Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King novel Chapter 110

Chapter 110: 0110

Kaelen POV

"Is she the one?"

Nala’s question made me freeze just as I was about to instinctively step forward after watching Ella’s retreating figure disappear at the top of the staircase.

"What?" I turned to look at her, my brows pulling into a deep frown.

"That woman," Nala clarified, tilting her head ever so slightly. "Is she the one your heart has chosen to anchor itself to?"

For a moment, I stared at her, forcing myself to remain perfectly still even as the snake coiled around my shoulder let out a soft hiss and slithered higher along my neck.

Its forked tongue flicked lightly against my cheek, the strange, ticklish sensation enough to make most men panic, but I barely noticed it.

"How do you know it’s a woman?" I asked sharply. "Last time I checked, I never told you any details."

Hearing that, a knowing smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

"Have you forgotten who stands before you?" she asked quietly. "I am Nala of N’zari, daughter of High Priestess Amara, granddaughter of the Seer of the Veil. Eyes may be deceived. Hearts are not."

She stepped closer until only a small distance separated us before gently placing her cool hand against the center of my chest, directly over my racing heart.

"And yours has spoken her name long before your lips ever would."

Every muscle in my body went rigid beneath her touch, and my jaw tightened. But with nothing more than a graceful flick of her wrist, she recalled the serpent.

The snake immediately unraveled itself from around my neck before melting seamlessly back into an ordinary white braid that settled against her shoulder as though it had never been anything else.

"To speak truth," she continued, "I wondered if your heart would ever remember warmth. It has not... not fully. Yet hope has found its way in."

I found her words as cryptic as ever.

Nala had always spoken in riddles, rarely offering anyone a straightforward answer.

Or perhaps the truth was simpler.

Maybe part of me simply refused to understand what she meant.

The part of me that was still bruised. Still guarded. Still convinced that refusing to put a name to whatever I felt for Ella was the safest way to keep myself from getting hurt again.

Either way, I didn’t ask her to explain.

And, as always, Nala didn’t push.

The moment the maids escorted Kalu and Nala toward the guest wing, the quiet bustle of the foyer slowly faded, leaving only Darius and me standing there.

Without wasting a single second, Darius stepped into my line of sight, his expression hard and unreadable.

"When do you plan on asking them about Ella’s condition?"

My fists immediately clenched at my sides.

Fuck.

Did he really have to be this relentless?

But as irritating as his obsession was, he wasn’t wrong.

It would be selfish of me to let an opportunity like this slip away simply because I was afraid they might confirm that Ella was the woman from his past.

Besides, even if she really was...

So what?

So far, I had the upper hand.

Things between Ella and me had been progressing, slowly but steadily. If they continued in the right direction, I was confident I could make her choose me over him.

"During dinner tonight," I muttered as I absentmindedly adjusted the buttons on my shirt. "Let them rest first."

Darius seemed satisfied with that answer. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly before he turned to leave.

But the question that had been burning in the back of my mind finally escaped before I could stop it.

"What if she chooses me?"

His steps halted instantly, and his entire body went rigid.

"What if she really is the woman you’ve been searching for," I continued, keeping my voice steady, "but she chooses me anyway?"

For a long moment, he didn’t answer.

Then he slowly turned to face me.

His gray eyes had darkened, though this time they weren’t filled with the hostility I had expected.

"You can’t fight a woman’s heart, Kaelen," he said quietly. "If she willingly, of her own free will, decides she wants you... then I’ll respect her choice."

Hearing that, a wave of genuine relief swept through me, and I gave him a firm nod.

For all his coldness, his ruthlessness, and his calculating nature, Darius was, in his own way, an honorable man.

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