HAYLEE
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Fuck me!
What the fuck was I thinking?
No. I didn’t think when I heard that little child crying.
My stupid brain just reacted to her and as I have always done with kids, I reached for her and offered comfort because no one offered that to me when I was growing up with an abusive father and a mean sister.
And now that I was standing before the Alpha King, my heart was about to beat its way out of my chest. My body shook with fear as cold shivers traveled down my spine. There was something about his dark eyes that–
“Don’t make me repeat myself?” His voice was cold, laced with anger that no one deserves, not even a criminal.
I took my eyes off him, fighting the uneasiness my wolf was feeding my mind with. I said slowly, “I’m Haylee from–’
“Silence!” He snapped at me, causing me to jump away from him.
If my mind wasn't shaky at the moment, I would have wondered why he asked me a question only to shut me up when I gathered enough courage to respond. However, I could only think of ways to escape his gaze because goddess did it burn my skin and make me breathless in a bad way.
“Haylee, that’s our–” My wolf, Liya, sputtered within my mind.
“This isn’t the time, Liya….” I cautioned my wolf…
“You will go back to wherever you come from and never show your face before me. Ever!” The Alpha King seethed at me, his smell of hatred towards me choked me as I inhaled.
One would think I would have gotten used to that smell after breathing and living with it all my life.
Everyone hated me.
My father. My Sister. My mate. My pack and of course, My mother.
Everyone but Leo– but after he was locked up because of me, he must hate me too.
“Listen to me, Haylee. Can you feel–” Liya started speaking again, sounding like a weak puppy.
But before she could get my full attention, Alpha Jett walked up to me, hissing at me, “Do you always have to cause chaos?”
“I d-didn’t–”
I stuttered not because I was scared of Jett but because I could still feel the Alpha King’s gaze burning into my skull like a laser.
Before I could pull myself together, my ex-mate's firm palm kissed my cheeks as he slapped me, hissing at me. My eyes stung, tears filling them up rapidly but Jett didn’t seem to care. He growled at me, raising his hand to hit me as he claimed that I had disgraced him before the Alpha King.
Helplessly, I closed my eyes, waiting for his next strike and I held my breath. Expecting.
But the sting didn’t hit me as I expected. Still, my eyes remained closed until his deep voice sent intense shivers down my spine, “You will not hit what’s mine.”
Those were Alpha Xalen’s words.
My eyes fluttered open and my brows furrowed when I saw Alpha King Xalen holding Jett’s hand and snarling at him. The Alpha King towered over Jett, dominating easily, and while some other she-wolves would have basked in the masculine aura rolling off the Alpha King, I could only bask in his words.
Mine, he said but why would he call me his?
“Because you are his, Hay,” Liya exclaimed.
“He said he didn’t want a slave–”
“You are not a slave to him. You are his second chance mate.” My wolf announced with conviction just in time for the Alpha King to shove Jett a few feet backward with one push.
My wolf’s words didn’t make any sense to me until Alpha King Xalen’s eyes connected with mine and his natural strong oud scent invaded my nostrils, pushing past every fiber in my body. He smelled like poison– the kind that my body seemed to need as my heart began to race even though I had sworn to never get excited over a man after Jett’s betrayal.
Goddess! My heart raced and that one word settled on the tip of my tongue, my lips parting, ready to let out that one word while still looking into his dark void orbs.
“Ma–”
“Don’t even dare, slave!” Alpha King Xalen seethed, shutting me up and waking me from this daydream with a snarl. “I don’t want to hear it.”
As he looked at me, warning me or probably daring me to disobey him and claim him before every one of his subjects in the hall, the world faded.
It was just us at that moment.
I gazed at every wrinkle of frown on his face, my brain memorizing every detail.
“How can he be mine?” I asked Liya, struggling to pick between panic and excitement.
My wolf let out a whimper, “I don’t think he will be for long.”
I was about to question her when I felt a force pressing and breaking every resistance my body had built over the years. The same whimper Liya released escaped my lips as I cried out, an unfamiliar pain hitting my head from the inside–
“On my mate’s funeral?” His voice and anger pierced through me, breaking through the walls of my mind. “You step into my pack on this day and you think you will be welcomed with open arms?”
How?
How could he speak to me through the mind link? I wasn’t a member of his pack neither was I his marked mate–
“I’m your Alpha King.” His voice boomed into my mind, causing my head to ache. “Your feeble mind isn’t out of… fuck that. I don’t have to explain myself to you.”
He didn’t have to. I understood that he was powerful and could penetrate my mind but does he know how painful it was to have him breaking into my mind like this?
“If the moon goddess thinks she can just send me another mate after taking my Laura from me, she must be delusional!” He barked regardless of my pain. Regardless of how many eyes we had on us. “On her funeral for that matter. Are you kidding me!”
H-how was that my fault?
I also didn’t ask for this and as much as he was hurting, I was hurting too.
I wished I could sit the moon goddess down and ask her questions too–
He cut my thoughts short, his voice breaking into my mind again, and his words? They crushed the millions of particles that my heart had become after Jett’s rejection and my family's betrayal, “I, Alpha King Xalen of the Royal Pack, Leader of the Southern territory reject you, Haylee of Cresent Moon Pack as my second chance—”
I never thought I would get another mate.
But I also never considered the possibility of getting rejected twice.
Was I that worthless and– No, it’s because it’s his Luna’s funeral.
This can’t be my fault. Not this one.
I closed my eyes, waiting for the familiar pain of rejection to seize my soul but instead, the cries of the little girl filled my ears. She cried out before the Alpha King– her father could seal my fate.
“Fuck my life!” He cussed into my mind before I felt his consciousness slipping away as he broke the forced mind connection. He audibly commanded everyone to leave the hall, his anger still as loud as his baby’s cries.
I didn’t hesitate to turn away from him like everyone else, wondering if the rejection was done as I didn’t feel the pain that should come with it.
However, another order from him took my will to put space between us as his words sunk into my mind, “Not you, slave.”
My feet froze because it was at that moment that our hate story began.
HAYLEE~~“How dare you!” the hostile voice pierced my eardrums before an icy feeling cut through my skin, sending shivers down my spine. My eyes flew open and I jolted to my feet even though my brain wasn’t fully awake. I wobbled, my body shivering as I felt another icy feeling. I was drenched. I was soaked. Yet, I couldn’t scream as my eyes met with Owen’s angry ones. “How dare you fall asleep, Slave?” Owen, the head of servants in the Royal Pack, snarled at me.He was holding two black buckets whose content he just poured all over me. My hair and the dark brown dress I was given three days ago were dripping. The chilly air of the night wasn’t helping my case– everything was against me.“I d-doze—” I tried to speak but my teeth chattered and I instinctively wrapped my arms around my body, “You dozed?” Owen hissed. Ever since the Alpha King stopped me from leaving the hall three days ago, my life has changed drastically. One would think the Alpha King who didn’t hide his hatred
ALPHA KING XALEN~~“Really?” I barked.Anger built up within me as the hope I was holding on to seemed to be fading every second. I had so many people around me yet I felt so alone. I once had a plan for my life and future but now? Now I was lost with no hope of finding my way. Perhaps if Laura comes back to life. She was my compass– My moral and geographical compass. “We have searched and did everything we can, My King but there’s no evidence that the Queen was murdered.” My Royal Gamma, Wyatt, repeated as he fell on his knees before my throne. “Then have the trackers tear everything down,” I growled, barely keeping my ass on my throne.Wyatt was too scared to open his mouth so Evan stepped in and said to me, “The trackers did everything, My King. The Healers also testified that they found nothing toxic in her body. It’s a natural death–” “Don’t even tell me that!” I cut my Royal Beta off. “How can that be a natural death? She gave birth to Jodie without complications and two
HAYLEE~~I was drained of every bit of energy. Yet I was still standing in the kitchen where I had been since I woke up in the wee hours of this morning. I barely slept for three hours before I got up to prep for the warriors’ breakfast. It’s like preparing a meal for every member of the Crescent Moon Pack. After preparing breakfast with little to no help from the servants who used to do these chores before I was brought into the pack as a slave, I started preparing lunch for the chiefs of the pack because they would be having a meeting in a few hours and Owen had started talking about all I had to do for the Royal Family dinner. My sight was foggy, my throat was dry and the worms in my stomach were biting me, crying to be fed. However, despite having different dishes around me, I wasn’t allowed to eat any. Owen would kill me.“Just serve yourself a plate, Haylee. We need the strength. We need to sleep.” Liya cried into my mind. The last time I shifted and let Liya have a meal o
HAYLEE~~I didn’t know which one I paid more attention to with every second that passed without a word from the Alpha King– Owen’s shaky frame or the lips that kept parting only to close again like their owner couldn’t make up his mind. “I was ju-just correcting the Slave, My King. She was dis-disrespectful and stole–” If I was going to die, I would rather die a criminal who touched the King’s child and had the audacity to appear before him as his second chance’s mate at his beloved Queen’s funeral, than be called a thief for eating one spoon of rice. With that thought in mind, I cut Owen off, sounding more confident for some weird reason and despite the Alpha King’s presence, “I didn’t steal. I haven’t eaten in three days, My King and I know I’m a slave but I need food just like everyone else. I need food and sleep to function and I haven’t been having enough. If you want me dead, chop off my head or throw me to the rogues but please do not treat me like I’m lesser than–” “Shus
ALPHA KING XALEN ~~ I hated her. The way she constantly looked at me from under her long lashes. The way she inhaled. The way she exhaled. The way she walked. The way she looked in the servants’ uniform. The way her chest rose and fell as she tried not to let her eyes wander. I hated everything about her. The bright color of her hair. Her dull green eyes had only brightened when she stared at Jodie. The small curve of her lips as she smiled down at my daughter who had stopped crying like she was in some sort of magic land and not the arms of a slave… Fuck, I hated everything. Yet, I had to bring her into my home. After all, I couldn’t just drop Jodie with her and let her take care of my daughter in the Servants’s quarters where she had obviously been suffering– “You should have let me break every bone in his body.” Theo snarled in my mind, holding a kind of anger that was new to me. He was angry because the slave was touched by another man… because she was maltreated b
HAYLEE ~~ I understood that he hated me for reasons best known to him. But to be honest, I was a victim too. I have been all my life and the way he seemed to enjoy hurting me even though I was helping his kid was making it hard for me to breathe. My chest hurt. But my head was aching more due to the forced connection he– “You don’t speak much, do you?” The young woman Alpha Xalen handed me over to, asked, her eyes on me as if she was studying me. I have learned to be careful around Servants in this Pack since they all considered me beneath them. If my head wasn’t aching, I still wouldn’t speak to the nanny to avoid getting punched– “He wasn’t always like this.” I didn’t ask her but she supplied that detail anyway. “Well, he was hostile when he was younger but became very warm when he met the Queen. Losing her sent him back to his dark days.” I get it. He was suffering. But I have been suffering all my life and he doesn’t see me being a pain in his ass or that of anyone
HAYLEE~~“You do not belong here….” The voice I heard was soft and young, and it was supposed to be innocent and friendly, but it was everything but that. It was harsh and as I opened my eyes to see the small frame boiling with obvious anger before me, My brows furrowed. I could only stare at the little girl before me as I pushed myself off the nursery floor. I must have dozed off while putting Princess Jodie to bed. I thought working with Owen was hard but having a baby who won’t let me drop her for even a minute was harder. The good part was, I wasn’t getting slapped or starved. Aside from Princess Jodie, no one was yelling at me until now. “That’s my mom’s spot. Get up and get out of my sister’s room.” The young girl literally hissed at me. Her mom’s spot? Her sister? “Princess Sophia?” I breathed, Rather than respond, she seethed just like I had seen Alpha King Xalen do, “I told you to leave my mom’s spot and get out of my sister’s room.” I was standing in a cozy corner
HAYLEE~~“I swear to the goddess she was right here.” I had screamed three hours ago, my body trembling as he stared down at me with anger and perhaps worry in his eyes. Clearly, he wasn’t concerned about the way my heart was rising and falling rapidly, not when he was about to growl at me. But before he could, I added, “Princess Sophia showed up. She was furious. She sent me out of the room and I thought it was best to sit here while I waited for her to–” “But you fell asleep!” He shut me up, punching the nearest wall in a way that made me jump backward. “You fell asleep when you were supposed to be watching my kids.”“I didn’t mean to. I swear to the goddess–” I whimpered. “Enough swearing to the goddess, dammit!” He hissed maliciously, showing nothing but hate and disrespect to the goddess. That happened three hours ago and while I was shaken by fear and also been praying that the Princesses would return home, they haven’t and we have all been searching and by searching, I m
ALPHA KING XALEN~~“I get that you are smitten, Xalen, but this isn’t logical,” Roy grumbled as we left the palace, walking side by side.“I am smitten but see no reason why this isn’t logical,” I responded as I opened my mind, finding the connection between my mind and Wyatt’s so I could ask him to meet Roy and me on the northern border.Haylee’s words echoed in my mind even though I had just left her in the palace with my overly excited kids and Flavia and Allison, but I wasn’t worried because I knew Haylee could defend herself.“Be careful out there and don’t involve anyone you can’t trust, Xalen. I need this to be true, not just to prove to the realm that you are a reliable King but also to confirm that I am not going insane.”Those were Haylee’s words. Even though I didn’t understand why she mentioned insanity, I knew better than to trust just anyone with the possible location of my traitorous uncle.Roy scoffed, snapping me out of my thoughts and taking my mind off Haylee. Sad
HAYLEE~~That was unexpected.Allison choosing to walk away instead of picking to create a scene like she always does was unexpected, but I didn’t think much about it because I assumed she was still in shock.“She would never have thought you and Xalen would show up marked. Did you see her face?” Liya let out a wolfish chuckle in my mind, making fun of Allison as she walked away.I did see her face, and it was so damn funny.I was prepared to stand up against her and drag her through the mud if needed, but she had to ruin that for me by choosing to walk away. However, knowing her, I would most likely get more chances to pay her back with the same coin of humiliation that I got from her.After Allison left, Xalen settled at the head of the table, and he was served breakfast by one of the servants. They were all looking at me or at least sneaking peeks. I could perceive Maeve, Orla, and Benita in the hall even though I wasn’t looking at them.I was certain Benita would find me after
Princess Allison’s POV~~“You dare not, Allison! You dare not accept defeat,” Nala growled within me, seizing the wheel as soon as she sensed me giving up.It was safe to say that Nala had to become the authoritative wolf she used to be before we agreed to work on this together… before I asserted my dominance over her.As my body trembled, I queried, “What am I supposed to do now, Nala? If he could mark her even after I showed him the damn results, what could I do that would stop this craziness?”He would make her his queen.It was crystal clear that nothing I did would change Xalen’s mind. How the hell did she even come to terms with the fact that I was carrying her mate’s child? If I were in Haylee’s shoes, I wouldn’t let Xalen touch me or even breathe the same air as me.But somehow, Haylee forgave him, and they completed the bond.Dammit!I could see tears trickling down my cheeks in a minute because my eyes stung painfully as I watched Xalen pull out the chair opposite mine an
Princess Allison’s POV (16)~~When I found out from Benita that Haylee wasn’t in her bedroom, I immediately knew she would be with King Xalen. At first, I was furious because I slept peacefully, believing that my pregnancy result would stomp on any conflict resolution those two were working on when I walked in on them last night.However, I saw an opportunity, and I seized it.Of course, I didn’t know what had happened between those two while they spent the night together, but I didn’t think much about it because I assumed that their so-called bond wouldn’t survive the night.How I wished I knew just how wrong I was.But I didn’t know. However, I did consider the possibility of the duo finding their way back to each other, which was why I ruffled Sophia’s feathers the second she and Asher walked into the dining hall with Flavia, who I found out was Roy’s mate.As far as Flavia and Roy were concerned, good riddance to bad rubbish.I didn’t care about them, and even though they caught
ALPHA KING XALEN~~What a night!I thought to myself, holding Haylee even closer while she snored softly. She was still asleep, but I was awake but couldn’t get myself to move out of bed or take my hands off her.It was a miracle that I hadn’t woken her up, in fact.When I went to find her yesterday, I didn’t know the day would end this way. I didn’t know we would be lying in bed, naked as the day we were born and completely tied together like the soulmates that we were.As I closed my eyes for the millionth time since I woke up, I thought to myself, “This is worth fighting for, and I will fight for us for the rest of my life.”I knew Haylee wanted to fight for the throne and for everyone in the pack, but I wouldn’t hesitate to stop that fight if it posed a threat to what we had here. This beautiful thing we had going on for us.This was peaceful and—A loud bang on my bedroom door smashed the peace I thought I could enjoy for another hour or two. Fuck! I jinxed it, didn’t I?I was
HAYLEE~~If I thought what Xalen and I did at first was lovemaking, I was wrong because with the mate bond completed, every feeling intensified tenfold. Every touch had me whimpering for more, and I lost count of the number of orgasms that I reached in that single night.Each sensation coursed through me like a live wire, electrifying every nerve within me.The world around us faded quickly, leaving just the two of us tangled together, our breathing heavy and synchronized.Xalen’s hands roamed my body like a map, exploring every curve and dip that I never knew I had, as if he were discovering uncharted territory. With every kiss, every whisper of his name, and every slow, precise thrust of his waist, I felt the barrier I’d built around my heart melting away, leaving me vulnerable yet incredibly alive.The completed bond was palpable, igniting a fire within Xalen and me—a fire I never knew existed. It felt as though we were merging into one, our souls intertwining in a dance that wa
ALPHA KING XALEN~~In whatever form it comes, rejection kicks harder than a million warriors.I would know because it seemed like I had been rejected by Haylee even though we just shared a very passionate and intimate moment. I tried to pour my emotions through the bond while I made love to her gently because I believed that was the only way I could share what I was feeling with her.I believed she would heal fully and finally admit or confess that she loved me, but that didn’t happen.Instead, she couldn’t say it back to me when I muttered, “I love you,” to her.And just when I thought time was all she needed, the mark I bit into her neck practically faded into thin air. Not even a small scar was left behind. Yes, she asked me to mark her, but even though I was against it at first, I gave it my all.The idea of her standing before the elders, wearing my mark, felt so damn good.But I guess that wouldn’t happen, not when her body wouldn’t keep my mark.“Seriously? This is what you
HAYLEE~~It felt so good.Xalen’s body on mine and his arms around me felt so good. His scent invaded my nostrils as he lowered his lips to kiss me deeply, and, goddess, the taste of him! I could feel his masculine, musky taste on my tongue.My needy moans blended perfectly with his deep, growl-like groans.I had no choice but to be vulnerable in Xalen’s arms. He was bigger and physically stronger than I was, and even though I had this dangerous energy source within me, I still felt like a woman in his arms.He was soft and careful, but even his soft touches didn’t prepare me for the sharp pain that I felt when Xalen tried to push his length into me. He was a very big man, and I was a tall, small woman who had never been penetrated before.“We don’t have to do this tonight, Hay,” Xalen muttered into my ear, holding me tightly.Hell, no!I wanted this. I was soaking wet. In fact, I was dripping, and the pain was inevitable. “We have to because I want to, Xay. Make me a woman. Make m
HAYLEE~~What difference will that make?Maybe I would have stopped to ask myself that question if my core wasn’t throbbing in ways I have gotten accustomed to, all because of Xalen. Meeting him, living with him, accepting the bond, sleeping by his side, and having his mouth all over me has ripped off the seal of my sexual self, and I loved it.Although the act of bathing Xalen wouldn’t change a thing, I wanted to do it for the sake of my sanity. I couldn’t perceive Allison on him, but bathing him would help me wash my mind off the heartbreaking scene that had decided to make my mind a home.As long as my mind keeps taking me back to that moment, I won’t make it past holding Xalen's hands before I pull back.And I couldn’t let that happen, not if I wanted his mark.Anxiety and desire mixed to become one strong emotion within me as Xalen led me to his new bedroom. I noticed the room was plain and almost empty when we stepped into it, but it wasn’t surprising because Xalen hasn’t bee