Mated To My Mate's Worst Enemy Chapter 15

ARIA

This wasn't like what I'd felt for Damon. That had been desperate, clingy, built on gratitude and loneliness and the need to be wanted.

This was different. Deeper. Like recognizing something I'd been missing without knowing I was missing it.

"You're insane," I whispered, but there was no heat in it. "Fighting five nightwalkers alone. You could have died."

*"But I didn't."* There was something almost amused in his mental voice. *"Your moonbeam plants saw to that. Where did you find them?"*

"I was foraging for the healer's lodge. They were growing near a cliff, and I remembered how valuable they were, so I—" I stopped, swallowing hard. "I'm sorry. I led the nightwalkers right to you. If I hadn't gone so far into the forest—"

*"Stop."* His command was gentle but firm. *"You were helping the pack. Gathering herbs to help our wolves. That's what a Luna does. The nightwalkers being there wasn't your fault."*

"But you got hurt because of me."

*"I got hurt defending what's mine,"* he corrected. *"And I'd do it again. A thousand times over. Do you understand that, Aria?"*

I couldn't speak. Couldn't find words adequate to express what I was feeling—gratitude and guilt and wonder and something that felt dangerously close to the beginnings of love.

Nina cleared her throat delicately. "Alpha, the healers need to run some more tests. Make sure the nightwalker toxin is completely cleared from your system."

*"I feel fine,"* Kael protested. *"Better than I have in months, actually. The curse—it's not gone, but it's... quieter. Like something's holding it back."*

"The moonbeam plants," Eliza said thoughtfully. "They're not just healing your physical wounds. They're fighting the magical curse as well. I've never seen anything like it."

*"Then we need more of them,"* Kael said immediately. *"If they can push back the curse, if they can help me maintain lucidity—"*

"There's a whole patch of them in the western forest," I said quickly. "Near where the nightwalkers attacked. I can show you exactly where—"

*"You're not going back there,"* Kael interrupted, his mental voice hard. *"Not until we've cleared that entire area of nightwalkers. I'll send a full patrol."*

"I'm fine," I protested. "My wounds are already healing—"

*"You were nearly killed today."* There was something raw in his voice now, something vulnerable beneath the Alpha authority. *"I heard your scream in my mind, Aria. Felt your terror through our bond. If I'd been even a minute later—"*

He didn't finish, but he didn't have to. I'd seen the desperation in his eyes when he'd fought those nightwalkers. The absolute determination to keep me safe no matter what it cost him.

"You made it in time," I said softly, reaching out to rest my hand on his massive head. His fur was soft beneath my palm, still slightly damp with blood but warm with life. "You saved me, Kael. And then I helped save you. We're even."

*"We'll never be even."* His eyes closed briefly, leaning into my touch like he was starved for it. *"You came here to save a cursed Alpha you'd never met. You've taken on Luna duties without complaint. You risked yourself to harvest herbs for the pack. And today you gave me the moonbeam plants that not only healed my wounds but pushed back the curse that's been consuming me for three years."*

He opened his eyes again, holding my gaze.

*"You've given me hope, Aria. Real hope that maybe I can find my way back to myself. That maybe this curse doesn't have to be permanent. How could we possibly be even after that?"*

Tears blurred my vision. "You're giving me a fresh start. A chance to be Luna, to matter to a pack, to be someone more than just—"

I stopped myself before I could say *more than just Damon's rejected omega*.

But Kael heard it anyway, in the things I didn't say.

*"Whoever hurt you before,"* he said quietly, *"whoever made you feel like you weren't enough—they were fools. You're strong and brave and selfless. Any Alpha would be honored to have you as their Luna."*

"Even a cursed one?" I tried to smile through my tears.

*"Especially a cursed one."* There was warmth in his mental voice now, something gentle that made my heart flutter. *"We cursed, broken wolves need to stick together, don't we?"*

I laughed wetly. "I suppose we do."

Nina approached, her own eyes suspiciously bright. "I hate to interrupt this moment, but Eliza is right—you both need rest. Aria, you've lost blood and been through trauma. Kael, you nearly died and your body needs time to fully heal. The blood moon ceremony is in three days. You both need to be at full strength for that."

She was right, though I hated the idea of leaving Kael's side.

*"Go rest,"* Kael urged gently. *"I'll be fine. The healers will watch over me."*

"Promise you'll call if you need anything?" I asked. "Through the mindlink?"

*"I promise. And Aria?"*

"Yes?"

*"Thank you. For the moonbeam plants. For not running when the nightwalkers attacked. For staying with me while I was dying. For everything."*

I squeezed his massive paw gently. "Thank you for fighting five nightwalkers to keep me safe. For hearing my call. For giving me a place to belong."

*"You'll always belong here,"* he said with such conviction that I almost believed him. *"Always."*

As Nina led me out of the treatment room, I glanced back one more time. Kael watched me go, his golden eyes tracking my movement, and I could feel his presence in my mind even as the distance grew—a warm, protective presence that promised safety.

Three more days until the blood moon.

Three more days until I bonded with this Alpha who'd risked everything to save me.

And for the first time since leaving Damon's territory, I felt like maybe—just maybe—I was exactly where I was supposed to be.