Alpha Nocturne’s Contracted Mate by A E Randell
Chapter 233 An Understanding Wife
Ann and Adam met Allen and Lexi in the corridor as they left their room, and made their way down to the entrance hall together.
Greyson was already there when they arrived and he eyed Allen furiously as Lexi avoided looking anywhere but at him. Ann frowned slightly at Lexi’s reaction. Had she missed something? Ann smiled warmly at him as he tore his eyes from where Lexi and Allen stood and greeted Ann properly.
“Good morning, my Queen. Preparations are almost complete and we are scheduled to leave shortly.” He announced stiffly.
“Thank you, Greyson. I’d appreciate it if you could report back as soon as you’re close to arriving, and give us an update as soon as you know what’s going on. If you think you need more
men, then let us know and we’ll send reinforcements from the packs that needed a little longer to gather their response teams.”
“Understood,” Greyson answered with a curt nod, his eyes almost staring straight through Ann as he spoke.
Ann frowned. She could feel the tension rolling off him, and considering his usually relaxed and jovial demeanor that she had encountered previously, this was more than a little unsettling. “Is everything okay, Commander Greyson?”
Greyson visibly tensed and cleared his throat before answering her.
“Yes, my Queen.”
‘Liar, liar, pants on fire,’ Maeve sang mockingly in Ann’s head before snorting in amusement, ‘Does he realize that he’s worse at lying than a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar trying to talk their way out of it?’
Ann stepped closer to Greyson and he stiffened at her approach as she leaned in a little closer.
“My wolf doesn’t believe you, Commander Greyson. Whatever has happened between you three,” She murmured quietly as she gestured towards Allen and Lexi, “I suggest you resolve before you leave.”
“Is that an order?” He ground out as respectfully as he could through gritted teeth, but Ann could see that he was seething.
“Not an order, no,” She said as she stepped back and smiled lightly at him, “Take it as a friendly piece of advice though. Things can go wrong on missions like this, and I would hate for any of you to be left with regrets if the unthinkable happened.”
Greyson nodded stiffly as Ann’s attention was drawn to Alpha Felix and his wife, Aoife, entering the hallway.
With one last meaningful look that she shared with Greyson, she made her way across to greet Felix and his wife as she smiled softly to herself, hearing Greyson’s footsteps move off in the direction of where Allen and Lexi stood.
Aoife smiled warmly at Ann and curtsied as she approached, leaving Ann feeling a little flustered. She had conflicting thoughts as she approached. Aoife clearly wasn’t involved in the horrific incident between her husband’s older brother and Allen, but did she know about it? If she did, how did she feel? Or was she completely unaware?
One thing was for sure, Ann would have to tread carefully to avoid offending her and potentially alienating her. She wanted her reign as Alpha Queen to be successful and prove that women were just as capable of ruling a kingdom as men were and heartbreakingly, that meant ensuring that alliances held where possible, and were broken
There were thousands of women that would be looking up to her throughout her time as
Alpha Queen, and she was fully aware that how she conducted herself would be scrutinized heavily in whatever she did. There were far too many people that would only be all too willing to pounce and try to bring about her downfall as soon as she made the slightest misstep.
But despite it all, Ann was determined to make sure that she and Lexi would ensure that the Alpha women who were featured in some of their oldest legends would not remain the only women in power that made their mark in the history books.
“I’m sorry I haven’t had more time to get to know you before now,” Ann began, forcing a friendly smile that conflicted with her suspicious, whirling thoughts, “Hopefully with our boys otherwise occupied, we can actually get the chance to spend some time together. I would very much like to get to know you a little better.”
Aoife looked a little taken aback but she quickly corrected her shocked expression and grinned widely, her eyes shining with what seemed to be genuine happiness.
“I’d enjoy that very much, your highness. I hope that it brings our families closer together.”
Ann smiled tightly and nodded as she tried her best not to show her unease. It was unfair of her to judge Aoife so prematurely and she didn’t want any of her subconscious actions to put her on edge.
‘You know you can’t just stand here in awkward silence, Ann. At least try to engage her in conversation.’ Maeve snorted contemptuously.
‘I don’t know what to say now though… I don’t know much about her at all. Not even where she comes from.’
‘Pfft. You’re overthinking things Ann, as per f*****g usual,’ Maeve retorted with an exaggerated eye roll, ‘A smart person would lead with that… but seeing as how it’s you doing the talking…’
‘Maeve…’ Ann admonished helplessly.
It was the worst thing, having your mind go blank like this at the worst time and there wasn’t anything she could do to save herself. She never used to be like this, and she had a strong feeling that the interactions between Allen and the Dubois were having some sort of an impact on her confidence. Luckily for Ann though, Adam was there to come to her rescue as soon as he saw her struggling to find the words.
“Everything ready for us to leave?” He asked Felix seriously as Felix nodded with a wry smile.
“It’s about as ready as it’s going to get. I’m not sure what we’ll find when we get there, but we’re pretty much prepared for all eventualities thanks to the additional resources and equipment you managed to obtain.” Felix said before pausing and smirking, as he looked Adam over appraisingly, “You really live up to your reputation you know?”
Adam cleared his throat nervously with a sideways look towards Ann.
“It never hurts to have all bases covered.” He answered simply as shoved his hands into his pocket.
“Look, you can try to hide it all you want Adam, but I know your reputation precedes you. I haven’t been on the receiving end of it, but I’ve heard many MANY tales over the years.” Ann chuckled as Adam glanced sullenly at her.
“You’re lucky you have such an understanding wife Alpha.” Felix chuckled. “From my understanding, Adam has always dealt with issues decisively yet fairly, with no cruelty involved, so that there was never any room for things to escalate. There are a lot of people that would have done well if they had followed his example, but instead chose to sink to depths that no Alpha, or any person in power ever should.” Ann said before she could stop herself, “Also, if you would try to remember that he’s the Queen’s Consort now, Alpha Felix, and not only the Alpha of the Dark Moon Pack, it would be appreciated.” she finished with a gentle smile, as she attempted to soften the harshness of her tone.
Felix seemed to pale slightly and the smile on his face froze as he shifted awkwardly and his face became serious as he bowed slightly towards Ann.
“Of course, your highness, forgive my mistake. It wasn’t intended to offend at all.”
“There’s no harm done,” Adam said quickly with an awkward laugh as he shot a questioning glance toward Ann, but she said nothing and merely smiled softly at him.
“I’ll leave you boys to finish making your preparations then.” She said as she leaned into Adam and hugged him tightly.
“Be safe, and be careful,” She whispered as he wrapped his arms around her just as tightly, and with all of her heart, she wished that he didn’t have to leave her here and rush headlong into danger. She wanted him to stay here, with her, where it was safe.
“Always. I have to come back to you and our pup now, don’t I?” He grinned cheekily. Ann rolled her eyes and slapped him lightly on the chest.
“It’s not confirmed yet!” She hissed playfully.
“No, but it will be,” He grinned with conviction in his tone as he planted a kiss on her forehead and turned to Felix.
“Looks like it’s time for one last inspection before we leave then.” He said dryly as he gestured towards the front door, the two of them making their way out.
Ann and Aoife watched them walk away together and Aoife sighed softly. “They’ll be alright won’t they, your highness?” Aoife said quietly with a slight tremor in her voice.
“Of course, they will. With the number of men and all of the equipment they have available to them, there’s not a lot that can go wrong.” She smiled, carefully keeping her emotions in check so that Aoife would have no idea that even she was feeling nervous about their mates heading off to confront the unknown.