Chapter 7: Arlo Frost

Sadie’s POV

“Impossible!”

Luna Emma and Delphine immediately stepped forward.

“She’s not fit to be Luna!” Delphine objected. “She has no wolf! And she’s a harlot! She tried to seduce her father’s Beta!”

“Is this true?” Prince Griffin asked with furrowed brows.

“I don’t have a wolf,” I said sadly. “That is true. But I didn’t seduce my father’s Beta.”

“You most certainly did!” Delphine hissed. “We have witnesses. Some of our maids saw you!”

Delphine nodded to a few maids. They stepped forward. They were the maids that had come into the room when I was struggling with Beta Jay. Their contempt for me was written all over their faces.

“We can testify,” one of them said smugly.

“We saw her. She had her hands all over Beta Jay,” another one chimed in.

“It’s true. She was seducing him,” the third one confirmed.

My heart sank. Prince Griffin looked at me with a concerned expression. He was clearly taken aback by this.

His Beta touched him on the arm and said in a low voice:

“Your Highness, the Royal Family cannot accept a Luna without a wolf.”       

Prince Griffin nodded.

“Nor can they accept a wolfless Luna with a…tarnished reputation.”

It was a polite way of saying that they couldn’t accept someone who was a whore. Which of course, I wasn’t. But the cards were stacked against me.

“I’m afraid the Royal Family has already shown a lot of mercy by allowing all she-wolves, even maids, to enter the Luna Selection,” the Beta said. “Having a Luna without a wolf would be too much of a weakness for the Lycan Royal family. We simply can’t accept her.”

I knew it had been a long shot, competing for Luna. I’d been shocked when I passed the ritual. For a brief moment, I’d had hope that I could escape my life here. But now, hearing the Beta’s words, I knew my fate was sealed.

I was wolfless. And everyone thought I was a harlot.

Prince Griffin had no choice. I wasn’t fit to be Luna.

“I’m sorry,” he said regretfully. “But I reject you as my Luna.”

I hung my head. I was just about to leave the stage and return to the group of maids, when Luna Emma spoke up.

“Sadie has deceived the Prince,” she said, her voice cold. “That’s treason. She should be imprisoned.”

Imprisoned?

My heart clutched in my chest. Wasn’t it bad enough that I’d been demoted to a maid? Wasn’t it punishment enough that my reputation was ruined? I stared at Luna Emma in disbelief.  

But before Luna Emma could continue, a strange and powerful presence rippled through the crowd.

We all turned to look.

A werewolf appeared towards the back of the crowd. He was tall, with a strong, powerful build. He had silver hair and striking blue eyes. He stood, emanating an aura that felt like an inexplicable pressure to the werewolves around him. They had no choice but to lower their heads. They feared him. The she-wolves, however, blushed and averted their eyes. But they glanced up in quick bouts, stealing looks at this magnanimous, magnetic man.  

Who was he?

That was the question on everyone’s mind, including mine.  

He was powerful. Very powerful, that much was clear. He stood with an unmatched swagger and arrogance. He wore battle gear but it was in pristine condition. He stood perfectly still, scanning the crowd with his intense blue eyes.

I watched him with cautious eyes. Until his keen gaze quickly found me and his eyes locked onto mine.

Instantly, I felt his intense desire for me. It radiated from his eyes. I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to. His gaze held mine fixed and immobile.

A strange and unfamiliar feeling surged through me.

Excitement. Nervousness. Instinctive fear.

Heat.

Longing.

Desire.

I was vaguely aware that Prince Griffin was speaking.

“Uncle Arlo,” Prince Griffin said respectfully. “I didn’t expect to see you here. I thought you were off fighting the rogues.”

So this was Arlo. 

Arlo Frost, the famed and powerful Lycan, uncle to the Lycan Prince, brother of the King. 

His reputation preceded him. We didn’t know much about him; he was Lycan royalty after all and we were werewolves far removed from the Royal Palace. But that didn’t mean we didn’t hear about the legendary Royal family from time to time.

He was a dangerous man, Arlo Frost. But even still, I was drawn to him.

His gaze was exciting and terrifying at the same time.   

“I was,” Arlo replied casually. “But I made quick work of the rogues. The battle is over now. I was in the vicinity and thought I’d stop by.” His gaze never left mine as he spoke, his eyes locked firmly on mine.

He began to walk towards me. His steps were slow and dangerous. I swallowed nervously as he made his way to the stage.

“Is she your Luna?” he asked, meaning me.

“No,” Prince Griffin said with regret in his voice. “She passed the ritual. She was chosen by the slab. But unfortunately she doesn’t have a wolf.”

“I see,” Arlo said. His face seemed to relax a bit at Prince Griffin’s words. Was it because I wasn’t the Prince’s Luna?

His expression didn’t change much. His intense eyes were still locked on mine. But I felt his mood lighten. He seemed more relaxed, more at ease as he sauntered up to the stage.

My heart was beating a mile a minute. My palms were sweaty. He was standing only a few feet away now.

“Do you want to leave here?” he asked. His voice was deep and sexy, full of temptation.

Leave?

There was nothing I wanted more.

But who was this man?  

“Your Highness,” Luna Emma said, addressing Arlo. “She’s just a wolf-less whore. She seduced her father’s Beta and…”

Prince Griffin also spoke, simultaneously. “She wasn’t chosen by me, Uncle Arlo.”

Arlo’s deep, sharp gaze swept over them both. His imposing aura shut them both up instantly.

He looked back to me. He cocked his head to the side and smiled, a lascivious smile that oozed arrogance.

“I choose her,” he said bluntly. “From this day forth, she is mine.”

Delphine glared at me with jealous eyes. Luna Emma shot me a look that could kill, unable to hide her seething hatred for me.

But I didn’t care.

I looked at Arlo, deep into his eyes.

He reached out his hand to me.

“Come,” he ordered.

I put my hand in his. His gaze was so intense, it penetrated deep inside of me…

Right into my heart. 

Moon Goddess, can I trust him?