Alyssa's POVI was quickly taken to The Colosseum where I had been only the day before, but it was different knowing that I was going there to fight. It wasn’t going to be a fight to the death, the king had promised that.Well, it was more like he threatened us regarding it. If Taylor or I were to kill the other, we’d spend the rest of our lives locked up in the Red Maple Camp. This battle was to let us air our frustrations and anger out on one another, but the Alpha King wouldn't let us kill us, not when it would cause a rift between two of his most powerful packs.I had no intention of killing Taylor, even though the idea of it wasn’t terrible to me, but I saw the fear suddenly flash in his eyes as he looked at me as if that's exactly what he wanted to do now that he knew that I wasn't going to be 'returned' to him.I couldn’t help but feel smug. I’d been through the horrors of the Red Maple Camp, he’d only heard of them. I could handle going back. It would break me after this brief
Kai’s POVI thought this fight was going to bore me. Though I was beginning to stop assuming that Alyssa was weak, fragile and timid, I still expected her to cower. I’d seen enough battles and men, trained and untrained, cower at the mere thought of battle, let alone be in a real fight.So when Alyssa transformed, her giant silver wolf almost rivalling Carter inside and the feathery wings sprouting from her back, and made the first move to attack Taylor, I was pleasantly surprised. But when she took flight, diving towards her ex-fiance with a fiery anger that burned around her like a flame, my mouth was agape.This was what a warrior looked like, nothing but resolve in her eyes as she knew how this fight was going to end and was going to ensure that she was the one that was going to come out on top. Alyssa spiralled like an arrow towards Taylor, not giving him a chance to summon his fire as she knocked him off balance. He was brutally thrown to the floor, unable to steady himself wi
Alyssa's POVI didn’t get much of a chance to rest after my fight with Taylor. I was taken back to the room that the Alpha King had placed me in and immediately flopped on my bed, burying my face in the soft pillows and blankets.My heart was still racing from the fight even though all the energy in my body faded. I stared up at the canopy of my bed and took in a deep breath. The fight had barely lasted for ten minutes but with how I was feeling it felt like it had been going on forever as all the anger and fury in me took over. I wanted to close my eyes and sleep the rest of the day away, my bones and joints aching and I could feel Carys resting in the recesses of my mind, but only an hour after I returned to my room, there was a knock at the door.I was half tempted to ignore it and sleep, but the door knocked again, more incessantly. With a groan I stood and walked towards it, opening it slightly. Prince Kai was standing at my door with a servant carrying a box behind him, giving
Kai's POVI was half tempted to punch the living daylights out of my younger brother for the stunt he tried to pull. Not only had he tried to gift Alyssa a dress, which was a clear invitation to the ball when he already had a fiance, but he also wanted to gift her a golden one! If I didn’t think he had a brain in that head of his this certainly proved it.Did he have any idea the kind of chaos he could’ve caused if Alyssa accepted that damned gown? No, he didn’t, because he’d always been a stupid, spineless punk who got everything handed to him.But this time he didn’t, because Alyssa had rejected his dress and accepted mine. A thrill went through my body as I remembered that and a smile brought itself to my face. Rarely was I the first choice, and even if it was because we’d made a deal or not, she’d chosen me, not the mate who rejected her.Just as I was planning to leave my father’s own to return to my own, I ran into my pathetic excuse for a brother who looked positively pissed.
Alyssa's POVTrue to his word, Kai knocked on my door at five on the dot. I was dressed and ready so opened the door, seeing the first prince dressed immaculately in the doorway. He took my breath away.He was dressed in a black tunic with golden embroidery tracing over his body in intricate swirls and patterns. Over his breast pocket was a golden wolf, the symbol of the Royal Family. He wore black trousers that hugged him appreciatively and white gloves. On top of his head was a golden circlet to show off his status as it merged with his blonde hair naturally. He didn’t just look like a prince, but also a soldier.I supposed this ball was just another type of battlefield. It certainly felt like it was going to be that. I had to stop myself from staring at him too much. If he thought I was beautiful or anything along those lines he didn’t show anything. I pushed a strand of my hair that was falling behind my ear, trying not to feel too self conscious.Kai presented his arm for me to
Alexander's POVI just wanted to get this party over and done with. Usually, I didn’t mind them, I liked talking with my people and learning new things about the kingdom I hoped to inherit, but this one I just couldn’t enjoy. Caspian was reminding me every five seconds why.You should be here with Alyssa, not Freya.I’d stopped responding to him after a little while because none of the reasons or excuses I reminded us of could convince my wolf to be happy with the situation. Hell, I barely convinced myself of them.I was certain I’d made the right decision by rejecting Alyssa and taking Freya as my bride, especially with my mother's constant praise of the matter. But, the more I saw Alyssa, the more I longed for her and wanted to protect her. When I saw her in that arena… I didn’t know that I could feel fear like I did at that moment. I wanted to jump down and protect her. Granted, she didn't need it, but that wasn't the point.“What’s the matter, dear?” Freya’s voice pulled me out of
Alyssa’s POV“What if I wanted you to stay?”I wasn’t sure that I heard what he said properly. Why on earth would he want me to stay? What Kai and I had, it was purely contractual, wasn’t it? I couldn’t think of any reason why he would want me to stay other than our deal.If anything, my staying with him would only damage his reputation more. He'd be far less likely to become Alpha King with me at his side. I had no political power, I was just a disgraced daughter who wasn't even heir to our pack anymore because of my younger brother.“What?” I asked, wondering if there was some kind of joke hidden behind his words.But the first prince had a stoic look as he waited for my reaction or response, “If I asked you to stay? Even after I was cured.”I tripped over as he spoke again, but Kai caught my waist so to the others it looked as if he were going to dip me. I was aware of his grip and the warmth that spread from his hands to my waist.“But, but, Your Highness, I have nothing for me he
Alyssa's POVI ran until my lungs burned and my feet could barely carry me anymore. If I’d shifted and let Carys take over I could’ve run or flown as far as I wanted, but if I’d done that I knew I might not have come back. So I ignored the instinct to let my wolf out and kept running on my own.I ended up in the Royal Gardens. I’d been here once, long ago, when I had first come to the Royal Palace with my father and my mother. It was also the first time I’d met Kai and Alexander.Once, Alexander told me he knew I was his mate from the first time he’d met me, that would’ve been here in this very garden when we were young before Kai had gotten the scar over his face. Would things have been different if he had spoken up before then? Maybe we would’ve been married already.But things weren’t different, the ache in my legs and the burning of my chest reminded me of that well enough.I found a tree and sat down, leaning against it as I sucked in deep and desperate breaths. It was getting qu
Alyssa's POVThough I told Alexander I would let him protect me, I did my best to avoid him after that day. I took on extra duties so I wouldn’t have the free time to bump into him because if anyone caught me alone with him again, I knew life in the palace would only get worse.Even after that one encounter, word spread around the other maids and servants. Lyra and Amelia would trip me in the halls, causing me to break glasses and tea-wear which Moira would punish me for. They would also throw any clean clothes I’d finished onto the floor so I had to do double the work.Moira no longer hurt me physically, but she definitely didn’t make life easier for me after she got in trouble with Alexander. Even though I volunteered to take on more work, she assigned harder tasks to me that I barely completed. For the tasks that I didn't complete in time, the punishment would be that I was locked out of my sleeping quarters and forced to finish my job and sleep in the area it was in. I never want
Alexander's POVI hadn’t even heard the woman approach before she had Alyssa’s hair in her grip, yanking her to the floor. Everything felt like it had gone in slow motion. One second I was doing my hardest to make Alyssa smile, the next I heard her yelp in pain before she was tossed onto the floor.“Who do you think you are!?” She screamed, “How dare you manipulate His Royal Highness!”I couldn’t recall a time that a singular voice had angered me to the core. My mother would upset me, my brother would piss me off and Freya was simply annoying, but this woman’s command, her assault on my mate, buried a deep hole of hatred into my soul.“And who the fuck do you think you are?” I growled, sounding like my brother as I stood to my full height.Caspian didn’t need my permission to leave my body this time as he ripped free, sending a menacing roar at the servant.“Y-your Highness-” She stammered, quickly pulling herself into a bow, but I didn’t give a shit because she still had her hands w
Alyssa's POV“You’ve got to be kidding, you can’t do that!” I asked, aghast that the prince would even suggest such a thing.For one, if Moira, let alone the Luna Queen, found out that the second prince was on his knees cleaning like a common maid and that I had let him, I would be punished beyond imagination.Secondly, if they found out I hadn’t done this by myself I would probably also be punished for that too. It wasn’t as if I had friends among the rest of the staff. Also if he messed anything up it would be deemed my fault.And thirdly, even if by some miracle Moira believed that I could do something like this by myself, she would probably increase my workload just out of spite.“What’s there to joke about?” Alexander asked, tilting his head in utter confusion.I inwardly sighed, he may have been a prince but he had no idea how the world truly worked. “Your Highness, look at our positions right now. You are a prince, I am a maid. It would be improper for you to help me do my job
Alyssa's POVI faced a smack to the face from the Luna Queen’s head maid. The blow took me by surprise. Even though I was currently a maid for the Luna Queen, I was still an Alpha’s daughter so I hadn’t expected physical abuse from the others.I held my hand to my cheek, looking at Moira, the head maid, with shock and confusion.Moira was a short, stocky kind of woman with a head full of grey hairs and wrinkles, she had been in service to the Royal Family for a long time, but her allegiance was with the Luna Queen more than anyone else, and by my association with Prince Kai and the ‘carnage’ I had caused between Alexander and FFreya, I was an enemy to her.I’d just been cleaning the Luna Queen’s shoes. Moira looked over the row I had cleaned and picked up one of the shoes before turning her furious hand onto me.“Is this what you’d call clean?” She hissed, shoving the shoe in my face, “This isn’t the Red Maple Camp, pup. You’re a servant of the Royal Household, act like it!”If the sh
Kai's POVThankfully, by the time I returned to my camp none of my men had noticed me missing and no one else had disappeared under Leon’s watch. It seemed I was correct in thinking that it was a diversion. The assassins hadn’t been able to find Alyssa and I hoped that she would be safe at home.We had to move further south and Mother Nature was on our side as the wet, muddy terrain was blessed by the sun and things became warmer. No more wringing socks out by the fire or having clumps of dirt caught in fur.But, even though conditions were better, I’d felt more uncomfortable than ever. I had a tarp instead of a cave floor, I had a tent over my head instead of spiders and a warm fire instead of shivering in blankets. But there was something I had then that I didn't have now.Alyssa.Her smile, her laughter, her voice, and her scent were all worth it.But at that moment instead of being with her, I was stuck with burly brutes who hardly knew how to bathe and clean up after themselves.
Alexander's POV I didn’t know what game my mother was playing but unfortunately, I had no choice but to go along with it if I wanted to ensure that Alyssa stayed safe. Regardless of whether my engagement with Freya was back on, she wouldn’t forgive Alyssa for supposedly coming between us.I was partly to blame for that, I hadn't exactly been subtle with my affection for Alyssa, no matter how much I tried to hide it and squash it into the ground.We sat together in the carriage. I was on one side with Freya holding me, her head on my shoulder as Alyssa sat on the opposite side, her gaze never moving away from the window.I’d give anything to know what thoughts were running around her head. I’d give anything to be able to fix the ones that made her frown.But I was part of the problem. All of this could’ve been avoided if I had just accepted her in the first place.“Aren’t you so excited for the wedding, Alex?” Freya asked, craning her face towards me so that her lips were only a few c
Alyssa's POVDespite the incident with Freya, the next few days passed peacefully, so much so that Vivian even smiled at me a couple of times. Genuine smiles.With Freya’s engagement to Alexander back on and being planned at the moment, and with Kai being stationed far away in the South for a who knows how long amount of time, Vivian didn’t see me as a threat anymore. She had everything she wanted.A powerful Alpha husband, an heir to inherit that title and her daughter to be a princess and possibly Luna Queen.With Vivian’s change in character, it was clear to me that Freya must’ve not mentioned any part of our conversation to her mother about Alpha Aaron. Either she thought it wasn’t worth the hassle or she was scared that if she told her mother and Vivian retaliated it would confirm whatever she thought I knew.So with the first bit of peace of mind I'd had for a long time, I relaxed.With the wedding preparations taking place, everyone had been neglectful of Caleb who was still on
Alyssa's POVAlexander was so convincing in his pleas that I almost believed it. If I hadn’t known any better I would’ve thought this display to be genuine and that he'd done this in front of me again just to spite me.I glanced up slightly, having looked away when Freya had launched herself at my mate. My heart stammered as I looked at the passionate kiss and saw Alexander looking right at me.I looked down again.Caleb tightened his grip on my hand. He was still so young that he didn’t understand what a mate bond was or felt like, he barely understood the concept. But even still, my younger brother must’ve sensed that there was a hollow space within my soul and the cause of that hollowness was the man kissing Freya. He squeezed again, letting me know that he was there.I squeezed his hand back and smiled at him.“We should give them some privacy, shouldn’t we?” I said, wanting to get Caleb away from whatever manipulation was happening there.Caleb smiled and pulled me towards the do
Alexander;s POVThe last time I was alone with Alyssa I’d made a right ass of myself. The last time we were alone I’d confessed to her and she rejected me so being alone with her now I couldn’t help but feel awkward and a sense of longing. I wanted to hold her and beg her to forgive me again, but it wasn't the time. What do you say to a girl you hurt and now are in love with?But I still wasn’t going to give up, not until she gave me a chance.Even if she didn’t I was going to protect her. And not because Kai told me to. I was going to make sure she was safe. We stood just outside of the Ice Heart Pack’s territory line and she gave me a small smile.I ran through the plan in my head again.The plan was that Alyssa would stealthily return to her room. Only two people in the Pack House knew that she had left the pack territory, those two people being a trusted maid and her brother. No one else should’ve expected that she would go anywhere else.She would make herself known and half an h