a hand over Maximus\u2019s chest, murmuring words of comfort and command to the alpha\u2019s wolf.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I held Maximus\u2019s hand tightly, my wolf howling inside me, aching to fight whatever was tearing him apart.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re stronger than this,\u201d I whispered fiercely. \u201cPlease.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maximus looked at me, eyes gleaming with a mixture of pain and something fierce \u2013 hope. \u201cSave me,\u201d he breathed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The room seemed to shrink, the weight of that single word crushing and sacred all at once.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded, tears slipping down my cheeks. \u201cI will.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The elders gathered around, their presence a shield of strength and ancient power. Beta Yuan\u2019s grip tightened as he muttered an incantation \u2013 a blessing and a battle cry against the darkness inside Maximus.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I leaned in close, feeling the heat of his breath, the steady beat of his heart beneath his trembling skin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re bound now,\u201d I said softly, \u201cso don\u2019t die on me. Please.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The room settled into a quiet hum, the kind that comes when the world holds its breath waiting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
But when he coughed blood again, I felt like my world was collapsing. It was more painful now because he was already my fated mate. He marked me already\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
When My Alpha Ex-Husband Came Looking for Me by Mark Twain 21 Chapter 22\u00a0 The air in Maximus\u2019s room was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-unclaimed-luna-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23889\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}