Sofia bit her lower lip, as she took a step closer toward the bathtub. "Al- alpha... do you want me to help you take a bath?"
"If you step within my arm’s reach, I will not hesitate to snap your neck," Cane said, he didn’t raise his voice at all, but Sofia felt her heart stop beating for a second, as his tone dripped with harsh warning.
There was something in the way Cane said those words that made Sofia believe Cane would do exactly what he said without a doubt.
Mortified, she took a step back, putting her arms around her stomach out of instinct, as she feared him. This was not the man she remembered. The Alpha that night was very attentive and considerate toward her.
The man that night was not this cold.
"Alpha, I am carrying your child..." Sofia sobbed, tears started rolling down her cheeks again. Her eyes were very swollen, as if she spent the last few hours doing nothing, but crying.
Great. Cane had been trying to take his mind off of the thoughts of his mate, so he could simmer down, but right now, he was completely turned off.
He was not sure whether he should be glad or annoyed at this point.
"I will see you later after the party ends, make sure you are still awake." Cane then grabbed the towel and stood up.
His movements were so fast, until Sofia couldn’t even catch a glimpse of his lower body before he covered it and stepped out of the bathtub. Water dripped down to the floor, as he walked toward his and Iris’ bedroom, half naked.
Sofia was too shocked to process what Cane just said, so she stood there, until the Alpha disappeared behind the door, leaving his masculine scent behind.
He wanted to see me? He wanted me to wait for him?
Sofia stopped crying and there was this sweet smile on her lips, as her heart fluttered. "See? Your father wants to see us. You don’t need to worry, baby, your father cares for you, everything will be fine and this will be our pack. We will live here happily."
Sofia was clueless what was waiting for her later that night.
Meanwhile, Cane returned to his bedroom with an expression so dark it startled Iris. She was wearing a black dress with golden thread work, the color of this pack, because Cane would wear the same colors as well. After all, this was a formal meeting with the King.
"What happened?" Iris asked, she approached Cane and stopped herself before she was too close to him, and blushed at the sight of his naked chest.
This was not the first time for her to see him half naked like this, but she couldn’t stop herself from thinking about last night. Was that Cane? Or actually Lu?
She wished it was not Lu, but then if it was Cane... Iris couldn’t stop blushing. She lowered her head and saw Cane close the distance between them. He moved fast, leaving a trail of water behind him and pinched her chin with both of his fingers, tilting her head to look at himself.
"Why are you blushing?" Cane asked. He stared deep into her eyes. He was tempted to kiss her slightly parted lips and suck her tongue, but then there would be no end to that and he had taken the pain to be turned off by Sofia. He shouldn’t re-start the fire, lest he get burned.
Cane was not sure why, but his desire for her was almost alarming. This kind of lust only transpired when he was seduced or consumed any floence powder, but then he was sure the damned lycan didn’t drink anything like that and Iris didn’t even try to seduce him.
"I am not," Iris denied the accusation, but it only turned her face even redder.
Cane’s lips tugged upward into a beautiful smile. He thought, after what happened and everything she had gone through, he would lose this side of her. He didn’t know how much he liked her bashful side until he thought he would never see it again.
"What? What are you smiling at? I am not blushing!"
Probably because Iris had been very stern with Lu and always talked to him firmly, since the lycan frustrated her greatly, she looked a little bit feisty right now when she talked to Cane.
However, Cane didn’t mind it, he leaned over and kissed her lips. He cupped her face between his palms, as he caressed her ears and pinched her earlobes.
On the other hand, Cane had heard about this massive number of warriors that the King brought with him. He knew what the King wanted to imply by showing off his power like this. He wanted to remind Cane that he was within his palm and even if he was the only alpha in the south right now, his power was nothing against the royals.
"A show of power," Cane said simply, his eyes fixed on the front carriage, which looked so extravagant. That must be the King’s carriage because it was emblemed with the royal crest.
Alpha Dristan frowned, but then he understood, though it took him more than five minutes to get it.
There were two alphas in this pack right now and both of them were the only people who had control over the only two mines in this realm. If one was the richest pack, then the other, for sure, would be the Alpha with the largest territory, if everything went well.
Meanwhile, Iris stood beside Cane, she looked so beautiful with the sunlight falling on her auburn hair, not to mention how elegantly the color of her dress contrasted with her skin and hair color. Albeit her being physically smaller than the men around her, you would easily find her among the crowd.
The carriage stopped and tension filled the air when the head of the royal guards announced the arrival of the King and Lady Cyan.
Sir Elijah immediately approached the carriage and opened it, as the King descended from the grand carriage followed by Lady Cyan. She looked so beautiful in her deep purple dress, though she was not young anymore. Nala came out the last, she had a smile on her lips, but one could tell how dim her eyes were, as if she had lost her soul. She grimaced when Sir Elijah reached for her hand to help her get down.
Iris watched everything unfold before her eyes. She had read the report and knew who would come, but it didn’t make her the least bit thrilled to meet them all.
She followed Cane and Alpha Dristan to approach the King and offer a courtesy to the King and Lady Cyan, but Iris’ station was above Nala, thus it was the other person, who had to greet her.
Nala looked like she was eating a horse’s heart when she greeted Iris politely, but she didn’t dare to meet her in the eyes, nor did she glance at Cane, which was weird, knowing how infatuated the girl was with her mate.
"It has been a while since our last meeting." Lady Cyan made small talk with Iris. "This is a nice pack."
"I hope you will enjoy your stay, My Lady," Iris replied politely.
But then, the King ignored Iris completely and looked around. "Where is that woman?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Alpha: Claiming His Enemy's Daughter