Trouble Brewing

*Rowan*

The next morning, I awake with Hezzlie in my arms. My eyes open before the sunlight begins to creep between the tree branches of the forest around the perimeter of the mansion. I have a lot on my mind and a lot of work to do.

But I don’t want to leave her.

She’s breathing softly, evenly, her eyes tightly closed. I know how exhausted she’s been with all the draining of her power the day before, and even though she’s taken a couple of naps, she’s still too tired. I need to let her rest. Memories of our time together the night before niggle in my mind, begging me to wake her up with my twitching cock, but I can’t do that to her. I’ll just have to be patient.

Besides, I’ve only opened my eyes a moment ago, and there are already a flood of mind-link messages wafting through my brain. Most of them are just to inform me about the events of the different shifts last night. Thankfully, nothing important happened. No one has stated that they even saw anyone from Darksky on our border. I’d like to think that means we are all safe here, but I know it’s just a matter of time before the battle begins again, and we need to be ready.

My biggest weapon rolls away from me, which leaves me feeling slightly cold, but then, it’s probably a good thing because now my arm is free. I slip it out and manage to climb from bed, thinking I should probably keep the water cold, at least at first, and go about getting ready as quietly as I can.

I’ve never had a woman fall asleep in my bed before. Well, that’s not entirely true. I’ve had them fall asleep but not spend the night. Before, I kicked them out as soon as I was done. Not that I usually even bring women back to my room. Only a few have made it that far. I generally prefer quick and dirty elsewhere, like in a bathroom stall or a closet. That’s less personal. I’ve never wanted a woman to feel welcome in my bed. In my life. In my heart.

All of that is over now. From this point forward, the only woman I’ll ever be with, the only one I’ll ever want to be with, is my mate.

I need to ask her to marry me. I need a ring. We’ll plan a wedding. We’ll do a coronation, and she’ll become my Luna Queen. It all seems surreal and yet so very perfect.

Once I’m dressed, I creep out of the room and to my office. Wilma meets me there. She knows I’m awake because of the activity in the mind-link. She can tell by what’s going on with the warriors whether or not I’m up in the morning. She might be a little chatty sometimes, but she’s very good at her job, and ever since my mother lost her mind, I’ve looked at her more as a mother figure than a servant.

“I thought you might be hungry this morning,” she says as innocently as possible, “so I brought you double the bacon along with your eggs, Alpha.” 

“Thank you.” I pat her on the arm as she steps away from the small table in one corner of my office. “How did you sleep?”

Her eyebrows raise slightly, and I assume it’s because it’s been too long since I asked her such a question. She’s usually the one fretting over me. “Fair,” she says with a shrug. “You know how it is with me and change. I worry about everything. Hezzlie seems to be doing well.” It’s not quite a question but can be interpreted as one, so I nod. “Princess Mara is getting better now that Prince Aiden is here.” Again, my head rocks back and forth. “I believe Tony is starting to settle in, though he’s been frightened since he arrived, poor thing.” I’m glad to hear that, too. I haven’t even spoken to the young man yet, but I need to. He helped Hezzlie escape.

Willma takes a deep breath. “What’s the matter?” I ask her.

“It’s this Abigail,” she admits, her forehead crinkled in thought. “I’m not sure what it is, but I have a feeling she’s going to stir things up. Not in a dangerous way. I don’t believe she’s an agent for Darksky or anything of that nature. But she does seem a bit like… trouble.”

I consider what she’s saying and compare it to Hezzlie’s remarks regarding Abigail. “We’ll need to keep an eye on that.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Wilma agrees. “I shall do my best.”

I can’t help but smile despite her worry. “You always do.”

She places her hand on top of mine where it rests on the table for a moment and then heads toward the door.

“Thank you, Wilma,” I call after her. “I appreciate you so much.”

When she turns to look at me, I think I see a tear in her eye. “It is my great honor and privilege, my Alpha.” With that, she leaves, and I sit and enjoy my breakfast.

But the enjoyment doesn’t last long. Within a few moments of me shuffling bacon into my mouth, a flurry of activity through the mind-link alerts me that there’s something going on, something I need to be aware of.

‘A car is approaching the boundary to the kingdom from the south, Alpha,’ one of my warriors says. ‘It’s a black sedan.’

I continue to eat my breakfast, but my forehead crinkles. Darksky kingdom is situated to the north. This could be anyone, but there are only two southern roads that enter into our mountain kingdom, and most of the time, any vehicle that enters or exits is a citizen of our kingdom who has let my people know they are coming or going so that we aren’t concerned about their travel.

Sometimes, people from Hezzlie’s world, what we call the human world, find their way here. It’s difficult. Our kingdoms aren’t exactly identified on a map. That happened the night that Hezzlie was conceived, however. Though, those entries usually come from the west where it’s easier to get into our kingdom through other magical lands. 

It is possible this is Darksky trying to fool us. He could’ve sent someone all the way around to fool us, but I don’t think he’d do that. 

No, this is probably someone else entirely. Hopefully, it’s no one of consequence. I tell my people to keep an eye on it, and they continue to update me as I finish my breakfast and move to my desk.

The update that lets me know that the sedan is approaching the mansion has me prepared to go see what the hell is happening. My scouts have ascertained that there seems to only be two people in the car. A driver and a passenger in the backseat, but the windows are tinted darkly enough that they can’t make out any more information.

‘Let them through the gate,’ I instruct, and then I go downstairs to see who the hell it is approaching my home.

The sedan pulls to a stop in the driveway, and the driver gets out to open the back door. A woman I don’t recognize dressed in a purple gown stands before me. “Alpha King Rowan?” she asks.

I nod. “Yes. And who the hell are you?”

The only answer I get, for now, is a wicked grin.