Chapter 19: Hell hath no Fury

**Raegan**

His growl rumbled through the door and I groaned. The door opened, and Liam gestured for me to go inside. I glared at him, but stepped inside. The King was still seated at his desk, but his elbows were on the table and his head was hung in his hands. His rage permeated the air, and I walked towards him quietly.

"You just had to tell him," I hissed at Liam.

Liam sighed, but left the room and closed the door behind him.

"Why didn't you want to tell me?" The King whispered.

"I didn't-- *don't*. I *don't* want you to lash out and punish Cris for it."

"He deserves to be punished for it," he growled, and lifted his head from his hands to look at me.

"I'm not saying he doesn't." I shook my head and took a few steps closer to him. "I'm just saying I don't want *you* to."

"Raegan, he disrespected my mate--"

"He disrespected *me.* This isn't about being your mate, this is about *me.*" I pointed at my chest and leaned over his desk to look at him, "if I were anyone else's mate he would still have been rotten. It's not about *you.* I will punish him accordingly, because he insulted *me.*" I clenched my jaw.

He narrowed his eyes at me, "what do you have in mind?"

I folded my arms across my chest and sat in the chair Alpha Zander had been in earlier. "I haven't decided yet. I'm open to suggestions that aren't going to result in him losing limbs or his head."

He leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling, seeming to think it over.

"I want to spar with him," he said, and looked back at me, folding his arms over his chest, "but since it's your punishment, I would like if you sparred with him. Winner gets to chose what the other has to do, but should you win, which," he smiled a little as he looked me up and down, "I know you will, I think that he should be forced to do something that would embarass the shit out of him. You know him better than I do, so I'll leave that part up to you. But, that's the idea that comes to mind for me." He shrugged.

I narrowed my eyes at him briefly, and then nodded, "I like that idea. Losing would embarass him, but not enough. Not enough to pay him back for calling me a fucking incubator." My wolf growled at the thought of being called that. I huffed my agreement with her. It felt alien, agreeing with her, but not in a bad way. We were both prideful, and we both took great joy in our accomplishments. Her's being that we were Alpha born with magic in our blood, and mine being that we were a Pack Second and had garnered success for ourselves.

Our pride was the only thing we agreed on.

The King's jaw clenched, and I ran my hands down my face, "I'm thinking about making him walk around with a pregnancy suit and following the strict do's and dont's of pregnancy. Give him a taste of being what he thinks I'm going to be."

The King pursed his lips, then nodded, "if you think that's a suitable punishment, I'm all for it."

I tilted my head to the side, watching him carefully, incredibly confused.

"What?" He smiled a little.

"I'm just... you're not what I thought you would be."

"As a person?"

I shook my head, "as a mate."

"I hope that's a good thing," he raised his eyebrows, and shifted in his seat, looking a little less than comfortable.

"Time will tell," I said, "but right now, it's... a little relieving."

He relaxed a little, "what did you think your mate would be like?"

I laughed, "I thought they'd be like Kai. Overbearing, protective, controlling, violent. Typical wolf shit."

He chuckled softly, and looked at his desk as he reached forward and started to toy with a paperclip. "I can assure you, I am fighting every overbearing protective instinct in my body right now. But, controlling and violent?" He shook his head, "I could never be those things."

"I literally saw you stuff a man's mouth with hand sanitizer soaked tissues earlier, Your Majesty," I raised my brows, "that counts as 'violent'."

He pursed his lips and scrunched his nose, "not violent in a relationship, let's put it that way," he raised his eyes to look up at me through his lashes. I smiled.

"Thanks for the clarification," I chuckled.

"Anytime," he winked.

We sat in silence for a while, and then he sighed, "I'm sorry Kai got out."

I frowned, and looked down at my hands in my lap.

"I'll find him again, and this time he won't get away. I don't care how the nobles take it, or how the Council of Elders decides to punish me." He rose from his seat, and then rounded the table to crouch down in front of me. He took my hands into his, "when I get my hands on him he won't live to torment you another day, Raegan. I swear to the Goddess he won't."

I nodded, but didn't meet his gaze. He let go of one of my hands, and tilted my chin up gently to make me meet his eyes, "I swear." He repeated.

"Thank you," I whispered, and took the hand he had under my chin and pressed his palm to my cheek. "If the Council tries to punish you... I... tell them that we're mates. They can't do anything to you if you were protecting your mate. It's against the law to try and knowingly kidnap, let alone kidnap an Alpha's mate."

"I'm not an Alpha, Raegan," he smiled sadly.

I gripped his hand tightly, pushing it into my face a little deeper, "no, but you are King. You're better than *just* an Alpha."

His breath hitched, and I watched his features go placid. His thumb stroked my cheekbone gently, and he nodded, "thank you for giving me permission to tell them if I need to. But I don't plan on needing to."

I sighed, "if you do, you better do it. Or I will. As much as I don't want the Goddess controlling my life, I don't want your blood on my hands even more."

"If I need to, I will." He chuckled, "to spare your peace of mind."

I rolled my eyes, and he smirked.

His thumb stroked my cheekbone one last time and then he removed his hand and stood up to lean his back against his desk.

I looked up at him, and raised my eyebrows.

"Annalise is asking if you have any requests for dinner," he smiled.

I pursed my lips, and shook my head, "tell her to surprise me."

His eyes fogged over, and then when they came back to me in that brilliant green shade I was starting to adore, he offered his hand to me.

I took it and rose to my feet.

"I want to show you where everything is now, I changed a lot of the palace," he said and started towards the door.

"Is there a particular goal you have in showing me the new layout?" I followed him, our hands still joined.

"Hiding places, and safety rooms," he explained.

I nodded, "I see."

"I don't want you to feel trapped with him lose, or feel helpless. If your guards aren't around, or if he manages to bring more that *just* two fully grown male wolves," he smiled a little, "I want you to have options. And I want you to run. There is no shame in running if you need to."

"Easy for you to say," I mumbled.

"I mean it," he sighed, "I want you to run if you know you can't handle the fight."

"I can always handle the fight." I scrunched my nose.

He raised his eyebrows, and turned to face me, "promise me you'll bow out if you need to."

I rolled my eyes and opened the door to his office. He stepped in front of the now open door, "please."

I sighed, "I'm a prideful woman, Your Majesty. I don't bow out of a fight."

His jaw ticked, and I furrowed my brows. His hands moved to my waist.

"Promise." He repeated his request.

I sighed again, "fine, I promise."

"Pinky promise me," he said, and held up his pinky towards me.

I narrowed my eyes at him incredulously.

He raised his eyebrows.

I groaned and wrapped our pinkys together. He kissed where his thumb and index finger met, and I did the same.

"You realize how obscenely childish pinky promises are, right?" I asked.

He nodded, letting go of my pinky to intertwine our fingers properly again, "obscenely childish and incredibly sacred. If you break a pinky promise it's like fourty six years bad luck."

"I have *never* heard that anywhere."

"Well, now you have." He tugged me forward again, "let's go."