Page 60 of Alpha Queen
"Don't lecture me about loyalty when you can't even spell the word."
"Then maybe you need something else." Her voice dropped to a seductive purr as she closed the distance between them, her fingers trailing along his arm. "You're wound too tight. You're overthinking when you should be acting."
He clenched his fists, trying to keep from shoving her away.
"Your problem-" She circled him like a predator scenting weakness, "is that you're obsessed with making her come to you willingly." She stopped in front of him, placing a hand on his torso. "But she's never going to."
Titan growled. "Careful, bitch."
Vanessa only smiled wider. "You think I don't know what you're planning? You want an heir. A child with royal blood to solidify your claim to the throne."Her lips brushed his ear. "I can give that to you."
His wolf snarled.
Titan wrenched her wrist and shoved her away before she touched him again.
"You're not her," he snapped.
Vanessa's eyes narrowed briefly before she let out an amused hum. "No," she admitted. "But I'm willing. Are you going to waste your time chasing after a female who will never love you? Or do you want to secure the throne?"
Titan exhaled sharply through his nose and turned away from her again.
"Think about it." Vanessa sauntered toward the door. "River will never accept you." She paused in the doorway, looking over her shoulder. "But I will. I'll give you the child you want. You don't even have to mate me for it."
She slipped out before he could respond.
Damn it all.
His wolf demanded they find River and force her compliance if necessary, but something held him back.
Kane's words echoed in his mind: Some lines, once crossed, you can never come back from.
For the first time in years, doubt crept into Titan's heart.
Titan stood frozen for several long moments, his mind racing. Vanessa's offer tempted the darkest parts of him. The parts that craved power and dominance above all else. If Vanessa had his child, but he could make everyone believe the child was River's…His wolf recoiled at the thought.
He stalked over to the bar and poured himself a glass of whiskey, downing it in one burning gulp.
River's face flashed in his mind. Her silver hair gleaming in the moonlight, eyes flashing with defiance. Even in her anger and fear, she was breathtaking. The thought of replacing her with Vanessa or anyone else made his gut churn.
But Vanessa's words nagged at him. River had made it abundantly clear that she would never accept him willingly. But Vanessa...
Titan poured another drink, his hand shaking. He had come so far, sacrificed so much. To give up now seemed unthinkable. But forcing River, breaking her spirit... that felt equally as impossible.
With a roar of frustration, Titan hurled his glass against the wall, where it shattered into a thousand glittering pieces. The crash echoed through the room, matching the chaos in his mind.
He had to clear his head.
Titan strode from the room, made his way through the winding corridors of the mansion, ignoring the nervous glances from the pack members he passed.
He burst out into the cool night air, inhaling deeply. Without conscious thought, his feet carried him towards the dense woods surrounding the property. As he reached the tree line, he stripped off his clothes, piling them on the forest floor.
The shift came easily, his human form melting away as his wolf surged forward. In moments, his black wolf stood where Titan had been.
With a low growl, Titan took off into the forest, his powerful legs eating up the ground beneath him. He ran without direction or purpose, reveling in the primal freedom of his wolf form. The scents of the forest filled his nose. Evergreens, earth, and a myriad of small creatures that scurried out of his path.
As he ran, memories flooded his mind. The first time he'd smelled River. Biting her only to be rejected by her. The years he had spent building his empire, always with her in mind. Watching her from afar but never touching, never tasting. Only to then have her claimed by the two men he hated most in the world.
Titan recognized a scent and turned instinctively toward it. In minutes, he'd taken down the doe and tackled her to the ground. As he ripped out her throat, he reveled in the feel of her warm blood in his mouth.
