Chapter Four: King Ronan

Zira’s POV

The scent of the man whose arms were wrapped around me was the most wonderful in the world. Just being in his embrace made me feel so at home I didn’t want to fight the need to remain there. Every part of me kept chanting that he was my mate, that he belonged to me….

So when he finally released me from his tight hold, I didn’t react, but simply stared at him.

Killian had always been the most handsome man I’d ever encountered. Not only did I think he was attractive, but so did Scarlett and the females of the other packs. He was widely regarded as the hottest alpha in the area.

But the man in front of me made me feel like all of us had been blind all these years. Atop a build that made me feel like he was looking down at me from his eyes, his face was perfectly sculpted like a painting.

It wasn’t easy to accept that this man, who appeared to be a reincarnation of the Greek mythology gods we had read about, was actually my mate. I shook my head twice and then told my mind to calm down. I was probably overthinking because a man like this, who made a guy like Killian look ordinary in comparison, shouldn’t have anything to do with me. Right?

Certainly, I must have heard him wrong.

Nonetheless, the longer I stared into those alluring hazel eyes that had me transfixed, the more I felt my wolf churning to break free and rush out to make him mine. It took every ounce of self-control within me to hold back, even when every bit of my inner voice was crying out, saying I had heard him right; he was my mate.

I had no plans of taking my eyes off his beautifully carved face until Leah’s voice broke through my thoughts.

"Zira, I know you’re the luna of the blood moon pack and that you’re supposed to introduce and lead me while I’m in the capital, but when exactly do you plan to present me to this man?"

I bit back a chuckle as I turned to look at her; it was only then that I realized Scarlett and her crew were still around, and they had moved to stand behind me.

Though she and Killian hadn’t tied the knot, I’d lost count of how many times in the last week she’d casually referred to herself as “Luna.” She continued to act inappropriately, but I could not judge whether it was purposeful or not. This was no different. Regardless, her request was straightforward, but I was as in the dark about him as she was. I only knew he might be my mate.

So I looked at him, hoping he would introduce himself to everyone—including me.

“Forgive my manners,” he addressed Leah in a rich baritone that sent shivers down my spine. “Welcome to the capital, Luna of the Blood Moon Pack. Have you been assigned a living space?” Although he looked aloof, and his expression didn’t show any fawning or respect towards Leah, his words were polite. A tremendous weight I had been unaware of lifted from my heart.

With looks like his, I had been worried he would be arrogant.

“I’m afraid not; my escort merely picked this hotel at random so we could spend the night.” Leah responded, stiffening her shoulders like a queen.

I resisted the urge to laugh. Knowing Leah, she had most likely thought that, with his words, he was respectful of her identity. She probably even thought herself to be more important than him.

Unfortunately, strength was the most important thing in our world, and even I could feel deep in my bones that this man was not someone beneath us. But trust Leah, who was always eager to feel on top of the world, to miss a detail like that.

His eyes flickered to mine, holding me in place just like earlier, and then he reached out to hold my hands.

By then, I had become almost certain that the man before me felt the same way I felt because there was no way to explain why a total stranger would act that way toward me.

“Is there a place prepared for me?” Leah asked, breaking our moment, and I looked at her just in time to see her batting her eyelashes at me.

I gazed at the man still holding my hand and felt a looming crisis with how Leah looked at him. She only sighed when his eyes met mine and he wasn’t paying her any attention.

Before I could clarify matters, Scarlett spoke. “Miss Leah is new here and knows nothing about the customs and arrangements in the capital. Please excuse her,” she said as she stepped forward and bent her head slightly.

My brows jumped in surprise, and I looked at him suspiciously again. Yes, the aura he was giving off said he was undoubtedly special, and Scarlett had talked to him with a bit of adoration and awe. She had me thinking something was wrong. I ran a quick cross-check of people I knew in the capital who could match his age and image. Unfortunately, none came up, so I had no choice but to ask him. “Are you from the capital? What’s your name?” I asked cautiously, trying my best not to sound rude.

“With the symbol on his shirt, he’s certainly from the capital,” Scarlett rushed to speak before he could reply. She shot me a challenging gaze.

I wanted to tell her this wasn’t some competition; I was just trying to get to know my mate. Besides, wasn’t she here to see someone crowned king? Why the hell was she staring at my mate so much?

“Yes, I am,” he replied vaguely and then asked, “Are all of you from the blood moon pack?” His eyes ran across the six to seven of us, that now seemed like a group.

“It’s just the two of us,” Leah said. “The rest are people we don’t exactly know.”

I resisted the urge to laugh at her reply. Surely if she became the Luna, the Blood Moon Pack was going to find it hard to keep all their social connections.

“I’m from the Rising Moon Pack,” Scarlett replied, and he nodded.

“I’m Ronan,” he finally said.

His name was familiar; I seemed to have heard it somewhere before. But where?

It was hard to take note of anything around me with Ronan beside me, occupying each of my senses. From his scent to his every move, I was entranced by him.

But I did my best to keep track of how often Leah looked at him. Although I wanted all of them gone, I couldn’t leave Leah there, not with how much trouble she could cause. And nothing could be worse than getting both of us in trouble there and maybe even dragging Ronan into it.

Scarlett and her group turned to go just as a team of Royal guards surrounded us, scaring everyone, including Scarlett. They stepped back into the circle.

I glanced up at Ronan instinctively, noticing that he was the only one who didn’t look bothered or wary.

“Your highness,” one of the guards said and then bowed his head low.

Your Highness?

Scarlett and Leah looked as confused as I was, and we peered at the guard suspiciously while tracing his bow to Ronan.

“Ronan?” I called out softly as I looked up at him.

He chuckled in response, his voice rumbling low, and pulled me into his embrace.

“Are you from the royal family?” I asked again, a little worried that he was probably from a side branch.

“He is the king Alpha of Eliza. Don’t you know you should bow when you see the king?” a guard hollered from behind us, and I felt my body stiffen in shock.

Alpha king of Eliza?