TRADING MY CHEATING HUSBAND FOR THE LYCAN KING novel Chapter 21

CHAPTER 15: HE HATES CHRISTMAS–2

“I can manage not to step on your feet.”

“Good enough.” He leans back. “The theme this year is Arctic Royalty. Which means everything will be nauseatingly Christmas–themed.”

Something in his tone makes me look up. There’s an edge there, sharp and bitter.

“You don’t like Christmas?” I ask carefully.

“I hate Christmas.” His voice is flat. “The performative cheer, the forced sentiment, the tacky decorations everywhere. It’s all fake. People pretending to be better versions of themselves for a few weeks before going back to being terrible.”

I blink, stunned by the venom in his words. “That’s… severe.”

“It’s honest.” He picks up his whiskey, swirling it. “If I had my way as Lycan King, wolves would be forbidden from celebrating Christmas entirely. But the Council insists on this Summit every year, and duty requires I show up and smile through it.”

There’s something deeper there, something dark lurking beneath the sarcasm. A pain he’s not naming.

“Is there more to it?” I ask softly. “Something that happened?”

His eyes flash gold for a split second. “No. I just think it’s a stupid holiday for stupid people who need an excuse to feel things.”

The wall slams down so fast I actually flinch. He’s lying, but I don’t push. Not after he gave me the same courtesy in the elevator.

“I love Christmas,” I say instead, voice quiet.

He looks at me like I’ve just confessed to believing in Santa.

“Really.”

“Really.” I wrap my hands around my water glass. “It was the only time of year Gale was actually nice to me. We’d go to pack events and he’d hold my hand, bring me drinks, act like a doting husband. I knew it was performative–we were always in the public eye–but I was so starved for affection that I licked it up anyway.”

Knox’s expression softens slightly. “That’s depressing.”

“Maybe.” I shrug. “But those few weeks every year, I got to pretend I had a real marriage. That someone actually cared about me. So yeah, I love Christmas. Even if it was all fake.”

< CHAPTER 15 HE HATES CHRISTMAS–2

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He’s quiet for a moment, studying me. Then he drains his whiskey and sets the glass down with a sharp clink.

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