Page 2 of Owned By Four Alphas

He glanced down at her, raising an eyebrow, his yellow eyes flashing through the darkness of their chambers. “Something different?”

The Forest God’s face swam in her mind. His sad smile. The fire. She shook her head. “it doesn’t matter now.”

She could tell he was still curious, but he didn’t push her. Instead, he merely grunted and moved to roll them over to go back to sleep.

“Hold on,” she giggled, swatting at his muscled arms. “It’s past sunrise. I want to go into the city, see the preparations!”

Ronan groaned, trapping her wriggling limbs in his much larger ones. “We can go later. It’s still night.”

She elbowed him. “Maybe for you, lazybones! But the others have been up for hours now!”

“Malek doesn’t need sleep, and Elian’s only up because delegations are arriving for the feast later. He wants to make as much mischief as possible before he’s made to sit still and behave.”

“And Kaelen?” Selena said as she finally managed to free herself from her mate’s embrace, “He’s a shifter just like you, what’s your excuse for him?”

Ronan sat up, his eyes sliding appreciatively over her naked form, lingering at the swell of her stomach. “I wouldn’t go comparing wolves and dragons, sweetness,” he growled, “that’ll get you into all sorts of trouble.”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, I’m going to explore the Marble Halls. I’ve never been to a Winter’s End celebration before! It’s exciting.” As she spoke, she slipped into a warm gown made of silver velvet, lined with soft white fur. There was still a definite chill in the air, and despite her new powers she didn’t seem to be as resistant to things like the weather as the rest of her pack. Part of the deal of staying human, perhaps.

“The bloody Fae throw a party every time somebody coughs. It’ll be no different from the hundred other feasts we’ve had in the few months we’ve been here.”

“Grumpy,” she teased, sticking her tongue out at him. “Come and join us when you’re in a better mood.”

She narrowly avoided the pillow thrown at her as she ran out of the room, giggling at the sleepy wolf left in her bed.

The Marble Halls were always beautiful at dawn, the clear stone turning shades of pale pink and peach as the sun peeked between the mountains that surrounded them. The heart of the Benellane Court, a mastery of Fae architecture. Amongst the slim nobles there were also shifters; wolves and dragons mostly, but a few visitors from other realms as well. Ever since she had claimed the magic of the Forest God a few months ago, her pack had been keen to establish peace and unity.

Discussions had been mostly positive so far, but Selena knew the brunt of the work was still to come. As much as Kaelen tried to shield her from the more aggressive concerns, she wasn’t stupid. She heard people talking.

She shook her head. It was too beautiful a day to worry. Selena skipped down the stairs of the palace, making her way into the city, the gleaming spires of the Marble Halls reaching out above her. Children ran past, their faces shining, kites floating behind them. When they saw her, their mouths fell open, their eyes widening.

“That’s the queen!”

“She’s not a queen, she’s a goddess!”

“No, my father said she was Queen of the First Realm, ever since she got the Forest God’s magic!”

“Well,myfather said she’s not queen yet!”

“Are you little ones alright?” Selena asked, approaching the gawking children with a soft smile. They went rigid, their faces turning red as they realized she’d been listening.

“S-sorry, your Majesty!” The tallest, a girl with shining chestnut hair bowed at the waist, tugging a shorter boy besideher to bow as well. The third, a boy with a sneer reminiscent of Elian’s, remained standing, his eyes guarded.

“You can call me Selena,” she said, her own cheeks flushing slightly at the girl’s bow. “There’s no need for any of that. Now, why don’t you tell me where you three were off in such a hurry?”

The girl bit her lip, shyly glancing up at Selena through her lashes, “The Theldirian Fountain,” she said. “It’s almost time for the Keeper of the Library to tell the story of the Forest God and Theldir.”

Flashes of a face. Horn rising up into the branches A sad smile.

“I haven’t heard that story,” said Selena, her heart twisting slightly. “Can I come with you?”

The girl nodded, her face breaking into a smile as she grasped Selena’s hand and tugged her forward. Selena gasped at the strength in the girl’s grip. It made sense, of course; the girl was Fae and Selena was human. But it never stopped surprising her.

Selena followed the trio through the city, laughing with them as the two boys made their kites soar and pounce at each other. Many seemed to be walking in the same direction as them, towards the great fountain near the city center. Selena had seen it before, walked past it many times. It denoted the Forest God, or at least an interpretation of him as a great stag, standing resplendent with one golden hoof restraining a fearsome dragon. Water poured forth from his antlers into the fountain below, where the Keeper of the Library was waiting with a patient smile on his wrinkled face.

There was a commotion in the crowd, a few murmurs of alarm, as a shadowy figure weaved between the bodies withinhuman speed, heading straight for Selena. The three children gasped and shrank behind her, but Selena only smiled as Malek’s pale face emerged from the swirling shadows.

“Selena.” Her mate looked slightly panicked, his head whipping around, his shoulder hunching slightly in an effort to make his towering form diminish into the crowd. It was no use, however, as even if he didn’t stand half a head taller than the tallest Fae, his antlers sprouted out from his shaggy black hair above him for all to see. “I’m sorry, I was trying to get back to the palace, but I got caught in the crowd, and then I saw you.”

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