Page 32

I sit with Ivy on the pier that overlooks the man-made lake by the stables.

Ivy eats very little despite my trying to encourage her to eat.

We enjoy the morning sun, enjoying the rays heating my cold skin.

I tell her everything that happened in the castle last night.

Though I don’t think she is really listening; she seems stuck in her head no matter how hard I try to pull her back to the present moment. I hate seeing her like this.

Ivy leans against one of the logs on the pier, watching me, yet I draw closer to the water.

I wish I was swimming with Gannon or even just going for a run; it is strange to me to have the freedoms we have here.

Another thing I haven’t told her about. I want to tell her, yet I can’t bring myself to because I don’t want to risk upsetting her more.

“Abbie!” Ivy hisses as I sat on the edge and tossed my legs over the side and into the water.

“Gannon is right there,” I tell her, pointing him out, and she lets out a sigh.

I wade my feet through the water, loving the feel of the water between my toes.

Peering up, Gannon is smiling at me, and I can’t help the blush at the knowing look on his face.

However, what impresses me most is that he kept his word and didn’t leave Ivy’s side all night, as he said.

She was supposed to shift, but now doubt has crept in.

I believe, along with Ivy, that the king is wrong about her birthday.

But still the question remains: if that were true, how could she recognize him as her mate?

More shocking was learning of Della’s crimes. Della was Ivy’s mother before Alpha Dean’s pack killed her. Though now we have learned that wasn’t even her real name. And that Della Hunley was, in fact, Marrissa Talbot.

A notorious hunter and the woman responsible for not only killing the king’s sister but also an entire kingdom that used to reside in the mountains.

The Landeena Kingdom. Knowing this information and realizing her childhood was a lie—that her mother was a monster—I could see weighed heavily on Ivy.

It broke her, a woman she loved. Her mother was a monster and serial killer.

Accused of unspeakable crimes, and now Ivy was paying the price for them.

I hope there was some mistake. The Della I remember was kind, loving, and doted on both Ivy and me. She was strict, but protective of us growing up. She was my mother’s best friend. We had stumbled upon their little camp after my mother fled the pack we were part of.

I have no memory of being in a pack, though I do remember having a bigger family once. My mother was a twin, and we were forced to go into hiding after her twin and my grandmother died.

Hiding from the man who killed them, my mother never spoke of it, but I had heard whispers when a child who will forever remain with me.

“I have to head back soon. I have to go into town with Clarice to grab some supplies,” I tell Ivy, not wanting to go. Tears fill my eyes, not knowing when I will get to see her next, but I have chores to do, so I know I need to leave her.

Lifting my legs from the water, I wander over to her, lean down, and clutch her fingers gently.

“Maybe I could ask if you could come?” I tell her hopefully, but I know it will never be allowed.

Ivy doesn’t get the chance to answer when we hear screaming from the castle’s direction.

My head whips toward the direction of the woman’s screams, and I see Ester thrashing and screaming her head off while two guards drag her across the manicured lawns.

I try not to smile. Well, they finally found her!

I stand, and Gannon turns to stare up the hill in the direction of the castle, a glare on his face.

“Ha, it serves her right,” I huff, and I curse at myself when I turn back to see Ivy watching me.

“What did she do?” Ivy asks curiously. I can’t believe how stupid I was to say that! I peer down at Ivy before her head turns to Ester, still thrashing as they lead her toward the front of the castle, toward the enormous iron gates.

“I worry it may upset you, but nothing happened. The king woke up before she could do anything,” I tell her while staring down at my hands, picking at my nails. Nervously I steal a peek at her, hoping she doesn’t ask more.

“Before she did what?” Ivy asks. I chew my lip, not wanting to answer, but I won’t lie to her, and she will eventually find out. I just wished it wasn’t me giving her the news.

“The king woke early this morning in his office to Ester fondling him,” I tell her. Ivy pales, almost turning green at my words, and my eyes widen when she sucks in a breath, a look of pure panic on her face. She gasps as if she can’t catch her breath, and her eyes prick with tears.

“Hey, hey. Nothing happened, I promise. I heard the guard talking this morning. When he woke, he was livid and tossed her out. He then banished her from the castle, so I guess they finally found her. He didn’t do anything with her, Ivy.

I promise you,” I tell Ivy, moving quickly to grab her face in my hands.

She sucks in a breath, and I breathe with her, trying to calm her.

“That’s it. Breathe, Ivy. He didn’t betray you,” I whisper to her repeatedly as I try to stop her panic attack. When she calms, I brush my hands over her face to clear her tears. Why did I stupidly say something? I mentally scold myself.

“So he didn’t sleep with her?” Ivy asks, letting out a breath finally.

“No, she ran naked from his office crying like her bum was on fire,” I tell her remembering the sight making her snicker. She really took a walk of shame, and she should feel shame because not a single person was happy with her little act.

Yet the look on her face tells me she doesn’t see any funny side. I’m about to say something else when a whistle catches our attention. We look to the hill, and saw Clarice wave to us.

“I gotta go, but I will try to visit you later,” I tell Ivy as I lean down, briefly hugging her before rushing off back down the pier and up to Clarice, who is waiting for me.

After my heartbreaking visit with Ivy, I leave to grab the few groceries Clarice has ordered from the grocer.

It’s a beautiful day as I go over the mental list of chores I still need to complete before the guest Alpha arrives.

As I walk toward the main gates, I notice the king talking to a man whose back is to me.

But as the breeze shifts, every muscle in my body tenses, and I find myself unable to move. My body goes into some sort of shock.

“Abbie, are you okay?” Liam’s voice reaches my ears, yet I still can’t bring myself to move. My heart leaps in my chest when his hands gripping my arms jolt me out of the odd state I am in. Liam turns me so I face him.

But my eyes automatically go to the stranger standing with the king. His suit is a light gray, his jacket open, and he has his hands in his pants pockets. My eyes roam over his body. The white shirt he wears fits his body in a way that I can see the outline of his abs pressing tight beneath it.

When his eyes meet mine, he appears curious.

“Abbie?” Liam’s voice says, and I notice the man’s eyes go to Liam’s hands gripping my arms. His lips move in a way that tells me he doesn’t like Liam touching me.

I shake my head, coming out of my daze and staring at Liam, who stares back worriedly at me.

He glances over his shoulder at the man the king is with.

“Sorry, I forgot what I was doing,” I tell Liam before quickly rushing out the gates while every part of me screams I should be running toward that mysterious man…

toward… I gulp… my mate … not away from him.

He makes no move to stop me, and once I am trudging down the road, I shake my head, thinking I must have imagined the feeling I had heard about for so long.

I make my way into town, but that nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach never dwindles.

If anything, it only gets worse. I’ve always heard when you lay eyes on your mate, you just know.

And in that crazy moment, it felt like I just knew.

As the time passes, it feels harder and harder to conjure up the initial feeling. All I know is something is off.

The entire walk is a daze. Even after I retrieve the goods I’m sent for, I step out of the shop, having no memory of even entering. I’m on autopilot—my mind consumed with the man back at the castle. So consumed, I don’t even notice he has followed me to the small town until I walk right into him.

“You didn’t stick around to introduce yourself, a little rude, don’t you think, little mate?” before the deep voice comes as his hands slide up my bare arms, leaving tingles from his touch.

I take a startled step back, and he puts up his hands in what I assume is supposed to be an apologetic gesture. “Your name is Abbie, isn’t it?” he asks.

I say nothing. Despite him clearly being my mate, he’s still a stranger, though every fiber of my being calls for me to go to him, submit to him.

He glances around, and I follow suit. No one is around, which only makes me more nervous in his presence.

“Liam told me your name. No need to be scared. I won’t hurt you, love,” he tells me.

But my brain doesn’t seem to be able to function, and he sighs loudly.

“I’m Alpha Kade, but you can call me Kade. ”

“Nice to meet you,” I tell him, trying to step around him, knowing no Alpha would want a rogue for a mate.

His aura isn’t as strong as Gannon’s or anyone else I’ve met here, so I know he is a werewolf, yet there’s power behind it that tells me I’m right in thinking that. He sidesteps, blocking my path again.

“Trying to escape me, are you? I don’t mind a good chase, though I would rather not cause a scene here,” he tells me, making me stare up at him. He catches my chin between his fingers, forcing me to meet his gaze. His eyes flicker, and I watch his tongue dart out between his lips as he looks at me.

“You realize who I am to you?” he asks, his tone is curious, as if probing to see how much I know.

“You’re my mate,” I whisper, bracing for his rejection so I can go about my day. He chuckles softly, leaning down, so close his lips are almost brushing mine.

“Hm, if you know, then why are you trying to run from me?” he asks.

I blink at him, and I furrow my brows at his words. “I’m not; I am…” I stop myself, realizing that’s exactly what I am trying to do. He raises an eyebrow at me, his thumb brushing over my bottom lip.

“Good, I am a busy man and don’t have time for silly games of hide and seek. So, shall we?” he asks, letting me go and motioning toward his car. I glance down at my bags in my hands, knowing Clarice needs them for dinner tonight.

“I’ll return you to the castle after lunch. The king has already okayed it,” he tells me.

“You told the king who I am to you?” I ask. He nods, reaching for the bags I grip, so tightly my knuckles are straining against my skin.

“Of course. Now come on, there’s a café down the road,” he tells me, and a giddy feeling rises in my stomach. My mate wants me? He wants to keep me? He’s not rejecting me! I thought for sure when he said nothing, that meant he was going to reject me.

Chewing my lip nervously, I glance at his car.

It’s sleek and modern. He opens the door and motions for me to climb in.

My mother would have scolded me for getting in a car with a stranger, but mom always said mates were our biggest blessing.

They would love us unconditionally and never leave us.

When I was younger, I craved a relationship like my mother and father had.

Though, over the years, I never thought it would be a possibility for me.

No one would want a broken rogue for a mate.

Mom’s words flit through my head, a vague memory I hold.

“If you find your mate, and I hope you do one day, it will be the most magical experience of your life. You’ll know instantly they are yours, and you are theirs.

It’s a love that compares to nothing else,” she told me, and as I stare at him, I wonder if I will have that with this man.

Mrs. Daley always told us we would never have a mate, that we were unlovable and vile.

Hearing that enough over the years, I started to believe her.

Yet as Kade waits patiently for me to climb into his car, I wonder if Mrs. Daley had it all wrong.

“I mean you no harm. Don’t you feel the pull?” he asks, and I nod.

“You’re not thinking of rejecting me, are you, Abbie? You wouldn’t shun the Moon Goddess in such a way, would you?” Kade asks.

“No, of course not. I just didn’t expect you to want me back,” I answer honestly.

“Of course I want you. You’re my mate. Now, who doesn’t want their mate?” he asks, and my cheeks heat at his words.

“So, shall we?” he asks again, motioning toward his car. A giddy feeling bubbles up within me, and I nod, climbing into the car. He leans over me, plugging in my seatbelt before pausing as he steps away. His hand cups my cheek, his thumb brushing below my eye gently.

“You are a pretty one,” he murmurs, and tingles rush across my face, his scent inviting. I can’t help myself as I inhale deeply, his scent strong, like peppermint and white chocolate. Kade chuckles softly.

“Good to see the feeling reciprocated,” he whispers, his eyes sparkling as they go to my lips. He then clears his throat, letting me go and shaking his head as he shuts my door.