chapter four
1222 Words
"That may hurt."
She had been so engrossed with the ring she hadn't heard anyone come in. Distracted. Yet again not a good sign.
"Putting your hand into fire might hurt. Fire is usually… hot."
She didn't need to turn to know who the i***t talking to her was, but she did nonetheless.
He was sitting on her bed in a bloody livery taking off his shoes.
Though he had made it to his pack to give orders to his beta after her soldiers had attacked him, he hadn't changed his borrowed livery. He didn't want her to know just yet who he truly is. If she accepted him as a footman she had accepted him because she wanted to not for any other reason.
He raised his head and saw as she looked at him scrutinizing.
"Like what you see?"
There's no way he's alive, he'd have had to kill all three of her men.
She thought.
"Impossible."
"Impossible that you can't like what you see? Or that you don't like what you see? Well, I honestly don't think I can blame you if you choose the latter. Covered in blood and all even I don't like myself right now. Seeing as I'm trying to woo a damsel who has my heart I should be looking my best as always. But since she's so determined to kill me, I can't take complete blame."
She continues to look at him trying to control her anger.
"You can't get rid of me. I will pester you, and I will be everywhere and-"
"I will pluck out your left eye and feed it to my crow."
"You have a crow? That's very interesting. As a pet I assume? What do you call it?"
"Idiot."
"You named your pet i***t?"
"No, you're an i***t and I am going to kill you."
She pulled out a small sharp knife from the folds of her gown and threw it at him before he could move.
It brushed past his forearm neatly slicing skin.
"You threw a knife at me!"
He said while tearing a part of his livery and using it to stop the bleeding in his forearm.
"That was a warning. I do not miss."
"You know I had thought about how our first actual conversation would be. You know the-not-one-sided type I had a lot of ideas, but as you're full of surprises the first sentence you say to me is about how you want to pluck my left eye. Ciara would laugh at that." He chuckled.
"Who is Ciara?"
"Jealous now are we."
"Out."
"What? You're not throwing any more knives?"
He feigned surprise.
"No."
"And here we are. Back to mono wordings."
"Out."
"No. You sit down it's time you listen to what I have to say."
She remained in her standing position.
"Very well, stand if you wish. I had a dream I saw someone I assume was your mother. She led me to you."
She waited for him to continue as she recalled her dream.
"It was strange. She knew my name and she was burning in the fire."
"What?"
"It wasn't burning her though. She seemed immune. I knew it wasn't a normal dream so I followed it and it led me to you."
"You were led by your dream?"
"I know it sounds silly. I was even asked if my long lost brothers would come to shove me into a well since I'm Joseph." He laughed.
"You're not."
"I know."
"It doesn't make sense."
"It does."
"Do you have any brothers?"
"No, but-"
"Your father. Would he have sired children outside his marriage?"
"My father was an honorable and faithful man I will not have his memory-"
"Would he?"
"No."
"Exactly."
"The point is-"
"Moot."
"It-"
"Nonsense."
"She didn't mean literally when she said it."
"Who? Kiana?"
"Yes, Ciara."
"No wonder."
He scoffed in amazement.
"You have an awful habit of cutting people off."
"It is not a habit. I just wanted to."
"You're slightly fun you know. Just slightly."
Her demeanor instantly changed.
"Woah. I can see the shields sliding up. You don't want to have fun? Fine, I withdraw my words."
"What message have you brought?"
"What?"
"I do not like to repeat myself. You're a footman sent to deliver a message. What is it."
"Oh. oh."
He stood up and started.
"The Alpha of the blue moon pack sends his condolences on the recent death of the former Alpha. And asks as is tradition to renew the alliance between both packs."
"When?"
"We may start anytime you are ready.
The Alpha is not available at the moment and since the alliance needs to be renewed soonest. I have been sent in his place to go through with the procedure then he will come on the night of the new moon."
He gave a self-satisfied smirk.
"You are stuck with me till the next new moon."
She sighed. That was three weeks under the same roof with this i***t. She was on the verge of telling him to tell his Alpha that he could either come himself or forget about the alliance. But even she knew her limits, he didn't need the alliance, while she was the Alpha of one of the giants of packs, he was the Alpha of the giants of the giant of packs.
The difference was clear.
He watched as a thousand wheels seemed to be spinning in her head. Then moving to the chaise she finally sat down and said.
"Busy? He's with a woman isn't he?"
Alex silently chuckled in his head.
"You're not wrong."
"You are supposed to be loyal to your Alpha and give away his private information."
"I find myself wanting to be more private with you." He motioned his brows suggestively. "Besides he doesn't mind."
"If I were your Alpha I'd have your head in my hands."
He moved to the chaise and sat with her then faced her palm up and rested his head on them and smiled up at her.
"You're my Alpha. my head is in your hands."
She roughly shoved his head away but as she did the strands of his hair caught in the space where both sides of her ring met, she deliberately yanked her hand and ripped off some of his hair and smiled as he yelped in pain and sat up.
He put a hand to where the was ripped from to check for blood and found it.
"You're bloodthirsty."
"I want the ring off."
"I'm afraid I can't do anything about it now."
"You can."
"Actually yes but I don't want to."
She fixed him a stare.
"That won't work on me. I'll make you a deal by the end of the three weeks if you still wish to remove it that is."
"No."
"No? You're not even going to hear me out?"
"I said what I said."
"As acting Alpha I'll be around you a lot to see if you're worthy of the alliance - I of course already know that you are worthy of it and more- but just for the show and proximity we're doing this the right way. Everyone has a breaking point even you Thena."
"Do not use my name."
He walked to the door smirking and said.
"Goodbye, for now, my Enchantress."
- Writer
