Chapter 5 That's What I'm Doing Here!

*Maddox* “Alpha Jordan?” I say, eyeing the man across from me and wondering what he’s doing in my office when we are meant to have dinner in less than two hours. “What is it that you need?” He looks at me and a small chuckle escapes his lips as he rubs his chin with a fist. He’s at least twenty-five years my senior, maybe more, and it’s easy to tell. His hair is gray, his face is wrinkled, and he looks worn—tired. Will I look like that in a couple of decades? Being an Alpha takes its toll. Being an Alpha King is worse.“Thank you for seeing me, Alpha Maddox,” he begins, withdrawing his hand from his mouth. “I do appreciate you letting us stay here for a few nights. Traveling all the way through the kingdom is tiresome.” “Of course,” I say, folding my hands on my desk. He still hasn’t answered my question. I am a patient man until I am not. He clears his throat. “I guess I should get straight to the point, then?” he says, that rumbling chuckle back. I wait, not needing to say that he most certainly should do just that. “A few of the Alphas have been speaking about the… conflict that is going on now. The problems we’ve been having.” “I know all about that,” I say, not wanting to get into it right now. “What have you been discussing?” “Well, only that… with the instability in the kingdom and the unrest, it would be best for the people if they had something to celebrate, something to… cheer them up and stay focused on that is more positive.” I continue to look at him, my forehead wrinkled. I am trying to figure out where he is going with this, but I don’t want to attempt to guess because if it is where I think it might be… I might leap over my desk and cause bodily harm to the man. “What are you getting at?” I finally ask him. He shifts his weight in his chair. It creaks under the strain as if it also wants to protest whatever it is he’s about to say to me. “You need an heir.” It is exactly what I thought he was going to say, and exactly what he should have never let come out of his mouth. Keeping my face stoic, I glower at the man. “I have a beautiful daughter who is a few years younger than you. She has gone through her first few heats. She is ripe for breeding. She could give you an heir, Your Majesty. It would be good for the kingdom. Zabrina would make a wonderful Luna.” He takes a deep breath as if he is satisfied that he has gotten the message out. The air settles around us, and I lean back in my chair, remembering what Seth always tells me about thinking before I react.The man is introducing the idea of his daughter to me in similar language to the way Alpha Ernest mentioned the girl he brought me, though there was no talk of her heat. I suppose that’s only because he had no way of knowing. He had told me the girl was a virgin, though. Alpha Jordan had not made any mention of that for his daughter…. I shake my head. “Alpha Jordan, I thought I had made it clear that I didn’t intend to marry again. Your daughter deserves to find her mate and—” “She’s found him,” he says, interrupting me. Waiting, I stare at him, anticipating he’ll tell me more. “It was the son of a Beta from a neighboring kingdom. She met him at a ball. The mate bond was not strong, but it was there. She rejected him, and he left.” Alpha Jordan shrugs like this is of no consequence. “But everyone knows rejecting one’s mate has consequences,” I remind him. “I believe that the consequence was that our territory was attacked shortly thereafter, but we were victorious. Nothing else has happened. Zabrina is fine.” “And she’s had no physical pain from the rejection?” This goes against everything I’ve ever heard. “No, not that I’ve heard her complain of,” he says nonchalantly. “Strange.” I have to wonder if perhaps this man wasn’t actually her mate. Losing my mate has caused me nothing but torturous heartache. And the only way it will ever end is if the Moon Goddess grants me another mate…. “Nevertheless, I don’t intend to take another Luna, Alpha Jordan,” I tell him dismissively. “But what about an heir?” he asks. “Our kingdom must have an heir, Alpha Maddox.” “I am aware,” I tell him, my tone sharp. “Why don’t you let me handle that for myself, Alpha Jordan?” His face turns a bit pink as I put him in his place, but then, he feels it is necessary to tell me, “Of course, but… know that the other Alphas are discussing the situation. There’s… chatter.”I clear my throat and lean forward in my chair a bit, looking into his eyes. “I hope that those Alphas who are speaking against me understand that there will be consequences for traitorous behavior.” I see his eyes widen slightly. “Oh, yes, sir. No, nothing like that. We are all loyal to you, sir. Only… concerned. That’s all.” I nod, but I don’t trust him. I’m not sure I trust any of them. “Thank you, Alpha Jordan. I appreciate your concern, and I’m sure your daughter is a lovely person, but I am not looking for another Luna. Rebecca was my Luna and that’s how it will remain.” He adjusts his tie and cannot look at me as he says, “Yes, of course, Alpha Maddox. But if you change your mind—” “I won’t.” I stand, and he does as well. He offers his hand, and I shake it before showing him to the door. Once he is gone, I go to the cabinet and pour myself a drink. Downing it, I refill my glass. I need to go get ready for dinner soon. I am so tired of hearing about how we need an heir as if I don’t know that. The whisky burns my tongue as it goes down. Maybe Alpha Ernest isn’t such a fool after all. As the whiskey blooms through my system and blurs my inhibitions, I begin to think maybe it’s time to pay the breeder I’ve just bought, a visit. I arrive at her room and notice nobody presence at all, I barge into the room, with wild thoughts in my head, what if she runs away? The room is empty, I look around the room and my eyes dart to the bathroom. She's in there. … I need air. I need to think. I need to get away from… that woman.It’s a good thing that Poppy came into the room when she did, or else… I’m not sure what might’ve happened, but it might’ve gotten heated very quickly. I walk down the hallway a short distance to my own room, dragging my hand down my face as I go. I know I shouldn’t have even stopped there on my way to my room to get ready for my dinner with the visiting Alpha, but curiosity got the better of me. The urge to see her for myself overwhelmed me, so I made a stop. Part of me is very glad that I did, but the other part of me wishes that I had just let it be…. I had no idea she was going to be in the bathtub when I walked in. Then, she’d scurried out, dripping wet, her pale skin glistening with water droplets, the scent of rosewater enticing me to step closer. Her hair, golden curls, pulled up on top of her head in the back, were damp and not secured all the way. Ringlets framed her beautiful face as she stood there, wide-eyed, her sapphire eyes staring at me, trying to determine what I was doing there. Her luscious lips, slightly parted, were so plump and perfect, that I could imagine what they must taste like. I wanted to step across the room and take her bottom lip between my teeth. I could have lifted her tiny body up onto the bed, the towel sliding onto the floor as my hands wandered all over her body. She had no idea that when she went into the bathroom to put on that robe she’d left the door slightly ajar, and in the mirror, I’d seen her perfect backside reflected in the mirror, the curve of her breast, her erect nipple…. I pulled the door open to my room, my erection straining against my pants, and headed straight for my shower, turning the water to cold. I knew I’d be thinking about the girl, Isla, all through dinner. If the Alpha’s daughter, whatever the f*ck her name was, threw herself at me again, I might have to take her up on the offer only to get rid of the enormous hard-on I’ve got growing in my pants just thinking about her. I’ve got to get her off of my mind. Undressing, I jump into the shower and let the cold water wash away the stiffness in my groin. I try to think about the work I need to do, and the conversations that need to be had with Alpha Jordan and others. If I think about work, maybe I won’t think about the girl. I should be used to not thinking about women I don’t want to think about.Flashes of Rebecca’s beautiful face flicker before my eyes, and I push them away as I have been doing for years. Ever since that fateful night. Since then, I’ve been with lots of women, mostly to drown the pain of losing her, but none of them have meant a thing to me. I definitely haven’t had any issues with getting them off of my mind. Isla’s bright blue eyes come to mind, and I have to wonder if she just might be different. I turn the water so that it’s a tad colder and stand beneath it a bit longer before I finally get out and get dressed for dinner. When I’m dressed in a suit with a jade green tie that’s nearly the color of my eyes, my hair is styled, and I’m ready to go, I take a moment to stand in front of the mirror and wonder why I even have these formal dinners. “Why can’t we just retire these dinners and make them a thing of the past?” I ask myself aloud. I hate them so much…. But visitors to the castle like them, so we continue to have them. And we, theoretically, get a lot of work done at them…. A knock at the door alerts me that Seth is there to collect me. I grumble a bit before I say, “Yeah,” and he sticks his head in. “Ready?” he calls. “No,” I say. He looks around my room. “Why don’t you ever turn on a lamp?” he asks. Rather than answering the question, I reply, “Why don’t you ever mind your own business?” and walk to the door. We head down the hall together, past Isla’s room, and I take a deep breath as we go. I smell rosewater, and my pants begin to tighten. It seems I can’t do anything to escape the allure of the woman, no matter what I do. I will just have to keep my mind on something else.