Best Friends Mated to Royalty

Chapter 10

Maya’s POV

I wake up the morning of my eighteenth birthday to a voice in my head chanting “Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday!” It’s only a little after sunrise in the morning.

“Hellooooo!!! Can you hear meeeee! Happy Birthday!” I hear the strange female voice again.

“Whose there? And why are you yelling?” I ask no one in particular.

“It’s me!” The unknown voice yells.

“Whose me?” I say back.

“I’m your wolf, Jade!” Jade yells.

Oh, that’s right, today is my birthday.

“It’s nice to meet you, Jade. Can you please stop yelling? You're giving me a headache.” I tell Jade in my head.

“Oh, sorry. You just weren’t responding to me. I figured I just needed to talk louder.” Jade says in a much quieter voice.

“No, I was just sleeping. My mom planned a huge birthday party today for our first shift. It’s going to be a long day.” I sigh.

“We can’t shift tonight.” Jade says.

“What do you mean we can’t shift tonight?” I ask her.

“We can’t shift until the full moon in two weeks.” Jade tells me.

“Why?” I ask “Every wolf shifts on their eighteenth birthday without an issue.” I told her. I think she is just being scared.

“I am not scared! We aren't normal wolves! We are special! If we shift before the first full moon after our eighteen birthday. We will die! Believe me or not, it’s the truth!” Jade screams in my head.

“Okay, okay, I believe you. What makes us so special?” I ask. She has piqued my curiosity.

“I will explain everything after we shift. Right now, you need to keep everything a secret. You can’t tell your mom or anyone else I refuse to shift. You’ll have to make up some excuse.” She tells me.

“It’s a run for my birthday. How am I supposed to make up an excuse?”

“Tell her you want to do it in private.” Jade says.

“I have to admit that’s a pretty good excuse.” I say.

“Okay, get ready for your party. You're going to be beautiful and have so much fun!” Jade says.

I roll my eyes.

“Yeah, fun. I guess.” I think.

I groan and drag myself out of bed. I am not looking forward to today. I’m really not someone who enjoys the attention of other people.

The King. Ugh I almost forgot about him. Why did he have to be tall and handsome? Why couldn’t he have been old with wrinkles and a limp? I dreamed about him last night. I have only seen him once, but my brain memorized every detail of his handsome face. My body craves his touch even though I have barely talked to him. Every inch of my mind and body ache for the king and I don’t know why. There is not a single man on the planet that has ever affected me like this. Not even an hour spent with the king and he invades my dreams.

I shake my head and get into the shower. I don’t need my unwelcome thoughts of the king invading my mind today. Today I have to be the princess of Moon Cry. The daughter of the strongest Alpha in the kingdom. I can’t appear weak.

I wash myself with a coffee scrub to make my skin glow. Then I use a coffee coconut scented body wash to scrub my body from head to toe. I lather a maple scented shampoo into my hair and massage my scalp. I rinse it out and massage the matching conditioner into the entire bottom half of my long dark hair. I leave the conditioner on my hair while I lather up my legs in a coconut bliss shaving cream and shave them. I also lather my lady parts and my armpits and shave them. I rinse out my hair and give myself another good scrub with my coffee coconut body wash before I thoroughly rinse off and hop off of the shower.

I take my favorite fluffy purple towel off of the towel rack and dry off my entire body. I grab a separate towel for my hair. I pat my hair dry and then wrap it up in a ball on the top of my head. I walk out of my bathroom and into my bedroom. I drop the towel from both my hair and my body. I walk over to my vanity and grab my bottle of coconut coffee scented lotion and lather my entire body in it.

After that’s done I begin working on my head and face. I apply some leave-in conditioner to my hair along with some curl cream. I begin to blow dry my hair with a round brush so I can begin curling it. Once it is fully dry, I look like a lion. I plug my large barrel curling iron in and wait for it to warm up. While I’m waiting I apply some moisturizer and primer to my face. I apply a layer of foundation, a layer of setting powder, some bronzer, blush, and a ton of highlighter. When I am done with my face makeup I move onto my eyes. I smoke out my eyes with silver and black eye shadow and then apply a layer of shiny metallic eye shadow to my lid. I blend everything together and put on some mascara and some false eyelashes. To complete my look I apply some nude matte lipstick.

After I am finished with my full face of makeup I grab my curling iron and begin the agonizing process of curling each strand and pining it up to let it cool down. Once I finish, I unpin everything letting my long curled locks fall around my shoulders and down to my waist. I pin up about half of my hair in an updo and leave plenty of it flowing around my body. I check my makeup one last time and then head into the closet to put my dress on.

My dress is a silver dress with a plunging neckline in the front and an open back. The silky material falls past my feet and ends in a train in the back. The entire bodice of the dress is covered in crystals. I feel like a walking disco ball.

I slip my dress on and pair it with a pair of silver heels that are also covered in crystals. I place diamond hoops in my ears and a diamond bracelet on my wrist. I grab a tiny silver clutch and place my phone in it. I also put some extra makeup in it for touch ups later on.

I check the wall clock in my bedroom. 1pm holy crap! It’s almost time for the party to start. I take one last look in the mirror. I have to admit I am beautiful. This dress really compliments my shape and skin color.

I grab my clutch and begin my trek downstairs. I say a prayer to the Moon Goddess that the night goes smoothly.

King Conal POV

I look at myself standing in front of the mirror. I wear an expensive three piece suit. It is a pair of black suit pants with a black jacket. My undershirt is the color of a midnight sky. I don’t wear a tie. Instead I leave the top two buttons of my undershirt open and the suit jacket open as well.

I hope this party goes by fast. I agreed to attend because Alpha Richard is a very good family friend and a strong Alpha in the Kingdom. It does not change the fact I have tons of work waiting for me at home. Being twenty one years old, I feel I have grown out of my partying stage. Now, what is required of me is to put up a good strong image as the King, not to enjoy the party.

I heard a knock on the door and I sigh. I guess it’s time to go already. I go open the door and on the other side stands Reese and Topaz.

“Hey!” They both say.

“Are you ready boss?” Topaz asks.

They know as well as I do that we are here for the appearance of the kingdom and not to have fun.

“Ready to get this over with.” I grumble.

Both of my closest friends laugh at me.

“It won’t be that bad.” Topaz laughs. “We can party when we get home if you are in need of it.” Topaz says.

She grabs my arm and pulls me out of the room. Reese grabs onto my other arm and yanks me down the hallway. I am being marched down the hall like a prisoner.

We all have smiles on our faces. “This will be the most fun we have today.” I think to myself.

They both release me once we reach the elevator. We all climb in and off we go.

Maya’s POV

I stand for the first two hours of the party greeting the guests. I thank them for coming and make sure they have a beverage brought to them and something to snack on if they wish.

My feet are already sore and it’s only the beginning of the long night. I haven’t spotted anyone from my family yet or any of my friends. I hope they don’t plan to just ditch me.

After about another hour of greeting guests I finally spotted Alice. At least there’s someone that I know here now. I swear my mother invited half of the kingdom and she doesn’t even have the decency to show up herself. I huff and walk over to Alice.

“Where were you?” I ask.

“Oh, me and Reese went out to lunch before the party. Kind of a date before a date to get to know each other.” She says and her face flushed with embarrassment.

I’m a little angry that she hasn’t been here, but after what my brother did to her I don’t blame her for wanting to get to know Reese more.

“How’d it go? I want details!” I squeal. I’m really happy the Moon Goddess gave her a second chance. Alice is the one person I truly believe deserves to be happy.

Alice laughs, “I’ll tell you later.” She says.

“Fine, but you have to tell me later.” I say.

“I promise. Now, let’s go find the rest of your family.” Alice says.

She grabs my hand and we lock fingers together. We walk out to the pack house gardens. This is where the party is being held. There are so many people gathered around mingling with one another. I really don’t understand why my mother would invite so many people to a birthday party.

We spotted my parents standing over by the edge of the water. They are deep in conversation with an Alpha from another pack. As we walk over by them I catch a few words they are saying but none of it makes sense. It almost sounds like they are speaking a foreign language.

When they see us approach, all the conversation comes to a halt.

“Happy Birthday!” Echoes through the crowd. I know I’m going to be hearing that a lot today.

“Hey Mom. Hey Dad.” I say when we get close enough for them to hear me through the chatter of the crowd.

“Hey sweetie.” My mom replies.

“Hey Birthday girl!” My dad yells.

I blush at his loud voice. I guess there goes nothing.

“Can I talk to you guys about something? In private.” I ask them. I am scared of what my parents are going to think about my shift being pushed off two weeks.

“Sure sweetie.” My mom replies.

My dad goes to say something but he is silenced with one look from my mother. She leads both of us back to the house and up to my dad's office.

My mother turns to me and asks “What did you want to talk about?”

I take a deep breath and clasp my hands in front of me to be sure they don’t shake.

“I don’t want to shift tonight. I want to do it in private.” I say but it comes out more of a whisper.

Right on cue my dad explodes.

“WHY NOT? YOU ARE THE DAUGHTER OF A STRONG ALPHA!” He is cut off by my mom smacking him. She turns to me.

“Is there a reason why you don’t want to shift tonight?” She is much calmer than my father.

“I don’t want to make a fool out of myself.” I feel guilty for lying to them but there’s no other option. I trust my wolf.

“Okay, you don’t have to.” My mom says with a forced smile.

“Really? Just like that I don’t have to shift? No more fighting about it?” I ask. I’m suspicious.

“You don’t have to shift tonight. No more talk about it.” My mom says with another forced smile.

She pushes me toward the door and whispers in my ear “Go mingle, I’ll handle your father.”

I walk back out into the yard and go to find Alice. But, I stop in my tracks when the scent of coffee beans and caramel hits my nostrils.

“Mate!” Jade howls in my head.

“Get to mate!” Jade says.

“What if I don’t want a mate?” I ask panicking that it will result in what happens with Alice and my brother.

Jade’s voice softens “We have a good mate. Trust me.”

“Okay.” I say.

I begin to follow the scent of coffee beans and caramel. The scent is leading me back to the house. I follow it into the kitchen and spot two men. One is my mate and the other is Reese, Alice’s mate. They seem to be laughing and pouring themselves whiskey.

My mate freezes and sets the glass of whiskey down. I hear Reese say “hey man what’s wrong?”

My mate slowly turns around to look at me and I am met with two beautiful eyes. They look like burnt orange embers. A loud growl erupts out of his chest followed by “Mate!”

He slowly walks toward me like he would walk toward a shy animal. As if he’s afraid I’m going to disappear. When he gets close enough he takes his hand and raises it to my face to stroke my cheek. Where his thumb touches my cheek a tingling sensation erupts on my skin sending pleasant chills down my spine and spreading warmth through my body.

“Mate.” He repeats. This time almost a whisper.

“Yes.” I responded.

“What’s your name, pretty little mate?” He asked me. His deep voice hits a sensitive spot inside of me making my core flood with warmth.

“Maya.” I responded. “What’s yours?”

He chuckles a little bit at me like he’s making fun of me and I frown.

“Conal.” He says with a smile.

I jerk myself out of his hold and fall on my butt. “As in… King Conal?” I shriek.

Again with a laugh. “Yes, I am King Conal. Your mate. So you may call me Conal.”

“Holy s**t, I am mated to the king. Holy s**t!” I think to myself.

Jade is in my head rolling with laughter.

“You traitor! You said I would have a good mate!” I yell at Jade in my head.

“He hasn’t done anything bad.” Jade replies.

“May I help you up, my queen?” Conal asks while extending a hand toward me.

I place my hand in his without a word and he pulls me to my feet. Once I am upright I feel him kiss my cheek and a hot sensation of pleasure erupts where he kissed me.

“You are going to be my queen.” Conal says.

Conal’s POV

I walk around the party with Reese right next to me. Topaz goes off to mingle with some other gammas and talk about war tactics. Reese and I spend time going from Alpha to Alpha making sure people are happy with the assistance they are receiving from the royals. We must show a happy passive face to the public. Truth be told, being king is exhausting and annoying, but it’s one of the most rewarding jobs one could ever have if you ask me.

After an hour or so of walking around and mingling with the people from the packs. Reese turns to me and asks “Boss, can we go get some drinks?”

I have to agree with him. I could really use a drink after the trip and then mingling.

“Yeah, let’s go.” I say.

We walk to the kitchen and find the liquid gold cabinet. Reese digs until he finds an expensive bottle of whiskey. He grabs two glasses and pours some in each. He hands one to me and takes one for himself. We both tip our heads back and drink it in one swallow. I slam my glass down on the table and relish the burning sensation in the back of my throat. Reese pours us each another glass. Just as I grab my second glass the most decadent smell of fresh baked blueberry pie hits my nostrils. I freeze. I can hear Reese asking me what’s wrong but I don’t respond to him.

“After all these years of waiting, could it really be? Could I really find my mate?” I think to myself.

“Mate!” My wolf says. “Turn around. Mate!” He says.

Slowly I set the glass of whiskey down on the table and turned around to look at the most beautiful girl in the entire world. After all this time I meet the eyes from my dream. The green eyes with their beautiful gold edges.

I walk right up to her

“Mate.” I say.

“Yes.” She responds.

“What’s your name, pretty little mate?” I ask her.

“Maya. What’s yours?” She says. Her voice is a wonderful sound, the most beautiful sound I have ever heard.

“Conal.” I say with a smile.

My beautiful mate jerks herself out of my hold and falls on her butt. “As in… King Conal?” She shrieks.

I laugh. “Yes, I am King Conal. Your mate. So you may call me Conal.” I tell my pretty little mate.

She sits on the ground looking stunned at me.

Blaze is in my head obsessing over how pretty our mate is. He is also telling me over and over to put a pup in her.

“May I help you up, my queen?” I ask while extending a hand toward her.

She places her tiny hand in mine without a word and I pull her to her feet. Once she is upright I kiss her cheek and a hot sensation of pleasure erupts where I kissed her all over my lips.

“You are going to be my queen.” I say.

I pull my beautiful mate into my arms and I turn around and wink at Reese.

“Reese, this is your Luna and Queen. Please spread the word.” I say to Reese.

“Maya is one of my closest friends and the Royal Beta Reese.” I tell my beautiful mate.

“It’s nice to meet you!” Maya says.

I walk out of the house and into the yard where the party is in full swing. I keep my queen by my side at all times. Now that I have found her I am not going to let her go.

“Happy Birthday beautiful.” I whisper in her ear.

“Thank you Conal.” She responds.

“I can’t wait to give you your birthday present.” I tell her and I wink. She blushes a deep shade of red. I intend to make her do that plenty later.

Maya’s POV

Conal takes me around the party and begins introducing me to the alphas from packs around the kingdom. We spend hours enjoying each other's embrace and talking to strangers. We eat plenty of food. My mother had caterers specializing in many different dishes at my party. There’s everything from Italian, Chinese, Greek, to finger food. By the end of the night I am stuffed with delicious food and ready to go to bed.

I attempt to break away from Conal with the excuse it’s time for bed.

“What about your shift?” Conal asks me.

“I am not shifting tonight. I prefer to do it in my own privacy.” I tell him the lie me and my wolf came up with.

“If you don’t shift before Midnight you will die along with your wolf.” He says with panic in his voice.

“Jade?” I call out in my head.

“Yeah?” She responds.

“Can I explain to our mate?” I pleaded with her.

“You can only tell him that I refuse to shift and I promise you that nothing bad will happen.” She says before she puts a block up.

“Conal?” I ask.

“Yes, beautiful?” He says.

“Can you follow me?” I ask him.

“Why?” He asks.

“I need to explain something to you in private.” I tell him pleading with my eyes.

With a sigh he reluctantly holds his hand out for me to take. I eagerly take his hand and pull him in the direction of my bedroom.

Once we make it up the Alpha floor and into my bedroom I sit down on the bottom of my bed. I pat the space next to me. My handsome mate looks increasingly uncomfortable.

“Why do you look so uncomfortable?” I ask him.

“Are you planning to have s*x with me to make me forget about your shifting issues?” He asks with a pained expression on his face.

I burst into giggles and got out of bed. I walk over to my mate and place my hands on his chest.

“No, I need to explain something to you and other than my dad's office this is the only place that is soundproof.” I will explain.

A smirk forms on my mate's face, but before he can say anything I pull him over to my bed and nudge him to sit down with me.

Once he is seated

“I need you to try to be open minded. Okay?” I ask.

“I will listen to what you have to say, beautiful.” He tells me with pure sincerity in his eyes.

I take a deep breath and begin to explain.

“When I received my wolf this morning, we talked about the birthday party my parents were having for us. I told her all the details , including about my shift. She vaguely told me that we can’t shift just yet. That it won't kill me and it’s required if I want to stay alive.” I burst out my answer all in one breath and so fast I’m not sure he even understood me.

“So, you said your wolf doesn’t want to shift just yet?” He asks with a smile.

“Yes.” I tell him confused at why he picked that up and isn’t freaking out about me dying or something.

“Did she say anything else?” He asked me.

“No, she said that I’ll figure it all out in due time.”

“You mean she didn’t give you a specific date?” He questioned.

I freeze. “Should I tell him?”I think

“Yes, tell him it’s going to be during the full moon.” Jade says. I can hear the curiosity in her voice.

“My wolf said that I can tell you it’s going to be in two weeks and it has to be during the full moon.” I told him. I begin picking at my nail polish. I’m nervous.

“Now it’s my turn to explain something to you.” My mate says with a handsome smile.

“This is not common knowledge of the public but when you are a royal we grow up studying about different species and hybrids is one we spend extensive time on. Specific hybrids like a werewolf/fey hybrid or werewolf/witch hybrid need to shift under the first full moon after their eighteenth birthday. If they were to shift on their eighteenth birthday without having the full moon present they would perish slowly within two weeks.” He tells me.

I feel like a truck hit me. I could be a hybrid? Neither one of the parents that raised me is a witch or a fey. Which means either my dad isn’t my real dad or my mom isn’t my real mom. I sit frozen in place.

“Are you okay?” I feel my mate stroke my cheek and the tingles that follow his every touch.

“I guess I’m just shocked. If I am a hybrid that means one of my parents isn’t my actual parent.” I say. A sudden unnerving question pops into my head and before I can think it over it slips out of my mouth…

“Will you reject me if I am a hybrid?” I spill out panic in my voice.

I see anger flash in his eyes. His eyes turn black for a mere second.

“No I won’t. I won’t reject my fated mate from the Moon Goddess no matter what.” He says.

“Thank the Goddess!” I think to myself.

Conal’s POV

My little mate asks me to speak with her alone before she takes me up to her room. I grow suspicious. I don’t want to have s*x with her if she is hiding something. She beckons for me to sit next to her on the bed, but I stay standing. I want to talk about the issue and not avoid it. When she begins to tell me about her wolf and all of her worries it begins to make sense.

The knowledge about hybrids is hidden from everyone beside the Royals and hybrids themselves. It makes sense she is nervous about telling me that her wolf has a strange wish for her. Every wolf knows they have to shift by midnight on their eighteenth birthday or risk death. However, when you are trained about the hybrid, there is one exception. If you are a witch/werewolf hybrid or a fey/werewolf hybrid you need to wait until the first full moon after your eighteenth birthday or face the possibility of death.

The gears in my brain work at full speed as she is telling me all of the information. She is a hybrid, or her wolf has a death wish. More than likely she is a hybrid. The information is a lot for anyone to take in. I’m sure she is the kind of girl who always thought her parents were fated and impossibly in love. In this case, that’s highly unlikely. Maya is Moon Cry Pack’s princess, but she is also most definitely a bastard child.

I explain to her the facts about hybrids and she seems to relax a bit. It must be stressful having your wolf tell you not to shift on your birthday even though that's what you have been taught your entire life.

I am furious when my beautiful mate asks me if I will reject her. I struggle against my wolf. He wants to come out and claim her immediately. She is my queen. I don’t care if she is an omega or a hybrid or a full royal wolf like myself. She is mine.