“Ah, no. She came looking for the prince.” The two girls gossiped as if I wasn’t there and I may not even have been. They ignored my existence so I went back to my work, working around them.
“But it’s too early for her to be here. I didn’t expect her until the end of the month,” Mary complained but she still spoke with a dreamy sigh. Obviously, this one was a fan girl of Scarlett, the future Luna Queen.
She’d been betrothed to the previous Alpha Prince until his mysterious death. Rumour had it that her family, the Alphas of Dark Moon pack, were pushing for her to be mated to the next prince. She had the power and influence to make his reign smooth so it was a wonder why they hadn’t mated yet.
“I heard something,” the other girl’s voice went lower. “Don’t tell anyone else about it, but I heard the prince has another woman.” Uninterested in gossip, I was about to tune out of their conversation but the next sentence froze my blood. “He brought her to Dark Moon with him. She’d fainted and he carried her in his arms!”
By the goddess, I was dead.
“N – No way,” Mary gasped, the sound dramatic and irritating.
“Yeah, so that’s why Scarlett is here. He didn’t even see her when he stopped by her pack. After speaking with Alpha Hawke, he took the woman and left.”
“Who is the woman!?” Mary sounded as affronted as Scarlett did when she confronted me on my nursing bed. “Is she pretty? Is she from a good home? Alpha or Beta?” An onslaught of questions flowed from Mary’s mouth.
Since I entered the palace, I hadn’t seen the prince. It was expected since he was busy preparing to take over the throne. Besides, the paths of the royals and their servants hardly ever crossed. I may never set eyes on him again despite working in the palace because the place was that huge. Also, I was relegated to cleaning a side palace.
Scarlett and her fiancé were none of my business so even if a rumour spread that the prince was with another woman, since no one knew who I was here, no one would suspect me. Or so I thought.
“Nobody knows,” the other omega responded and I breathed out a sigh of relief. “But she called Scarlett the forbidden name.”
“What? That whore! I hate her already!” Mary exclaimed. “Who is she to insult Scarlett like that just because she has the backing of the prince!?” The brush in my hand clattered to the ground.
Hearing people insult me without knowing was unpleasant but it wasn’t as unpleasant as the face that entered the hall I was cleaning.
Why – oh why –
“Scarlett!” Speak of the devil and she appears.
Of all the places in the royal palace, how did she manage to find the one I was cleaning? This place was only a neglected hall that just underwent renovation so why –
“You.” The cold words had me shivering.
A lot of people had stared at me in contempt, to the point where it no longer made me flinch but the hatred bristling in this lady’s eyes had me reeling. I’d never even done any –
“I asked you to stay away from him, didn’t I?” She snarled, striding towards me.
The other two girls gossiping about her watched the drama unfold with interest. Mary’s eyes went from me to her idol and then back again.
“What – What are you doing here?” I took a step back as the she-wolf advanced on me.
“Miss Scarlett -” Mary started.
The door to the hall opened again and the person I never thought I would see again entered with an older male version of the woman breathing down my face.
“Your Highness, I don’t understand why you are being difficult. I’ve promised you the support of Dark Moon upon your mating and you know what that means for your rule. Why do you keep delaying?” The man ranted, unaware of the people in the private hall he just entered. “If you continue like this, another man may just snatch the throne from -“
Killian had a formidable expression on his face, his red eyes darkened as the man ranted. As if feeling eyes on him, he raised his head and then his eyes caught mine. He watched me for a second before his mouth opened and the last words I ever expected to hear from the prince’s mouth fell out.
“Mate.” It was a whisper that carried around the room due to his authority and domineering aura.
“What?” Scarlett and the man I assumed to be her father exclaimed.
“I finally found you, mate.” An expression of joy eroded his pissed-off expression as he took purposeful strides towards me.
People gawked at us and I gawked at him, wondering what in the goddess’ name was happening.
“This – This ‘thing’ is your mate?” Scarlett was the first to break out of the shock that we all felt. I had to crane my neck to see the face of the prince standing in front of me.
“I’ve waited so long to meet you.” He took my dirty hands in his. A big smile tugged at his lips but his eyes remained cold and dangerous.
“Your Highness!” The man who he entered with shouted. “What is the meaning of this? How can she – How can this dirty thing be your mate?”
“Careful.” The voice filled with false happiness seconds ago turned to frost. “You’re speaking to your future queen.” I swallowed at those words.
Me?
What kind of madness was happening right in front of me? There was no way the prince was my mate. First, I already found my mate and even if by some twisted miracle he was my second mate, there was no way for me to know without breaking my bond with my first mate. Despite how much I hated it, I was still very much bonded to Noah. The prince was not my mate which meant he was – lying.
But why me?
“What is your name, little mate?” His thumb stroked my cheek in a falsely tender gesture. His tone carried warmth as he touched me but his eyes were nothing but a threat. Ruby coloured eyes dared me to say something contrary to the lies he was blatantly and brazenly spewing.
“A – Amethyst, your – your highness.” I wondered if he’d forgotten me but I dared not assume he would remember a random nutcase that crawled into his luggage compartment a few days ago.
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