Chapter 4
FOUR
CADE
The moment they stepped away from the café, Lyra bounced on her toes beside Cade. “Did you see the way she looked at you?” She grabbed Gerri’s arm with excitement. “And when you touched her hand—I swear the air itself changed!”
“Oh, it absolutely did!” Gerri’s eyes sparkled with that golden gleam. “The chemistry was so thick I could have cut it with a butter knife. And that little gasp she made when you shook hands? Delicious!”
Cade’s jaw tightened as he forced one foot in front of the other, his hands shoved deep into his pockets to hide the slight tremor. Their enthusiasm grated against the chaos raging inside him.
They have no idea what just happened. What she is.
“She’s perfect for you, big brother,” Lyra continued, her voice bright with hope. “I can already picture her in Nova Aurora, handling the council with that quiet strength of hers. And the way she comforted you about Father—“
“Enough.” The word came out sharp, making both women fall silent. Cade’s wolf paced frantically, agitated by the distance growing between them and Mila with every step.
She’s everything. Everything I never thought I needed and everything I can’t afford to want.
When Gerri had first mentioned Mila’s name yesterday, he’d felt that strange stirring in his chest immediately.
But he’d convinced himself overnight it was desperation—the pressure of needing a mate quickly clouding his judgment.
Today, he’d expected to meet a suitable woman, someone he could work with through a simple arranged mating.
Someone he could keep at arm’s length while they played their parts for his kingdom and the council.
Instead, the moment their skin touched, his entire world had shifted fundamentally.
The mate bond had snapped into place with devastating certainty, flooding his system with recognition that went deeper than thought and deeper than reason.
His wolf had howled with triumph, finally finding the missing piece of their soul.
She’s not just any mate. She’s my fated mate. The one I’ve found across lifetimes.
And that terrified him more than anything.
“Why aren’t you celebrating?” Gerri asked, her tone gentler now. “That went better than I could have hoped.”
Cade stopped walking, his control fracturing enough to let some truth escape. “What if she says no?”
The question hung in the air. Lyra’s excitement dimmed as she really looked at her brother’s face for the first time since leaving the café.
“Oh, Cade.” Her voice softened with understanding. “You felt it, didn’t you? The mate bond.”
He couldn’t speak past the tightness in his throat. His wolf was already suffering from the separation, a physical ache building in his chest that would only worsen if Mila rejected them. He’d never experienced anything like it—this desperate need for someone’s presence.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. She didn’t immediately say yes,” he said roughly. “Any sane person would run from what we’re asking. Another planet, a crown, a world she knows nothing about—“ His hands clenched into fists. “And a wolf shifter.”
“Hey now,” Gerri stepped closer, her small hand finding his arm. “Let’s not spiral into worst-case scenarios just yet. Why don’t we explore this charming town while we wait? Give ourselves something to do besides worry.”
Lyra nodded eagerly. “Yes! I want to see everything. The architecture here is so different from Nova Aurora.”
Cade found himself being guided down the sidewalk by two determined women, though his mind remained fractured between the present moment and memories of blue eyes and soft skin.
Salem’s historic district unfolded around them—brick buildings weathered by centuries and narrow streets that had witnessed everything from witch trials to modern commerce.
“Look at these windows,” Lyra pointed to a colonial-era house. “They’re so small compared to ours. And the materials—everything’s so... heavy.”
“Earth architecture reflects their climate limitations,” Cade replied automatically, though his focus kept drifting. “They don’t have the crystal formations we use for structural support.”
Despite his wandering thoughts, his wolf’s senses took in everything around them.
The scent of exhaust from the cars that moved so much slower than their transportation back on Nova Aurora, the sounds of human voices speaking so nonchalantly, and the way the sunlight here looked different without dual suns painting everything in gold and amber.
But underneath it all, he could still catch traces of Mila’s scent on the breeze—that lavender and rain mixture that made his wolf whine with longing.
She’s unlike any woman I’ve ever known.
The women from Nova Aurora’s royal families were raised knowing their roles, understanding shifter dynamics and politics from birth.
They moved through his world with confidence born of lifelong preparation.
But Mila possessed something rarer—authentic curiosity, genuine empathy, and a strength that came from facing life’s challenges without the armor of royal privilege.
“Earth cars are so fascinating,” Lyra mused as they paused at a crosswalk. “Very primitive, but there’s something charming about the simplicity.”
“Everything here feels more... relaxed,” Gerri added thoughtfully. “Less expectations and rules mediating every interaction.”
Cade nodded absently, his attention drawn to a young couple across the street. The man was laughing at something the woman had said, his arm draped casually around her shoulders. Such simple intimacy. Such easy affection.
Would Mila ever look at me like that? Without calculation or duty clouding her expression?
The thought sent another wave of uncertainty through him. He was asking her to give up everything familiar for a man she’d known for two hours. A man whose wolf side she hadn’t even seen yet, whose world operated on laws and customs that would seem intimidating to humans.
“You’re thinking too hard,” Gerri said suddenly, startling him from his brooding. “I can practically hear the gears grinding from here.”
“I just—“ He stopped, running his hand through his brown hair. “She has no idea what she’d be walking into. The council politics, the shifter dynamics, the responsibilities of a crown. And my wolf...” He trailed off, unable to voice his deepest fear.
“What about your wolf?” Lyra prompted gently.
“He wants her with an intensity that scares even me,” Cade admitted quietly.
“I’ve spent my entire life learning control, learning to balance human reason with wolf instinct.
But with her...” He shook his head. “I barely kept it together during brunch. If she comes to Nova Aurora, if she accepts the mate bond—I don’t know if I can be the leader the kingdom needs while feeling this much. ”
This much need. This much want. This much inevitable… love.
“Oh, sweetie,” Gerri’s smile carried infinite compassion. “You think she will make you weaker. But what if she makes you stronger?”
Cade didn’t answer Gerri’s question. Instead, he set his jaw and strode toward a nearby street market, desperate for any distraction from the storm of emotions raging inside him.
If I think about Mila for one more second, I’m going to lose what’s left of my control.
“Where are we going?” Lyra jogged to catch up with his long strides.
“Anywhere that keeps my mind occupied,” he muttered, weaving between Earth shoppers examining produce stands and handmade crafts.
The market buzzed with afternoon energy—vendors calling out prices and children laughing as they chased each other between stalls. Cade tried to focus on the foreign textures and sounds, anything to quiet his wolf’s incessant pacing.
But everywhere he looked, couples wandered hand in hand. A young man pressed a kiss to his girlfriend’s temple as she selected apples. An elderly pair shared bites of funnel cake.
This is torture.
“Earth textiles are so different,” Lyra announced, running her fingers over a display of scarves. “So much heavier than our fabrics.”
“Mmm.” Cade picked up a carved wooden bowl, turning it over in his hands without really seeing it. His wolf senses remained hypertuned to everything, hoping for Mila’s voice or scent on the breeze.
They wandered for hours—through antique shops where Gerri cooed over vintage jewelry, past street musicians whose melodies felt foreign to Nova Aurora ears, and into bookstores where Lyra marveled at Earth’s paper-bound volumes.
But the distraction failed miserably. Every tick of his watch sent tension spiraling tighter through his shoulders.
She said by the end of day. When exactly does that mean? Five o’clock? Midnight?
By the time Earth’s single sun began its descent toward the horizon, painting Salem’s brick buildings in amber light, Cade’s patience had frayed to nothing. His wolf clawed at his ribs like a caged animal, demanding action.
“I can’t wait much longer,” he growled as they settled into a corner booth at a small Italian restaurant. “I’m about to storm into that law firm and demand an answer.”
“That would definitely scare her off,” Lyra pointed out gently.
“I know that!” The words came out harsher than he intended. He scrubbed his hands through his hair, fighting the urge to shift and run until his lungs burned. “But my wolf has been like a wounded animal all day. Every instinct is screaming at me to go claim what’s mine.”
Gerri reached across the table and patted his clenched fist. “Patience, dear. Good things come to those who—“
“Don’t.” His green eyes flashed with barely restrained wildness. “Don’t tell me to be patient when my entire future hangs on one woman’s decision.”
The server approached their table, and Cade forced himself to order something from the menu without really reading it. Around them, the restaurant hummed with evening conversation—more couples sharing intimate dinners, families celebrating together, and friends laughing over wine.
What they have looks so easy. So natural. So why do I feel so overwhelmed?
Because if Mila said no, his life would be over in every way that mattered.
Not just the political implications—though losing his chance at High Sovereign would devastate his pack’s standing.
But his wolf had recognized her as their true mate.
The biological bond was already forming and would continue strengthening whether she accepted it or not.
I’ll never be satisfied with another woman. Never be able to mate properly, produce heirs, or fulfill my duties to the crown. Everything will be ruined.
His food arrived—some pasta dish he couldn’t taste past the knot in his throat. Across the restaurant, a man fed his date a bite of dessert, both of them dissolving into laughter when she got whipped cream on her nose.
Cade’s wolf whined so sharply it made his chest ache.
That’s what I want with her. That ease, that joy, that connection.
But first, she had to choose him. Choose a life so far removed from everything she’d known that it might as well be fantasy.
When Gerri’s phone finally rang, all three of them froze. Cade’s fork clattered against his plate as his enhanced hearing caught the cadence of Mila’s voice through the speaker.
Please say yes.
“Of course, dear,” Gerri was saying, her tone perfectly calm and measured. “That sounds fine.”
Cade’s hands fisted against his thighs. Her cryptic responses gave nothing away.
“Yes, I understand,” Gerri continued. “We’ll be in touch soon.”
The call ended. Silence stretched between them like a held breath.
“Well?” Lyra whispered.
Gerri’s eyes flashed that telltale gold as a smile spread across her face. “Mila has agreed to travel to Nova Aurora and test it out. Her exact words were that her curiosity and some inexplicable pull she can’t explain have convinced her to give it a try.”
Relief crashed through Cade’s system so violently his vision blurred. His wolf threw back its head inside him and howled, the sound echoing through his bones even if it didn’t escape his human throat.
She said yes. She’s coming to our home.
“I told you she was courageous,” Lyra said, bouncing in her seat. “This is going to be so perfect!”
But even as exhilaration flooded his veins, a small voice whispered doubt in the back of his mind. What will the council think about a human queen? What will my father say when he realizes I’ve found my fated mate in someone who knows nothing about our shifter world?
He shoved the worries aside. Right now, only one thing mattered.
“We need to get back to Nova Aurora immediately,” he announced, already rising from the table. “I have preparations to make for her.”