I stood my ground as Tayo Dante stalked toward me, her heels clicking against the marble floor of the Alpha King's mansion. The woman was tall and willowy, with sharp features that reminded me of a predator, though not the good kind. Her dark hair was pulled back so tight it looked painful, and her lips were pressed into a thin line of disapproval.
I studied her from head to toe and found myself unimpressed.
"I made it clear to you not to take your luck too far," Tayo said, her voice sharp enough to cut glass.
I laughed softly. Something inside me had shifted since last night when Kael and I had finally admitted what we meant to each other. I was done being afraid. Done letting women like this intimidate me.
Behind me, I heard the chauffeur speaking quietly into his phone. "Your Majesty, the lady is being confronted by another woman."
Good. Let Kael know. Let him see exactly how his supposed fiancée behaved.
"Who let you through that gate?" I asked, keeping my voice calm. "Does Alpha King Kael know you are here? Because from where I stand, you look like a desperate woman trying to claw her way into his life. If you were so important to him, why do I live here with him and not you? Why have I never seen you here? Why has he never mentioned you?"
Tayo's face flushed red. "You cannot see because you are blind. I heard you claim to be the mother of his son. I thought it was an act to gain his sympathy, but I see now you are trying to trap him with obligation. Stay away from Alpha King Kael."
I smiled and closed the distance between us until we were almost touching. My wolf stirred beneath my skin, protective and fierce. "Whoever told you about my son did me a favor. The one who is blind here is you. You have eyes but cannot see. You have a brain but cannot use it. Even if I did gain Kael's attention through our son, he loves me. He cares about me. We have a past, a present, and a future that looks bright with our son and the children we will have. He was mine, he is mine, and he will always be mine."
I paused, letting my words sink in. "I do not lose to women like you. If you really think you are his fiancée, call him right now. Tell him you found another woman in his home. Yell at him. I will wait."
"He will throw you and that illegitimate pup out of this mansion," Tayo hissed. "I will own him, have him to myself, and you will be nothing but a memory."
My wolf snarled inside me. No one called my son illegitimate. No one.
"Kael has excellent taste in women," I said quietly. "You are too thin to interest him. Too sharp. Too cold. And do you know what? He has had me. He enjoyed it. I have spent nights in his bed. His body is mine. You talk about a man you have never touched, while I know exactly what he tastes like. Whatever you think you will get will be my leftovers. But I am not kind enough to leave even crumbs for you. And next time you bring your miserable self here and call my son unpleasant names, you will answer to the Alpha King himself."
I tilted my head, studying her. "Your face is too severe. Kael prefers softness. Warmth. You would bore him within a week."
I turned and walked toward the waiting car, my head held high.
"You are a bitch, Aurora Bluey," Tayo called after me, her voice breaking.
"Yes," I said without turning around. "His bitch."
The bodyguards opened the car door and I slid inside. Only then did I let myself breathe.
My hands were shaking as I pressed them against my chest. Had I really just said those things? When had I become this bold? Months ago, when Daisy had confronted me at the restaurant, I had frozen. I had let her tear me apart with her words. But now I had claimed the Alpha King himself and felt no shame about it.
As the car pulled away, I caught sight of a bodyguard standing by the wall, gesturing to Tayo. Who was that? Did she have people planted here?
I closed my eyes. I hoped Kael never heard about the specific things I had said. Some of them had been embarrassing. Crude, even. The few times we had been intimate, I had not been in my right mind to truly remember the details I had claimed to know.
But I would not take back my words. Tayo Dante needed to understand that Kael was mine.
At the palace, Kael set down his phone and laughed. He had watched the entire confrontation through the security feed. His brother John looked up from across the desk.
"Share the joke?" John asked.
"Tayo Dante went to confront Aurora," Kael said, still grinning. "She claimed we were engaged."
John raised his eyebrows. "And?"
"Aurora destroyed her. Completely. She told Tayo exactly where she stood and that I belonged to her." Kael shook his head in admiration. "She is exactly the queen this kingdom needs. Strong. Fierce. Unafraid."
"So she agreed to be yours?" John asked.
"Last night," Kael confirmed. "She is my mate. My queen. Everything I have wanted."
John grinned. "Congratulations, brother. Though I have to say, you are far too patient. If a woman like that finally said yes to me, I would not have let her sleep that night."
Kael's expression cooled. "Aurora is not some conquest to be rushed. When we come together again, it will be right. It will mean something."
"You are too noble for your own good," John said, but he was smiling. "Still, I am happy for you. The kingdom will be happy too. They have been waiting for you to choose a queen."
Kael nodded, his thoughts already drifting back to Aurora. To the fire in her eyes when she had defended their bond. To the way she had claimed him without hesitation.
She was perfect. And she was his.