Rejected and Pregnant by the Alpha King (Forbidden Alpha Kings #4)

28. Raine

28

Raine

The beauty of the Southern packlands is somewhat staggering when we arrive.

I’d expected it to be dry and arid compared to the cool humidity I left back home, but the expanses of dry brush and large jagged mountains in the distance surprise me. Staring at them when we reach the peak of our climb before heading down into the valley, I shift and stand in awe of what’s to be my new home.

From here, small speckles of yellow wildflowers peek through the long grass down below, swaying gently in the wind. The earthy scent of dirt, not as dense as back home, fills my nose. I breathe it in deeply as I try to memorize the smell.

Behind me, someone shifts and stands at the edge of the overhang by my right. I glance over, surprised to see Rose smiling peacefully at the view ahead.

“Pretty magnificent, isn’t it?”

I nod. I’m going to have to get used to not having the cover of tall and dense forests to move through when out for a run. Though, who’s to say I’ll even be able to leave the estate at all once I get there.

For all I know, Nyx will keep me barefoot and pregnant until I’m no longer able to be.

“There’s our packlands.” She points to a spot in the valley, a few miles from where we are. From here I can see the impression of a small village tucked between rock formations. “And that’s Spider Creek. It’s a human town.”

Her finger shifts slightly away, pointing to another town, larger than the one before. From the looks of it, it’s not that far away from the Soleus territory. Maybe a fifteen-minute run, if that. Why would Soleus have their village so close to humans?

Surely if they’d begun to be encroached on by the humans, they could figure out a way to move. Any shifter pack has to deal with that on occasion. Humans are like parasites, always loving to spread to every corner of the damn planet with no regard for anyone but themselves.

“Do you…go there often?” I glance at her.

“What, to Spider Creek?” She shrugs. “Sometimes. There’s a pizza place there that has a killer Friday menu. Whenever I’m not out on patrol those nights, you’ll find me there.”

A shifter willingly dealing with humans—never thought I’d see the day.

Rose is certainly unique.

“Ladies,” Wren’s voice cuts through from behind us, startling me. “Shall we?”

He motions with his hand toward the path leading down the incline, which several of his packmates are already taking, a bland expression on his face.

“Let her admire the view,” Rose says back. “It’s not every day you get to see the sky this blue.”

“I’m sure she’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the sights in the future. For now, it’s best we get back home. I’m sure we’re all tired.”

So does that mean I won’t be kept holed up inside for the rest of my fertile years?

Glancing back behind Wren, a large black wolf waits patiently with his eyes focused directly on me. His tail swats once while the rest of his body is statue-still—almost as if waiting for something to happen and preparing himself for it.

There’s no point in running away now.

Not when I have absolutely no idea where I am or how to get home. I could backtrack and use our scents to get as far away as possible. But then where would I go? I don’t have a home to go back to anymore, and I’m certainly not going to be welcomed into any neighboring pack around here.

Not if the alpha king is hunting me down.

My eyes move away from his while I shift again, the coarse dirt under my paws giving me enough traction to dig my claws into. Making the most out of my situation is going to be the only chance I have at happiness.

Even with the dull ache left from my life from before.

Rose huffs softly and shifts as well, leaping down the incline quickly before Wren can scold her again. I follow after her carefully, taking my time with the unfamiliar rocky terrain as I go. It’s cooler down in the valley, though not by much. The trees here thin significantly, taken over with wild bushes and small shrubs that are prickly when I pass by them.

When we finally reach the borders of the Soleus pack, we’re let through without so much as a glance my way. In a strange way, I’m glad for it. Being gawked at like a zoo exhibit would only make my stomach more upset than it already is.

I stick close behind Rose, not wanting to get lost as we enter in through the main gates. The compound is large and bustling with activity, reminding me of the ball and how many people had been running around preparing for all of us to arrive.

Here, it seems to be a daily way of life.

Rose shifts and stretches her arms over her head, letting out a soft groan. Around me, the rest of our brigade does the same, and I along with them. Cowardly, I keep myself in between enforcers, not wanting to catch the attention of any other Soleus packmate.

Even if none of them knew I’d be coming, there will still be curiosity as to who Nyx would be letting into the pack like this, with a small fleet to escort them. I’m sure it isn’t every day that a shifter from another pack is paraded around like this.

Or at least I hope it isn’t.

For all I know, Nyx has a dozen other breeders stashed away somewhere and I’m just the newest addition.

A hand at my back guides me forward, startling me. Looking over my shoulder, my body tenses when I realize that it’s Nyx and not someone else, like Wren.

He doesn’t glance at me, or pay me any attention aside from the subtle pressure of his hand on me as we walk to a large mansion toward the back of town. It’s hard to settle my nerves when my wolf is whining at me, mostly out of stress from how tense I am.

I feel bad for her—to get stuck with someone like me must be torture.

“Your Grace.” The enforcers ahead of us step to the side and bow once we reach the mansion. “Will you be needing anything else?”

“That is all for now,” he tells them, nodding to them in unison. “Get some rest. It was a long journey. Elder Eris, you as well.”

They all break apart rather quickly, heading back toward the middle of town while Wren and Rose stay behind with us. Nyx’s hand falls away from me while he moves, giving me room to not only breathe but to relax a little bit.

“I should probably get you some clothes,” Rose says while looking at me. “You’re around my size, so I’ll bring a bag over.”

“Perhaps a suitcase,” Nyx suggests.

She makes a face. “Are you going to be paying to replace the rest of my wardrobe?”

My mouth drops open. Is she actually allowed to talk to him like that?

Never in my life have I ever met a female this bold before—especially when talking to a damn alpha king. I can’t even imagine the kind of reprimanding she’d get if she were to ever open her mouth and say half of this kind of shit to Daniel.

He’d tear her apart. Or worse, lock her in the damn cellar like he did me.

Nyx only looks amused, however. “If that’s what it takes you to give her a decent amount of clothing.”

“Or I could take her into town to shop for herself.”

His lids lower over his eyes, just enough for the corners of his lashes to press together. That same smile is playing on his lips, but it twists slightly. Almost in a way that has his lips thinning slightly—whether from Rose’s candidness or annoyance at her talking back, it’s hard to say.

Wren isn’t reeling his sister back though, simply watching the conversation unfold with his thick arms crossed over his chest. That gives me a little comfort, since clearly this is a common occurrence between his alpha and sister.

“Perhaps we should give her a few days to acclimate and then revisit the topic,” Nyx finally says.

Rose grunts. “Fine. I’ll bring over a suitcase. Raine, do you need any toiletries?”

“She needs everything,” Wren mumbles.

My cheeks burn with shame.

Looking away quickly, I focus on a spot on the ground that has a smooth-looking rock poking out of the packed dirt. It’s not my fault Daniel was stupid in not sending me with anything that a proper breeder would be, then again, as his final act in humiliating me, he’d done a magnificent job.

Even if I try to continue keeping this charade going, it’ll unravel eventually. By then I may just be cast out for being a liar, or selling Nyx a false promise.

“We’ll send someone into town to grab those for her,” Nyx says, breaking up the sudden silence that has fallen over all of us. “Rose—”

“Yeah, I’ll go with them. Just don’t send me with Ryker. He’s too frugal and it’s going to drive me insane.”

“Take whoever you want, I don’t care. Just get it done.”

“Sure thing,” she says. “Raine, do you have anything you’re particular on?”

I shake my head. Honestly, I’d just be happy with a bar of soap and clean water.

I hardly got that at all back in Andromeda, if my water pump was on the fritz. Trips to the lake a quarter of a mile from my cabin had been a daily thing during one particular summer before I’d learned to fix it myself, since everyone in the pack refused to come out to help me.

“Alright…well, I’ll see you all later then.” The sound of Rose’s shoes crunching on the packed dirt road has me glancing up just enough to watch her walking away from us.

My stomach clenches again at being left alone with my new alpha and his beta. Or…I guess Wren is now my beta too.

How strange to have one again.

“Food” is all Nyx has to say before Wren gives him a firm nod and follows in the direction of his sister, not once looking back at us.

Oh gods…

Twining my fingers together is the only way to keep them from visibly shaking. So far, Nyx has been…polite, which is not at all what I’d been expecting. However, that was when we were surrounded by his pack. Now that we’re alone…

I’m glad he’s standing a bit away from me. The fear leaking through my pores is probably horrendous.

He doesn’t spare me a glance at all as he turns and heads up the steps to the mansion, the doors opening from the inside without him even having to touch them. I’m stuck standing at the bottom of the stoop, struck dumb on if I should follow him or not.

Am I? Or am I just supposed to wait out here until Rose gets back?

If this were Daniel, I’d be made to wait in the middle of the courtyard for the rest of the pack to come to jeer at me.

“Are you coming? Or are you delighting in basking in the hot sun?”

I jolt and snap my focus up to the doors where Nyx is standing, his brows raised.

“I—um…sorry…”

His eyes roll up and down my figure slowly. “You could certainly use some color if you are.”

Again, my face burns.

While I struggle to come up with something else to say to him outside of me foolishly stuttering, he continues to wait patiently.

It paints an odd picture—me, a newcomer taken from my homelands and planted right in the middle of a situation I have no idea how to handle while still remaining true to myself. And him, an alpha, giving me a strange amount of leeway while holding all of the cards.

Why?

What motive does he have in not demanding me to come upstairs and right to his bedroom? Sure, we still have the pregnancy to figure out, but that doesn’t mean he can’t sample the goods first. Take me for a test drive, as Daniel had so eloquently put it while dragging me out of my cage.

Is the patience a part of the test? To see if I’m going to be difficult and give him a hard time, or to see if I’m complacent and won’t question him on whatever he asks of me?

Daniel had been full of tests. Aiden had been too trusting.

Where does Nyx fall on that spectrum?

“Am…I allowed to stay out here?” My throat is tight as I speak, fear almost forcing me to remain silent. But I have to know—I need to know what I’m in for—and this will be my first look through the spyglass.

He blinks slowly and then a large, amused smile stretches across his face. He doesn’t answer right away, simply glances over my head at his pack’s town. “If you aren’t in the mood to get stared at, then I suggest coming inside. My pack tends to be rather…curious.”

Curious? Or suspicious?

I’m surprised he’s giving me a warning at all.

Not wanting to test his good mood, I slowly ascend the stairs and follow him into the mansion.