SWNOVELS Chapter ⊰ 14 ⊱ His to Protect
**I Penelope I**
I lie awake, staring at the ceiling of my tiny studio apartment, my mind reeling with the weight of Malachi's revelation. *Werewolves. Packs.*
There's a whole world hidden beneath the surface of my own, a world my child will be born into.
It's too much to process, too much to wrap my head around. As I glance over at Malachi's sleeping form on the futon, his face relaxed and unguarded in a way I've never seen before, I feel a surge of something warm and fierce in my chest. *He trusts me.*
He trusts me enough to share his secrets, to let me see beneath the mask he wears for the rest of the world. And that...that means everything.
Carefully, so as to not wake him, I slip out of bed, padding barefoot deep and even. I've noticed he only seems to need a few hours of sleep a night, his body recharging with a swiftness that must be yet another perk of his werewolf physiology. I envy him in that the ability to function on so little rest. As my pregnancy progresses, I find myself needing more and more sleep, my body exhausted from the work of growing a new life.
However, right now, I'm wide awake, my mind too full of questions to even contemplate rest. And so, I find myself reaching for Malachi's phone, left charging on the coffee table.
I know I shouldn't. I know it's a violation of his privacy, a betrayal of the trust he's placed in me. But I can't help myself. I need to know more, to understand the world my child will be born into.
With trembling fingers, I unlock the screen, my heart hammering in my throat as I lower myself onto the edge of the bed and begin to scroll through his messages and emails.
At first, it's just business as usual-contracts, invoices, the mundane minutiae of running an empire. But then, I come across references to things I don't understand, names and terms that send a chill down my spine. *Alpha King... Luna... The Council of Elders...*
With growing horror, I slowly begin to piece together the fragments, a picture emerging of a world far more complex and cutthroat than I ever imagined.
*Malachi's...a King?*
Because it wasn't intimidating enough that he's not human, now come to find out he's the Alpha King, the ruler of his pack and a key player in some sort of supernatural policial game. And from the looks of it, he's vying to become the next ruler of the entire continent, a position that would grant him unimaginable power and influence.
*But there's a catch...*
To secure his claim, he needs an heir, a child born of his blood and blessed by the Council. A child he hadn't been able to conceive with his former mate. *Until now. Until me.*
Suddenly, it all makes sense the urgency of his desire for our baby, the way he's been so fiercely protective of me since that day I was ambushed in the alley by those thugs. I'm not just carrying his child...I'm carrying his key to the throne. The revelation hits me like a punch to the gut, leaving me reeling. I feel used, betrayed, like nothing more than a pawn in some cosmic game of chess.
But before I can fully process it all, a shadow falls over me, a looming presence that sends a shiver down my spine.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
Malachi's voice is cold, deadly calm in a way that terrifies me more than any shouted rage. Slowly, I raise my head to meet his gaze, flinching at the fury I see burning in his glowing, eerie icy blue eyes.
He's standing there, his rock-hard abs prominent as he towers over me, shirtless and intimidating. The sight of him, all rippling muscle and coiled power, makes my mouth go dry, even as fear curdles in my gut. "I...I'm sorry," I stammer, my fingers going slack around his phone. "I just...I needed to know..."
"Needed to know what?!" he snarls, snatching the device from my hand, my body involuntarily jolting. "Needed to dig through my private shit, to stick your nose where it doesn't belong?"
I quail under the force of his anger, my eyes burning with unshed tears. "I'm sorry," I whisper again, hating the way my voice shakes. "I didn't...I wasn't trying to..."
"I don't care what you were trying to do," he bites out, his jaw clenched tight. "I'm done playing by your rules, Penelope."
He grabs my arm, his fingers biting into my skin as he hauls me to my feet. "We're going back to the estate. Tonight. And from now on, you don't make a move without my say-so. Understand?"
I nod mutely, too cowed by his fury to protest. He'd warned me his world was dangerous, that there were things I couldn't understand. And now, through my own foolish actions, I've gone and proved him right. *He's so mad at me... I fucked up.*
The drive back to the estate is tense, the silence broken only by the low growl of the engine and Malachi's shallow breathing. I huddle against the passenger side door, my arms wrapped around my belly as though I can shield my child from the anger emanating from his father.
*Maybe I should apologize again.*
...
*No. I might just make it worse.*
I sit in silence for a while longer, but after a moment, it's too much. I can't stand it. I hesitate, reluctantly glancing over at him, my voice small and uncertain. "Are you...are you still angry with me?"
He doesn't answer, his gaze fixed steadily on the road ahead. But I see the way his fingers tighten on the steering wheel, the tendons standing out sharply beneath his skin.
*I'll take that as a yes.*
I swallow hard, my throat tight, my vision hazing with unshed tears. It feels as though I've ruined everything, destroyed the fragile trust that we'd slowly been building.
*And for what? A few scraps of information? A glimpse into a world I'm not sure I'm ready to be a part of?*
When we pull up to the estate, Malachi is out of the car before I can unbuckle my seatbelt. Before I can reach for the door handle, he's there, wrenching it open and hauling me out with a grip just shy of bruising.
He slams me back against the side of the car, his body a hard, unyielding line against mine. This close, I can see the way his irises flare gold, flickering against the glowing blue behind them, the wolf rising to the surface in response to his anger.
"Don't ever do that again," he rasps, his breath hot against my skin. "Don't ever go behind my back, poking around in things you don't understand. Because next time...next time, I won't be so forgiving."
I nod shakily, dropping my gaze to the ground. Swiftly, he grabs my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes, to confront the full force of his displeasure.
"I mean it, Penelope," he growls, his lips barely a hairsbreadth from mine. "You're carrying my child, my heir. And I will protect what's mine, even if it means protecting you from yourself."
I shudder at the possessive curl of his words, at the way they kindle something hot and needy in my core. He's so close, his scent filling my nose, his head searing into my skin.
Slowly, deliberately, he drags his nose along the column of my throat, inhaling deeply. A low, rumbling growl vibrates through his chest and I feel an answering flutter in my belly, a primal recognition of the power he wields. But beneath that, there's a heat between my legs, spreading like wildfire, betraying me.
"No, little rabbit," he murmurs against the shell of my ear, his lips brushing the sensitive skin, my body shivering. "I'm not angry with you. Not anymore."
And just like that, he's gone, leaving me breathless and aching as he strides towards the house, expecting me to follow.
*Why...why does he do this to me? How..?*
Briefly, it's like I'm back in the alley, outside that bar, pressed against the wall with his hands on my body.
*No. Stop it. Don't think about that!*
With shaking hands, I push off the car, my knees wobbly and weak. I know I should be scared. I should be furious at the way he manhandled me, at the way he's trying to control every aspect of my life.
But all I feel is a bone-deep desire for him, accompanied by a sense of relief that despite my missteps, he still wants me. He still wants *us*.
And as I trail after him, my hand resting protectively on the swell of my stomach, I vow to do better. To *be* better.
*For my child. *
*For...for my Alpha.*