Protect Me, Alpha King

All we could do was stare at Lady Juliana's retreating form.

'You went overboard, River," the alpha king said using our mind link.

'Did 1? I'm sorry, Your Majesty," I said, still smiling.

"Your apologies are not genuine.’

I winked at him and faced the two alphas

"Now that Lady Juliana left us, is it okay that it's only the three of us who will proceed to the dining area?" I asked.

"We can, Your Grace," Alpha Wade answered.

When we reached the dining area, Alpha Erik was already there, attending to the servants, and making sure everything was ready.

It was a feast. A lot of mouth-watering foods were displayed, an extravagance that I had not experienced in a lifetime.

If the alpha king did not lie to me about being his queen, I would be standing with the other servants.

I inhaled deeply. Well, I wanted to savor this moment while it lasted.

The dinner was an intimate one composed of Alpha Erik, Alpha Wade, and me. It would be more fun if Lady Juliana were also present, but after walking out, I never knew where she had been.

The servants stood beside us and were ready to serve if there was something we wanted to eat. Looking at them reminded me of my past on how I would try my best not to commit a single mistake for fear of Alpha Wade's punishment.

The alpha king's hand rested on my lap as if silently telling me he was always there for me.

I appreciated this man. For what he was doing so far. He was also one of the reasons why I dared to stand against Alpha Wade and Alpha Erik, even if my insides were shaking.

Pretending.

That was what I was good at only.

"Alpha Erik, I would like to extend my congratulations on your upcoming wedding,” I said, grinning from ear to ear, breaking the thick silence surrounding us.

“I don't know what you're—"

"Oh, come on, Alpha Erik. Alpha Wade informed us that you're going to marry Lady Juliana. If not for your father, the alpha king, and I wouldn't know about it,” I said, cutting off his words.

I grabbed some grilled chicken legs I hadn't eaten once when I was still in Haverstone Pack and munched on a piece of meat. I did not care if I was eating gracefully or not. The food was so tasty that I forgot how a fake queen should behave.

Alpha Wade was silently watching my eating etiquette. To taunt him more, I “accidentally’ put some grain of rice in the corner of my mouth.

The alpha king stilled beside me and said, “My Queen, you have some..."

Without waiting for my reply, he removed the grain from my mouth, to which I responded with a chuckle.

Reminded of Alpha Erik, I shifted my gaze at him as I grabbed the tissue the alpha king had given me while saying. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

He was watching the scene flashing in front of his eyes.

I wondered what he was feeling now. Regret? Jealousy? Or disgust? I could not really tell.

"I see. Father has already informed you, Your Grace.”

“And I also informed him that we were...you know?” I chuckled when I saw Alpha Wade gritting his teeth. Did he already regret inviting the alpha king right now? I would be happy if he did. “I thought that Alpha Wade already knew, Alpha Erik. Forgive me.”

He forced a smile and answered, “There is nothing to forgive, Your Grace. It's my fault for forgetting to inform Father.”

Forget?

More like you were hiding it.

“Oh. I see. There's no bad blood between us, then.”

“None so far, Your Grace. How could I think ill of you when you are my queen?”

My queen.

There was a big difference when the alpha king uttered those words compared to Alpha Erik. The former melted my heart, while the latter brought shivers down my spine.

The alpha king wiped the corner of his mouth using the tissue. "Let me also grab this opportunity to ask about the queen's past, Alpha Wade. They said that you were the one who saw her in the River. How true is that?"

I stopped munching my food as my heart suddenly beat wildly.

The alpha king honored his promise of asking Alpha Wade about my origin. It would be better if I learned something from this visit, or else everything will be futile.

My grip on the spoon tightened. Alpha Wade watched me as I struggled to maintain my breathing. "Oh. About Her Grace?" He beamed, and I hated it, as if he was poking fun at me. "It was true I was the one who saw her first. She was bloody all over..." he trailed off.

Bloody? Whose blood was I carrying?

As if knowing what was in my mind, the alpha king asked on my behalf, "Was it her blood, Alpha Wade?"

Alpha Wade let go of his utensils and leaned back.

"It wasn't from her. The baby had no wounds whatsoever.”

"Maybe the one carrying her was forced to let go of her. Someone could be chasing the person who was holding her."

"That's what I had in mind at that time, Your Majesty. After all, I saw her at the border. At that time, slaves were being persecuted after trying to escape their masters. Rogues were also sold into slavery."

"A baby with an unknown identity. Is that also why you gave her the omega status at such a young age?"

Alpha Wade shrugged off his shoulders. "My apologies, Your Majesty, but during that time, I lacked some slaves. The rogues also attacked our pack, and many of my servants died protecting the pack. I was left with no choice.”

"What a bastard,” I muttered under my breath.

But the asshole could hear my words when he asked, "What was that, Your Grace?"

Beaming, I answered, "I said you were a bastard during that time, Alpha Wade, and still is an asshole right now.”

The servants beside us gasped while Alpha Erik stiffened.

"A bastard. You are the first one who said that to me."

Sighing, I answered, "It's because they are scared of you, Alpha Wade. How could an adult be ruthless to a baby when she could not even stand on her own feet? I wondered how I was raised by that time."

"If I knew you would turn out to be the future queen of the kingdom of Vernice, I should have asked one of the best wet nurses to care for you," he responded bluntly.

"Nah. That's not what I am talking about, Alpha Wade. You're making me look like the villain when you are the bad guy.”

I sipped the wine from the glass and put it down after.

"I did not know you have a sharp tongue, Your Grace. You usually cower and beg for my forgiveness while groveling when I attempt to punish you for your mistake. But look at you now. You finally have the wings for that.”

I stilled.

I felt my hands trembling, and before the glass could slip from my fingers, I released my hold Shaking my head, I said, "You were ruthless back then, Alpha Wade. Not only then but until now. Punishing the servants because of their mistakes was acceptable. However, I wondered how many women you defiled?”

"That's a serious allegation, My Queen," the alpha king muttered.

"It's not an allegation, Your Majesty. It is true. You can ask all the female servants here if Alpha Wade attempted to defile them, attempted to or not.”

Alpha Wade's face darkened while Alpha Erik's face looked at his father with worry in his eyes.