Page 19 of Lycan Prey (Little Secrets Duet #1)

· King Soren ·

One week later

After once again having to retrieve my son from the café, I watch him draw at my desk, his tongue poking out the side of his mouth as he hastily scribbles.

I’m at my wit’s end. He is out of control, and I know it’s my own fault.

I don’t give him enough attention, and I’m always too busy.

He has gotten worse since my mother left after her last visit.

Brielle’s image haunts my thoughts. There’s something about her, something that isn’t just captivating Max.

His obsession with Brielle has only grown stronger since she found him that day at the park, and the guilt I haven’t been there for my son is gnawing at me like an insatiable hunger.

Max, on the other hand, is oblivious to my struggles.

I wonder if I could ever measure up to Brielle, who seems to understand him on a level I can’t quite reach.

Max always seems to be smiling when she is near, something I don’t see much of since we lost his mother.

The thought of Brielle is both a comfort and a source of pain.

I’m torn between wanting her to fill the void in our home for Max and fearing how it might affect my relationship with my son if I did force her here.

As I contemplate these thoughts, Max finally looks up from his work, a gleaming smile on his face. “Hey, Dad, check this out!” he exclaims, proudly presenting his drawing to me. I smile, too, as I take in the picture of a childlike wonderland filled with vibrant colors and fantastical creatures.

Max reminds me so much of my late wife; everything in this castle does. I have thrown myself into work and forgot I once had a life here, and slow days only bring the torment of the memories. At least while busy my mother tends to leave me alone instead of harassing me constantly about remarrying.

Picking up the phone, I call Damian, my most trusted guard and my mother’s son before she met my father; he is my half brother but not of noble blood since that comes from my father’s side.

She was still part of the royal families, so he is still a noble by title, he just hates formalities.

Though my father likes to threaten to denounce me and replace my title with him, not that Damian ever would, he hates kingdom politics more than I do.

“Did you have a chance to look into Brielle?”

“Yes, all main databases, no hits but that isn’t uncommon for rogues.” he tells me.

“Well, keep digging. I need you to find out more about her. Discreetly. Surely, there is something on her. Where are her parents? Which pack did she come from?”

“Understood, Your Highness, though I am not sure of her last name. Marianne did tell me but it doesn’t exist which is worrisome. She should at least have a birth certificate.”

“She gave a fake last name?” I ask curiously.

“Unsure, Marianne didn’t exactly check her credentials.

Brielle told her she was a rogue and came back to look after her grandmother.

Her grandmother I found records for, but hers are a dead end, too.

I can’t even find a listing for her daughter, who she is estranged from.

I only have what I found out from Marianne. ”

“Try reaching out to other packs in the area. See if they know anything.”

“I’ve already started on that, Soren. Don’t worry, I’ll find something.

” I hang up the phone and lean back in my chair, letting out a sigh of frustration.

As much as I want to gather information on Brielle, there’s also a part of me that shies away from it.

It feels like prying into her life, uninvited and unwelcome.

Deep in thought. My eyes roam around the room, falling on a photo of my late wife and our son. The pain still feels fresh, raw. She was taken too soon, and the void she left behind is too gaping to fill. My heart is heavy.

Despite the cloud of suspicion around Brielle looming now, I cannot deny the connection I have with her. It’s not just physical, it’s something more profound, something I haven’t felt since…

I sigh deeply and glance at the clock, I have an appointment soon. Another zoom call.

As the day wears on, I find myself increasingly distracted, my duties as king blending into the background of my thoughts.

When my phone rings, it’s Damian. “Your Highness, I’ve found some information,” he reports.

“She is here looking after her grandmother as she claims. I checked the pharmacy, and went and visited her grandmother, but her grandmother seemed nervous.”

“Nervous?” I ask.

He hesitates. “Yes, like she was hiding something. I was going to order her to answer, but I worried I may kill her if I used my command on her. The woman is quite frail, but that’s not all,” he tells me.

“What else?” I ask.

“She still hasn’t registered with the council, My King. Now that is making me worry that she may be running from someone, I also put her name in the database, her last name got no matches.”

I frown, intrigued and concerned. “Keep digging, but be careful. We don’t want to alarm her.”

“Sir?” Damian questions.

I sigh, glancing at Max. “She is no threat, I don’t want her running, I know this is against protocol, but I don’t believe there to be anything sinister about her. She may just be running from an abusive ex, she doesn’t give off killer vibes. I have good intuition about these kinds of things.”

“Sir, I didn’t realize there were certain vibes to killers. The point is, we don’t know her,” says Damian, clicking his tongue.

“She can’t hurt Max; he can order her easily, she is merely a werewolf, not a Lycan,” I remind him.

Yet, as the day goes on and the sun rises higher, I feel the mindlink open up. It’s Damian and at first, I believe it’s with more information not with Brielle herself.

“Brielle is here, she found Max’s hoodie,” he tells me.

I glance at Max. “Did you leave anything at the café?” I ask Max and he smiles cheekily.

“Brielle is here?” he asks hopefully.

I nod, and the moment I do, he is racing out the door. “Max!” I yell out when I hear my phone ring. Growling, I move toward it while opening the mindlink.

“Max is on his way down, watch him while I take a call,” I tell Damian.

Snatching the phone, I move to the window.

Staring out, my gaze is fixed on Brielle and Max in the courtyard.

He leads her out as she tries to keep up with him.

He’s roped her into pushing him on the swing making me laugh.

I watch her movements… graceful yet full of life.

The sunlight catches in her lavender and pink hair, creating a halo effect that only adds to her ethereal presence.

Her laughter, light and melodic, blends with Max’s joyous shouts, creating a scene of pure happiness I rarely see on his face with Blair.

I push the window open more so I can hear them better when I’m jolted from my reverie by the yelling of my mother’s voice, reminding me I had answered her call but didn’t actually say anything.

I step away from the window, my gaze still on Brielle as she laughs and plays with Max. I shake my head, trying to clear the spell of her presence as I answer the phone.

“Hello, Soren? Are you there?” My mother’s voice floods the line, filled with the usual mix of concern and subtle prodding about my personal life.

“Yes, Mother, I’m right here, no need to screech.”

“Good good, you will never believe who we ran into. We met an old friend’s daughter who is single, Soren,” my mother suggests, her tone hopeful as I move toward the desk.

“Mother, you really need to stop playing cupid, and exactly how did you run into her?”

“Well, I was visiting Sancha, and her daughter happened to be joining us,” she says happily.

“So you didn’t run into her at all, you went hunting for the poor girl.”

“We just want you to be happy, and what is a king without a queen, son? People are talking. There have even been suggestions that you are gay, and that is why you refuse to take the hand of another,” she tells me.

“Let them talk; I don’t care what they say,” I growl. We have had this conversation more times than I care to remember.

“You haven’t been with anyone in five years, aren’t you lonely?”

Every time I speak with my parents, they bring this up. At one point, I almost said yes just to shut them up. I’m glad I didn’t.

“No, and I’m not interested in whomever you’ve tried to line me up with,” I reply as politely as I can before adding. “Also, it’s not even necessary.”

“Is it because you are gay? I could perhaps try to find you a husband, people would talk, given your status but we can work that out. I could… could get on board with this, don’t be ashamed now, son. Damian has mentioned a few times you seem a little queer,” she says and I scoff.

“Like that time he called you a… I’m sure I could get your father to come around to the idea.”

“I’m not gay, Mother, I’m just not looking for a wife.”

My gaze drifts back to Brielle as she laughs with Max, and the warmth in her eyes is unmistakable. Before I can stop myself, the words spill out of my mouth.

“I have a fiancée, Mother. Her name is Brielle.”

There’s an extended silence on the other side of the line before my mother responds: “Brielle? Did you say Brielle?” My father echoes in surprise.

“Brielle? Well, who is she? Thank Goddess, I was starting to wonder if I was needing to find you a husband, though I don’t know many personally, wait, Brielle IS a girl?” my mother rambles, her surprise evident.

“Yes, she is female.” I tell her.

“Well what is she like, when can I meet her?”

Shit, what have I done?

Of course my mother would want to meet her. Realizing what has just happened and how serious it was for me to say such a thing without Brielle’s consent or knowledge first makes me wince internally.

Idiot! I scold myself. “Oh, love, I have wonderful news,” my mother says, alerting me to my father now being near her. “Soren is engaged!” she squeals. I pull the phone away from my ear.

“Is this true, son?” he asks.

“Yes,” I confirm finally and hear both their exclamations.

“Well, son. What is she like?” my mother asks and I answer absentmindedly.

“She’s… she’s remarkable. She is captivating, and her kindness… it’s unlike anything I’ve ever known. And she’s great with Max.”

Suddenly, I’m jerked back to reality as my mother’s delighted squeal echoes through the receiver. “Oh, it sounds like you’re quite taken with her! When do we get to meet her?” The eagerness in her voice is palpable.

My stomach drops at the thought of introducing Brielle to my family. “Soon,” I say, knowing I can’t stall forever.

“And what does she look like? Is she beautiful?” my mother asks.

I glance at Brielle again, taking in her cascading waves of hair that seem to capture the sunlight, making her glow ethereally. Her eyes, as deeply captivating, sparkle with laughter, reflecting the joy she feels in this moment. Her figure is slender yet shapely, attractive but unassuming.

“She’s stunning,” I murmur into the phone, more to myself than my parents.

As the call ends, a sense of apprehension settles in. I’ve spun a tale, a falsehood, which involves Brielle without her knowing. It’s a precarious position, but I can find a way through it.

I’ll feed my parents a line over the next few months and then say it didn’t work out.

I’ll say she cheated. That I dumped her, she will be none the wiser.

At least it will get my parents off my back for a little while.

Besides, it’s not like they’ll ever meet her.

My parents are on vacation; I have a few weeks of peace at least.