Page 61 of Rejected and Pregnant By the Alpha King

“Thank you, Your Grace,” Eris says.

He walks out the door, swinging it shut behind him.

Nyx is…so not what I expected him to be. Which gives me total déjà vu because I’d felt the exact same way about Aiden, just the complete opposite end of the spectrum.

Make no mistake, Nyx is still terrifying. But he’s nothing like the rumors suggest him to be—a cold and ruthless dictator with a bad habit of not taking no for an answer. Instead, he is much more charismatic than I would’ve ever given him credit for.

At least, outside of his packlands he is.

Time will only tell me what he’s truly like when he’s back in his own element.

27

Aiden

“The reports indicate that the Southern King’s journey has taken him west, a hundred miles from here.” Constance smooths her hand over the maps, pressing the creases out of it as we all gather around the large table. Her hands flick quickly with a red marker as she draws out the trail. “We have reports of him staying in a human town called Northwood for several days.”

When she circles a part of the map and annotates it as “Northwood,” I frown, puzzled.

“What business would he have in a human town that’s a thousand miles away from his packlands?” My finger traces a line down from my mouth to my jaw as confusion shifts through me.

Honestly, what would any alpha king need in a human town way up here that he couldn’t get anywhere else? It makes no senseto travel such a far distance when he could be sending a pack of enforcers to do the job for him.

For another king to be showing up in the North like this—myNorth—spells trouble.

Nyx Calloway has always been known to be a dangerous individual. His sudden presence means he’s planning something.

“We’re not sure. Both he and his beta were traveling with a healthy-sized group to here.” Constance circles a smaller portion of the map, lower than Northwood. “To another pack’s territory. From our reports, they didn’t stay long before they traveled to Northwood.”

“So, he was meeting with them. The pack.” Camden, my beta, walks over from where he’d been leaning against the wall closest to the window. He stops in front of the table to lean over and observe the map, a pensive expression crossing his face.

“Which one was it?” I look back to Constance.

Whoever had been dumb enough to invite the Southern King into my half of the states will need to explain themselves. I won’t be taking “well we didn’t know” for an answer. When an alpha king shows up at your doorstep, they are there for a reason—not to swing by for a visit.

This pack, whoever they are, is hiding something.

She shakes her head. “I don’t know the name. But they’re small. Isolated. On the poorer side from what it seems.”

“We should go talk to them,” Camden suggests.

The rest of the shifters around me, my most seasoned veterans, all seem to be in agreement as I survey the room. While I am curious as to what Nyx Calloway could possibly be planning, I’m also hesitant to leave my pack with my upcoming ascension just on the horizon.

All of this will be kept secret from the rest of the pack of course, however my absence would be noticed almost immediately, especially if I were called upon by the elders.

My people are used to seeing me around our town and if I were to suddenly excuse myself away in order to get to the bottom of this, it could cause unrest that may even extend to our neighboring packs.

With my father dying almost four months ago, my seat on his throne has been precarious at best. He was a beloved leader and the kind of alpha that not many could fill the shoes of. Of course I’m a close second, but even with my pack and the rest under my rule knowing that I’m his son, there’s still some skepticism following me.

“Perhaps I’ll just send the both of you.” I nod to both Constance and Camden.

Constance frowns at me, her brows pinching together in that way that she does when she’s trying to figure outwhyI’m acting the way that I am without outright asking me. Camden on the other hand is a much different story.

As my beta, he has the authority to question me when others can’t. And while he doesn’t do that every often, when it does happen, I listen.

“Your Grace, it would be better if you came with us. I doubt they’ll admit to anything if you aren’t there to put pressure on them,” he says.

“Yes.” I sigh. “I realize that, but I’m willing to take the chance. Who knows? Perhaps Nyx tried to seize their lands for some reason and failed. Him visiting doesn’t necessarily mean they were in the wrong.”

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