Page 82 of Fated to the Warrior Wolf

She was alpha enough that she wanted revenge.

Retribution,she growled, surprising me with an actual word. Most of what I got from her was pure feeling, instinct. We coexisted mostly without conscious words, which meant she was dead serious now.

But what about Petal?

I dropped my hand to my belly, trying to sort through my very muddled feelings. Pregnancy hormones were not helping this situation, not even a little. Goddess, when had my life gotten so damn complicated? I just wanted to move, to get the restless, jangling energy out of me and clear my mind.

“Will you take a walk with me?” I blurted, hating the frantic sound of my voice. I wanted to be someone who was cool, calm, and collected—but that had never been me. I’d always been too much.

Maybe it was time to stop apologizing for that. I was who Iwas, and if we were perfect for each other, shouldn’t he be okay with that?

“Hell yes,” he answered without hesitation, and that tiny spark of hope in my chest flickered happily before I could squash it back out.

He stood with lithe grace and offered me his hand. I didn’t take it. My wolf was notletting him off the hook that easily.

“We’ll be right here if you need us when you get back,” Olivia surprised me by interjecting. Her chin was up, and the glare she was aiming at Gael was hard enough to peel paint.

“Thanks,” I murmured.

We walked in silence out of the room, past the cluster of agitated males, most of whom nodded at us. Dirge was the only one to step forward, holding up a palm to stop us.

“Do you need company?” he asked, ignoring the sudden tension in Gael’s shoulders as he zeroed in on me.

“No, I’m okay. Thank you, though, Dirge,” I said, leaning forward to kiss him lightly on the cheek before stepping past. Gael and I walked in silence as we wound through the castle.

Had it been barely an hour ago that we’d walked these same halls, twined together and talking about forever?

It felt like a year.

We stepped out a small door onto the rear grounds, and I gratefully sucked in a lungful of cool, damp air. My head instantly felt clearer.

“There’s a footpath this way,” Gael said, pointing out not a sidewalk, but a narrow trail cut right through the grass along the back of the castle. I nodded, and he headed that way.

We walked for a while, at least ten or fifteen minutes, before he started to talk.

“My family is from Spain,” he started, and I looked at him in surprise. The simplest detail, and I hadn’t known. I’d assumed he was from Romania, like Kane and the twins. “My father is the Alpha of Pack España, but he’s also the first cousinof the king, second in line to the throne and named grand duke.”

“Of the wholecountry?” I asked, making no effort to hide my shock.

He nodded with a sad twist of his lips. “Yes, the whole country.”

“So when Celeste called youprince,she meant…”

“Literally. I’m third in line to the throne of Spain.”

“Holy hell,” I muttered, scrubbing the heel of my hand over my eyes. “So you left out a lot more thanjustthe fiancée, then?”

“It never came up?” He cast me a pensive glance, but quickly fixed his eyes back on the castle grounds. “It’s a shitty excuse, but it’s true. I don’t live in that world anymore, and that’s by choice. I chose to leave Pack España, chose to become Kane’s head enforcer. Our life in Alaska was pretty damn close to perfect. I hate all the politics, and I have no desire to be treated differently because of who my family is.”

I blinked at the uncharacteristic word vomit, but didn’t interrupt.

“I never planned to come back, at least not for a few hundred years, when one of my cousins would likely already be on the throne. But Kane’s father dying accelerated that timeline. Significantly.”

There was so much to unpack, I wasn’t sure where to start. “You plan to abdicate your role in the royal family?”

“Absolutely,” he said without hesitation.

“Okay,” I said, pausing. “But what does any of that have to do with Celeste showing up here and you keeping her and your engagement a secret?”

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