Mated To The Alpha King (Raven and Ethan) novel Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Alpha Ethan’s POV

I ran a hand through my hair, sighing in frustration as I stared at my reflection in the mirror. What was wrong with me?

Since the moment Raven had walked into the room, a pull I didn’t understand had taken hold. A need that unsettled me. She wasn’t just another maid, there was something different about her. Something… magnetic.

Iyanked open the closet door, grabbing a fresh black shirt and a pair of matching pants. As I buttoned up, the door to my room flew open with a bang, 1 didn’t need to turn to know who it was. The tension radiating from her was as loud as her entrance.

“Can you tell me what happened here before now?” Olivia’s voice sliced through the air, sharp and demanding

I turned halfway, catching her fierce gaze. Her arms were crossed, brows furrowed, mouth pressed into a line. She wasn’t happy. Not in the slightest.

My face was momentarily frozen with surprise, but I quickly recovered and turned back to buttoning my shirt. “What do you mean?” I asked coolly, deliberately avoiding her eyes.

“I just saw Raven running off like a scared cat,” she said, walking further into the room, her voice rising. “She was clearly coming from here. Your scent is all over her.”

My heart skipped a beat.

Raven. My mind betrayed me with the memory of her just minutes ago–her trembling lips as she looked up at me, her hands clutching her dress as if her life depended on it, and the picture of her perfect curves. And then, the way she fled like the room itself had caught fire.

“Are you even listening to me?” Olivia snapped, bringing me back to the present.

I looked up, locking eyes with her finally. “It’s nothing,” I said quickly, maybe too quickly. “She came to tell me dinner was ready. That’s all. So enough with the questioning. Let’s go eat.”

Olivia didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t press it. She gave me one last warning glare, then turned on her heel and exited the room.

My fists clenched at my sides. I hated lying to her–Olivia had always been the mate the Moon Goddess had chosen for me–but I couldn’t understand the pull I was feeling toward Raven.

Why did Raven make my wolf restless?

The dining hallwas filled with the soft clatter of cutlery and low murmurs of the pack members enjoying their evening meal. The chandeliers cast a warm golden hue over the long mahogany table, and the scent of roasted meats and baked breads drifted through the air.

I entered beside Olivia, keeping my expression blank despite the chaos in my mind. I could sense her watching me closely, but I didn’t look her way. Instead, my eyes scanned the room involuntarily–searching. And then I saw her.

Raven.

her cheeks flushing with She stood among a group of maids near the far end of the hall, a white apron tied around her waist, her dark hair pulled into a neat braid. Her hands were steady as she carried a tray, but her eyes…, those eyes gave her away. They flicked to me for a second, then darted color.

I swallowed hard. Why did she affect me like this?

As Olivia and I took our seats at the head of the table, the servants moved efficiently, filling goblets with wine, placing bowls and platters before us. Raven approached slowly, her tray balanced on one hand. Despite the other maids nearby, she came directly to me and Olivia. I almost forgot she was Olivia’s personal majd.

But she didn’t meet my gaze. Not once.

Chapter 16

Instead, she bent slightly and placed the Luna’s plate before her with graceful precision. “Luna,” she said softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

Olivia gave a tight nod, clearly watching Raven closely.

Then Raven turned toward me, and for a second–just a second–our eyes locked. Her fingers trembled. I saw it. The way she hesitated with the targne) plate. My wolf pushed against my skin, snarling protectively, possessively.

But before she could set my plate down, Olivia’s voice rang out, sharp and unmistakably firm..

“That’s enough, Raven. One of the other maids will serve the Alpha.”

Raven froze. I blinked, stunned.

The girl stiffened like a statue, her shoulders rising and falling once before she quickly stepped back. Her head remained bowed as she mumbled. “Yes.

Luna.”

My jaw clenched, but I said nothing.

Another maid rushed forward and served me instead, while Raven retreated with her tray, moving toward the far end of the table like she couldn’t get away fast enough. My eyes followed her, refusing to let her disappear from my sight.

“What was that?” I asked her almost immediately, my tone sharper than I intended.

“I don’t want her to serve you, and that’s final.”

I couldn’t look away.

Even as conversations resumed around me, even as Olivia tried to engage me in some light banter about tomorrow’s meeting with the Southern Border Alphas, I barely registered a word. My focus remained on Raven.

The way she moved with such grace, yet such fear.

The curve of her jaw, the soft lines of her neck, the way her fingers gripped the edge of a tray like it was the only thing keeping her grounded.

I remembered her scent–vanilla and pine–faint on my fingers from earlier.

1 couldn’t take it anymore.

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