Rebirth Of The Rejected Luna Chapter 67: The Mysterious Scent

**Theo's POV**

"You know," I said, choosing my words carefully, "your father might be stubborn, but I doubt he’d harm you. If you accepted the bond, I can’t imagine he’d go so far as to separate you two. You will be affected by losing your mate as well and he won't want that to happen to you."

"Yes but even if I don't... it's almost the same thing." She gave me a small, wry smile. "You don’t know my father, Your Majesty. It’s not that simple. He doesn’t want to let go of Damien, but not for the reasons you might think."

"Really?" I asked. "Why then?"

Clara sighed, "Years ago, during the war, Damien’s grandfather saved my father and my grandfather. He died while trying to protect them. My father feels... indebted. And as much as he doesn’t approve of me being with Damien, he also doesn’t want to cut him off. If I accept the bond, though, he might start to see Damien as someone who’s taking advantage of that kindness. It would make things worse, not better."

I whistled low, leaning back. "Wow. That’s... complicated."

"Tell me about it," she muttered, glancing at the door as if she wished she could leave already.

Before I could say anything else, the door opened, and Peter walked in. "Your Majesty, time’s up."

Clara stood, smoothing her dress. She looked at me and gave me a small smile. "Well, this is goodbye."

I nodded, standing as well. "It is. Good luck with Damien. I hope your father comes to understand you and him."

"Thank you. And good luck to you too, Your Majesty. I hope your father comes to understand you."

It wasn’t often I found someone who understood what it was like to live under trying to meet expectations. And for a fleeting moment, I wished things could be different for both of us.

Peter’s eyes followed Clara as she walked out of the dining room. At first, his face seemed a bit unreadable. He turned back to me, one brow raised in that infuriatingly knowing way of his. "It seems like you bonded with this one."

I scoffed, dropping into the nearest chair. "I didn’t bond with her, Peter. She’s just... reasonable. And, frankly, she made sense. We have a lot in common."

Peter leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "So, are you saying you’re willing to choose her as your Luna in future?"

I shot him a glare. "No, Peter. When I say we have a lot in common, I’m talking about fathers who won’t stop breathing down our necks because of our love interest. "

Peter smirked. "Ah. I see."

"And for the record," I added, pointing a finger at him, "Clara already has a love interest. Her father doesn’t approve of him, but now that he agreed to this ridiculous matchmaking plan my father cooked up, she had no choice but to show up."

Peter shrugged, pushing off the doorframe. "Well, good luck to her, then. And don’t go hurting her feelings by looking so relieved."

I rolled my eyes. "I’m not that heartless, Peter."

"Debatable," he said. "Goodbye. You're free for today."

Finally, a break.

I left the dining room and went upstairs, to my chambers, exhaustion settling in my shoulders. I was beyond tired and was quite glad to see that a bath had been prepared for me.

I stripped out of my clothes, stepping into the steaming water with a sigh of relief.

*+*+*+*

The rest of the day passed in a haze. I barely noticed how fast time was moving and before I knew it, dinner was already here. Dinner was nothing special really, it was just Peter, Amara, Layla, Fiona and Tiana. My father was nowhere in sight. I was kind of glad because I somehow knew that he would have asked about the dates and I was so not ready to converse with him on that.

As usual, Layla and Amara were throwing playful insults at each other and Peter adding his usual dry sarcastic jokes. Fiona and Tiana laughed along as well as added their own jokes.

I stayed mostly silent. My mind was far away, stuck between thinking oh how to convince my father that I did not need anyone other than Tiana.

After dinner, Tiana approached me. "You seem... Exhausted. Are you okay?"

"Yes, I am," I smiled, taking her hand and placing a small kiss on the back of it.

"Are you sure about that?"

"I am Tiana," I replied. "I just had an exhausting day."

"I understand. I shall leave you to get some rest then."

"Thank you."

I excused myself and headed to my room. I didn’t even have the energy to take off my shoes before I collapsed onto the bed. Sleep came quickly, but it was shallow and uneasy like I was caught somewhere between being awake and dreaming.

That’s when I felt it—a pull.

It was subtle at first, just a nagging sensation at the back of my mind but it became more persistent than ever before. My wolf stirred, restless and insistent.

Go, it urged.

I groaned, turning over in bed, hoping that the feeling would stop. But it didn’t. Instead, it grew stronger by the minute.

The scent came next.

It was faint, barely there, but distinct. Something that was comforting.

My heartbeat quickened and the restlessness spread through my limbs until it became unbearable.

Go, my wolf commanded again.

With a sigh of frustration, I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, ignoring the heaviness in my muscles. I had one shoe on and the other off from how quickly I had fallen asleep and I was still half-asleep. Still, I followed the pull, my feet moving of their own accord.

The corridor stretched endlessly before me, dimly lit by flickering torches. The scent grew stronger, and then, I crashed into something.

It happened so fast that I barely had time to register the collision. I blinked, trying to focus. Tiana stood before me, with an expression of surprise.

“Theo?” she asked, her voice tinged with concern. “What are you doing?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but no words came. The scent was stronger now, intoxicating and overwhelming. My wolf was practically howling, but I couldn’t make sense of it.

“I…” I trailed off, shaking my head. “I don’t know.”

Tiana frowned, stepping closer. “You look… restless. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” I lied, my voice unconvincing even to my own ears.

But as I looked at her, something clicked. The pull wasn’t leading me away—it was leading me to her.