Jalin's POV
"I've got bad news for you, Alpha," I said after I took my seat in the driver's seat.
Just like his Father, His Majesty the Lycan King, Lucian didn't reveal his thoughts on his face.
I spent over 30 years with that man and I could barely tell if he was in a good mood or a bad mood.
But on that day, he seemed to be quite calm after he met Laura in the hospital. He brought him flowers. He made her smile. He let her lean over his shoulder. He stroked her hair gently like he was petting a small wounded animal. And he mumbled something to her ear to make her laugh out loud.
So far so good.
So, this was the perfect timing for me to sway in and spoil his perfect morning.
I took a glance at him in the mirror and met his eyes.
He looked perfectly calm, absentmindedly sniffing the scent of roses and Laura on the tips of his fingers.
Poor thing. He didn't realize how bad this piece of news was going to be.
"Before I say anything, you have to promise that you won't yell at me," I continued.
"Does that have anything to do with the deal in Mediland?" He scrolled his phone without looking up, going through the morning news.
Oh, not even close.
I said, "You have to promise me first..."
"I'm in a good mood this morning. There's nothing you can say to make me yell at you," Lucian said.
"Leah took back an injured male stripper from the club last night. He slept in Leah's bedroom last night and he's wearing your bathrobe right now, having breakfast with Leah by the swimming pool. He isn't wearing anything beneath your bathrobe." I didn't take a breath to break the bad news to my Alpha.
That's how it's done. Nice and easy. No sweat.
"He what?!" Lucian shouted with his eyes wide open.
"OK, you told me that you won't yell at..."
"He slept with my sister and he's wearing my bathrobe?!" Lucian yelled again.
I flinched and covered my ears.
"He slept in her bedroom. There was some cuddling. That's it. And as regards the bathrobe, you two are about the same size and he didn't have any clothes on him..." I mumbled.
"Why didn't he have any clothes on him?!" Lucian roared.
"I've already told you, he's a male stripper, so he wasn't supposed to wear any clothes. I mean, I'm not being judgmental here. Every job has its catch and it kind of comes with the whole package."
Lucian regained his calm and said in a cold voice, "I want that stripper killed and that bathrobe burnt. And I also want to have Leah house-arrested. And I also want to have you killed, but I don't know how to drive and I've got a 10:00 board meeting."
"As always, thanks for your leniency, Your Highness. I can only burn the bathrobe for you with pleasure. I can't have your sister house-arrested because I intend to get completely useless when she looks at me with her puppy eyes."
"Then stop looking at her in her eyes! I don't care! She's not going anywhere without my permission!"
"She's got a 10:00 board meeting at your company, in which you will introduce her to the rest of the management," I said.
"She's not going anywhere except to the company!"
"OK. OK. I'll let her know. But I have to remind you. Leah doesn't like being grounded. Last time you had her grounded, she sneaked out and got married to Lucas the son of a bitch." I rubbed my temples.
"You will have that male stripper killed, right?!" Lucian asked in a harsh voice. "Because if you don't do it, I will do it right now."
"Well, about that," I said. "First of all, your sister gets really nervous when you are mean to her pet. Do you remember the time that you were so mean to Torrent?"
"He was chewing my hair and I tapped his nose. That's what happened." Lucian covered his forehead.
Lucian has this kind of problem. Being a Lycan Prince, he was especially amiable to kids and small animals. That's very weird because wolves eat kids and small animals.
"And that simple tap made Leah stop talking with you for a whole week," I said. "Do you know how Leah would freak out if she found that you had her new pet killed?"
Lucian was silent.
As he sat inside the dimly lit car. Sunshine couldn't fully penetrate the tinted window nor his mood. His features were cast in shadow, but even so, I couldn't help but notice the striking handsomeness that marked his face. His strong jawline and chiseled cheekbones were accentuated by the dashes of light flashing past. His eyebrows were furrowed in deep contemplation. And he stared intently at the view outside the window. His eyes, normally bright and intense, were clouded with a deep sense of concern. His hips were set in a thin, taut line.
Lycans are the most marvelous creatures on earth. The more I spend time with them, the more I am impressed by everything about them. They're so different. So powerful, yet so gentle. So sensitive, yet so ruthless. The only reason their bloodline has survived for thousands of years on earth is that their thoughts and deeds can never be predicted by a commoner like me. And of course, because of the sex appeal that is given off by those broad shoulders and endlessly long legs.
A family with no last name but millions of mysteries. Their story of the Lycan family is written in power, blood, tears, betrayal, killing, conquering, and... well, love.
"And there's another reason that I can't have him killed. I ran his name in the system earlier this morning and I couldn't find a match. Apparently, he has never registered in any system. We don't have his birth certificate, his passport number, or his criminal records. Nothing."
"So he's a rogue. We kill a rogue in our territory for illegal trespassing. What's the problem?" Lucian frowned.
"I sent some of his used bandages with his blood to the lab this morning, and it came out with a surprising result." I paused to let Lucian brace for the words that I'm going to tell him.
His perfect eyebrows were marred by a frown.
"His blood type is RAh9," I said.
"He's a Lycan?!" Lucian was visibly shocked.
"Yeah. It seems that you've got a new cousin in your family. The bad news is, I can't tell where he comes from, and I can't ask him, either, because apparently, he's a bit retarded."
"So what's the good news?" Lucian stared at me in the rear mirror.
"Who told you that I've got good news?" I took a glance at him and said.