Theresa let out a little spree of bay chuckles and picked up her red wine to sip, thereafter bobbing her shoulder. “I should have known. Birds of the same feathers… so you don’t mind that your mate has another mate?” She gave the lady a rather distinguished pointed perusal.
“They were only pretending. It wasn’t real,” Rebecca forwarded.
“That’s enough,” Alonso replied, finishing the remaining space demarcating us. “I think it’s time to set some things straight. I can’t delay anymore, if we are going to make things work around here, so I speculate we start from the minimal ones.” He extended his right hand to me while I watched it with a thudding heart, prodding him with my orifice about what he is up to.
“Come on, Munchkin,” he hedged. I looked around hesitantly, swallowed, and gently placed my left hand on his. He helped me up, pushed the chair aside, and to my uttermost panic, dropped to one of his knees in front of me.
My throat went dry.
“What is going on, Alonso?” Paisley flew up from her chair. To me, her voice was a distant chord, ringing from a distance. All I could hear then was the steady banging of my heartbeat against my chest. My vision grew blurry with tears and poured in tides down my face.
I snatched the hand he was holding and cupped my chest, afraid that I will die from too much adrenaline pumping in my ears, my nerves, every part of me were in override. This is not real, is it? My mate is finally proposing to me… Oh, Gad!
“Danika…” I heard a distant voice which I presume to be his call. “Will you marry me?” His lips have been moving, but that request was one I was able to pick up from the many utterances he had made. It’s truly happening, not a dream.
“Yes,” I said inaudibly as I shook my head, my body, every part of me in acceptance, feeling him slide the ring into my finger, as my legs gave way beneath me. He hustled up and grabbed me before I would fall, and held me to him.
“Yes!” two people echoed in unison from the entrance.
Our faces whipped around and caught the frozen bodies of my two friends at the door, and their eyes widened and went down their legs when they realized their holler had earned the attention of everyone around. The guards had a ‘we warned them’ look in their eyes.
Nadia waddled forward with her hands stretched out in front of her holding an item- my phone, which I presume was a distraction. “You forgot your phone inside…” she breathes out fretfully.
I smiled, extracted myself from Alonso’s arms, and took it. Our gazes locked and the anticipated promise of this night’s pestilence from them in her eyes couldn’t be missed. Not that I would mind. This is the fulfillment of what I have always wanted all my life, in the night I was almost going mad with apprehension. I am ready to stay awake all night bickering with them about it.
“Will you get out already?” Theresa barked and the latter scampered away out of the dining room with Mary at her wake. I whirled around to glare at Theresa, reminding her I won’t entertain her ill-treatment of my friends irrespective of my wanting her approval so badly.
Paisley’s movement towards us and Alonso rapidly pulling me flush back against his chest brought me back to reality. “You sly bitch!” she snarled. “You lied to me!”
“Language, Paisley-”
“Oh, shut up!” she blasted at Alonso. “You promised to marry me!”
“I changed my mind,” he said casually.
“I am pregnant with your heir!” She took another step with a distressed countenance. By now, Lancelot and his mate were seated, watching keenly. It appears the new member of the family would as usual be welcomed with a family brawl. What an ideal Lockhart’s way of reception.
“You are, indeed,” Alonso drawled through tight lips that dripped off sarcasm and boredom, took my wrist, and started strutting back to his seat. “I have my mate now, Paisley. I have already contacted your father to address certain matters which I am working very hard to provide proof.” He set apart the chair she just vacated, for me, and then fully faced her with a scowl. “You caused this and I must say, thanks.”
“What are you saying?” She was close to tears.
“You might tell us, Paisley. But of course, I know you will not allow your ego in the mud and would rather play the victim, so allow me to do the honors soon, Cleopatra.” He was less bothered about her almost hysterics.
“You are insane!”
“As you are,” he added cheekily and made for his seat. I turned sideward to the left to look at her, perhaps to sympathize with her. She wasn’t cruel to me. The only single bad thing she did to me was making me have to fight to take my mate from her, by all means.
So, I will not be horrible to her. I said, “I’m sorry, Paisley. Maybe-”
“Oh, shut up!” she snarled. She hugged her waist with her hands, staggered on her feet, and went close to Alfred who has been so abnormally focused on his meal, the way he behaves sometimes during our family feuds. She stopped and faced me, and this time, she had tiny droplets of tears falling down her face. “Fine, I give up. I lose. To you, Danika. So what now? Are you going to allow him to cast me out?”
“I will never do that,” I said wholeheartedly. I could never do that, even though I don’t know what fate awaits her. “All I wanted was what was rightfully mine.”
“I told you she was devious, but you wouldn’t listen,” Theresa suddenly said. “Perhaps I underestimated, Danika. Such a brilliant way of dethronement… So, son, what happens to your heir now?”
“There is no pregnancy!” Alonso hissed.
“What!” everyone shouted.
“I am pregnant!” Paisley insisted.
“You are not, stop lying,” I said through gritted teeth. I don’t want to do her dirty more than I want to claim my man, but her insistence on being bitchy is making me reach the brink of my patience.
“We can do a test before everyone! I am, I-”
“She only said it to hitch the King,” I cut off Paisley to say. Her eyes widened like saucers and more tears poured out. She possibly can’t believe I could do this to her. I don’t believe I can do certain things too. Maybe we go to a certain extent to lay claim to things belonging to us.
“Danika, you said you are my friend!” she accused.
“You said you are my friend too and yet you refuse to let me have my mate! Willingly… you wanted this and I…” I shrugged, tears gathering in my eyes too. “I had to do everything to get him back.”
“Including fucking me?”
Heavy buzz went on air. I turned red. I looked around at everyone’s faces and looked back at her. She would bring that up? That’s not fair.
“Paisley you know that’s not true!” I shouted back. I looked at Alonso, he was looking at me. He can’t believe her, does he? He didn’t say anything. However, Theresa was having so much fun to the extent of choking on her red wine which she was struggling at the moment with an Omega to wipe off from her expensive green gauze.
“Tell them the truth!” Paisley cried, the veins in her neck craning to match her bloodshot eyes. “How you came to my room looking all hot and tried to seduce me. Oh, you suddenly have short-term memory?”
“I never did that with you. You were the one who always tried to force me into… into-”
“That’s enough!” Alonso bit out. “You, it’s either you get out, or you sit down and eat your dinner before I lose the last of my patience and fling you out of my palace,” he threatened Paisley whose face blanched in shock.
“You should be mad at her!” she drummed.
“Now, Paisley! You will not tell me how to treat my mate, understood?” she gawked out. “Understood?”
“Yes, your maj-majesty!” She choked on her tears, flung her hair out of her face, and went to sit down beside Alfred murmuring words I knew were expletives directed at me.
I was visibly trembling in my seat. Alonso might not have confronted me in front of everyone, but I know a storm was brewing. Behind doors, I’m going to get it hot from him. I don’t mind him shouting and quarreling with me, but I hope he doesn’t give me the silent treatment. Not now of all times.
“You know, it maddens me so much how men think when it comes to making veritable decisions that concern the heart,” Theresa laced her fingers to say. “Your mate is not only despicably rude and deceptive, she tried to seduce her fellow woman under the same roof, and instead of punishing her or at least reprimand her, you-”
“Mother, I will not warn you again to stay clear of my business. I am a tiny bit close to fulfilling my promise of sending you to the Alpha’s quarters.” He indicates with his fingers pinched in the air, and I took a bold step of touching his left hand underneath the table to calm him and with full force, he snatched it away with a deep growl that was audible enough for my ear.
“Watch your tone with mother, Alonso…” Alfred spoke up for the first time.
“And watch your tone with your King, before her fate becomes yours, brother…” He returned with a heavy comeback for Alfred whose emerald wolf eyes flashed back in indignance.
My heart hammered. This is all my fault. I should have told him about that part of the plan, but I knew he wouldn’t agree. Now I’m in trouble.
Lance cleared his throat and said, “Perhaps we should take a chilled breath. Here is suddenly too heated.” Internally, I smiled at his own way of lightening the mood. Though, I am still mad at him. “I’m sorry, my Queen for everything,” he finished.
Theresa appraised him through the hood of her eyes, then to my bewilderment, she broke into a lovely smile. “Tell me everything about your experience in your trip and of course, your lovely mate… I think I need a little distraction.”
“Of course,” he returned in a sultry voice.
…