WARBOUND LUNA: Claimed by the enemy Alpha

JORLENE’S POV “Do you consent to Jared Blaze taking the seat of the Alpha, as your mate, to continue father's reign?” “I do,” I responded with a broad smile, a mix of happiness and pride ran through me. “Jared would make one lovely Alpha,” I whispered to my maid, very confident and she nodded. I stood by the window and watched as the rain washed the glass and rolled down the slits. I loved the sound of the rain and the sight of it soaking the floors was something I found satisfying. “Good afternoon, Alpha,” my maid's voice drew my attention to the door. She bowed her head and hurried out of the room. “Honey,” I called to him, “I did not hear you walk in,” “Of course, you didn't,” his reply was sharp. “Is there a problem?” I probed, baffled by the cut his tone came with. “Yes! Yes! There is a problem.” He closed the gap between us, “the problem is, you lie around uselessly all day, every day!” He yelled, “you don't contribute anything meaningful to the increase of this pack and it's frustrating. The mere sight of you, at this point, is infuriating.” I could not believe the words that proceeded from his mouth. They flew straight to my heart like flint knives, but I managed to be calm. I took a deep breath and took a step backward. “What would you like me to do to improve your reign as Alpha?” I asked Jared, “I don't know! Do something! Anything!” I realized at that moment that there was no point to this. This complaint was now frequent. It was another outburst–the fifth in three days. “Jared, I want to help you. Believe me, I do want to make the burden lighter, but we're not officially together.” I said, softly, “you promised that a few weeks after you assumed my father's throne, we'll have our mating ceremony, but it's been nine months and we're still yet to. My powers are limited,” “There we go again! Complaining!” He rolled his eyes at me. “In the nine months I've been Alpha, have you seen me take a minute break? Do I look like I have the time to afford a mating ceremony?” He furrowed his brows at me. “Be real, Jorlene!” He stormed to the door, “and make yourself useful around here!” He added, just before he slammed the door in my face. I took a deep breath. “My princess,” my maid ran back in. “He didn't…” “He has changed, Claire,” I said, followed by a deep sigh. “He was never like this. I must be doing something wrong,” “No! Don't do that! I won't let you do that,” Claire protested. She was about my age and had been with me since I was thirteen. By the time I was eighteen, she was more of a sister than a maid. “He has no right to speak to you like that or treat you like he does. You are the reason he has the office he claims to be busy with. Besides, your father held the same office and he never…” “That's enough, Claire!” I snapped at her. She went mute, more like she had just been reminded she was still my maid. “Where are you going?” She probed, as I headed for the door. “Going to make myself more useful to my mate,” I replied, “whatever I'm doing wrong, I need to fix it.” I closed the door behind me and went to the kitchen. “Princess!” There were about four maids in the kitchen, prepping for dinner. They all paid their respect as soon as I walked in. “I'll make dinner tonight,” I said. The entire room froze, they all poured their gazes on me, like I was sick or out of my mind. “Uhm…Princess,” the eldest of the maids stepped forward. “We have things covered here. You don't have to lift a finger,” she said softly, “where is Claire?” She yelled, looking around for her. “I didn't wander here because Claire left me unsupervised.” I said, “I'm not a child anymore. I just want to make one meal.” I insisted. I saw the hesitation in her eyes, her body language was too much confirmation. The radio silence prolonged for another half a minute. “Very well then,” the eldest maid, Nana, said. With one gesture, she requested all the maids out. “I'll be close by if you need anything,” she said and then walked out behind them. “Thank you,” I nodded. ‘Maybe, just maybe this was going to make Jared remember all the times we spent in his little dorm room at knight school, eating meals that we made.’ I thought. My heart was heavy. I could feel my mate slipping right out of my hands. The meal prep was already more than half way through when I got to the kitchen, so it took me a short while to finish and then get started. As I pushed through, I heard loud noises coming from outside. At first, I tried to shove it away, but then it grew louder and even more chaotic. I stretched my neck and looked out the window, but I couldn't see anything. I feared to leave the kitchen to check. For all I knew, it could be nothing and Jared was going to see me as being useless and running towards where I was not needed. “Focus, Jo,” I whispered to myself. I had a plan and I needed to stick to it. The noise didn't stop and a few seconds later, Claire came running in. “Princess! Princess!!” She called, breathing heavily and pointing out the kitchen door. “What is it, Claire?” My heart was racing and my entire body was shaking. I eagerly waited, but Claire wouldn't speak–she could barely breathe. “Talk to me! What is happening?” I demanded a response, but all Claire kept doing was pointing and I lost every pinch of patience in me. I ran in the direction she was pointing, pushing her out of the way.