Chapter 7

Rhys’s POV

I noticed the tremble in her fingers and held back from wrapping my hands around hers… she was already doing a good job holding herself together.

The moment we entered her chambers and the doors shut behind us, she let out a loud sigh.

Her shoes followed next.

I just leaned back against the door, my eyes never leaving her.

She sat in front of the dressing mirror and her eyes met mine for a brief second.

My heart had missed a beat in that second…

Not wanting her to notice myself being caught unawares, a smirk filled my lips just before she looked away.

Dante broke the silence.

“What game are you playing, Alpha princess?”

There was no softness in Dante’s voice.

And if I didn’t know any better I’d think he didn’t want this.

But I did.

I had seen the pain in his eyes as we watched her walk down the aisle confidently to a groom that wasn’t us.

…Seen him clutch his hands itching to silence Silas from the moment he opened his gutter mouth.

…Watched as he avoided the fight ever coming close to where she stood.

And seen how his eyes drew circles around her body.

She was no longer that little fragile girl we knew… Nyra had grown all in the right places.

My eyes slowly trailed up and down before I forced myself to look away.

I was losing control I desperately clung onto.

Because the urge to drag her into my lap and remind her exactly who she belonged to was becoming increasingly difficult to suppress.

Unaffected by the tension she had stirred in this room, we watched as she calmly removed the rest of her jewelry before finally answering.

“I need you both as my allies.”

I scoffed.

Allies?

After all these while, that was what she wanted from us?

“In that hall filled with over a hundred men, I know you too will be capable enough to withstand whatever will be thrown back.”

“Allies?” Dante repeated coldly.

Her gaze finally lifted to me and then back at Dante.

“No, I need powerful mates that can stand beside me.”

My wolf growled in delight.

“You two are feared, respected and well known amongst men that matter,” she continued.

A bitter laugh escaped her lips as she said, “My people have always known Silas and I know they trust him even more than they do me.”

“For years he stood in front of them while I hid behind him pretending I was content being the traditional wife.”

Pain flickered briefly across her face before disappearing again.

“The people I’m meant to lead don’t know me,” she admitted more quietly, almost to herself than to us.

“And I know this display just showed that Silas is a cheat and not a poor choice to replace me… he had already planted that seed here.”

Something uncomfortable twisted inside my chest hearing that.

Because she was right.

Nyra Thorne had spent years reducing herself into something smaller for a man who never deserved her in the first place.

Not that we deserved her.

But I would never look at do as much as look in the direction of another woman.

“I need to reclaim my authority… I need the packs under Blood Moon to see me as their queen, before Silas destroys what little control I have left.”

Her eyes sharpened, staring at the reflection with fury.

“And people follow strength.”

Now we were getting somewhere.

“You want us beside you because people fear us,” I finally said.

Her eyes locked onto mine, “Yes.”

Good girl.

“And what exactly do we stand to gain from this arrangement?” I asked.

Her eyes lit up.

“I’ll help elevate the Vale name more further than you stand, from influence to political authority and most importantly access to the throne.”

I almost laughed.

She was trying to negotiate with predators like a businesswoman.

Cute.

I pushed away from the wall slowly and stalked towards her.

“After everything you think power is what we want from you?”

Nyra frowned slightly.

And for the first time since the ceremony began, her confidence cracked with uncertainty.

I exchanged a glance with Dante and his expression darkened.

One look was enough to pass the message.

Nyra watched our conversation in silence.

We had already made the decision long ago, back when she was still too innocent for men like us.

We had let her go once because despite our obsession, we knew what darkness lived inside us could ruin us.

She looked away and reached for her zip, I watched as she struggled.

Then, her eyes lifted to mine through the mirror.

“Rhys, help me with this.”

This was the first time she was referring to me by my name since the ceremony.

I nodded.

Finally the reminder of our cowardice was being taken off.

Then Dante said, “We’ll help you princess.”

Relief flashed across her face too quickly.

Cute again to assume that was what we wanted.

“But not on your terms, we have just one condition.”

Her brows furrowed.

“What condition?”

“You marry us.” I was now standing behind her.

Nyra stared at me like she wasn’t sure she’d heard correctly.

Dante remained unmoved.

“If you want us beside you, then we want all of you.”

Heat crept up across her face immediately lighting up her cheeks

‘Mine’, My wolf practically chanted the word.

“You said you needed powerful mates,” I murmured softly, helping her up to stand in front of me and face Dante.

My fingers brushed lightly against the exposed skin at the back of her neck as I gathered her hair over one shoulder.

A gasp escaped her lips.

She was driving me crazy as her pheromones were starting to act up.

Then I slowly dragged the zipper down.

My eyes never left her back as her slender back was slowly revealed.

Goddess.

My control on my wolf’s wants strained painfully…

“We would be available at your beck and call.” Dante said, closing the gap between them.

I bit back the urge to drag my tongue across the spot I intended to mark before I bent to whisper, “But we do not share what belongs to us, Alpha Princess.”