Chapter 59

Claire’s POV

Sophie’s gaze immediately zeroed in on the Alpha’s hand on my arm as she walked into the room.

I would have been in awe of her beauty if not for the fact that she was a terrible bully.

To my horror, the Alpha’s hand tightened on my arm, making no move to release me.

I mentally braced myself for the vocal whiplash that was sure to come out of her mouth and wasn't disappointed.

“You again,” she began, her features twisted into a mask of hate and fury. “In case you do not know, touching any member of the royal family is forbidden for slaves.”

Not only was she a bully, but she was also obviously blind. Because anyone with eyes could see that it was the Alpha who was touching me and not the other way around.

My wolf was starting to get impatient. She desperately wanted to claw Sophie’s eyes out but I had to keep her under control.

Lashing out like that was only going to ruin things. I needed to remain in the Palace until the Alpha’s father came for his annual visit.

Getting physical with the Luna was only going to get me thrown out.

Again, I tried to get the Alpha’s hand off my arm but he wouldn't budge.

If I wasn't already holding the tray containing the plates, I would have easily wrenched my arm free. But doing that was going to make me drop the plates to the ground.

“If you try to do that again, I am going to kiss you in front of her,” Alpha Kelvin said.

No, he didn't say that out loud which was why hell didn't break loose. He mind linked me.

The seriousness in his tone told me that he meant every word. I didn't want the extra drama so I stopped trying to release my arm.

Sophie looked murderous and I wondered if I was going to be alive before the Alpha King’s return.

Kelvin was just adding fuel to an already blazing furnace.

He was giving her more reasons to hate me.

The Alpha’s lips spread into a forced smile. “There you are. We’ve been waiting for you.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“I thought to inform you as the Luna of this Pack that Claire here is no longer a slave but now my Personal Assistant.”

“What?” the Beta, the Luna and I said in unison.

A personal assistant meant that I wasn't even going to be cleaning his room or cooking his meals. I could serve them to him but not cook them.

He hadn’t said that earlier when he was talking about my promotion.

“Then what am I here for?” his Beta queried. It was a valid question.

“Please tell me you are joking,” Sophie murmured. “Who on Earth promotes someone who tried to kill them? Kelvin, are you sure that you are well?”

“I am perfectly fine thank you,” he replied in a mildly annoyed tone. “And I have reasons to believe that Claire is innocent. There is going to be a reinvestigation of what happened.”

I felt too overwhelmed to do anything. The only thing I was capable of was a long exhale.

He wasn't supposed to be doing this at all. He was supposed to be doing and saying the wrong things so that I could dislike him.

“This is a nightmare,” she said and then gave me a venomous look.

“You’ve managed to cast some spell on him right?”

“I beg your pardon.” The words were out of my mouth before I realized and her eyes became slits of fury.

“You dare speak to me? You common whore.”

My whole body stiffened at being referred to as a whore. It made me remember another time when my own Pack members accused me of being a whore simply because I was no longer a virgin.

No one had bothered to find out what had really happened.

My hands shook with anger and the tray fell to the floor with a loud bang.

“Get her out of here,” I heard the Alpha say and at first, I thought that he was referring to me.

It seemed strange though because his hand was still on my arm.

“Let go of me,” Sophie yelled angrily as Charles tried to get her out of the room and I realized that he had been referring to the Luna.

“How dare you treat your Luna this way?” she screeched as the Beta unceremoniously flung her over his shoulder and carried her out of the room.

“Finally, some quiet,” the Alpha said after a couple of seconds.

With a sigh, he let go of my arm and plopped down on the bed.

“Why did you have to say that to her?” I snapped. “Now, she’s really not going to leave me alone. And did you really mean what you said about the reinvestigation?”

He placed a hand on his forehead and groaned. “This is not the right time, Claire. My head hurts.”

After a brief moment of silence, I realized that he wasn't really going to say anything.

“Fine then,” I said and bent to clean up the mess I made earlier.

“What do you think you are doing?” he queried.

I chose not to give him a response. He wasn't the only one who could keep mute.

“Claire?” There was a warning in his tone but I ignored it.

One minute, I was squatting close to the floor and the next minute, I was standing very close to him, his hands gripping my shoulders.

The heat from his body spread deliciously over mine, making it nearly impossible for me to think.

“Let me go, Kelvin.”

“And why should I do that?” he murmured.

“I thought you said your head hurt. You really need to rest and I need to clean up this mess,” I replied, hating the breathlessness in my voice.

“You are no longer a slave, Claire. You do not have to do that. I will ring a maid to do it right away,” he said and allowed his hands to drop from my shoulders.

As he walked over to the table where the telephone receiver was, I took that as my opportunity to escape from his bedroom.

His muttered oath rang in my ears as I sprinted down the hallway.

I needed to be alone. I needed time to process all the things he said earlier.

My Aunt Lora was in the room when I got there and she looked worried when she took in my expression.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” she queried.

“Why is he choosing this time to be so kind?” I wondered out loud as I plopped down on the bed. “I hate him. I really hate him.”

“Hey, I need you to calm down and talk to me,” my aunt said in a soothing voice as she settled beside me. “What did he do?”

I quickly filled her in on all that had transpired in the Alpha’s room and she was silent for a long while.

“There is no need for you to get worked up about it. Unfortunately, he is your mate and it is quite normal that he would be kind to you.”

“But wouldn't it feel like driving a stake through my own heart if I hurt him by killing his father?”