Page 37 of The Unwanted Mate of the Lycan Kings (Unwanted #1)

Regan also looks at the rules and once again glares at Lyon, who stares blankly at the wall.

Regan snarls, grabbing my wrist and all but dragging me out of the room.

Gnash jogs beside us to keep up, and the closer we get to the bedroom, the angrier Regan gets.

His aura is like a beacon promising pain, and I gasp when he drags me into the bathroom before letting me go.

Stumbling, I barely catch myself on the towel rack.

I grit my teeth, starting to really get sick and tired of being flung around. I am about to tell him that as my temper rises, only when I spin around, his finger is in my face and his eyes are pitch black. I hold my tongue.

“You don’t break any fucking rules with him tomorrow!

” He warns me, and I feel his aura darken to something sinister around him.

“Do you fucking hear me?” he screams. I blink at him, wondering why he’s yelling at me.

It’s not like I want to go with Zeke. “If you break a single rule. He’ll use it as an excuse to fucking kill you,” Regan growls.

“Isn’t that what you want?” My voice breaks, and Regan blinks at me, almost like he is confused by his own outburst.

“Right.” He shakes his head, turning the shower on.

“Just get in the shower with me. You’ll get wet anyway,” he says, though I can tell his mind is elsewhere. He almost looks puzzled, but I’m right there with him on that. His temper changes so fast and drastically He motions for me to get in the shower.

“No,” I tell him, watching the steam rise from the hot water. He tenses, looking at the long sleeves of my dress. “I don’t care for any scars you have, you’ll get drenched,” Regan tells me, but I back away. I am not taking off this dress in front of him.

I glance at the bathtub. At least in there, I won’t have to get in with him.

“Fine,” he switches the shower off and leans over to the taps to fill the tub.

He grabs the plug, tosses it into the tub, and then starts removing his clothes.

When he drops his pants and reaches for his boxers, my eyes widen and I quickly turn away.

“Can you put bubbles in it or something?” I ask, not wanting to see him naked.

“Have you never seen a naked man before?”

I purse my lips but see him lean forward beside me to grab the bottle of soap. “You haven’t, have you?”

“I’ve seen them in pictures,” I tell him.

“What about the night Malachi found you? Surely, you saw one of them naked?”

“It was dark, and he knocked me out before he shifted back. He was wearing clothes when I saw him. I’ve seen women naked, Granny never cared for nudity, and I’ve seen ass and—” I stop, knowing how stupid it sounds that I’m nineteen and have never seen a fully naked man in the flesh.

“Seen what?” Regan chuckles and I groan. Why did I say that?

Peeking over my shoulder, he reaches forward, shutting the water off, and I see the surface of the water is covered in bubbles.

“I’m covered, happy?” I chew the inside of my lip and nod. “So you saw ass and what?” He laughs, but my face heats in embarrassment.

“Balls!” I rub my face, feeling the heat of my embarrassment paint my cheeks red.

“Nothing to be ashamed of. I know you’re a virgin and humans aren’t as comfortable with nudity as shifters are.” Regan states, leaning back in the bath. The water covers most of his chest, but not all of it.

“Just wet your hands in case Zeke intends to come to check. I’m capable of washing myself,” he tells me.

I sit on the edge of the bath and wet my hands, coating them in bubbles. “Here, hold this,” he says, offering me a washcloth. I take the wet cloth and hold it, then turn my attention to the door.

“Don’t stress about Lyon. He is a prick around Zeke, but he’s usually harmless. He’s trying not to get on Zeke’s bad side,” Regan tells me.

“What do you mean?”

“He gave you his wolf last night, didn’t he?” I look away.

“Lyon usually does what Zeke wants. It’s easier that way. Zeke can be difficult to deal with, especially for Lyon.”

“So, he’s just going along with what Zeke wants?”

Regan shrugs. “Kind of, but he has another agenda. He’s looking for information he needs from Zeke. He has no interest in marrying, but at the same time, both Lyon and I have the same thoughts about keeping our thrones and making sure Zeke doesn’t get near the High Kingdom’s throne.”

“So you and Lyon are working together to make sure he doesn’t replace your father?”

“No, by birthright, the throne is supposed to be mine. Only my father decided I’m no longer suited for it, but Lyon and I believe he has other motives.”

“Why?”

“Because...It doesn’t matter, but Lyon and I get along mostly—even if he wants the throne. We’re working together to ensure Zeke doesn’t take it until I can break the blood ties and kill him, after that, all bets are off.”

I ponder his words for a second.

“Tomorrow, you’re with Zeke. Behave and do as he says.”

“If he kills me, won’t that solve all your problems?” I ask him, confused.

“Yes, no. I don’t know...” he stops for a second.

“It’s nothing personal. I just don’t want to marry. I know there is no point in a marriage, anyway.”

“What about your brothers?” I ask, and he growls, looking up to glare at me.

“Just like the fucking rest of them,” he snarls.

“Wait, that is not what I meant! I was curious if they were cursed the same as you?” I ask him, and he watches me for a second before gripping my face and jerking me closer.

My hand falls into the water, drenching the sleeve of my dress and splashing water all over me.

My hand lands on his thigh, and I feel his aura rush out and hit me.

It steals my breath, and my entire body tenses.

“Are you using me to get to my brothers?” he snarls, and every muscle in my body tenses more.

“No!” I blurt with no restraint.

“Do you want to be with them?” he demands.

“No, I don’t want any of you!” I snap, and his eyes soften. His aura drops, and I suck in a breath when he lets me go.

“Sorry,” he murmurs, looking at the tiled wall.

I sit up, reaching for a towel to dry the sleeve of my dress, yet as I rub it, the more my arm burns.

Cursing, I stand, giving him my back to see what the burning sensation is.

When I tug my sleeve up, another of my runes seems to be losing its color and fading into a typical scar.

I quickly pull it down, knowing I have to come up with something soon.

“As if I could ever want any of you when you do nothing but fucking hurt me! What the fuck is wrong with you?” I shout.

He doesn’t answer, and I turn back and find him watching me.

“How many women have used you to get to your brothers for you to be so damn insecure? Especially about a woman you fucking hate. I only asked a damn question.” I drop back onto the edge of the bath.

“All of them,” he answers, making me look at him.

“All of them?”

“Yes, even before I was cursed. Only now the blood tie with my brothers worsens it.”

“The blood tie, is that from the curse?”

He looks away. “No, from when she saved Zeke’s life,” Regan mutters. “Now I question if I should have let him die. If I had, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” he murmurs.

“Who is she?” I ask, becoming more confused.

“Litha...” my mind is reeling. Is that the same woman, Malachi, and Regan were talking about that was burned at the stake? Why would they kill her if she saved one of them?

“I don’t understand. Who is Litha?” I ask him and he looks up at me.

“She was a witch.” He speaks the words as if it’s a haunting memory he wishes to forget.

My brows pinch in confusion. “But you hate witches.”

“I do now. I didn’t back then.”

“You hate witches, even though Zeke was saved by one?”

“She didn’t do it to save him, and she didn’t just tie me to my brothers. She knew by tying me to them, I would never let harm come to them. Even if it made them hate me, even if it meant sacrificing my own desires. She made sure I would always choose them.”

I was becoming more confused by the second.

I open my mouth to ask another question but stop, not knowing what to ask exactly.

Regan sighs. “The witch who was killed wasn’t just a witch. She was changed into a lycan. She was mates with King Edgar.”

“And who is he?”

“He was my father’s rival. He’s dead now. The High Kingdom used to be his until ours overrun it.”

“So this place wasn’t yours first?” Regan shakes his head.

“No, King Edgar was a dictator to his people. Cruel, unjust and he did unfathomable things, stealing Litha was one of them. Yet in the end the mate bond prevailed, it ruled over her and eventually him. Litha forgave him, she even loved him. She changed him, turned the kingdom around, but by that time, it was too late. The damage was done, and he would die for his crimes. He made far too many enemies,” Regan tells me.

“That’s how the curse started?” I ask and Regan nods. I go to open my mouth to ask another question when Regan tilts his head to the side, trapping me in his lethal gaze.

“Why do you care?” he asks.

“Probably for the same reason you’re telling me, Regan,”

“Why am I telling you this?” he mutters to himself, a form creasing between his eyes.

“Maybe for the same reason I want to know—because I’m as baffled as you—but it’s better than not talking right now. I could awkwardly watch you wash in silence if you prefer,” I offer, and he chuckles.

“So, your father’s rival?”