Page 83 of Chased By My Grumpy Alpha
“I won’t tell her,” I say finally. “But not to protect myself.”
Both my friends look at me like I’ve lost my mind.
“She doesn’t trust anyone right now. If I tell her about the bond, she’ll think it’s just another way someone is trying to control her.” I brush a strand of hair from Astra’s face, being careful not to wake her. “She needs to know she has a choice.”
“Even if that choice is to leave you?” Leon’s voice is gentle.
“Yes.”
Seth mutters something under his breath that sounds like “fucking idiot,” but he doesn’t argue further.
“What’s your plan?” Leon asks, changing the subject. “The King is getting impatient not knowing when you’ll be back. He’s been asking for updates daily.”
I study my mate’s sleeping face. The bruises have faded completely, but the haunted look in her eyes when she’s awake tells me the real healing hasn’t even begun.
“I’ll return in a few weeks.”
“Weeks?” Seth’s eyebrows rise. “Lucian, you’ve been gone for—”
“She needs time.”
Understanding dawns on both their faces. They’ve seen battle trauma before; they know how long it can take someone to recover from having their fundamental beliefs about the world shattered.
“But that long away from court...” Leon trails off meaningfully.
“There’s going to be fallout,” Seth says carefully, “if you break off the engagement to Lady Zari.”
“I don’t care about fallout.”
“You should, though,” Leon warns. “Her father isn’t going to accept rejection quietly. He’s been planning this alliance for years, and he has significant influence with the Council.”
“What’s he going to do? Force me to marry his daughter?”
“No,” Leon says grimly. “But he’ll try to find a compromise. Something that lets him save face and maintain the alliance.”
I don’t like the tone in his voice. “What kind of compromise?”
“He’ll probably push for Zari to become your official royal mate,” Leon explains carefully, “and suggest that Astra could be...accommodated...as a concubine.”
Cold fury invades my chest like ice forming over deep water. My expression doesn’t change, but both my friends go very still.
“Concubine.” The word comes out perfectly calm, perfectly controlled.
“It’s an archaic practice,” Seth says quickly. “Only the royal family is permitted to take concubines, and no king has done so for generations. But technically, the law allowing them still exists.”
“The Council might see it as a reasonable solution,” Leon adds. “Zari gets the crown, her father gets his alliance, and you get to keep your...personal interest...close by.”
I study Leon’s face with clinical detachment, noting the way he avoids my eyes when he says “personal interest.” The way his hands fidget slightly. He knows exactly how insulting those words are, and he’s afraid of my reaction.
He should be.
“Personal interest.” My voice remains conversational, but the temperature around us seems to drop by several degrees.
“Lucian—” Seth starts.
“You’re suggesting I make my fated mate a concubine?” Each word is precise, measured. Deadly.
“We’re not suggesting anything,” Leon says defensively. “We’re just warning you about what Zari’s father may propose.”
