The Alpha Behind The Mask-Chapter 36: Apology

Aurora’s POV

​I bit my lip the moment the words left my mouth, immediately regretting them as I saw his eyes darken to a stormy, midnight blue. The air between us suddenly turned icy.

​"Find your own way home," he snapped, his voice cold and angry. Without another word or a backward glance, he turned on his heel and strode away, disappearing into the crowded garden.

​I swallowed hard, standing frozen in the middle of the lawn. Dozens of curious, judgmental eyes burned into my skin. The noblewomen gathered near the fountain leaned closer to one another, their jeweled fingers covering painted lips as they whispered like a hive of disturbed wasps. I could almost hear the words forming—Who does she think she is? Did she just anger the Alpha? My chest felt tight with a mix of embarrassment and stinging frustration.

​"Is everything alright, dear?"

​I turned to see his mother walking toward me. Even with the chaos of the party behind her, she moved with effortless grace.

​"Yes, Luna. Everything is fine," I lied, forcing a small smile.

​She studied me for a moment, her gaze full of concern. "It seems Oliver is angry. You should go be with him, Aurora."

​I wanted to ask her right then and there—what happened? Why does he feel this bitterness? I wouldn’t go so far as to call it hate toward his family, but the resentment was so thick it was suffocating. I held my tongue, however, knowing it wasn’t my place to pry into royal secrets.

​She reached into her small silk clutch and handed me a card. "Here. This is my card."

​I looked down at the elegant cream paper. Her name was printed in gold script: Hailee Nathan Luciano.

​"My personal number is on the back," she said softly. I thanked her, feeling a strange sense of comfort from her presence. "Don’t be too hard on him, Aurora. He carries more weight on his shoulders than he lets people see."

​I thanked her again and walked away, heading toward the front of the mansion. I fully expected him to be gone, and I was already mentally calculating how much a cab back to my territory would cost. But as I rounded the corner of the driveway, I saw his cars—still parked.

​I frowned. So, he waited.

​Part of me wanted to keep walking, to find any other way home just to prove I wasn’t his to command and that I could take care of myself. But I remembered his mother’s words and the sadness in her eyes. I took a deep breath, opened the back seat door, and slipped inside.

​He was already seated there, his large frame filling the space with a heavy, suffocating tension. I was shocked to see him already finishing one bottle of the strongest liquor I knew and reaching for the next. The sharp, burning scent of the alcohol filled the car, clashing with his usual woodsy aroma. I said nothing, my throat feeling too tight to speak. The driver started the car, and we pulled away from the mansion in a deafening silence.

​I turned my head to look toward the window, watching the trees blur into dark streaks. My mind was a mess of conflicting emotions. I wondered if I had gone too far with what I said. A heavy weight settled in my chest—not the fear I should have felt for angering a King, but a gnawing sense of guilt. I had poked at a wound I didn’t understand, and seeing him like this, trying to drown his thoughts in a bottle, made me feel terrible.

​I bit my lip again, finally gathering the courage to speak. I turned toward him just as he shifted in his seat toward me. Just as I opened my mouth to say, "I’m sorry," the words left his lips at the exact same time.

​"I’m sorry," we both whispered together.

​We both paused, the air in the car suddenly shifting. I swallowed hard, my heart thumping against my ribs. So, he was actually apologizing to me? The Alpha King was saying sorry to a wolfless girl?

​He sighed, a long, weary sound, and set the bottle down. "Let me go first," he said, his voice rough and stripped of its usual authority. "I don’t own you, and I shouldn’t expect you to be hostile to people just because I am. I shouldn’t have yelled at you... I’m sorry."

​"I just don’t have a good relationship with my siblings from my mother’s side," he continued, his gaze drifting back to the window. The passing trees reflected in his eyes, but I knew he wasn’t really seeing them. "A lot happened." His jaw tightened. "I’m sorry."

​He looked away quickly, as if the apology itself had cost him something. Then he lifted the bottle again and took a long, slow drink, like he was trying to drown whatever memories were clawing at him.

​"I’m sorry too," I said gently. My voice felt small in the quiet car. "I shouldn’t have questioned your boundaries or dismissed your feelings about your family. I didn’t know."

​"It’s okay," he replied shortly.

​But it didn’t sound okay.

​We were both silent throughout the rest of the drive, but he kept drinking, and soon I was genuinely worried. Yes, he was the Alpha King and he could take care of himself, but the way he was punishing his body with the liquor was alarming. Why was I so worried?

​It wasn’t just concern. It was deeper than that. It felt like his pain was echoing inside my own chest—like I could feel the weight of it pressing against my ribs. Every time he swallowed another mouthful, something inside me tightened.

​When we crossed the border into our pack lands, the familiar gates sliding open before us, I knew I couldn’t just let him disappear into that massive, empty mansion alone.

​"The day is still bright," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "Do you want me to join you for a drink at your home?"

​He turned and stared at me, his sea-blue eyes clouded with alcohol and surprise. For a second, he simply stared at me like he couldn’t believe what I had just offered.

​"Never mind, I—" I started quickly, embarrassed by my own boldness.

​"Yes," he interrupted, his voice thick. "I’d like that."

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