Chapter 4 Matilda POV

Matilda's POV

“I'm so happy to see you,” I said as I watched him sit beside me.

“Not as happy as I am,” he replied.

I tucked my hand into his and rested my head on his shoulder.

“How did you get here?” I asked.

“My horse. I just couldn't stop thinking about you, so I came to see my woman,” he replied, causing me to stare at him.

I had never seen anyone as handsome as the man sitting beside me.

A month ago, he was my student, and now he was someone I couldn't live without.

“Thank you,” I muttered.

Cedric turned his head my way and pressed his nose against mine, shaking his head.

I giggled happily. I wanted to be in his arms like this even more.

I rested on his shoulder again, making sure I was comfortable.

“Cedric,” I called. He had told me to stop adding a title to his name because he was mine and I was his. I was trying not to.

“Yes,” he answered.

“Why do you not care about the age difference? Surely the king would.”

He remained silent for the first few seconds.

“You are my mate, and loving you is the right thing to do.”

That wasn't the response I wanted, but it was a tangible reason.

We were mates, and loving each other was the right thing to do... wasn't it?

A few days later, I visited the palace to watch the tournament where Cedric fought against a mighty knight.

The match was intense, and I cheered my man on over and over again, even when it looked as though he wouldn't win.

But there was an incredible comeback in the dying moments, and he won.

We celebrated alone in the orchard, drinking wine and talking about the skills he had used.

I had trained him to perform some of those techniques.

Hence, he planted a kiss on my lips.

“Thank you for being the best trainer,” he muttered against my lips.

I didn't expect him to do that.

With each passing day, I never imagined he would love me this much that he would ignore our age difference.

Overwhelmed by his affection, I responded to his gesture and kissed him back.

I visited the palace so often that even the guards began to recognize me.

Cedric and I spent time together frequently, even though we had agreed to keep our relationship a secret until the day of his coronation.

He made me understand that he didn't have the power to confront his father if he disagreed with our relationship, but once he became Alpha King, he would boldly announce to the entire nation that I was his Luna Queen.

Each time I visited the palace, I overheard the servants talking about Cedric seeing another woman.

Why would I believe servants, especially when they loved to gossip?

Two months later, the academy resumed.

Cedric still courted me in secret, his promises remaining intact and reassuring me with every passing day.

However, the more I heard about him being betrothed to someone else, especially on the days I visited him at the palace only for him not to show up, the more worried I became.

When I confronted Cedric about it, he denied everything, claiming he would be mine forever.

Yet, day by day, we grew distant.

The moments we spent beneath the open sky were gone.

His kisses no longer lingered as they once had.

He started ignoring me.

When I tried talking to him about how distant we had become, he claimed I was being paranoid.

Five months passed, and nothing changed.

It only grew worse.

We spent days and sometimes two weeks without seeing each other, and when we eventually did, we behaved like strangers.

It was a relationship I wanted to save with every strength in me, but Cedric wasn't giving me the chance.

Then, one evening, he invited me for tea.

I wore a beautiful blue gown and styled my hair into a flowery braided ponytail.

I hadn't seen or felt his presence for a week and was overjoyed to meet him again.

When I entered the palace, he didn't come to meet me at the gate as he used to, but I convinced myself that it was fine.

I lifted my gown slightly as I walked through the palace toward the royal garden.

Beneath a pavilion was where we always met for tea.

But this time...

We weren't alone.

He was seated with a lady.

As I approached the table, he didn't move an inch to help me into the pavilion or pull out my chair for me.

That was unusual, but I told myself it was all right.

“A lovely afternoon,” I greeted elegantly.

Cedric kissed my hand.

“And who is she, if I may ask, my lord?” My gaze remained fixed on Cedric.

“Lucinda, may I introduce Lady Matilda Fairfax? She was my teacher at Alpha Prime Academy. A white wolf.”

The lady nodded as though she wasn't particularly interested in knowing who I was.

What was going on?

Who was this lady?

Cedric introduced me, yet he didn't think to introduce her to me.

“It is indeed a lovely afternoon, Lady Matilda,” she said, and I returned her greeting with a smile.

“Lucinda Blackwood, Princess of the NightVeil Pack. A red-eye wolf. I am also a teacher at Alpha Prime Academy, but I train students from the North.”

I trained students from the East, and I held a higher rank.

“A pleasure,” I said.

“Definitely is,” she replied.

When the maid stepped forward to pour our tea, we realized a teacup was missing—Lady Lucinda's.

“We could send for another,” I suggested.

“Cedric, I want that teacup,” Lady Lucinda requested, pointing to mine.

“That is impossible because…”

Cedric's action cut me off.

He took the cup from my side of the table and handed it to Lady Lucinda.

“I love the design,” she said, throwing me a glance.

That cup had been made exclusively for Cedric and me.

We had promised never to let anyone else drink from those cups.

He had designed them specifically for the two of us.

Yet he handed mine to her as though it meant nothing.