Rhode paced as he looked outside. He was feeling very uneasy. He knew he was probably being unreasonable, but he could not help it and could not help but entertain the voices in his head.“You should probably sit down.” Brian suggested helpfully from where he sat, but Rhode ignored him, he was too consumed by his troubles to listen properly.“What exactly is bothering you?” Brian asked again. Now, if he had sounded sincerely and truly interested with a hint of sympathy, then Rhode might have confided in him, but Brian was sprawled nonchalantly on his sofa and his eyes had a very amused look in them. Because of this, Rhode ignored him again.“So, I guess you don't want to talk about it?” Bryan asked again, but Rhode only answered with a groan. As he stared at the window, he heard a feminine laugh flutter through the trees in his garden outside, and straining his neck, his eyes were pleasantly surprised to see Megan and Brianna strolling through the garden.Unbeknownst to Rhode, a year
Richardson gritted his teeth as he sat in his courtroom again. It was really becoming monotonous, day after day he sat to receive a word lash where he was too timid to say a word in his defense.Funny thing was he had never really noticed just how outnumbered he was, but suddenly it was all he could see. And the elders had obviously smelt the new found weakness in him, and God forbid that they did not exploit it.And as usual they had started their pressure on getting him to marry Aspen, the mother of his unborn child to secure the throne, and it really caused a bitter taste to flood his mouth. Marry Aspen? Hell! He had sooner married a tree. It would be better even. A tree would at least be silent, which was more than he could say for his lady.He could feel Aspen fidgeting besides him, he had finally threatened her to attend the morning assembly, and she had, her face sullen beside him. Heavens! She was sulking next to the king! Richardson realized how bad this made him look in the
“Oh my God!” Aspen could only groan as she looked at the soldiers in armors walking around the castle with a grim face. And her heart shrank as she realized that she had caused this. The men were going to go to war, and she was going to leave her and Richardson's life endangered, not to talk of her baby! All because of one tiny rookie mistake.“When are they leaving?!” She asked as she burst into Richardson's office and he turned to give her an irritated glance, causing her to flinch. He never used to look at her like that.“Ok. I know I made a mistake. A rookie mistake. Are you really going to blame me for it?” Aspen asked, her eyes wide open as she tried to plead with Richardson to see her side of the story. But if anything, his glare only intensified.“Look. I am busy trying to prolong the departure, I don't need this from you.” He told her, and Aspen signed again. She did not wish to die. And definitely not with a baby in her belly. That would be one horribly bloated corpse. She
Richardson knew he had screwed up Royally. He only put the blame on Aspen because there was no one else to take it, and she was stupid enough really.It was not Aspen’s fault, it was his for not having enough backbone to stop the left state counselor from executing a plan that he knew could very well be the death of him and his family.He was trapped from all sides, and even the fae people were beginning to show him disrespect, and when that happened, it was imperative to realize that things were bad. Really bad.Turning to the still gasping Aspen on the floor, he could not bring himself to apologize for his actions. He probably was not even sorry he did what he did. He knew that she was innocent, but it didn't stop him laying his hands on her. And he couldn't help but shudder against the kind of man he was turning into. He could remember putting his hands on Megan too. Megan. Felt like she was light-years away, and the distance was killing him.But it was his fault, his fault he lost
Aspen scoffed as she crossed the hallways to her chambers. She was becoming more and more destabilized. And well no one could exactly blame her. She is being threatened, and now her life is in mortal danger. And not to talk of Duke Elric. Aspen sighed as she thought of the Duke with his extremely dubious personality.Sometimes she thought he was on her side, then she got him staring at her with what was definitely a mocking grin on his face, and suddenly she was not sure anymore.If he was on her side, then why did he constantly see the need to laugh? Why did he only show up when he wanted to without giving her a way to summon him. And what was that amused look he had given Richardson?Ugh! She didn't want to think anymore. It was too exhausting. She somehow ended up more confused than before she started. So it was better to stop.Quickly switching her steps to the kitchens, Aspen hurried over with her head held high despite knowing that she was not very favored amongst the staff. De
Aspen felt her world shifting. She had thought, for some reason, that he was only visible to her eyes on the unfortunate days he decided to grace her with his magnanimous presence: note the sarcasm. But she really had not thought that other people saw him. The idea came to her that morning, and despite the doubts, she had wanted to see if she was right at all, and it turned out that she was. Ah hell.“T_the camera! You know him!” She exclaimed triumphantly as she stared at the cook with a disturbing gleam in her eyes. She wanted to go to Richardson the next moment and demanded the head of the cook for being an accomplice in an elaborate conspiracy.“I don't know what you are thinking, young missy. But I do not know that man.” The cook quickly defended, as she stared at the grin on Aspen's face with maximum distrust. But Aspen could handle a little hate. She was not there to make friends after all.If the way to make this strange reporter silent was to silence this cook, then so be it.
Due to the recent announcement and the recent self-consciousness she had developed about her person, Megan did all she could to avoid Rhode, and for a while it was working.She ate with the servants in the kitchen with the excuse of bonding and they adored her for it, proclaiming her the perfect Luna. She memorized Rhode's routine and perfected the art of avoiding him. She was on a roll, really.But that all changed when she bounced out of her bedroom, cradling her heavy stomach still carefully concealed with her heavy brocaded gown, and was suddenly accosted along the forest path by her lovely future husband. And Megan could not help the flush that colored her cheeks as he held her hands and his eyes glowed in triumph.“W_what are you doing?” Megan stammered as she glared up at him. Or at least she wanted to glare but she was intimidated by the animated purple eyes that stared back at her.“Megan!” He exclaimed with a small teasing smile.*So you are still alive! I had no idea!” He l
For the umpteenth time, he imagined marching over to the kingdom of that weakling and stampeding on his throat, ripping out his teeth and claws, and breaking his legs..He was sure that if it ever came to it, he would take Richardson easily. The male had been timid when Rhode entered his Kingdom for the first time. When he had been introduced and stepped up to Richardson, he had realized his aura. He did it subtly, so that everyone in the room would not know what hit them, and for that brief moment where he studied Richardson, he could see the wolf king groan and bared his neck in a show of instant submission, and Rhode could not help the disdain that ran through him.But Megan had been perfect, she had stared straight at him beside her husband, her eyes flashing in warning, and even then he could understand them perfectly. Retreat. Her gaze told him, and he could not help the smile that covered his face after that. Lunas should not have the power to resist a fraction of an alpha's p
Megan watched as Rhode and his army of about five hundred soldiers mount their horses they were intending to ride to the west. A lot of petitions were made for him to increase the number of warriors going with him, especially from Megan herself, but he did not take heed. Megan knew he did not wish to leave her defenseless so he was going without the appropriate amount of protection, and her love for him grew.Be safe out there.She nodded as he turned to find her in the crowd, he heard her, and he showed her by returning her firm nod.I will.It was an exchange of trust, so Megan tried to bite down on her anxiety as she wished she was not pregnant at the moment. It rendered her vulnerable, and Vulnerability was not entertained in the East.“He is really leaving.” Brianna whispered from where she stood behind Megan, and Rosetta nodded, her face lacking its usual cheer and awash with somberity.Megan could not help but wonder what caused such expression to overcome someone like Rosetta
Rhode glanced at Brian sideways, and he was immediately suspicious. There was a grin his friend was now sporting a glow that he did not have on a few hours ago. But he could say the same thing for himself, he thought, as he looked at Megan standing beside him, her back straight and her eyes firmly set on the Council members below. He could not be sure if he was putting her at risk by doing what he was doing, but he knew that it was a risk he had to take. He could not leave her and the rest of his family powerless. He had to protect Brianna as well, Brian was counting on him, so Rhode straightened his back as well.“As you all were previously informed, Lord Rosebud is going to be acting as regent in my absence, but there have been a few changes.” Rhode announced, and the entire council shuffled, not liking what they were hearing, but he couldn't care less. Rosebud was on board and that was all that mattered to Rhode.“What's this change about, alpha?” Lord Aldrien asked, his eyes shi
Aspen frowned as she was led outside to do her routine for the thousandth time since her kidnapping. It was the baby pressing on her bladder, and she tried to make that fact known, but they were not only not listening but were also rapidly losing patience with her.“May I request a female guard?” She murmured for the hundredth time since she got into their capture. She knew they had female guards, but for some reason she was constantly surrounded by males.“No. Move.” Was the eloquent reply she got as she was roughly prodded forward from behind, and Aspen frowned. She could not believe she was being forced to endure such indignities during her pregnancy with an Alpha.“I can take it from here.” Aspen muttered stiffly as they neared the approaching bush. She had to swallow down the approaching bile down her throat.“She said she'll take it from here.” The pack leader grunted, and Aspen turned her nose forward as she marched towards the bush with all the dignity she could muster.As soo
Brian hurried through the palace in his futile search for Brianna, but no matter how much he tried, he just could not find her. She was not with Megan in the sun drawing room, nor was she with Rosetta as he watched the bubbly woman interact with some maids, not even caring that they were below her station. The sight almost made him smile before he cleared his throat abruptly, and the room full of women turned towards him. Immediately he could see them straighten out their hair and clothes, and a few even did a quick swipe of lipstick across their lips at the sight of him, and Brian frowned as he wondered if they found his presence that imposing and unpleasant, so he hurried towards Rosetta.“I need to talk to you.” He told her urgently, before spurning on his heels to stride out, but as he left, he heard what sounded like protests behind and frowned. Women, he just could not understand them.“Sir Brian?” Rosetta gasped as she finally caught up to his uneasy figure pacing underneath
“Why did you take this decision without informing me about it?” Brian asked angrily as he bursted into Rhode's office, his wolf almost rising to the surface as he snarled, but Rhode simply smiled. He was expecting Brian after all, he knew that after his announcement in the council meeting about his decision to personally oversee the mission to the west, Brian would barge in on him, demanding an explanation.Everyone had been shocked when he dropped the bomb and announced his decision to follow the soldiers to the rescue of his rival, the western alpha, but he was determined.He knew the council were trying to domesticate him, he could sense it in the way they tried their best to put a stop to every and any activity that warranted leaving the four walls of his kingdom. They were trying to drive him insane with longing and rage, then introduce Lord Fuhler to him as a savior. He could see right through them that it was almost hilarious. Almost.But he would not be Rhode If he allowed t
“My lady! My lady!” Rosetta yelled as she burst through the drawing room to where Megan was seating with a book in her hands, the bold words Theories Of The Master Tactician written on the front.Startled, Megan glanced up, her hands resting as usual on her stomach, and her eyes sparkling with joy at the sight of the impromptu visitor.“Rosetta. Why have you come?” Megan asked with a smile, knowing well that Rosetta was supposed to be secluded with the other ladies in waiting as they went through the monthly attendance report, it was a compulsory thing in the palace, something she wished she had thought to implement in her former Kingdom. It would definitely have made things run more smoothly, but oh well. Anyways, her eyes narrowed at the breathless Rosetta. She could afford to let her slack off. If her attendance was not up to par, and she might even be taken away from her, the thought sent an unpleasant shiver through Megan's spine.“I needed to see you urgently!” Rosetta gasped o
Aspen could not even breathe at that point. Hell, she had not been breathing for several days already, and it was beginning to get real old, but what was she to do? If she actively breathed in the corrupt air filled with fine dust, then who knew the horrible effect it would have on her skin!So she tried to take in as little air as possible through her mouth, which resulted in an incredibly grating sound, and judging by the looks on Rudolph's face, he was beginning to find her just as irritating as the dust she was trying to avoid.But as usual, Aspen could not even be bothered to give a fig about another person's feelings, in fact, she was positively glowering at him as she tried to stay as silent as possible in the holding shed the leader and his group of malnourished hunting crew had led them to.In fact, she was not at peace with the way she was leered at by some of the villagers that had stopped by to peer into the shed. They had looked at her like a tasty morsel of food they cou
Richardson stipled his fingers as he stared out the window of his grand castle, it was rapidly approaching winter, and the air had become so easy that it was impossible to move about with just one layer of clothes, even for wolves such as them.He even had to light a roaring fire in his office, but that did not nothing to dispel his inner chill. He wondered if Megan had gotten his letter, and he wondered if he had managed to sway her. It was almost too much to ask, he knew that much, but he could not bring himself to care really. He was, as usual, only concerned with protecting his own life, his kingdom or pride be damned.And where the hell was Aspen?! He could not help but wonder, this was not to mean that he was not grateful for her absence though, truth be told, she irked him, and he could not help but wonder what was wrong with him, and what made him choose her over his beloved.In fact, it was almost like when Megan disappeared from his sight, so did his crazy and insane love a
Megan was quiet as she stared at the bustling around her. She was quiet as Rhonda checked her baby and her vitals to ensure her stability, she was quiet as she was forced to drink a kind of medicinal broth, and she was quiet as Rhode walked in hours later.“How long has she been like this?” She heard Rhode ask, and what sounded like Rhonda answered.“I don't think she has moved at all since I came in here to personally monitor her vitals.” She answered, her professional tone broken down by concern.“What is going on? Is she alright?” Rhode asked again, a deep kind of worry coating his voice, and Megan bit her tongue to keep the bitterness inside.“Physically she's alright. So it's definitely a mental problem.” Rhonda reported again, before she turned reproachful eyes to Rhode who leaned back defensively.“What did I do?” He asked even before she could speak, and Megan heard her sigh, before she hit Rhode with what sounded like a stack of papers.“Hey!” He yelled out at the act, but th