Forbidden Innocence (Book #3)

Chapter 12

Lilac's P.O.V

"W-what?" I stutter.

Maya huffs. "I don't know! Their eyes connected and they both said mate at the same time. Aren't you his true mate? Hunter and Zelia have been around each other, how come he's just now noticing?" She blows out all in one breath.

Ophelia's voice rings in my head: He'll only notice after his wolf has moved on from you.

Does this mean Hunter has moved on? Moved onto Zelia and now he has completely forgotten about me?

I look at Landon and check to see if he heard that. He did.

"Yeah, I'm his true mate but I never claimed him and vice versa. We never had a bond, but..."

Would Ophelia mind if I told Maya about her second chance mate deal for Hunter?

Maya clicks her tongue. "But what, Lilac?" She barks out.

Before I can reply, Landon snatches the phone from me. "Pardon me, Luna, but I'm talking to James later. We can discuss it then, but for now, we have other business to attend to," He says in the nicest voice possible so he doesn't sound disrespectful.

God forbid he come off as disrespectful! Maya, no matter how close I am to her, can and will call James on Landon.

Even though I have no doubt that he can hold his own, it's still a scary thought.

"Alright," Maya answers before hanging up.

Landon looks at me and pulls him to me, his lips finding mine with no trouble. "Don't worry about this, Lilac," He instructs.

But, no matter how hard I try, I can't help but worry, can't help but to worry about what Hunter—or even Zelia!—will think about me now.

••

Landon pushes open the doors to his father's office with ease, but the sight that greets us isn't appeasing.

Two men stand with their hands behind their backs, obvious muscles peaking out from underneath their dark-colored t-shirts.

One man has blue eyes with white hair, the other man has silver eyes and white hair, just like... Ophelia.

These must be Ophelia's sons, Erik and Thanatos. I have a feeling that the one with blue eyes is Erik and the one with silver eyes is Thanatos.

"You're Ophelia's sons," I mutter before I can stop myself.

Both mens' eyes fall to me and, suddenly, I'm the center of attention.

Landon pulls me to him tightly, having no issue doing so since his arms aren't busy carrying Lucy (a pack member was nice enough to watch the little troublemakers for us).

The blue-eyed twin smiles at me, showing straight, white teeth. "You must be Lilac. Our mother had told us so much about you," He greets before looking at Landon. I don't miss when he sizes him up, assessing him. "And you must be Landon."

My hand comes up to rest on Landon's sturdy chest, worry flourishing inside me like flowers during spring.

His hand slips down to rest on the small of me back. "Yes. It's an honor," He greets the blue-eyed twin back.

"I'm Thanatos," The twin with silver eyes finally speaks, "and this is Erik. I'm sure you've heard the news," He says, cutting right to the chase.

Landon steps foreword. "No, actually."

Thanatos looks at Vincent, whose eyes are casted down, and shakes his head. "Your father is weak and hasn't recovered from the pack's last war. We must replace him with you," He blurts.

I gasp at his suddenness, the necklace that's dangling between the valley of my breast suddenly feeling surprisingly cool against my clammy skin. "But-"

"No buts, Lilac. We know you have children, and we know you just arrived here, but this pack can't go on much longer with Alpha Vincent. It's time for you to step to the position of luna," He cuts me off.

Oh gosh, I feel lightheaded.

First, Hunter supposedly finds his second chance mate and it's supposedly Zelia. Second, I'm dragged into this crazy mess of pack positions and sh*t. Third, I have a wedding coming! I can't arrange a pack and a wedding!

'And Landon's already ready for a fourth baby. What the hell are we going to do, Lilac?' My wolf asks.

I find myself shrugging to her. 'I don't know, but just like our wedding, our fourth child must wait,' I reply as calmly as I can.

Silence fills the room as I slowly take a seat in one of chairs scattered across the room.

How'd my life jump from celebration sex because of my engagement to "celebration" of being forced into a position of power?

What the hell will I do with power?

Landon kneels beside me, his hand tilting my chin up so I'm staring into his eyes. "I love you. You know that right? You know I'm going to be by your side through thick and thin, right?" He asks.

Honesty shines in his eyes brightly, bringing me reassurance that only he can bring.

"What's going to happen now?" I ask without looking away from Landon's eyes.

Erik steps forward. "We train. My brother and I will teach Landon all there is to being an alpha, and my mother will be your V.I.P trainer, Lilac. Anything from fighting to dealing with a rowdy pack member," He answers knowingly.

His words promise something simple, but I can see from in his eyes that it won't be easy, and one glance at Thanatos's face—you'd be surprised how easy it is to read his emotions there—confirms my belief.

You have to put your big girl pants on, Lilac.

I look Erik right in the eye before my sudden bravery dissipates. "Okay. Explain this all to me," I breathe.

Both twins smirk at me before motioning me over to sit in a chair closer to them.

Hesitantly, I move towards them with Landon trailing behind me. "Your mother said you'd take us to a castle in Nice, France. Is that true?"

Thanatos nods. "Once there, you will be settled in by the servants. But beware, our mates live there, and if I hear of any ill treatment towards either one of them from either one of you, I'll kill you on the spot," He threatens darkly.

With a sigh, Erik pulls his brother back. "I'm sure you'll get along with both of them just fine," He soothes.

I nod, knowing I'll have no issues unless their mates have an issue with me.

Landon takes a seat beside me. "How long will the training take?" He asks.

"It will last until I, or Thanatos, think you're well enough prepared. Same for Lilac but it will be off my mother's judgment if she's ready," Erik answers.

I get to train with Ophelia. What if I complete disappoint her with how inept I am at everything pack related?

Thanatos smirks, his silver eyes lighting up with excitement. "But I can't promise the training will be easy. Oh, who am I kidding, it's no not going to be easy, you should prepare yourselves to feel pain in ways you never thought possible."

My breath whooshes out of me in shock as a burning in my spine arises.

Except this time the burning isn't warning me about impending danger, it's warning me about danger that's already here.