The Lunar Curse: A Second Chance With Alpha Draven
Chapter 178: Peace Offering

Chapter 178: Peace Offering

Meredith.

The moment I limped back into my bedroom, Azul flew to my side, her face etched with the usual worry.

"My lady, are you alright?" she breathed, her eyes scanning me like I was a shattered vase.

"I’m barely breathing," I groaned, dragging each word past a dry throat. "My whole body aches... like he personally hated every bone in me."

Azul slipped an arm around my waist and helped me fully into the room, moving with that soft care that always made me feel relieved.

Before I could catch my breath, Kira appeared from the inner room, her hands still damp from testing the water.

"The hot bath is ready, my lady," she announced, her voice gentle, eyes brimming with sympathy.

Between the two of them, I was half-guided, half-carried to the bath. Steam curled around me, thick with the floral notes of essential oil.

The moment I lowered myself into the water, a hiss escaped my lips, and my bruised muscles sang with both relief and fresh pain.

Azul’s hands hesitated at my back, then she spoke, her voice tinged with pity. "My lady, your back... and your arms... they’re all bruised. Deep purple already."

I sucked in a breath, glancing down to see the dark smudges blooming over my pale skin. "He really did go all out today," I muttered, memory flashing of Draven flipping me onto the sand like I weighed nothing.

He should have let me win him.

"And he didn’t even pity me just a little," I grumbled louder, sinking further into the warmth. "Not even as his wife."

Kira, the traitor, let out a small laugh. "My lady... you were the one who went to the Alpha yourself and asked him to train you. Did you think it would be all flowers and gentle words?"

I narrowed my gaze at her, lips pursed. "Are you for me or against me, Kira?"

Azul stifled a giggle, and Kira shook her head quickly, lips still curved. "For you, my lady. Always."

"You’d better be," I threatened half-heartedly. "Or I’ll discharge you to Draven himself."

We all laughed at that, even if it hurt my ribs. The bath didn’t erase the pain, but the heat worked its way into my bones, coaxing out some of the worst of the ache.

Afterwards, they helped me out, wrapping a towel around me before guiding me to the bed. I lay face down, eyes closed, as Azul and Kira began their gentle work with the massage oil.

Fingers worked carefully over bruises, teasing out knots and tightness until my body felt limp with exhaustion.

I couldn’t help the complaints tumbling from my lips, muffled by the pillow. "One day," I mumbled, "I will be so strong and powerful that I will beat Draven’s ass on that training ground."

Kira hummed encouragingly. "And we will be here to cheer you on, my lady."

Azul, ever the cautious one, leaned closer and whispered, "But don’t let the Alpha hear that, my lady. He might double your training tomorrow."

"I don’t care," I retorted into the pillow. "He can come and force me to stop dreaming if he dares."

After the massage, I changed into a soft cotton dress, my limbs heavy but grateful for the care.

Just then, the door creaked open and Deidra stepped in, balancing a tray that smelled faintly of sugar and something warm.

"The Alpha asked the kitchen to prepare something sweet for you, my lady," she said, her voice soft, but her eyes dancing.

My heart, traitorous thing, lifted instantly. Deidra set the tray on the side of the bed and uncovered it: a pint of ice cream starting to melt at the edges, two golden meat pies, and delicate pastries dusted with sugar.

"So he thinks this will buy my forgiveness," I scoffed, though my hand was already reaching for a meat pie.

Deidra chuckled. "Eating the desserts means you’ve already forgiven him, my lady."

With my mouth half-full, I retorted, "Then let him come and force me to forgive him properly."

The maidservants laughed softly, the sound filling the room with something warm and familiar.

By the time I finished the last crumb, sleep tugged at my eyelids. I drifted off, bruises throbbing gently under the balm, Valmora’s quiet presence humming in the back of my mind.

I’m sure she wasn’t quite pleased with my progress.

---

I woke later, the pain dulled almost to nothing—one of the perks of Valmora’s presence, though the bruises themselves still bloomed dark against my skin.

After lunch, I dozed again, lulled by the softness of the bed and the slow pace of the afternoon.

---

When evening came, the estate seemed to buzz with a quiet energy. Everyone gathered at the dining table, and as the meal ended, Draven’s voice cut through the low murmur.

"We will no longer use our old meeting place," he said, his tone calm but final. "The humans have installed cameras in those woods. From tonight, we will be somewhere else."

A murmur passed through the room, heads nodding in agreement.

I caught my breath. I couldn’t wait to see what this meeting was all about and meet several faces of our people.

For a tad bit, I wondered if they had heard about me. That I was cursed and wolfless.

"Are you all ready?" Draven asked, his voice breaking through my thoughts.

"Yes, Alpha," voices answered as one.

My gaze lifted, and collided with Wanda’s across the table. Her eyes flicked over me, cold and sharp, before she rolled them and turned away, stepping closer to Draven as though to speak.

But Draven didn’t even glance at her. His gaze cut through the room and landed on me. "Meredith," he called, voice softer now. "Come."

A flush rose to my cheeks. Wanda’s lips tightened, her posture stiff. I couldn’t help the small, satisfied smile that curved my mouth as I rose and walked toward him.

Together, we stepped out of the house, the others falling in behind us like a silent procession under the deepening twilight.

In the car, the leather seats cool against my bruised back, and I let out a quiet breath. The second time in my life riding beside him like this—and so different from the first time, when his hand had been iron on my wrist and the road outside had blurred through anger.

Now, there was calm. A strange, quiet contentment.

"Are you cold?" he asked, glancing sideways at me.

"Not yet," I replied, smiling a little.

He nodded once, his gaze returning to the road. "And... the dessert I sent? How was it?"

I remembered, too late, that I was supposed to be angry. My brow creased into a half-hearted glare. "Don’t think it means I’ve forgiven you for slamming me into the ground like a sack of grain."

He chuckled, low and warm. "It’s all part of the training, little wolf. No great warrior was ever raised with gentle hands."

Part of me knew he was right, but I refused to admit it aloud. Instead, I turned my face to the window, hiding the reluctant smile tugging at my lips.

Outside, night thickened around us, the moon rising above the tree line.