AYLA
My mind immediately went on alert when he mentioned the Werecat King.
"The Werecat King?" I jumped up, scrambled for my wet pants, and slipped them on. My panties, however, I simply shoved into my pants pocket. I felt really disgusting right now, and I wished I could avoid talking to him, but I desperately needed information about the Werecat King. If he was still in the pack house, I needed to find a way to meet him.
"Yes, the Werecat King." He turned to look at me, and I couldn’t take my eyes off his face, enjoying the sight of water trickling down his godly features.
I cleared my throat and took a few steps closer to him. "As the Queen, don’t you think it would be a good idea for me to attend that meeting with you? I mean, it would raise your standing and let people know you have a treasure by your side."
"No," he answered without hesitation. "You have no business there."
"And why do you think I have no business there? You don’t trust my intelligence? You don’t think I can help you make better decisions?" I shot back. I desperately needed to meet the Werecat King, and I had to find every possible way to make it happen.
Shadows darkened his golden eyes, giving them a terrifying hue as he stalked toward me. I took a step backward, not just out of fear of him, but because I was afraid of what I might do if he came close enough. Everything about him turned me on.
I shouldn’t be feeling this way.
"It seems you overestimate your importance, Ayla!" His voice rumbled, and I took another step backward.
He stormed closer until he stood just inches away from me. His fingers roughly clutched my chin, forcing my head up until I met his cold gaze.
"We may lie to the world about you being my Queen, but you and I both know that you are nothing but my breeder. A mere vessel meant to bring my child into this world and break my curse. That is, if you survive the ordeal."
His words felt like a direct blow to my chest. He had hit me where it hurt the most. Though I had never expected King Ezra to care about me, knowing that I had never truly mattered to anyone made his words cut even deeper. They reminded me of the miserable life I had endured before coming here, only to end up in an even worse one. Even the only person I thought cared about me had joined my family in betraying me without batting an eye.
I tried so hard not to show any emotion in front of him, but I couldn’t stop the single tear that rolled down my cheek.
His brows furrowed deeply. "Are you crying?"
"No!" With all my strength, I yanked his hand away from my jaw and quickly turned around to hide my tears.
Inhaling sharply, I willed myself to stop crying. But my tear ducts had other plans, and I couldn’t control the tears that came rushing down my face.
At that moment, the neighs and stomps of a horse drew closer. I frantically wiped at my tears with the back of my hand. Fuck. Not Sam too.
"This is so embarrassing," I murmured, but the tears still wouldn’t stop.
Suddenly, a strong arm wrapped around me, spinning me around and pulling me against him. Before I could react, Ezra pressed a hand to the back of my head and pushed my face against his hard chest. His heavenly scent filled my lungs as his broad body blocked me completely from Sam’s view.
"Your Highness," Sam’s voice sounded behind us.
"You can tie it to that tree and leave," Alpha Ezra told him.
"Yes, Alpha," Sam replied.
The next thing I heard was the sound of bones cracking, followed by paws pounding against the earth as Beta Sam shifted and sprinted away.
"Let me know when you’re ready to leave," Ezra muttered as he released me. Through my blurry vision, I watched him walk toward the brown horse tied to a tree.
I sucked in a sharp breath and used my already wet shirt to wipe the tears from my face.
Lord, I was a complete disaster. My clothes clung wetly to my body, my face was a mess of tears, and my pussy was still sore from the sex I had just had with the same man who hated my very existence. I wanted to crawl out of my own skin and disappear. And the most pathetic part? This still wasn’t the worst day of my life.
Ezra and I got on the horse Sam had brought, and not a word was exchanged between us all the way back to the pack house. When we entered the room, he went back outside while I jumped into the shower, replaying the harsh words he had spoken to me. I didn’t want to let them get to me, but I couldn’t help it.
When I finally stepped out of the bathroom with a white towel wrapped around me, Sandra was there waiting for me.
"What are you doing here?" I asked in a bored tone as I walked toward the bed.
"His Highness asked me to bring you to his office, where he is meeting with the Werecat King," Sandra said, grinning from ear to ear. "I guess you’ve started your official duties as the Queen."
My eyes widened. "Really?"
I thought he didn’t consider me important enough to attend such a meeting with him, even though my reason for wanting to attend was purely selfish.
A squeal escaped me, and all the brooding I had done in the bathroom temporarily evaporated. Ten minutes later, I was already dressed in grey sweatshirt and pants, following Sandra as she led me to Alpha Ezra’s office.
On our way, I noticed Sandra wincing and occasionally clutching her stomach.
"Are you okay?" I asked, concerned.
She nodded.
Although I wasn’t satisfied with her response, I let it go, not wanting to push her.
The moment we entered the office, I froze. The Werecat King was rummaging through the Lycan King’s desk drawer, and my brows furrowed. He was alone in the room. Where was Alpha Ezra?
He snapped his gaze toward me, quickly pulled his hand away from the drawer, and clasped both hands behind his back. An awkward smile appeared on his face.
"Queen Calista. A pleasure to meet you again," he said with an awkward laugh, gesturing toward the drawer. "He has such a nice collection of books in there. I couldn’t help but feast my eyes on them."
It wasn’t my business why he was going through Ezra’s belongings. He could take everything from him and sell it for the price of a peanut. I really didn’t give a fuck. Right now, there was only one thing on my mind.
So I stepped forward. "Alpha, how is your Luna? Dahlia?"