“You’ve broken promises before, Conri.” I placed my hands flat on the floorboards, my claws gouging scratch marks as frustration flooded me. I heard her sniffle and smelt salt in the air. She was crying, and that made my soul ache. “I’ve always been on my own. Only counted on me, and then you came into my life and changed that. You now have the power to make me feel everything but destroy me into nothing.” “I will never hurt you, Rieka. I will never make you feel like that. Ever.” “Easier said than done, Conri.” It was quiet for several minutes before I heard rustling under the bed and bones cracking. Seconds later, Rieka crawled out from under the bed, and I had to fight the urge to purr. She looked up at me, her beautiful Grey eyes full of worry and panic. “No purring?” I frowned at her.“I told you before, Rieka, sometimes I can’t help it.” The panic in her eyes darkened, and I exhaled, running a hand through my hair. “But I promise I won’t use it to push you into submission, o

I must have fallen asleep by the fire because hours later, a warm hand was slowly caressing my bare back, coaxing me to wake up. The purring from Conri’s chest reverberated through me, and I sighed in contentment at the sound. I moved my cheek to rub my eyes to feel something firm and solid under my face. I opened my eyes to find I was lying on Conri’s bare chest in the bed. He must have carried me over when I had fallen asleep by the fireplace. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t want to move away from him. I rubbed my cheek deeper into his chest and growled affectionately. I gingerly ran my claws down his chest, inhaling his natural scent deeper. His purring became louder as he gently pushed me onto my back and pressed himself between my legs. He supported his weight on his elbows as his forearms lay on either side of my head, caging me in. Conri lowered his head and dragged the tip of his tongue along the seat of my lips. I involuntarily shuddered at the sensual jolt the

CONRI’S POV I stared at my mate in disbelief, her words echoing through me. She never once showed interest in being Queen, and now suddenly, she was throwing it up in my face. I was the Alpha King, and she was challenging me. Her steel grey eyes were hard and dark, like a thunderstorm was brewing in them. I could feel her uncertainty down the bond as she tried her best not to cower under pressure, but a part of me admired her sense of bravery for standing up to me. I inhaled deeply to try to stop my temper from boiling over. No matter how much I admired her courage, I did not appreciate her defying me. “Go back to the bedroom, Rieka,” I told her as calmly as possible. “I will discuss this with you later.” I didn’t think her eyes could harden anymore, but they did as she narrowed them at me like she was trying to decide whether to push the matter or not. When I thought she would argue some more, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the study with Cody following her. Once she

“He had some business to take care of with the Nightshade pack,” Connor answered. “Threats were being made against them. Cody and the king went to ensure their safety.” I sighed heavily. This was getting worse by the day. “May I go outside?” Connor blinked at me as if I had just asked a stupid question. “Of course. You’re going to be queen. You may do whatever you wish.” I rolled my eyes. “Of course, I have to go with you to do whatever you wish to do.” He gave me a coy smile, and I huffed a laugh as I rolled my eyes again. “Well, then, I’m going outside. Feel free to join me.” I walked back into my room to the side door that led to the yard. It was a little hot, with the sun blazing across the sky, but there was a gentle cool breeze to balance the heat. “I want to walk to the pond.” Connor fell into step beside me. “You don’t want to run?” I shrugged my shoulders and frowned as I looked up at the sun and squinted my eyes. “Nah. I don’t think I need to run. I just want to wal

“Yes, my queen. The King and Cody should be here soon. Stay put. Don’t wander off.” I nodded my understanding before watching Connor weave through the pack, checking on everyone. I slowly turned my head, looking around at everyone, when I heard a faint noise in the darkness of the woods. My ears perked as I strained to listen more carefully. The slight whine came once more. Cautiously, I stepped towards the sound, curiosity taking over every nerve in my body. I didn’t realize how far I had strayed from the pack when a sudden force barreled into my side, and I was knocked off my paws. A vast, muscular wolf loomed over me, his red eyes bloodthirsty. I scrambled to my paws quickly and launched myself at him. Something clicked inside of me, some ancient instinct. It was like some part of me knew that I had a pack, no, I had packs, wolves to protect. I had wolves that needed a queen to rely on to protect them. And I was going to be that queen. I latched my teeth to his scruff and used my