Chapter 13 13

Chapter 13 13

Odette

Suddenly, the double doors of the Council Hall crashed open.

I turned my head. Alpha Kael stood in the doorway. He was still shirtless from the training ring, his broad chest heaving, glistening with sweat and dirt. A dozen of his elite warriors poured into the room behind him, their hands resting on their weapons.

Kael had clearly rushed here the second he heard the elders had summoned me. He looked ready to commit murder. But why? Did he come to protect me here?

But as he looked at the three elders—who were now pale and sinking back into their chairs in terror—and then looked at me, standing tall and fierce in my black dress, he froze.

"Alpha Kael," Elder Silas stammered, sweating profusely. "We were just... interviewing the new Luna."

"She seems to have finished the interview," Kael growled, his deep voice vibrating through the room. He didn't look at them; his intense gaze was locked entirely on me.

"I am not finished," I announced.

I completely ignored the elders. I turned on my heels, the clicking of my stilettos echoing loudly, and marched straight toward Kael. The warriors behind him actually parted, making way for me as I stormed right up to the giant Alpha.

I had to crane my neck to look him in the eye, but I did not back down an inch.

"We need to get something completely straight, Kael," I said, pointing a sharp finger directly at his incredibly hard chest.

Kael blinked, entirely caught off guard. "Odette?"

"Do not 'Odette' me," I snapped, my jealousy burning so hot it practically radiated off my skin. "I was just informed by Beatrice about the 'ovulation schedule.' I was also informed about your long string of mistresses."

The warriors standing behind Kael collectively gasped. Lucas slapped a hand over his own face. Nobody, and I meant nobody, spoke to the rogue Alpha like this in public.

"I do not care how the Mad Keepers run their society," I yelled, my voice echoing in the grand hall. "I do not care if it is a cultural standard. I am your fated mate! I refuse to share a husband. If you think you can use me as an incubator for a few days a month and then go sleep in the beds of other women, you are out of your damn mind!"

Kael stared down at me. His sharp eyes were wide with shock.

"If I ever smell another woman's perfume on you," I threatened, poking his solid chest with every word, "if I ever find out you touched one of your mistresses, I will cut off that giant and impressive equipment of yours and feed it to the rogues! Do you understand me? You are mine!"

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The warriors looked terrified. The elders looked like they were going to faint.

I waited for Kael's anger. I waited for the monster to snap my neck for disrespecting him in front of his entire inner circle.

Instead, a low rumble started in Kael's chest. The rumble turned into a chuckle. Then, the Alpha threw his head back and laughed. It was a rich and booming sound that shocked everyone in the room.

His hands shot out, gripping my waist and lifting me clean off the floor. I gasped as my feet dangled in the air, bringing my face level with his.

"You are so fiercely jealous," Kael murmured, his voice thick with unbridled lust. His icy eyes were practically glowing with raw possessive joy.

"Put me down, Kael! I am serious!" I flushed, hitting his broad shoulders.

"I know you are," he grinned, his scarred face looking impossibly handsome. "And you have nothing to worry about. Beatrice is a fool. She was explaining the standard, arranged-marriage customs of our pack. She did not account for the mate bond."

"What?" I breathed, my hands stilling on his shoulders.

"Odette, you are my fated mate," Kael said, his voice dropping to a low intimate rumble meant only for me, even though his warriors were listening in shock. "The moment my fangs pierced your neck, my biology was completely rewired. My inner wolf would rather tear his own flesh off than touch another female."

My heart gave a stuttering leap.

"The mistresses are gone. They were banished the second I marked you," Kael promised, his thumb gently tracing my jawline. "The very thought of another woman repulses me."

He pulled me closer, his scent of wild pine wrapping around me like a warm blanket.

"I fully intend to sleep in your bed every single night," he growled playfully. "And after the way you exhausted me this morning, I suggest you start preparing your stamina, wife. Because I am never letting you out of my sight."

He claimed my lips in a punishingly hot kiss right there in front of the elders and his entire warrior guard. My toes curled in my stilettos as a loud cheer erupted from Lucas and the warriors behind us.

I kissed him back fiercely, tasting the salt of his sweat and the promise of his words.

I wasn't just a bastard omega from an island anymore. I was the Luna of the Mad Keepers.

I know we were acting in front of the Elders. We were showing that we liked each other, which was far from the truth.

But this game was getting interesting.