Chapter 4. Anticipation

Alexander

Another shitty night. Another long and fucking sleepless night. The only consolation was he got to research his precious mate.

She looked so divine, so angelic. She took his breath away.

In human years, she was too young. Only twenty-two years old, almost twenty-three by next month. He made a mental note to give her something special for her birthday.

There was not much to read about her, his only reference was her employee profile, whoever recommended her to be promoted onshore would have his eternal gratitude. That person would be handsomely compensated. Still, he had to wait for more information about her from his tech team. He knew where she came from yet her past was a mystery. Not that it mattered. She could have all her exes in this world, the only thing that mattered was that he would be the last man she would ever love.

Alexander almost gave his old butler a heart attack when he graced the breakfast room at 7 AM. Dressed to impress in his perfectly tailored suit for the day. Anticipation was evident in every cell of his hard-steely body. His wolf stalked restlessly inside his head. Howling and snarling.

Mate. Mate. Mate. Go to mate. Now.

Goddess! I promise you today. Stop whining.

"Just black coffee, for now, Baxter." He instructed his butler, and he took a seat at the head of the table. Glancing to his left, where his Luna should be, he sighed heavily. "Please wake up my sister and the royal beta. We should be going at 8 AM." The suspense was killing him.

"Of course, right away, Your Majesty. Anything else, sire?"

"Yes, prepare the north wing." His butler almost choked on his spit. The man coughed to recover quickly.

Alexander smirked. He guessed he was so full of surprises today.

The north wing was the royal suite for the Lycan King and Queen.

"Everything will be ready at once, Your Majesty." He bowed deeply and with vigor in his steps, he clapped his gloved hands to get the servants’ attention and bombarded them with instructions left and right.

He knew his old butler – who he inherited from his father together with the kingdom – had been waiting for the opportunity since he was in his nappies.

They were finally blessed by the Moon Goddess. The kingdom had been praying for Queen Luna for decades.

"Good morning, brother!" He raised his brows at his sister’s jovial mood. It was obvious she had a great night. Judging by the relaxed gait of his beta, he was right.

"Good morning, sis." His voice was always gruff. Deep and dark. Unused. He had always preferred to use the mind link. That would have to change. Starting today.

He grimaced. He needed to sound smooth and romantic. He needed to romance his mate. "Beta, my mate is staying at the hotel, right?"

"Yes, my king. That’s the nearest hotel to us." Michael answered.

It was the most expensive hotel in New York, and it belonged to him. He was glad his Anna had a comfortable night. She would be reporting to the office at 10 AM. He should be at the hotel an hour prior. It was almost 8. He scowled.

"You know what, brother, let’s have our breakfast at the hotel? In that way, can we get acquainted with your mate?" Alexie suggested cheerfully. Really grateful for his sister’s suggestion, he nodded in agreement. He hated to cut short their breakfast but he needed to see his queen.

"Thank you, Lex. Come on. Let’s go. I will drive my own car. Beta, have some warriors for the ladies’ bodyguards. I won’t take any chances." With determined strides, he reached the driveway in no time. He gracefully settled inside his car, eager to meet his destiny. His only problem was how to convince his queen to move to their house.

One step at a time, Xander. One step at a time.

***

Alexie

She was really delighted for her brother and would do anything to help make this easier for his human mate. They reached the hotel in 10 minutes and were easily recognized.

Her brother, the Alpha king, had always been sought after by the elite. He was massively tall, handsome, and filthy rich. What more could a girl ask for? The problem was, he was cold and elusive. Always brooding, always scowling. Rarely seen in public places. This was the first time in five years.

The ladies lusted after him. Like right now, they were almost salivating gawking at her brother and her mate, it was absolutely shameless. The two impressively tall and broad-shouldered men walking on either of her sides were eye candy. Alexandria snorted and pointedly looked at the piranhas. She glared at the slut eye-fucking her mate. Embarrassed, the slut looked away.

Good! Look away, bitch.

"These so-called ladies are disgusting! I hate how they smell." She stated out loud. Irritated. And didn’t care if they heard her.

Her mate tugged her closer to him and wrapped his muscled arm around her waist. He kissed her forehead then her neck, inhaling her scent deeply.

"I agree, my love. Come on, let’s go to our private room." Whenever they visit one of their hotels, they always have a private dining area. They have a heightened sense of smell, and to calm their wolves, they had to avoid smelling humans who were giving off excessive amounts of pheromones. Their wolves hated that type of smell if not coming off from their mates.

She took a seat between her mate and brother. Her brother’s left side was always empty for his mate. She knew they couldn’t put this off any longer. She needed to find the human. He was agitated. On the verge of losing control of his wolf. He was so stiff, he was about to snap.

"My love, what is Luna’s room number?" Alexie murmured.

"It’s 344." Her brother gritted out. Of course, he was the one who responded. She exhaled heavily.

All right, here we go.

Brother, you need to control your wolf, please. You don’t want to scare your mate away, do you? Please, my king.

This is so hard, Lex!

I know, brother. I will bring her to you. Just be patient.

My husband, please look after our king.

And tell the mateless warriors to stay outside the room. We don’t want a massacre here. I still need my breakfast.

"See you in a few, boys!" She laughed. Her brother grunted in response.

Dressed in a baby pink blouse to emphasize her perky breasts and a blue pencil skirt that hugged her thighs and her cute bottom, she could feel her mate’s heated stare as she walked away.

She always strived to look sexy for him to drive him mad. She smirked upon reaching the elevators. Room 344. That should be on the 10th floor. She hoped that her sister-in-law was a kind lady. Her brother deserved the best.

The ping inside the elevator signaled she was on her desired floor. Taking a deep breath, giddy herself, she searched for the correct room. Ok, calm yourself.

Buzzing the button, she waited for a few seconds. The door opened before her and her eyes widened. Goddess! The lady before her was stunning. She had an almost elfin feature. So delicate and innocent. Almost like an angel. Alexie took a small whiff, checking if she had a male scent on her – her eyes widened even more. Her queen luna was pure. Such a rare thing for humans these days. Lucky brother. She smiled delightedly – she saw the woman before her also checking her out.

"Hi. Can I help you?" Even her voice was angelic.

"Hi, Ms. Greyson. I am Alexandria Marini. Head of HR department at NorthAm. You met my husband, Michael, the VP and PA?" Oh, shit! She made her nervous. She saw her almost hyperventilating. Her heart thudded.

"Oh, God! Please come in, ma’am. Am I late? Did I do something wrong?"

She frowned internally. She must have come off as a superior. Ugh!

"No, no. Nothing is wrong. I am happy to meet you, please call me Alexie. Please relax. I want to have breakfast with you." Alexandria smiled in relief, hearing the girl’s heartbeat slowed down.

This lady looked so familiar to her like she had seen her before. But where?

"Oh. Umm... I am sorry ma’am. I mean, Alexie. I am ready now. Let me get my bag. Please come in," Geez, she liked her already – ready for work at 8 AM when her shift starts at 10? Amazing.

And look at her. She was so beautiful without trying. Her lithe form was to die for.

Alexie grinned. Her brother was in for a treat. A simple yet stunningly elegant woman.

"Let’s go?" Anna smiled shyly at her.

"Yes. You know what, Anna? I have a feeling we will be best friends." She declared. Yup. She was sure of it. Here we come, brother.

***

Alexander 

"Fuck! What’s taking them so long, beta? I tried to link Alexie, and she’s not responding!" He growled lowly. Irritation and more beneath the surface. Christ! Deep breaths. Deep slow breaths. Don’t scare your mate.

"My king, you have to relax. They are almost here. Remember, your mate is human. You cannot pounce on her, sire. She will be scared." Goddess, there was roaring in his ears. His Alpha wolf was mercilessly scratching the walls he had erected.

You have to fucking behave, or we will lose our mate! That calmed him down a bit, he whined in the background, scared to lose his precious mate.

Without conscious thought, Alexander stood abruptly, bringing his royal beta to his feet as well.

Moon Goddess. He could smell his mate. Glorious. That was the only lucid thought running through his mind right now. Milk chocolate, blueberries, and vanilla. All pure. No other smell was on her. Untouched.

All mine and no one else’s.

When she entered the elegant dining room, he was left speechless. Like a deathly blow to his gut, he was breathless. She was so angelically beautiful that she took his breath away. Everything about her was perfect. He thought the top of her head reached his chest, but that was because he was broad and massively tall. She would look delicate in his arms. Fuck! He was so fucking hard right now that he could burst. Deep breaths, Alexander. Deep breaths. A huge mistake. Her scent was more pronounced. And because of the mating bond, he could smell her attraction to him. Holy shit! The Moon Goddess must be thoroughly enjoying this shit show right now. He could hear his sister speaking from a distance. He glanced down. He didn’t know he had moved and he was standing about two feet from his precious mate. His stormy gray eyes locked on hers.

"Umm... Anna May, this is my brother, Alexander Northam. Brother, this is Anna, our new training manager." She offered her hand for a handshake – he just couldn’t resist brushing his lips to her palm instead. Goddess! The tingles and sparks. She felt it too. From the delicate shivers and goosebumps on her skin, she has felt the bond.

"Good...umm...good morning, sir." He was satisfied by the faint blush on her cheeks. He smirked. There was hope for him yet. His queen was definitely worth the wait.

"Come let’s have breakfast, Anna." She shivered at his voice. Fuck! Control. He needed control. It didn’t help that his wolf was howling, sending him images on how to mount their mate. He closed his eyes counting to ten.

With controlled steps, he guided Anna to sit on his left. At last, his heart was filled with his mate’s presence. She would always be by his side. To his left where his heart was.