Filed to story: The Wolf Prince’s Fated Love
An insistent knock on the door interrupted our bubble.
“Fuck off,” Kane growled, but there was no heat to it, not like last night.
Reed’s response was dry. “Fine, but I have a dress for your mate, and unless you want her to attend the funeral naked, you should open up. Her friends insisted on proof of life after she didn’t come back last night.”
I reluctantly slipped off Kane’s chest, wrapping the inky blanket around myself while Kane pulled on last night’s discarded sweats. A big chunk of stuffing was stuck to his butt, and I giggled as he crossed to the door. He cast me a suspicious glance as he opened it.
Leigh swept past him a split second later, barging in with Shay hot on her heels, though she at least paused, waiting for Kane to nod her into the room.
“You scared us to death! You didn’t take your phone, your hot alpha-hole apparently destroyed his at some point, and you didn’t come back! You better explain yourself, missy.” She paused, surveying the room’s destruction as her eyes grew wide. “Better yet, give me the play-by-play in excruciating detail. I want to know every. Last. Bit.”
A growl erupted behind her, and I spotted Gael brooding behind Reed, still respecting the doorjamb’s boundary and keeping his eyes pointedly clear of my blanket-clad form. But while Reed and Kane spoke in low tones, his attention was riveted to Leigh.
“I don’t think that would go over so well.”
She snorted, coming to sit on the edge of the bed beside me, and spread a dress bag carefully over what had once been the arm of a wingback chair. “Is your alpha really that overbearing?”
“No, but it looks like yours is.” I nodded toward Gael, and she stiffened.
Her tone was icy when she answered, and definitely loud enough for the men to hear. “I don’t have an alpha, and if I did, he’d know I wasn’t up for repressive caveman behavior. Now, are you going to try to get ready in this war zone, or can you come back to our room to get spruced up? We’ve barely got an hour, and you’ve got major JHU hair.”
“JHU hair?” I patted it self-consciously.
“Just-hooked-up hair, duh.” She shimmied her shoulders playfully, ignoring Gael’s possessive growl.
There was definitely something going on there, and she was either completely blind or pointedly ignoring it. Shay and I shared a questioning glance, but Leigh just shrugged. I’d have to ask her what was going on later.
Shay and Leigh worked their bestie magic, turning me from a just-hooked-up mess into a studious, proper mate in a mourning gown in record time. For the finishing touch, Leigh sashayed over in her four-inch black heels and pinched my cheeks, hard.
“Voilà! Now he’ll be so distracted by how utterly fuckable you are that he won’t remember to be so sad.”
“Leigh! Really?” Shay jabbed her with an elbow and shook her head at me. “You do look stunning, Brielle, but we’ll keep our inappropriate jokes to ourselves today.” She shot a narrow-eyed glare at Leigh, who just grinned.
“Look, I’ve got to get them out now, or else they’ll slip out later at an inappropriate time.”
“It’s fine. I’m sure Alpha Kosta was lovely, but I didn’t know him, and right now, I’m mostly worried about Kane.” I picked at the cap sleeve of my little black dress, even though it was flawless, and Leigh swatted it away. My hands weren’t used to being idle, and funerals… well, they brought back my own parents’ funeral, and it was one of the worst days of my life.
So, yeah. I was going to fidget.
A staid rap on the door broke up our not-fight, and I rose slowly to answer it before Leigh could. She was still smirking and whispering something-which I would bet my medical degree was an inappropriate joke-to Shay.
I didn’t mind, though. Where I fidgeted and Shay retreated into her music, Leigh used humor to deal with her hurts. And while no one might guess to look at her, she had plenty of hurts in her life to hide from.
The sight of Kane in a finely tailored black suit on the other side of the door sent my heart skittering in my chest. He was tragically handsome. His solemn eyes and freshly shaved jaw definitely shouldn’t have sent a jolt of electricity to the apex of my thighs today, but they still did.
He stiffened, and I knew he scented my arousal when his pupils blew wide.
“You look stunning, mate.”
“You look fantastic too. I’m sorry for the occasion, though. I didn’t tell you last night, but I really am sorry for your loss, Kane. I know how it feels, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” I placed a hand on his chest, his solid warmth radiating through the layers of finery and calming my wolf.
Such a simple touch, and yet she settled in my chest, content.
“Thank you. Having you at my side today means the world to me. If I hadn’t found you yet…” He trailed off, the words ending in a dark question.
Would he have gone feral? Torn apart all the gathered packs and decimated the wolf shifter world?
I froze, my blood like ice in my veins. Had that been why someone had done it? Were they trying to wipe out our entire species?
“What is it?” He stepped into my personal space, cupping my elbows in his hands and gathering me to his chest.
I couldn’t answer him, my thoughts moving too fast for words. Every wolf wasn’t here, but many powerful Alphas were, and if Kane had flipped and taken them out… wolf kind would have been left unprotected, vulnerable to attack.
“I just had a thought-“
“Alpha, you’re needed at the head of the procession. It was supposed to start five minutes ago, and people are getting antsy.” Reed’s head was respectfully ducked, but his tone brooked no arguments.
There was a funeral happening, and we weren’t dragging it out further.
Especially not for my completely unfounded suspicions. I pasted on a supportive smile and patted Kane’s chest.
“Let’s go, Kane. Reed’s right, we shouldn’t keep everyone waiting.”
Shay squeezed my shoulder lightly as he released me and offered his arm. I slipped mine through, hanging on to his forearm like a lifeline. From the memories, as much as from the day to come.
THIRTY-THREE
Kane
Iwatched in stony silence as the last of my father’s body turned to ash, and floated away on the breeze. His pyre was the biggest I’d ever seen, as befitted the high alpha of all wolves.
I didn’t let myself think about how large my pyre would one day be, or about my mother’s, burning together with my father from halfway around the world. I couldn’t, because then I’d start sliding back into the darkness, the angry red clawing at my vision and sucking me into mindless rage. No, I wouldn’t think about that.