28

The warm, golden rays of the morning sun filtered brightly through the large glass windows, painting long streaks of light across the wooden floorboards. I slowly opened my eyelids, my head still throbbing with a slight dull ache from the heavy bourbon I had gulped down the night before. The gentle rustle of fabric and the quiet, hushed whispering of female voices had dragged me out of my deep sleep. I blinked a few times, adjusting my blurry vision, and saw two young pack maids moving quietly around the massive bedroom, dusting the shelves and tidying up the furniture with careful movements.

I pushed myself up into a sitting position against the plush pillows, pulling the heavy blankets up to my chest. The sudden movement caught the attention of the nearest maid. She quickly froze in place, her eyes widening slightly as she lowered her head in a deep, respectful bow. "We are so incredibly sorry for waking you up from your rest, Luna," she murmured nervously, her fingers twisting the edge of her cleaning apron.

I offered her a weak, tired smile, trying to shake off the grogginess weighing down my chest. "No, please don't worry about it, it's completely okay," I replied, my voice sounding a bit raspy. I glanced around the vast, empty spaces of the master bedroom, my heart sinking just a bit when I didn't see a single sign of him. I turned back to the maid, unable to hide my curiosity. "Where exactly is Michael?"

The young girl blinked in surprise, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "Oh... you mean the Alpha King?"

"Yes," I nodded quickly, leaning forward slightly as I waited for her answer.

"To be completely honest, I don't know his exact location right now, Luna," she explained, looking toward the open hallway. "But I think I briefly saw him walking toward the main entrance gates and leaving the pack house very early this morning."

A strange, empty feeling settled deep in my stomach as the reality of her words sunk in. I shifted my gaze over to the completely smooth, unwrinkled sheets on the opposite side of the massive mattress. That was the exact moment I realized Michael hadn't slept on this bed at all last night. He had left the entire space to me. Maybe he had dozed off on the small leather couch in the next room, or maybe he had just stayed up all night pacing the floors. I leaned my head back against the headboard, my mind completely spinning as I tried to figure out the exact, hidden reason behind his sudden, icy change of behavior. We had been sharing such an intimate, beautiful night, laughing and playing a game together, but the mere mention of his family had turned him back into a stranger.

Anxious to get out of his private space before he returned, I quickly scrambled out of the warm bed. Wrapping my arms around my shivering body, I slipped out of his bedroom and walked quickly down the long, quiet passage of the royal wing, trying to remember the twisting turns that led back to my own assigned quarters.

The moment I pushed the door open and stepped into my room, a wave of familiar warmth hit me. Ella was right there, moving energetically around the space as she hummed a cheerful tune, dusting off the bedside table. The very second she heard the door click, she whipped her head around, her face instantly lighting up with a massive, glowing smile. She dropped her feather duster to the floor and ran straight toward me, throwing her arms tightly around my neck in a giant hug.

"Hello, Luna! Oh my goodness, I have been waiting up for you for absolutely hours!" she cheered excitedly, pulling back just enough to look at my face. "I was getting so incredibly bored sitting in this room all by myself last night, so I actually went down to the kitchen and baked a delicious chocolate cake, fully hoping that you would return to your room before midnight. But you never showed up!"

A mischievous, knowing grin spread across her lips as she reached down to grab both of my hands, squeezing them tightly. She wiggled her eyebrows up and down, her eyes sparkling with pure, unfiltered gossip. "Wow... so, it happened already? So soon?" she squealed, leaning in close. "You absolutely have to tell me every single detail right now! Was it incredibly hot? Did you enjoy it? How is the Alpha King in bed?"

My cheeks instantly burned with a hot blush, and I quickly broke out of her grip. I jumped onto the mattress, burying my red face into the soft pillows as I let out a loud groan. "If that is the wild thing your dirty mind is currently thinking about, then let me stop you right there, Ella. Absolutely nothing happened between us last night."

Ella didn't look convinced for a single second. She let out a soft huff, walking over to the side of the bed and climbing up to lay down right beside me, resting her chin on her hands as she stared at me. "Oh, come on, Fedora! If nothing happened, then why are you blushing like a furnace? I think he really, truly likes you. Think about it—the Alpha King is a fiercely private man. He let you sleep in his personal bed just like that? That is completely unheard of in this pack!"

I rolled over on the mattress, turning my back to her as I stared blankly at the wall, a heavy sigh escaping my lips. "Trust me, Ella, you are completely wrong. The man probably hates my guts right now," I murmured bitterly, the memory of his cold face making my chest tighten. "Everything was going perfectly fine. We were having a truly great night, but then I stupidly mentioned something about his parents during a game. The very second the words left my mouth, his entire face turned completely blank and pale. It was like he remembered a horrible nightmare, and he immediately kicked me out to go to sleep."

Ella’s playful smile vanished instantly, her expression softening into a look of deep sympathy as she absorbed my words. She shifted closer, her voice dropping into a quiet, serious whisper. "Oh... I see. Well, you couldn't have known, Fedora. To be completely honest, his father has been deeply, mysteriously sick for about five whole years now. The old Alpha hasn't been able to get up from his bed or speak a single word in all that time." She paused, her brow furrowing in thought. "And as for his mother... I have actually never seen her face since I joined this pack. Nobody ever talks about her, so I don't know what terrible thing happened to her."

A heavy wave of guilt washed over my heart, and I squeezed my eyes shut. "Oh... wow. I had absolutely no idea about any of that," I whispered, feeling completely terrible about my prying questions. "I feel so sorry for bringing it up."

Ella reached over, patting my shoulder gently to comfort me. "Don't beat yourself up about it, Luna. You didn't do it on purpose. But hey, you can't stay cooped up in this room hiding forever!" She suddenly sat up straight, a bright, encouraging look returning to her face. "Today is officially the pack's open practice and training day! You should definitely show up at the fields. The Alpha King is going to be out there himself to supervise the warriors, and it is the absolute perfect opportunity for you to get out there, meet the members of the pack, and get to know people."

I shuddered at the thought, pulling the blanket higher over my shoulders as I shook my head aggressively. "No way. I absolutely do not want to see his cold face today, and I definitely don't care about knowing any of these people," I protested stubbornly.

Ella didn't care about my protests at all. She let out a loud laugh, grabbing me by the wrists and forcefully dragging my heavy body out of the bed. "Oh, come on, Luna!" she giggled, pulling me toward the wardrobe to pick out an outfit. "Stop being a scaredy-cat. Just come outside with me, I promise the fresh air won't bite you!"

An hour later, after much arguing and getting dressed in comfortable clothes, we finally stepped outside into the bright, open courtyard. The morning air was crisp and fresh as we started walking down the winding dirt paths that led toward the back of the massive estate. As we rounded a large cluster of trees, we finally came upon the massive, dusty training grounds. A huge crowd of pack members had already gathered around the perimeter, their voices creating a loud, roaring hum in the air. In the center of the field, dozens of muscular warriors were sweating profusely, training intensely under the hot sun. Some of them were aggressively swinging heavy wooden sticks against each other, the loud cracks of wood echoing through the air, while others were brutally fighting with their bare hands, kicking up clouds of dust as they wrestled on the ground.

I stood near the edge of the crowd, my arms crossed tightly over my chest as I nervously observed everything happening around me, trying to spot Michael's tall frame among the trainers. I was completely focused on the fighters in front of me, entirely oblivious to my surroundings, when a heavy, solid training ball suddenly flying through the air slammed straight into the center of my back with an immense, serious amount of force.