Page 23 of His Impossible Elf Mate
“Come, take a walk with me in the forest. I fear you have much to say which others should not overhear.”
Luckily, we were alone, so no one could see Ívarr so agitated. I had just left the mansion and was returning to Dakota’s home, where I was still living. I hoped soon that I would have a place to share with Axel. We were on the list for housing, however, the list was long and resources were in short supply until the new homes were finished. Axel refused to use his position to get a home more quickly. Something I respected about him. Until then, we would just have to spend nights apart when work got in the way and visit each other’s apartments when we could.
It was charming to date Axel. My heart couldn’t resist him and I had fallen head over heels for the young shifter. Earning his love in return had been my greatest triumph. I knew his love was hard won.
Ívarr followed me dutifully into the copse of trees that surrounded the main grounds of the Sweetwater pack. He had caught me alone because Axel had just returned to his office to catch up on paperwork after touring the building site, though we both knew Dalton would have it in order. It was important for Axel to return to the routines of his usual life. I was still to find my place here, but with time, it would come.
My companion was silent as we crossed the woods and walked farther, heading towards the beach of the Sweetwater lake. Tension flowed between us, leaving me feeling off kilter.
Though he showed no outward signs of emotion obvious to those who did not know him well, I could almost feel a glare being aimed at my back. It prickled over my shoulders and I had to fight the urge to hunch. Mother would be furious at us both for the unbecoming way we were acting.
My feet slowed as I reached the sandy shore of the lake. It stretched out in front of me, a place of beauty and serenity that I longed to take Axel to. I would, after this chat, to overwrite this moment with that one. Give this place a beautiful memory to go with the surroundings.
“What is it, old friend?” I finally asked after his silence became too heavy to bear.
“Your relationship with the shifter must come to an end, and soon, before one, or both of you, is hurt,” Ívarr stated bluntly.
The resulting shock from his words had me rocking back as if he had physically assaulted me. Neither of us spoke for a long period. My mind raced as I tried to understand what he was telling me.
End things with Axel? Impossible. I’d sooner tear out my own heart.
My friend waited a moment longer before trailing closer to the water. “What do you truly expect to happen between you and the shifter?”
“Axel. His name is Axel.” There was a pain in my chest over my heart. My guts roiled from the coldness I felt from someone I had always respected. I rubbed absentmindedly at the ache. “Ívarr, where is this coming from? I fail to understand this.”
He rounded on me. “You are in love with him. He is in love with you!” he spat. “This path will only end in heartache or even war.” Ívarr took a step back, aware he was too close to me. Closer than court rules dictated, even for someone related to me. I was the crown prince after all.
His temper was still high. Shown only by the way his magic flashed purple in his eyes.
As he was a male unaccustomed to violence, it startled me to see his fists clenching and unclenching. I almost missed his words.
“War?” I echoed.
“What do you think the young Alpha will do when you break his brother’s heart?” His expression told me he had spent much of his time thinking about this and I was a fool not to have considered the implications of a heartbroken and betrayed shifter, especially one who was both Second-in-command and brother to the pack Alpha.
“Why would I do that? As you say, I love Axel.”
“Tell me, my prince, what do you think will happen when the queen calls you home? When she finally asks you to take the throne?”
I still failed to understand. “That is many years away unless we find a reason for our infertility. Perhaps if we do, she will have another child—“
Ívarr scoffed, then startled. “Forgive me, that was rude. Your mother is far too old to have another child. The strain it would put on her body would likely kill her.” His eyes glittered with sympathy as he looked at me. “You are her only heir and must ascend to the throne.”
Shaking my head, I dismissed his words. “That is many years from now. I have read the laws. There is nothing prohibiting a consort of another species, just as there is not one against same sex marriage.”
He sputtered, his face a mask of shock. “You’d make him your consort?”
Offended on Axel’s behalf, I huffed, “Of course.” He would look magnificent beside me. “We could do as other same sex pairings do and hire a surrogate for an heir.”
His face took on a pitying expression. “My prince, as much as it would please me to see you so happy with someone you truly love, our people would not accept a shifter as a consort to their king.”
“Why—“
“Do not pretend you are ignorant of the ways of some of our people. They stand with the fae andbelieve shifters are below us. They would return to the days of having shifters as slaves. A shifter as consort would open you up to repeated challenges to your rule and could plunge our world into war with the fae.”
“But Hakeem—“
“He might rescue a few here and there, but it is seen as taking pets from bad owners and setting them free.”
