Chapter 26
1567 Words
“That was graceful.” Selene said sarcastically in my mind.
“I don’t want to hear it from you.” I shot back. “You’re making me feel…all kinds of inappropriate thoughts.”
“That’s not me, sweetie. Your horniness is all on you.” She said with a laugh that echoed in my head.
“If I hadn’t left when I did, I’m almost positive I would have done what you suggested…” I trailed off.
“Stop holding yourself back, Evelette. You know you want to give in.” She said smoothly. “You know, everyone always feels stronger and more powerful after they’ve taken a roll between the sheets with their mates. The mating bond does incredible things…” She claimed, though her tone was serious.
She wasn’t wrong. The connection between mates was said to improve their overall power. It was one of the reasons Alphas were pushed so hard to find their mates–having a bonded Alpha and Luna made a pack stronger. The princes were lucky that they found their mate before becoming kings. I stopped walking suddenly and blanched. I was fated to be Queen… all at once my vision blurred and my stomach started to churn. I bent over and put my hands on my knees and took deep, steadying breaths.
I can’t be Queen. I can’t even shift! What kind of Queen will that make me? Oh my Goddess. I have to reject them. No, I don’t want to reject them. Do I? AH f*ck.
“Hey, hey, shhhhh,” I heard Selene whisper. “It’s going to be okay. You’re not becoming Queen right now, and I’m positive you will be able to shift before that time comes. It’s okay. Just live day by day.”
“It’s just…so much,” I whispered as silent tears slipped down my cheeks.
“You don’t have to do this alone. I’m here, I’ll always be here. Plus, now you have the support of two rather handsome men. Not to mention I’m sure Luke and Clay won’t abandon you. You have people, Evelette. Remember that.”
Her words helped ground me. I straightened up, took a deep breath, and pushed the anxiety aside. She’s right. I’m not alone. I continued walking toward the training ground and felt steadier with every step.
***********
When I arrived at the training grounds, it was already busy with activity. Pack warriors were busy clearing the space for the fights and it looked like there would be three separate arenas with small stadium-style benches for others to sit and watch. I saw Jack, one of the lead warriors, and I walked up to him, shaking his hand.
“What can I help with?” I asked him.
He looked around before replying. “Can you clear the areas for the other two arenas? The weights need to be relocated and the ground needs to be evened out.”
“On it.” I replied briskly and headed over.
I allowed the strain of manual labor to clear my mind. It was a relief to only have to think about what my hands were doing. When I finished my tasks, I looked around and was surprised to see that dozens of people had already started filing into the small stadium seats. I smiled inwardly as I remembered that it was my suggestion to have these fights. I was quite proud of myself for that.
As I scanned the growing crowd, I spotted Clay warming up near one of the arenas. It made sense, after everything that happened with Rina, that he’d probably need to blow off some steam. As I thought of Rina, I looked around more. I was pleased to discover that she was nowhere in sight and I vaguely wondered what hole she had crawled into to lick her wounds. Good riddance, I thought, not wanting to dwell on it any longer. She’d caused more than enough damage.
I wanted to go up to Clay to ask how he was doing, but I didn’t have time before he stepped into the arena with one of the other Lycans, Allen. I decided that there would be plenty of time to talk later considering I was 99.9% sure I was going to move to the Lycan Kingdom. So I continued to walk around and give friendly greetings to those that I passed until I reached the main arena where I was surprised to see that Ivan was fighting with one of the visiting Alphas.
My breath caught as I watched him fight the Alphas. He was shirtless. Every muscle was defined and glistening with beads of perspiration. He moved with the grace and power of a predator. His eyes were focused, dangerously sharp, and every growl he made sent a ripple of heat through my body. And might I add, the sound of that growl stirred something…deep inside of me.
I couldn’t look away.
The fight ended as quickly as it had begun. Of course, Ivan won. He stepped out of the ring, his chest heaving from the exertion, as he scanned the crowd. Our eyes locked, and a broad smile spread across his face. I couldn’t help but smile back as I walked toward him.
“I saw you fight, you did well.” I said to him as I approached.
He smirked as he wiped sweat from his forehead. “That was nothing. Just a warm-up,” he boasted, his confidence palpable. “Just wait.”
“Oh yea?” I raised an eyebrow, a playful smile on my lips. “Who are you gonna fight next? It was quite a spectacle to watch you. I wouldn’t mind if it had lasted longer…”
He winked, actually winked at me, and I was momentarily taken aback. “Longer, huh? Guess you liked what you saw.” He laughed lightly as he glanced around. “As for my next fight,I guess it’ll be whoever’s brave enough to challenge me.”
“I have a suggestion.” Rina’s voice rang clear from behind me, cold and sharp.
I froze and centered myself before turning to face her. Of course, she would show up now. She looked perfect, as always, her face smug and calculating. You’d never guess she’d been publicly rejected the night before.
Ivan, blissfully unaware of who Rina was, responded with, “Yes? What’s your suggestion?”
Rina crossed her arms and smirked. “Her.” she said with a nod of her chin towards me.
Ivan frowned, looking between us. “Who, Evelette? I don’t think that would be ap-”
“Why not?” Rina cut him off, her tone mocking. “She’s supposed to be the best fighter, isn’t she?” She air-quoted “best” and gestured to my body with disdain. “Look at her. She’s worked so hard on those muscles. Why not let her prove she’s worth something?”
Ivan’s brows furrowed as he glanced at me. “I’ll admit, she looks strong, but I don’t think it'll be a fair fight…”
I raised my eyebrows at that. Really?
“Do you think so?” I asked Ivan.
He quickly turned his head back to me and started to stumble over his words, “Well, I–um, yea, you just–”
Rina interrupted him, to step closer to me, her eyes gleaming with malice. “You should challenge him, Spiritless. Afterall, how will he know you’re worth anything if you don’t? You can’t shift, but maybe you can prove yourself useful to him as a guard.”
Ivan started to catch on to what Rina was doing and stepped toward her, effectively placing his body between her and myself. “I think it’s time that you leave now. The heat is getting to you.”
Rina scoffed. “I’m not going anywhere. I promised my father that I’d make sure the princes really knew who their mate was. It’s my duty as a loyal subject to protect the Royal Highnesses from a worthless wolf.”
Ivan’s entire demeanor shifted. His body went rigid and his hands balled into fists. “I don’t think you have a leg to stand on when considering who is a worthless wolf.” He said, voice dripping with venom.
Rina’s face changed to an expression of fear for a moment, then she quickly recovered and doubled down even further. “Good, I’m glad we agree. You can’t bring spiritless over there to the Lycan Kingdom.
Ivan was clearly about to lose his temper. “You need to leave my sight or I–”
“I’ll do it.” I interrupted.
Both Ivan and Rina looked at me. Ivan’s look was one of exasperation and Rina’s was one of surprise.
“Maybe she’s right. Maybe I need to prove myself strong enough to be your Luna and your Queen.” I said, and I stood up straighter.
Ivan turned to me, “Evelette, you don’t have to do this.”
“I know. But I also think it would be fun to kick your a**.” I said with a grin.
Ivan’s expression softened and curiosity and playfulness replaced his anger. “Alright then, “he said, a playful glint in his eye. “After you.”
I stepped into the arena to fight my mate.
- Writer
