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

34. Nyx

34

Nyx

Raine’s entire body grows stiff at my question, the stench of her fear bitter on my tongue when I breathe it in.

How odd, to be so nervous when an alpha is asking her to explain herself. Just what exactly was done to her in her previous pack, that such a simple thing would lead her to this kind of reaction? A submission through intimidation is strange for a breeder.

Her pack alpha contacting me hadn’t been that much of a surprise, as I’d been in the market for a breeder for a while. A very specific kind of breeder, at that.

Picking her up had given me the impression that her pack’s tradition of taking care of their breeders either wasn’t being followed or they simply had no clue how to.

Which had struck me, and Wren, as odd. Why in the world would they raise a breeder they had no intention of caring for? A cash grab? Something else?

It seems like too much of a long ploy to risk raising a breeder in the hope that another pack will eventually be in the market for one. Our fertility rates have been going up for decades, leading to the inevitable extinction of the need for someone to supplement that.

“Um,” she mumbles.

I sigh.

My goal isn’t to intimidate or control her—far from it. As long as she fulfills her end of the bargain, then I truly don’t care what she does. Aside from upsetting my pack in some way, though with her acting like a shy and meek deer, I find that to be an unlikely possibility.

“Come,” I tell her, and breeze past her to exit the greenhouse.

I don’t wait for her to follow me before stepping out into the cool night air, figuring if she needs the time to settle herself, then she’ll have it.

My pond ripples when I approach it, flashes of orange and red darting under the dark surface, just out of view. The funny thing about fish is that despite their rather simple nature, they can be quite clever creatures when it comes to recognizing a predator looming over them.

“Do I just throw this all in?” she asks from behind me.

My wolf rumbles softly, both of us surprised at her sudden and silent appearance. Something in me tells me that she’s used to moving quietly and undetected, though for what purpose I’m still unsure of.

I’m unsure about a lot of things in regard to her life back in Andromeda, actually. However, asking about it is a level of intimacy that I’m unwilling to breach at the moment, despite my curiosity.

“Sprinkle in handfuls a bit at a time,” I tell her. “If you throw it all in at once they get too rowdy.”

She mumbles something under her breath, sounding like, “fish can get rowdy?” but does as she’s told.

Tails flick against the surface of the water, mouths coming up to gulp down the pellets tossed onto the surface. I slowly sink down onto the grass, content with watching and letting Raine do as she pleases.

The night is nice and quiet for once: a rare occasion for the Soleus packlands, unfortunately.

“Can I ask you something?”

I lift my head to look at her.

She’s frowning at the fish, a large handful of pellets clutched in her hand. “Why are you doing this?”

I wait for her to elaborate.

She swallows visibly at my silence, her body growing stiff again. It’s an interesting reaction, one that has me wondering yet again what her pack alpha was like. Meeting him in person, he hadn’t impressed me, nor had his enforcers.

To me, it seemed as if they were on the brink of falling apart. Though for what reason is still unclear. Perhaps in-fighting or disregard for his authority, a common thing among packs with poor leadership.

Not to mention his beta had been nowhere in sight, for some reason.

Going anywhere without Wren at my side seems like too much of a statement that I’m not willing to make. I named him my beta for a reason, and his steadfast position at my side is a permanent fixture everywhere we go, unless there’s an emergency that takes him elsewhere.

“You…you’re supposed to be…” she trails off again.

I don’t need her to finish whatever it is she’s about to say.

I know what my reputation is, and what the rumors surrounding my pack are like. I have no interest in correcting them or proving them right. Either way, as long as the packs under my rule are compliant and the northerners keep to themselves, I’m fine upholding the status quo.

“Is there a particular reason you believe I’m going to harm you?” I ask.

She flinches. “I-I…”

“That would be rather counterproductive, would it not?” When she doesn’t say anything, I go on. “We are to raise a child together, after all.”

Her hand, still clenched around the pellets, comes up to rest over her belly. “When…will that be?”

I shrug. “Whenever you wish.”

Her head whips around to look at me. “Isn’t that your decision?”

My lips quirk up in amusement. “Not particularly. You are the one who will be doing the bulk of the work.”

“I meant—you…” She clears her throat. “You know.”

I lift myself back up onto my feet, letting out a slow exhale. “Were you not the one begging me to not kill the child already inside of you? Unless of course, you’ve changed your mind.”

“No, I—” Her eyes search mine. “Isn’t that kind of…aren’t I supposed to be having your heir?”

“Genetics are rather subjective. Don’t you agree?”

She blinks at me. “What?”

Well, I didn’t exactly plan on having this conversation now. I’d hoped we could stave it off for at least another month or so. Raine is apparently determined to keep me on my toes. “Heirs are subjective. What makes an ‘heir?’ If the pack accepts the next in line, what does it matter whose DNA has contributed to it?”

Raine’s jaw drops open—a sight I’m not at all surprised to see. “ What ?”

Stars…I should’ve dragged her back home and put her to bed.

Instead I took a page out of Wren’s book and tried to make her feel more comfortable by talking . And look where it’s gotten me. This is all his fault for suggesting I make nice with our pack’s breeder instead of leaving that job up to Rose.

“Are you trying to tell me that you’re not going to make me kill my baby?” Her hand presses harder over her stomach.

“Will the father be coming after you to claim it?”

Her expression darkens suddenly. “Absolutely not.”

Interesting.

“Then no, I won’t make you get rid of it.”

Her confusion is palpable, but unless she asks directly for my reasoning, I’m not telling her. She doesn’t really need to know anyway. What difference would it make in the grand scheme of things? If she wants to keep her child, the one she made with whomever , then so be it.

My pack’s claim, my claim , over it will remain the same. We will raise it as the next alpha regent and that will be that.

“What if it’s a girl?” she asks.

I shrug.

“That’s…you?” Raine turns and throws the pellets in her hand at the fish, causing them to chaotically splash at the surface, trying to greedily eat up all of them before they get a chance to sink to the bottom. “What the hell? No alpha king ?”

“I’m not partial to gender, Raine.”

“ Why ?”

“What does it matter?”

“Why wouldn’t it matter ?” she hisses back at me.

I snort. Well, if this would’ve been all it took for her to break out of the small and demure personality she’d shoved herself into, perhaps I would’ve done something like this a while ago.

“My elders aren’t that interested in who takes my place, as long as there is someone lined up: a child who I raise. That is it,” I explain.

“So any child will do? Why not just pick up an orphan off the street, then?”

“Because it needs to look like it’s actually mine to the packs under me.”

Realization dawns in her eyes. “Oh.”

“Hence, a breeder.”

She nods slowly. “But your pack doesn’t care?”

“No. They don’t.”

“Do they know? Your pack? That you’re doing all of this?”

I raise a brow. “They did notice us bringing you in, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“No.” She rolls her eyes. “I mean about this child not being yours.”

I shrug. “The people who need to know, do. The people who don’t will figure it out eventually.”

“ How ?!”

I simply smile.

Honestly, what does it matter? In the end, both of us are getting what we want. Me, an heir and her, being able to keep her love child. Aside from that, the rest of the details don’t matter. Once I claim this child as my own, no other male will be able to, even if they were to suspect it was theirs.

I’d kill them before any accusations could fester and bleed into the packs under my rule. Raine may hate me at that point, but by then, hopefully we will have come to some kind of understanding.

I don’t wish to be enemies in all of this.

“Your Grace—” She cuts herself off when my face shifts. “... Nyx. You…do realize this plan is ridiculous, right? You can’t parade a child around that isn’t actually yours to put on the throne.”

“Sure, I can. I already have so far.”

She lets out a slow breath. “So far. What happens if people find out?”

My eyes narrow. “They won’t. Unless someone was stupid enough to let this secret slip past pack borders.”

Raine’s eyes go wide at the drop in my voice. Surprisingly though, she stands her ground, not moving an inch back from me even when I grow closer.

“Right?” I say.

She nods mechanically, her fear permeating the air around us.

“Good.” I draw back again, giving her space to breathe. “In the morning, I’ll send you to Eris so we can get a full check on you. Your previous alpha sent you with no medical information for whatever reason, so we’ll need to start from the beginning.”

She doesn’t give me any indication that she heard me, other than her remaining steadfast in her eye contact with me. A small frown tugs at her lips.

After a moment though, she finally does speak. “Will…you love this baby after it’s born? Even if it isn’t yours?”

That question has me reeling for a second. I never once considered that at all. Loving and taking care of a child are both subjective in their own right, and also two vastly different things.

What do I want from this, other than my pack’s guaranteed survival?

“Hm.”

“You don’t know?” she asks.

“No, I don’t.”

She sighs. “Can you think about it? I don’t want to get my hopes up about this.”

My brows rise. “About what?”

She coughs into her arm, suddenly seeming very uncomfortable. “It’s nothing. Just…please think about it. So I know.”

Assigning me homework already? I want to say it, but hold back from doing so.

For now, I’ve done enough testing the waters with her. So far, I’ve come to understand two things about Raine that I hadn’t before. One: that she’s desperate to keep this child and two: she wants me to be a part of its life outside of raising it to be my heir.

Whether she tells me why is a question for another day, however.

I reach over and pluck the food container out of her hand. “Let’s get you back. You need to rest for tomorrow.”