[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave":3,"chapter-the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-chapter-37":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Lunar Curse: A Second Chance With Alpha Draven",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},923659,1212,"Chapter 37: No Energy for Meredith Tonight","the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-chapter-37",37,"\u003Cp>Draven.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xamira’s voice rang out at the table like a dropped spoon in a quiet room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Daddy, who is this woman?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t flinch. I had grown used to her questions—curious, honest, occasionally too sharp for her age. It was just how she was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had always had a talent for asking exactly what most adults were too afraid to voice. Still, this one earned her a few shocked stares.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the corner of my eye, I caught Meredith stiffen. She didn’t lift her gaze from her plate, but her jaw had paused mid-chew. Jeffery’s fork hovered awkwardly in the air. Wanda, of course, looked pleased—her lips twitching with amusement as she covered a stifled laugh behind her hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I turned my attention to Xamira and gave her the only answer that made sense in her world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She’s my wife,\" I said plainly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the corner of my eye, I saw Meredith frown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t like saying it. I never had. But there was no point in giving Xamira half-truths she wouldn’t understand. At her age,’wife’was an easier label to grasp than’political arrangement.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I wasn’t about to explain the intricacies of sacrificial unions and cursed bloodlines over sweet pork and rice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xamira’s brows knitted together. \"Your wife? You married her? In a church?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I nodded. \"Sort of.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That would satisfy her—for now. She had seen enough weddings in Duskmoor to associate marriage with white dresses and pews. If I said no, I would be here all night explaining Stormveil traditions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t have the patience for that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a minute, the table returned to its quiet rhythm, cutlery scraping plates again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, because she was never done, Xamira asked the next question, lifting her gaze to mine, lips pursed in a thoughtful little pout.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You won’t make me call her ’Mummy,’ right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time paused. Even the flames in the chandelier seemed to still.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t need to look to know how the room responded. Meredith went completely still again, but this time her expression didn’t betray her. She just kept eating like she hadn’t heard a thing. Jeffery blinked and lowered his fork. Wanda’s shoulders shook slightly from suppressed laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Xamira’s eyes stayed on me. Waiting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, I won’t, pumpkin,\" I said gently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I reached for the platter of stir-fried sweet pork and placed another serving on her plate. \"Eat up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She beamed. \"Thank you, Daddy.\" And just like that, the moment passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I looked across at Meredith. Her expression was unreadable, her posture calm. She chewed with deliberate focus, as if she had already filed away what just happened and moved on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xamira was slow to warm to new people. She always had been. But that wasn’t my concern. I wouldn’t force either of them into some picture-perfect fantasy. If Meredith wanted a place in Xamira’s world, she had to earn it on her own. I wasn’t going to interfere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rhovan stirred in the back of my mind, his voice a low rumble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Talk to our mate. Bring her closer. She is ours.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shut him down immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Stop with the delusions. I’m eating.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rhovan growled lightly, but I silenced him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I have to address this issue of Meredith being our mate later, but not tonight. Not at the table, with Xamira or anyone else nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I turned my attention back to Meredith. She was still chewing slowly. Still focused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her plate looked barely touched. A third of the food gone—no more. She wasn’t really eating. She was stalling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I leaned back slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had defied Wanda without blinking and sat where she pleased. It didn’t bother me—yet. I didn’t care where she sat or how she ate as long as she remained civil and kept her temper in check.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the truth remained: I married her for a purpose. And whether she liked it or not, that purpose meant surviving long enough to fulfill it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn’t let her ruin the plan I had crafted after thinking of a solution for years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I left her to her own devices, she would self-destruct.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Five minutes passed, then Meredith placed her napkin on the table, stood, and spoke quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Excuse me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And she walked out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No permission asked. No second glance. Just gone like the wind. But I didn’t stop her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could have. But I already knew what that would earn me—sharp words and sharper eyes. She didn’t respond well to confrontation most times, and frankly, I didn’t have the patience for her temper tonight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Across the table, Wanda tensed, watching Meredith leave with her maidservants. Her lips parted. I didn’t need to hear what she was about to say—I knew her tone before it even left her mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wanda,\" I said calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She snapped her gaze to me, blinked, and slowly leaned back in her seat. Her mouth closed. A breath left her nose. Then she picked up her cutlery again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t want tension tonight and raised voices in front of Xamira.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a beat of quiet, I asked, \"Which room did you give her?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wanda looked up, surprised. \"The one with the patio and the flower wall on the ground floor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My brows furrowed. That room was for visiting relatives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wanda’s polished tone didn’t falter, but her smile dropped half a notch. \"She is from Moonstone Pack, and they tend to prefer gardens and herbs. I thought she might enjoy growing something there if she gets bored.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhaled slowly. That was a good point, though I didn’t expect it from her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I let it go with a nod and finished the last bite of rice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I stood, Xamira looked up with bright, expectant eyes. \"Daddy, will you read me a story tonight?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I ruffled her hair. \"I have some important calls to make.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her little shoulders dropped, just slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wanda stepped in—delicate, smiling, soothing. \"How about I read your favourite story instead? Regina and the Bee?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xamira’s face lit up immediately, then she turned to me, arms stretched. \"Good night, Daddy!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I leaned down and gave her a gentle hug, careful not to hold her too tightly in my arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jeffery trailed after me as I left the room. My mind was already shifting—calls, meetings, politics. And, I thought about phoning my brother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t shown up for dinner, which meant he hadn’t finished the task I had assigned to him, and I needed to speak with him before tomorrow’s meeting with the Mayor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>----------\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(APPRECIATION NOTE: Thank you, Radiant_Melody for the Magic Castle.~**_**~).\u003C\u002Fp>",1085,"2026-06-03T06:41:07.231Z","2026-06-03T06:41:13.593Z",1,"novelbin.me","c99784766247e85d53bd85d3557d4bfd22ddd4ff61771a574804cca48b66b255","the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-chapter-38","the-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-chapter-36",685,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-lunar-curse-a-second-chance-with-alpha-drave-cover.jpg"]