I stood in the grand entrance hall of the palace, my heart hammering against my ribs. After everything I said yesterday about not coming here, about refusing to stay under his roof, here I was at dawn.
A figure appeared on the spiral staircase above us. Alpha King Jack stood there in a simple black robe that fell to his knees, his feet bare against the marble steps. His dark hair was tousled from sleep, falling across his forehead. Even dressed down like this, he commanded attention. His wolf eyes found mine and held them for a long moment. He said nothing to John's greeting. Nothing to acknowledge my presence. He simply turned and disappeared up the stairs.
I released a breath I had not realized I was holding.
"You will stay in the guest wing," John said beside me. "I will have the attendants prepare your rooms."
Two palace servants appeared and bowed low. "Good morning, Second Commander."
"Prepare the guest chambers," John ordered. They hurried away.
"Will he even want me here?" I asked quietly. The memory of yesterday burned in my mind. The way Jack had stormed out of the healing center, fury rolling off him in waves.
"My brother does not let anyone stay in this palace," John said. "Besides our mother and his late mate, no woman has crossed this threshold. If he truly did not want you here, you would already be gone."
I wanted to argue, but exhaustion weighed heavily on me. John continued talking, something about Jack's feelings, about giving him a chance, about his brother's good heart. I barely heard him through the fog.
The guest chambers were beautiful. Too beautiful. All silk curtains and polished wood. I stood under the shower spray until the water ran cold, washing away the previous day. When I stepped out, I realized I had nothing clean to wear. The same wrinkled dress from yesterday mocked me from the chair. I pulled it on anyway, my skin crawling at the feeling.
It was nearly seven thirty when I went searching for Cody. I found him in the breakfast hall, dressed in the crisp uniform of the Royal Academy. My breath caught. My son. Looking so grown up, so different from the boy I had raised in that tiny apartment.
"Mommy!" Cody's face lit up.
I crossed to him quickly, aware of the servants watching us with wide eyes. I kissed his forehead. "You look so handsome."
"Thank you," he said, beaming. "Daddy said I can go back to school today."
"That's wonderful, sweetheart."
The servants were whispering now. I caught fragments. "The young prince's mother." "But Miss Clara was never pregnant." "Who is she?"
I pretended not to hear and sat down for breakfast. A plate appeared in front of me. Then footsteps sounded behind me, measured and confident. I did not need to turn around to know who it was.
Alpha King Jack walked past me and took his seat at the head of the table. He wore a dark suit now, perfectly tailored, every inch the ruler of our kingdom. His hair was styled, his presence commanding.
"Good morning, Dad." Cody stretched his small hand across the table.
"Good morning, my son." Jack took Cody's hand gently, his expression softening for just a moment. Then his eyes shifted to the head cook. "The sobering tea I requested?"
"Yes, Alpha King." The woman brought a steaming cup. Jack drank it in a few swallows and pushed it aside.
I cleared my throat. "Good morning."
"Good morning." His voice was neutral, controlled. But I felt his eyes on me as I ate. I kept my gaze on my plate, on Cody, anywhere but on him.
John bounded in moments later, all energy and smiles. He hugged Cody from behind. "Good morning, my favorite nephew. I love you."
"Good morning, Uncle John. When are we having our swimming race?" Cody asked eagerly.
"This weekend. Your mother will referee, and your father will judge."
"Do not assume you will win just because you are my brother," Jack said dryly, sipping his juice. His eyes flickered to me again.
"Cody, you cannot swim," I said quickly. My son could barely wade in the shallows last I knew.
"I can swim, Mommy. Daddy taught me."
My chest tightened. I looked up and found Jack's ocean blue eyes already on mine. Expressionless. Unreadable. How much had I missed? How much of my son's life had passed without me?
Jack stood abruptly. "Cody, let us go." He lifted our son easily, wiping his mouth with a cloth and kissing his forehead. "Be good today. Stay away from strangers."
They left together. Father and son. And I sat there feeling like an outsider in both their lives.
Later that morning, I heard Nonna had returned to her own home. Richard had driven her. I was told he even met her mother finally, the meeting Nonna had been nervous about for weeks.
I was alone in my chambers when two servants appeared carrying large bags. Another followed with boxes. They moved efficiently, unpacking dresses into the wardrobe, arranging toiletries in the bathroom, organizing makeup on the vanity.
"Who ordered this?" I asked, though I already knew.
"The Alpha King, my lady. His assistant delivered everything with instructions."
After they left, I stood in front of the wardrobe, running my fingers over the soft fabrics. Every piece was my size, my style. Jack had remembered. Or perhaps he had simply been thorough. I could not decide which possibility unsettled me more.
Across the kingdom, in the healing center, Rosalinda walked out of the physician's office with a piece of paper clutched in her hand. She smiled at the words written there.
Positive.
John needed to know. Soon, everyone would know.
But as I stood alone in my borrowed chambers, surrounded by gifts from an Alpha King who would not speak to me, I wondered what other secrets this palace held. And whether I was ready to face them.