The Human Among Wolves (Aurora) novel Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Aurora

89%

The trees stretched tall and dark around us, the moonlight cutting through in thin, silver slices. We walked in silence for a while,

Kael’s hands tucked into his pockets, his strides easy and unhurried.

It was… nice, actually. The quiet. The space to breathe.

Finally, I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. “You do know was serious about that, right?”

He blinked, then turned his head toward me. “About what?”

I made a vague gesture with my hands, suddenly feeling awkward. “About… you know. Us. Not… doing anything.”

Kael’s lips twitched like he was fighting back a grin. “You mean fucking?” he said, completely deadpan.

I groaned, covering my face with my hands. “Oh my god, don’t say it like that.”

He laughed then, low and warm, and for some reason it didn’t feel like he was mocking me-

“Relax,” he said, his voice softer now. “I heard you the first time. And the second time.”

-just amused.

I peeked at him between my fingers. “Good. Because I meant it. I just… I’m not in a place for that. Not now.”

He nodded once, his expression easy, like he didn’t take it personally at all. “Fair enough,” he said. “For the record, I didn’t follow

you out here to get you naked against a tree.”

My face heated. “I wasn’t- I didn’t think you-”

Kael laughed again, cutting me off. “You kind of did.”

I sighed, dragging a hand down my face. “Okay, maybe I did. A little.

“Guess I should be flattered,” he said, still smiling, though his tone was light.

We wandered deeper into the trees until the noise of the party was nothing but a faint hum behind us. The ground here was softer,

covered with leaves that crunched underfoot.

Kael stopped near a wide oak tree, leaning his shoulder against the trunk. “You’ve had that look all night,” he said finally, his voice

calm but curious.

“What look?” I asked, even though I knew exactly what he meant.

“The one that says you’re here, but you’re not really here.” His gray eyes flicked toward me, sharp but not unkind. “You want to tell me who’s got you looking over your shoulder like that?”

1/3

12:04 Thu, Jan 29 GBB.

Chapter 94

I hesitated, kicking at a patch of leaves with the toe of my boot. “You wouldn’t want to hear it.”

89%

“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t,” Kael said simply, lowering himsel to sit on a half–buried root. He patted the spot next to him, and after a moment, I sat too, my hands twisting together in my lap

“It’s…” I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry. “It’s complicated.”

Kael raised an eyebrow, waiting.

I stared at the ground, tracing patterns in the dirt with my boot. “There’s this guy,” I said quietly. “He–he was important to me. I

thought he cared. I thought 1 mattered to him.”

Kael didn’t speak, didn’t even move, just listened.

“And then…” My chest tightened, like saying it out loud might shatter me. “And then he told me some awful things after we…had

sex” I said, not wanting to repeat the exact words.

Kael’s jaw tightened, but he stayed quiet.

“I don’t even know why it hurt so much,” I went on, my voice breaking a little. “Maybe because he was the first person I trusted in a

really long time. And he made me feel like I was… enough. Like I wasn’t just some girl who didn’t belong here. But then-”

My voice cracked completely this time, and I bit down hard on the inside of my cheek to stop the tears that were threatening.

Kael shifted slightly, his knee brushing mine, steady and grounding. Sounds like he’s an asshole,” he said, his voice even but edged

with quiet steel.

A short, bitter laugh escaped me. “Yeah. Yeah, he is.”

“So,” he said casually, but there was something curious under his tone, “this guy you’re talking about… he wouldn’t happen to be the one who stormed up to us while we were dancing, would he?”

I crossed my arms and looked away. “Maybe.”

“Figured as much,” he said finally, his tone even but thoughtful. “The way he was looking at me… like he’d tear my throat out if I so

much as breathed wrong.”

Despite myself, I huffed out a weak laugh. “That’s… not far off.”

Kael’s brow lifted slightly, like he was inviting me to keep going.