CHAPTER 398: WAITED TOO LONG

Evaline:

The silence lasted for a while before Kieran’s voice reached me.

"How are you feeling now?"

There was something in his tone that made me turn, and the moment my gaze landed on his face, I knew something was wrong. He was trying to hide it... the faint shadow that flickered in his eyes, the tightness of his jaw, the way his hold around my waist lingered as though afraid I would disappear again if he loosened it even slightly.

That emotion... I had felt it before.

Guilt.

It was the same feeling that had made me crawl into his arms earlier, and it hadn’t gone away.

For a moment, I stayed still, feeling his warmth seep into me, feeling the way his heartbeat drummed against my back, slow but uneven. Then I turned in his arms, making him look at me.

"Kieran," I murmured softly, placing my hand against his chest. "You are the one who’s not alright."

He hesitated, his golden-green eyes flickering toward the window before returning to me. "You should rest more. Some of your cuts still haven’t healed."

"That’s not an answer," I said, searching his gaze.

He exhaled heavily, brushing a few strands of hair away from my face. "I’m fine."

I gave him a small, almost sad smile. "You are a terrible liar."

That earned a faint smile from him - short-lived but real. Still, I saw it again, that flicker of guilt buried deep beneath the gentle look of his eyes, and it made my heart twist.

"You are feeling guilty," I whispered.

His fingers froze midway through stroking my hair. "Evaline-"

"You are," I cut in quietly, holding his gaze. "Because you think you were late. Because you think you failed me."

He didn’t deny it this time. His throat moved as he swallowed, and his hands fell from my hair to my shoulders, holding me in place. "I should have been there first. I should have sensed something was wrong." His voice broke on the last word, low and rough. "Oscar and Draven felt it before I did. Draven was halfway to you by the time I realized what had happened. I-"

"Kieran," I interrupted gently, placing my palm against his cheek. "You couldn’t have known."

His eyes softened but his jaw stayed tight. "I’m your mate. I’m supposed to protect you. And yet-"

"You are my mate," I said softly, "but I haven’t accepted the bond yet, remember?"

That made him still. For a heartbeat, the air between us grew heavy - the kind of silence that carried weight and unspoken emotions.

I continued, my thumb tracing along the edge of his jaw. "River, Draven, and Oscar can feel me because our bond is complete. They can sense when I’m in danger, when I’m scared. But you... you couldn’t. Because I haven’t made it possible yet."

He looked almost startled, like he hadn’t realized that until now. "I know, but-"

"Bit it’s not your fault." I smiled softly. "You didn’t fail me, Kieran. You never did."

He didn’t say anything for a long moment. The guilt didn’t vanish right away, but I saw the way his shoulders eased slightly, like my words had taken some of that unbearable weight off him.

"You always do that," he muttered eventually, his tone quiet and rough.

"Do what?"

"Make me believe I’m not the monster I think I am."

I frowned, my heart tightening. "You are not a monster, Kieran."

His lips curved into a faint smile, though it didn’t reach his eyes. "You say that like it’s easy to believe."

"It’s not easy," I admitted, "but it’s true."

I reached up and cupped his face between my palms, forcing him to look at me fully this time. "You have done everything to protect the Academy, your brothers, and me. You have built an entire sanctuary. You have saved lives, Kieran... mine included. How can you still think you failed?"

He closed his eyes, leaning into my touch, his breath brushing against my palms. "Because I wasn’t there when you needed me tonight."

My voice softened even more. "But you are here now."

He opened his eyes again, and for the first time, I saw something flicker in them that wasn’t guilt - it was raw, unguarded emotion.

"I don’t deserve you," he murmured.

I shook my head slowly. "Don’t say that. You do. You all do. And..."

I hesitated, my pulse quickening in my throat. The words that wanted to escape were heavier than they should have been, but they also felt right. I had thought about this before... countless times... about how I wanted him to know he wasn’t any less than the others.

He looked confused when I suddenly pulled back slightly. "Evaline?"

I met his gaze, my heart thundering. "You are not the last one anymore."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." I took a slow, deep breath, then smiled... small but certain. "I accept you, Kieran Thorne. As my fated soul mate."

The silence that followed was so thick it almost felt unreal. His eyes widened, disbelief flashing across his features as though he hadn’t heard me correctly. "Evaline..."

"I mean it," I said firmly, my voice trembling only a little. "You have waited long enough. I have kept you waiting long enough. But not anymore."

He just stared at me, his eyes gleaming faintly in the dim light. For a moment, it seemed like he couldn’t breathe. Then, with a shaky exhale, he reached for me... his hands sliding up to cradle my face, his forehead pressing against mine.

"Say it again," he whispered, his voice low and reverent.

I smiled, my eyes stinging with unshed tears. "I, Evaline Greystone, accept you, Rogue Alpha Kieran Thorne, as my mate."

His breath hitched, and then he laughed - a sound that was raw, quiet, but full of so much emotion that it made my chest ache. He kissed my forehead first, then my temple, then the corner of my lips, almost as if he was afraid to lose this moment if he moved too quickly.

When he finally kissed me properly, it wasn’t a desperate or wild kiss - it was slow, reverent, filled with everything he had kept buried for far too long.