Page 29 of Of Wolves and Wives

“The three of us are here to ensure that he gives up his throne.”

14

Rose

Iwatch Heath as I consider what he’s told me. Slowly, I sit up in the bed with my hand going to my stomach. There’s a chance that I’ve completely ruined their plans by falling pregnant. My heart shatters at this thought. That I’ve come between them and removing the cruel Grey Prince from his throne. I don’t understand the guilt that washes over me other than I hate myself for being the reason the prince stays on his throne. Any more deaths that he caused, any more suffering and pain would be my fault.

“I’ve ruined it all,” I whisper.

“You haven’t,” Heath assures me. “Your pregnancy doesn’t ruin our plans one bit.”

“How?”

Letting out a sigh, he explains, “If the child is, in fact, the prince’s heir, then we will have the legal right to replace him. If it’s not, then the moment he turns forty, we take him out as planned.”

My eyes widen as I consider what he’s telling me. They’ve been sent to this kingdom as assassins, I realize. Yet, here I am, stuck in the middle of it all. It’s possible that I’m carrying the next heir to this kingdom. The thought makes me shift uncomfortably in bed. I’m not sure I’m ready to mother such a child. If I’m even allowed to, that is.

“What about the wolf king?” I ask. “Can’t he do something about the Grey Prince?”

“No. Not without starting a war. Too many lives, both human and wolf, would be lost if he took action.”

This surprises me. I would think that the wolves would be quick to launch a war without a care for how many human lives they ruined. But, as I watch Heath, I realize that perhaps like his hatred of humans, I’ve been wrong about wolves. Perhaps not all of them are as bloodthirsty and cruel as the prince. My eyes start to droop, and I realize just how tired I am after everything.

“Can I join you?” he asks, startling me.

I pause, staring at him. Why do I want to tell him yes? I shouldn’t invite him to slip into the covers with me. No, I should send him to his post by the door. The last thing I need is to let down my guard around a wolf. But then I realize that I don’t want to lie here alone, so I nod before laying back down. He doesn’t give me a chance to change my mind as he slips in next to me.

Heath wraps his arms around me, pulling me to his chest. Cradled against his firm chest, I hate how safe I suddenly feel right there. His arms tighten around me as I relax, laying my head on his chest as I listen to his heart beating. It’s a gentle beat that’s swift to herald sleep toward me, a soft smile on my lips. Just as my eyes begin to drift closed, he shifts.

“Don’t hold what Rykker did against him.”

I can’t believe he would ask that of me. I’m not sure how he expects me to forgive Rykker for the role he played in my life. For destroying the future that I could have had. So, I say nothing. I feel Heath waiting for an answer, though, even as I stiffen in his arms.

“You are justified in your pain and anger,” he says. “But I know Rykker. He would never do something like that unless absolutely necessary. And afterward, he wouldn’t have known how to live with himself. I can also promise you that since he’s pieced together who they were to you and how wrong his actions were, he won’t go a second without hating himself for what he did.”

“I’ll consider what you said.”

“Rykker is truly his own worst enemy. What he needs the most in the world is something that’s hard for any of us to find. Love and understanding.”

“That feels like an excuse.”

Even as I argue with Heath, determined to cling to my hatred toward Rykker, I know that he’s not wrong. Deep down, I almost agree with him. The more rational part of me knows that he didn’t set out to kill my family and leave me orphaned. He wasn’t the mastermind that orchestrated the attack or even involved my father in something he wouldn’t have been dabbling in. It wasn’t as though he knew that there was a baby. Or that leaving me at an orphanage was worse than if he’d taken me back to the wolves.

But I wasn’t ready to let go of my anger. It was easier, I realized, to cling to it. To blame him for something that wasn’t entirely his fault. I needed someone to blame, though. As cowardly as it was. At that moment, I don’t want to be strong and do the right thing by forgiving Rykker. It seems easier to wallow in my hatred of him. He’s the one that was sent, instead of some faceless force that I can’t rage at.

He’s always been the one to go out of his way to protect you at all costs, a tiny traitorous voice whispers in the back of my mind. It’s not wrong. He was the one that took me when Peirce and Heath didn’t dare, protecting me from the prince that night. It was him that protected me in the dining hall. Never has he done anything to leave me questioning what kind of man he is. Closing my eyes, I take a breath as memories of him coming to my aid rush through my mind.

“I’ll try,” I finally whisper. “To forgive him.”

“That is all any of us can ask for, Rose.”

I smile as I once more settle into his arms. With each heartbeat that comes and goes, I’m strangely thankful for his presence. Despite my earlier reluctance at him joining me, now I’m glad to have him in bed with me. I’m not alone as I struggle to shift through my emotions. He’s a comforting force to me. Then, suddenly, he’s more.

A strange fire comes to life within me in the space of several moments. My desire pulls me toward Heath, and I have to grip his shirt to keep myself in place. I will not launch myself at this man, not after everything that I’ve been through in the last hour or so. Not that my body seems to listen as heat pools in my core.

Annoyance at myself flairs as I do my best to ignore it. But each inhale of his has me leaning further against him. I’m suddenly fidgeting as I try to keep myself in place. I will not pounce on him. Not when I did that to Rykker not that long ago. Gritting my teeth, I close my eyes. But sleep doesn’t come to relieve the pressure building in me.

“Rose?”

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