LUCIAN'S P.O.V.
I didn't know words could sting like that. Teresa's words were like a silver-tipped dagger straight to the heart. "What on earth made you think I'd ever climb onto the back of a monster?!" The disdain in her voice wasn't just a casual refusal—it was a declaration of how far I had fallen in her eyes. She was appalled as if I were asking her to do something unthinkable. And being called a monster by your mate? That was on a whole new level of hurt.
I tried to keep my expression neutral, but the sting of her rejection seeped into my very soul. Ares, whimpered in the recesses of my mind, his pride wounded. "She's allowed to be angry, Ares," I said silently.
From the corner of my eye, Adrian's gaze sharpened. His voice filled my head through the mind link, like a cool breeze: "Lucian, are you alright? You're masking it well, but I can feel your pain."
