My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 162

Chapter 162: Chapter 162 MAGICAL GLUE

SERAPHINA’S POV

For a moment, the world stilled between them—the hum of engines, the rustle of night air, even Daniel’s small hand in mine.

All that existed were the two outstretched arms, the two contrasting gazes—warm and searing.

I felt like I was at a proverbial crossroad, as if the choice before me carried far more weight than just deciding whose car would take me home.

Dammit, I should have just brought my own car. In hindsight, walking to OTS so the fresh morning air could calm my nerves before the final challenge had been a stupid idea.

I stood frozen, indecisive, for way too long.

And then Daniel tugged lightly at my hand and tilted his head toward his father.

“Can we go home first, Mom? I have one more surprise for you.”

And just like that, the decision made itself.

I smiled, despite the tension crackling in the air like lightning poised to strike.

“Okay, baby.”

I turned to Kieran. “We’ll ride with you.”

I gave Lucian an apologetic smile, worried he’d feel rejected. As much as I wanted to spend time with him after being apart for so long, Daniel was always my priority.

Lucian’s smile didn’t slip, but I caught a quick flicker of disappointment—his eyes suddenly cooler—making my chest ache with guilt.

“I guess I’ll see you at the party,” he said smoothly, lowering his hand.

“It was nice to properly meet you, Sir,” Daniel said, smiling warmly at Lucian.

Lucian’s grin broadened. “Call me Lucian.”

“Lucian,” Daniel echoed brightly, and I was pretty sure the sound of grinding gravel came from Kieran’s clenched jaw.

When Lucian looked at me again, he winked, and the tight knot in my chest loosened slightly. We would see at the party. We would talk, and everything would go back to how it was before the Trials.

Right?

We didn’t quite move until Lucian’s car disappeared from the parking lot.

“Well,”—Kieran cleared his throat, his hand still outstretched, his expression still unreadable—“shall we?”

It was driving me a little crazy that I couldn’t clearly tell what he was feeling. But that didn’t stop me from trying.

It wasn’t triumph I saw in his expression. Not satisfaction either. More...off-kilter? Like the ground beneath him had shifted, and he didn’t quite trust its steadiness anymore.

Or maybe I was just projecting my own feelings.

“Yeah.” My hand tightened around Daniel’s. “Let’s go.”

The drive home was mostly silent, save for Daniel humming softly in the back seat. His contentment filled the small space, warm and alive. For once, silence between me and Kieran wasn’t heavy and stiff with tension.

When we pulled up to my driveway, I half-expected awkwardness to greet us. But Daniel burst through the door with enough excitement to overshadow any negative feelings.

“Home!” he gushed as he twirled around in the foyer.

The sight of him filled my heart to the point of bursting. He’d only lived here a few weeks before moving to Kieran’s island, but the fact that he saw this as a homecoming made my eyes brim with tears of joy.

“Come on, Mom!” he said, tugging at my wrist. “You can’t wear that to your own party!”

Kieran’s low chuckle followed us from behind. “He’s right,” he murmured, voice carrying that deep timbre that always managed to unsteady me.

I shot him a look over my shoulder and paused, raising a brow. Not at Daniel’s suitcase, which he was dragging behind him, but at the garment box clutched in his other hand.

He held it out to me solemnly, like an offering to a god. “Daniel picked it out himself.”

I blinked. “I-I don’t understand.”

“Grandma Leona took me shopping,” Daniel explained, taking the box from Kieran and handing it to me with a lot less reverence. “It’s your celebratory dress!”

My breath caught.

“Danny, you shouldn’t have—”

“Oh, just open it!” he said enthusiastically.

Laughing, I accepted the box. Slowly, I opened the lid—and stilled.

Inside lay a gown that was nothing short of breathtaking: black satin so smooth it caught light like liquid ink, threaded with delicate gold filigree that shimmered at the hem and neckline.

The contrast was both regal and understated, like something carved from the union of night and light. Matching heels—sleek, gold-strapped—sat nestled beneath a layer of soft paper.

I pressed a hand to my mouth. “Oh, baby.”

Tears burned behind my eyes before I could stop them. I reached out for him, but he ducked, laughing. “Enough hugging! We need to get ready.”

I laughed softly, the sound breaking through my chest. “Bossy little Alpha.”

He tilted his chin proudly. “I just want everything to be perfect.”

I knelt, drawing him into a quick hug anyway, and kissed his forehead. “Thank you, my love.”

When I looked up, my gaze met Kieran’s over Daniel’s head.

‘Thank you,’ I mouthed.

He shrugged, but his eyes softened. “I didn’t buy the dress.”

My smile softened. “Not for the dress.”

***

The gown fit like it had been made for me. The bodice hugged enough to accentuate without restraining or aggravating my bruised ribs. The skirt fell in liquid folds, brushing the floor and parting at my thigh in a modest slit that hinted rather than revealed.

When I looked in the mirror, I almost didn’t recognize myself.

The woman staring back wasn’t the same Sera who had walked into the Trials. She wasn’t the trembling girl who had loved and lost and broken herself trying to be enough.

She looked...transformed.

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