The Alpha King's Princess
The Alpha King’s Princess – Chapter 25

The sight of Francium staggering away, the bottle of pills he had and the whole situation haunted me for the rest of the day. It felt too close to home, to reminiscent of my time at Wolf Fang. Sure, I hadn’t been given poisonous pills, but if Francium was being poisoned, I had to help him for his and Claire’s sake.

Claire may not have said much more than having a bad feeling, but I could tell how worried she was from the way she followed Francium with her eyes every time he was nearby. Maybe I could talk to Candido about it. Instead of allying with the Red Moon Pack, he could start building a relationship with the New Moon Pack or at least get them in line.

I huffed. I still didn’t know if Candido had even returned from the Red Moon Pack’s capital yet, and I was scheming about how I was going to convince him to talk to Francium’s family. I shook my head. I needed to be focused on Moon Shadow’s investigation of the attack, the deaths that had happened, and so many other things.

I got back home and changed to go for a run hoping it would clear my head. When I reached the back door, Candido was there waiting for me. I froze. He was dressed in a tank top and running shorts. I swallowed, letting my gaze drift over him.

“What… are you doing here?”

His lips twitched. “What else—”

“Don’t start with that!” I pouted as he chuckled. He opened the back door and led me outside.

“Shall we?”

I wanted to ask where he’d been, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, I followed him into the forest at a speed much faster than I had run the day before. Running through the forest was different. The scents of the trees and the fresh earth set something at ease in me and made me relax. Candido darted forward and I lost sight of him through the trees.

“Candido?” I kept jogging in the direction he’d gone, but I didn’t see or hear him. I stopped and looked around. “Are you playing a trick on me?”

“Of course not,” he said. His voice seemed to be near and far at the same time. I looked around trying to pin down a direction. “This is a test. Find me.”

I crossed my arms. “How am I supposed to do that?”

He chuckled. “How are you hearing me now?”

I turned in the direction I heard his voice. I rounded the tree, but he wasn’t there.

“Good, hone into my voice.”

I huffed and turned around another tree, but he wasn’t there. I stopped and frowned, looking around. He sounded so close, but he wasn’t close. It struck me that this was a lot like when I had been chasing after him. My senses were focused on replaceing him but I wasn’t interpreting what I was hearing right.

I frowned as my head started to hurt and took a deep breath. Sweat, musk, and Candido’s skin was coming from ahead. I jogged forward, using my nose to lead me. I turned once, twice. I felt like I was getting farther and father away from the Estate, but I was getting closer to Candido.

“Almost there,” he said and sped up. He sounded so much closer than before. He smelled closer than before.

I broke through the tree line and skidded to a stop as I saw Candido standing in the middle of a clearing, lifting his shirt up and down, fanning himself and spreading his scent. He smirked at me, but I couldn’t pay attention to that.

My eyes were stuck on the flashes of his abs and chest. My mouth watered, and I approached him slowly as if I was possessed by some other instinct pulling me forward. I reached out. I could almost feel the warmth of his skin on my fingertips as I got closer.

Then, I was there at his side. My fingers trailed along the dips and hard edges of his ribs and abs. His skin was feverish and slightly tacky from sweat the way it had been in my dream. I lifted my gaze, dazed, and found him looking down at me with eyes filled with moonlight.

His nostrils flared and he dropped his shirt, walking forward as I stumbled back. My back hit a tree. He leaned over me, trapping me between himself and the tree as he took deep breaths and stared down at me. I thought to the other day again then farther back to the first time I met him. Had his eyes been full of moonlight then? Had he been looking at me like this then?

He lifted his hand and tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. He stepped closer, pressing the heat of his body against me as he pressed his lips to my forehead. I wanted to lift my head and k**s his lips as he trailed his lips down to the spot between my eyebrows and pressed his lips more firmly. His lips lingered as if he wanted to do much more.

I wanted him to. I reached up to take hold of his shirt.

“You did well.” He said, his voice seeming too normal for what he’d just done. Then, he pulled back and turned in the direction of the Estate. “We should head back.”

The moonlight in his eyes was gone. This was Candido again in full control. I hated it, even as I could still feel the warmth of him against me and his bare skin on my hand. What was I supposed to make of that? What was I supposed to think about the draw I’d felt towards him?

Was that the pull people talked about or something different?

“W-Why?”

He let out a harsh breath. “What do you hear?”

I frowned, “Nothing…”

I tilted my head and turned slowly as a sound grew louder. It was a voice. It was Allen.

“Your Majesty, Miss Sibyl and her assistant have arrived.”

I gritted my teeth before whirling on him. “You were with her all night. Why even come home if you weren’t done?”

He eyed me. “Jealous?”

I narrowed my eyes at him and turned away, marching back to the house. Candido fell into step with me. I broke into a jog wanting to escape him, but before I could gain much ground, he caught me by arm and pulled me around. I gasped as he pulled me close and seemed to catch himself. His eyes flickered with moonlight.

“I was not with Sibyl last night or this morning.” He said stiffly before letting me go. “Take another lap around the estate and eat dinner, Hedy.”

He walked around me leaving me alone as he walked back to the Estate alone. I turned on my heel and took off running towards the start of the trail I usually took. I couldn’t say how I found it so easily, but my mind was reeling.

He had looked torn when he let me go. He wasn’t the type to lie, so where had he been all night and this morning? What was Sibyl doing here today? None of it made much sense, but I was relieved to hear that she hadn’t gotten her hands on him.

I wondered if she had ever touched Candido’s bare skin like that. Something told me she hadn’t.

When I finished the lap, Allen was waiting for me with snacks, a towel, and a small smile.

“Did you enjoy your run?”

I nodded slowly; my gaze drifted into the house. I could still smell Sibyl’s perfume in the air, though I couldn’t hear her.

“Is Sibyl gone?”

“Not yet,” Allen said. “Though, I imagine she will be leaving shortly.”

I sunk onto one of the lounging chairs on the terrace. “I’d rather not be in the same building with her if I can help it.”

He chuckled and sat on another. “I understand that her presence irritates you a great deal, but—”

“Politics.”

“With the way things seem to be heading, the Red Moon Pack is getting more adamant about fulfilling the terms of the agreement.”

MY stomach lurched. I knew they were betrothed, but no one had ever told me what the agreement was about.

“Agreement?”

Allen nodded. “His Majesty owes the Red Moon Pack a debt. In return for that, he promised to marry Sibyl even though she is not his mate.”

“What did they do for him?”

“Perhaps… another time.”

I had a feeling that I wouldn’t like the truth. I took a bite of the sandwich he’d brought me.

“So why is she here? What’s this assistant supposed to do?”

“Miss Sibyl is pushing to have their wedding day advanced… She brought the wedding planner she’s chosen.”

My eyes bulged. “How… far does she want to advance it?”

“Within the month… before your birthday.”

The only thing I could think was over my dead body.