The Alpha King's Claim novel Chapter 34

The Alpha King’s Claim chapter 34 by desirenovel

Aero

I tried to hide it, but my displeasure was evident on my face as soon as the vampire entourage entered the ballroom. I clenched my fists and growled out low. I wished for an interesting night tonight, but I didn’t mean this at all.

The announcement of their presence was too late, but it was enough to catch the attention of the guests. They parted in half to allow the odd group passage and all waited with curious eyes as they neared my throne.

From the periphery of my vision, I saw my queen gasp; her mouth slightly open and her hand splayed over her chest. Somehow she didn’t look at me. No. Nothing. Not a single glance and yes, somehow this made me feel a little—no, a lot—disappointed. I couldn’t read what was in her mind. I couldn’t read what she was feeling. Was she happy about this vampire’s presence? Was she afraid? Or irritated even. Was she…excited?

Urghh…

This was the first time I wished I could feel her emotions just like I do with Elijah.

She just stared at Hale and the vampire, with all his despicable bravado donned in fine clothes and his signature cape, met her gaze.

“Your Majesty, King Aero,” he stated with a short bow once he was near us. A flight of stairs separated us from him. It was enough a distance, but at the back of my head, I had the unsavory urge to push him further…further…further away from the queen.

“What’s this?” I raised a brow and gripped my armrest, “I didn’t get a notification as to your visit here tonight Lord Hale.”

He broke into his diplomatic smile that I had been accustomed to but never liked.

“I did inform your realm’s guardian about my entry, Your Majesty,” he stated with ease. “Didn’t she inform you?”

A tick on my jaw appeared. “Obviously, Farryl didn’t.”

He managed to shrug his shoulders and acted innocent. “Well, that’s unfortunate.”

Naturally curious, my guests continued to listen to our conversation. They didn’t return to eating or dancing nor did they return to their boisterous conversation like earlier. I couldn’t blame them. It was an unusual sight for a vampire lord to grace the Kingdom of Phanteon especially when it wasn’t for official reasons.

“State your business, Lord Hale,” I ordered, wanting to get it over and done with. For some reason, I had a bad feeling about his visit tonight.

“I heard about the queen’s return of health,” he answered swiftly, this time his red eyes resting on her. “I wanted to celebrate and the best way to do this is to celebrate with her.”

I knew it and with that, my temper rose. I didn’t like how audacious he was. He wasn’t welcomed in my castle, more so in this banquet. I was seconds away from stating that but then he turned to the queen’s way and expressed:

“Your Highness, Queen Serena, how wonderful it is to see your healthy glow again.”

‘Fucking vampire,’ my lycan side started growling.

I watched with pointed eyes as the queen sat perfectly still; her face unreadable.

“I appreciate your visit and concern, Lord Hale. My stay in your place unfortunately yielded unpleasant results. I could only hope those poor women I left behind didn’t receive the same fate as mine.”

Lord Hale shook his head and bowed low again.

“I assure you, that kind of incident wouldn’t happen again, Your Highness. It was just unfortunate King Aero’s past connections caught up with you.”

We exchanged glances, knowing what it was he was talking about. I gave him a sharp glare in return, daring him to spill that unnecessary information.

“Well, my husband’s reputation precedes him. How he lived his life before he met me shouldn’t concern me or my safety but I am his wife now. It’s expected I would be targeted too as I am a lesser threat. Cowards do that. They take on the weak one.”

The vampire chuckled. “Oh no, Your Highness, you most certainly are not weak. I see you as a strong individual. You are a luna after all.”

I routed my attention to the queen expecting her to be confused at Hale’s words, but to my surprise, I read no confusion on her face, just the same blank mask as earlier.

Did Elijah taught him about lunas or did she learned it from Earthly definitions? I was curious to know.

“I appreciate the kind words, Milord,” she stated.

Hale flashed his teeth at her. “Since I’m here, I’ll take this opportunity to request for a dance with you. I’m sure King Aero wouldn’t mind. Right?”

He looked at me and then grinned.

‘Fucking vampire,’ my lycan side expressed again and the urge to rip out his throat came to the fore.

‘No, brother. Be calm. It’s just a dance,’ my brother mind-linked me immediately.

‘Fuck off, Elijah,’ he growled at him.

“No, he wouldn’t mind at all,” was the queen’s statement as she stood up from her seat.

I shot a look at her. Saw how she glanced at me. I expected her to look haughty like any other females in the presence of a handsome man, but no, her face was unreadable still. What captured my attention was how her eyes appeared to convey a message…an emotion. Like she was…afraid and was seeking my help.

I jumped up to my feet before I could stop myself.

“I suggest you settle down first, Lord Hale,” I quickly stated and gestured to a half vacated table near Elijah’s. “Your entourage should do so too. The night is still young. No need to be hasty.”

Hale’s expression was a picture of discontent, but it was fleeting. He bowed low again and smiled a small smile. “Indeed, you’re right, Your Majesty.” He glanced at the queen and tipped his head to her, “I’ll be counting down the minutes to our dance, Queen Serena.”

‘Fucking vampire,’ my lycan side expressed the third time.

“Enjoy your stay, Lord Hale,” she replied. This time I was finally able to pick up the fear in her stiff tone and for a moment, I had the strong urge to console her.

“Thank you,” she muttered once the vampire entourage left.

My heart swelled, it really did, but I kept that feeling buried in the deepest, darkest pit of my thoughts the same thing I did when I crazed her taste this morning. These feelings, they were completely unnecessary. They were a nuisance to my life.

“I only stopped him because it is customary in Phanteon for the royals to dance first,” I told her and then went back to sitting. She followed me and sat too. “Your act is pretty convincing, but next time though, don’t overdo it, or else I’ll misunderstand that you indeed liked the vampire lord.”

From the periphery, I noticed her hands clench into a tight fist. “Vampires are mesmerizing creatures and so are werewolves, but I fear the vampire race more than your kind. With that in mind, I could never like Lord Hale.”

“Well you are bound to me so until then, you are not allowed to like another man,” I blurted out faster than I could realize what I was talking about. I clenched my hands instead and inwardly groaned in displeasure.

She chuckled a little in response. “Yes, I’m highly aware of that.”

“Good.” I felt pleased with her reply. Even if this was a fake marriage, I expected her to be faithful to me. My pride as a man and as a king was at stake if she were to play with fire.

As the night got older, the party became livelier. The feeling of apprehension I sensed from the crowd earlier with the vampires’ presence was all gone. Maybe it was the alcohol that lifted their discomfort, or maybe it was that the vampire group didn’t give the crowd any reason to be vigilant. They were celebrating too, acting carefree, and drinking wine to their hearts’ content.

The entertainment was in full swing. Dancers, singers, and all other kinds of acts entertained the guests. Their acts were splendid, but it failed to catch my attention. My mind was elsewhere. I was preoccupied with watching Hale watching my queen watching the liveliness of the ballroom.

My wolf wanted to surface and gouge his eyes out.

Finally, my beta stepped onto the platform and demanded everybody’s attention.

“Let us welcome our king and queen in their first dance together,” he announced, effectively filling the ballroom with encouraging shouts for me and for her.

“Let’s get this over with,” I told her, stretching my hand as I stood up and faced her.

She took it and awarded me a smile. “You should act more loving than that, Your Majesty, else your subjects will sense it.”

“Then, be ready to be swayed, woman.” I tightened my grip on her hand as we stepped down the throne.

Shouts and hollers continued as we reached the center of the ballroom. Her smile was wide and warm as she waved at the crowd. I, on the other hand, poured my attention on her.

“Look at me now,” I ordered as the violin music began to play.

She glanced up at me, still smiling, but that smile turned into a gasp as I, without warning, pressed her body against mine. I cupped her face, thumbed her bottom lip, and gave her a chaste kiss.

“This is all for show,” I reminded her after withdrawing.

She cleared her throat and blinked fast. “Of course,” she managed to say.

The music crescendoed. We started dancing. Hand in hand and chest to chest, we moved as one. I half expected her to be stiff on the dance floor but in reality, she was as light as a feather and very easy to manage as a dance partner. We never practiced dancing like this, but it was as if we synced on the spot, dancing like we had been partners before.

My wrist mark ached, effectively letting itself known, but it was an ache unlike the painful ones I had received in the past. It was a good kind of ache. It was certainly like an adrenaline rush.

At one point, Hale’s face came to view. I grinned and lowered my mouth, kissing the queen’s forehead in effect, subtlety letting him know that this woman was my property.

His face was still a mask of any kind of emotion. He didn’t grin back or frown. I was content for a while, continued dancing and acting all loving towards my fake wife until minutes later, I felt someone tap my shoulder from behind.

“Mind if I cut in?”

I knew immediately whose voice it was.

In haste, my wolf barked a heavy ‘No’ and so did my lycan side. I didn’t want to hand her over to him too, but with all eyes looking at us as witnesses, I had to maintain proper decorum.

The queen’s grip on my shoulder tightened as I stepped back. “Serena,” I gave her a pointed look. Then and there, I realized, I just used her name for the first time since we met. It felt good on my tongue, but unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time to mull over it. Hale was already upon us.

“I’ll be close,” I continued.

She nodded and smiled towards the dark lord as if her fear wasn’t present at all.