The Alpha Princess
Chapter Twenty-Nine

Celina

With a smirk, I walk up to Chris and touch his arm to soothe his beast. “You have nothing to worry about. Leroy is a friend.”

Chris snorts, “A male friend that wants to date you.”

I reach up and touch his cheek gently, “Christopher, look at me.” When he glances down, I give him a reassuring smile while my cheeks warm. “You, have nothing to worry about.” That is all the encouragement he needs to pull me into him and push his lips to mine. Fireworks start behind my eyelids as my entire body trembles under his gentle touch. I push further into him and stroke his neck; signaling my acceptance of him. This automatically triggers his beast instinct, and his hands grip my waist, sending shivers through me while his fingers lock and hold me in place.

“Mine,” he tells me as he pulls away to start to mark me.

“Chris, don’t,” I gasp; hating myself for saying those words.

“Why,” he growls while his grip tightens; holding me in case I try to run.

“Because if you mark me now, it will put me into heat,” I tell him while my core warms at the word mark. “I can’t afford that distraction right now.”

He growls as he lets go and steps away from me, closing his eyes and turning toward Ruben. “I need a minute.”

“I can see that,” Ruben chuckles. “Don’t worry, Xander and I can handle the little escape artist.”

“I’d take offense to that if I didn’t have to study,” I say as I roll my eyes. I quickly grab my laptop, put in my headphones, and pull up all the classwork information I can find. This is where syllabuses are king. I pull up the first video on YouTube and start my very long study session.

An hour later, Chris comes and lies with me on the beanbag. Ten minutes after he sat down, Leroy arrived. Instead of bothering me, the boys fill him in while Chris’s grip on me tightens and pulls me closer to his chest. He is a lycan and Leroy is a nonrelated male, but still. I recently just decided to accept him, so I’ll give him a pass for now.

A couple of hours later I decide to take my first study break, and that’s when the boys start their questions. The exact moment I told Xander that I’m having issues with my memory of the event, he called Dad in and put him on speaker.

“His beast spoke to your wolf,” Chris asks while Leroy remains packed in a corner with a concentrated expression; courtesy of Ruben. Anything to calm his brother down. If Leroy even took a step closer to me, he’d lift his upper lip in a silent snarl. Considering how many people have tried to claim me in less than two weeks, I can understand his behavior. Still, it doesn’t mean I have to like it.

I nod. “His name is Sephtis. She doesn’t know his human’s name. Have you ever met a beast with that name?”

Every single one of them shakes their head. “No. I haven’t ever smelt his scent before. It was faint, but I did get a hint of it when I was wearing his blood. I wonder how he is concealing his scent,” Chris muses; his beast is clearly upset that another beast talked to my wolf. I didn’t tell them what their conversation was, just that the beast gave Mara his name.

“It’s not a technique I’ve heard of,” Leroy adds. “How can you conceal the scent of your blood?”

I shake my head. “He has to be ingesting something. It’s not Wolfsbane, since it didn’t hurt me when I bit him.”

“But it could be what is affecting your memory.” Ruben points out. “Does anything cause memory loss in wolves?”

I shake my head. “I haven’t heard of anything. We’re discovering things more each day, so I wouldn’t be surprised if these rogues figured out something. Concealing their scent is usually key to their survival after all.”

Xander nods as he agrees. “Remember that last rogue pack Dad sent us to take care of? They figured out a paste they can rub on themselves, and when their opponent bit them, they’d lose their sense of smell for a week.”

I shudder. “That was the most disturbing thing I had ever experienced.”

“Celina, did you sense his attack?” My Dad asks from the phone Xander is holding.

“No, I didn’t. He even managed to get past Randaul’s men.”

“Unless he’s working with Randaul,” Chris points out.

“He’s working with Randaul?” I ask, floored by this possibility. I didn’t even consider that. “Does Randaul have another son?”

Ruben shrugs. “He wasn’t exactly the most faithful beast. It is possible. He’d want to keep that illegitimate child under wraps since that could severely damage his reputation.”

“Well, now we know where to start looking. I need to get back to studying.”

“I moved our flight to two a.m. Tuesday, by the way,” Xander says while taking Dad off speaker. “That’ll give you a few hours to work with.”

“I can make that work,” Leroy says quickly, already jumping on his phone.

The next several days were tortuous. The boys would tag team going through my textbooks and asking me questions. Ruben is fluent in French and is an exceptionally good tutor. I sleep in two-hour increments every eight hours, to keep from exhausting myself as I try to shove as much knowledge as I can in such a short time. When the boys aren’t helping me, they’re doing research. Ruben, Leroy, and Xander have gone back to where I was attacked several times as well; trying to find out what they can from what was left behind. They also are packing while I give moral support.

Leroy, Chris, and Xander all surround me on the day of my tests, while Ruben stays guard at my apartment to make sure no lycans try to enter while I’m gone. We’ve spotted a few on the cameras, and it’s why we’re leaving a lycan at home and I’m guarded by the other three. I take my finals solo though, and I take my tests in the Dean’s office under his watchful eye. The Dean is also a werewolf and is part of the pack here. He’s the ex-alpha, and the father of the current alpha, of the Crescent Lake Pack. He’s the only werewolf Dean in the country, which is exactly why I was permitted to go to this school. He also is monitoring for any signs that I may be using my wolf to cheat. I wish I was smart enough to have thought of that.

It’s well after eight when I have finished my final test. I’m exhausted and am trying desperately to stay awake. I’d rather sleep when we get home after I have showered. I hate going on a plane unwashed. Ruben has ordered pizza for our last night here, and the boys have been moving all my furniture during the week; not wanting to chance a lycan disguised as a mover entering my apartment; so I have no dishes whatsoever. We all will be sleeping on the floor tonight. Every single one of the boys vetoed getting hotel rooms because they were all too vulnerable; even though it’d only be for a few hours.

They’ve been taking not just my safety, but Chris’s as well, very seriously. Chris has been busy with Xander, Leroy, and Ruben when I had been studying solo. They worked on coming up with strategies to protect me, and Chris. Now that I’ve agreed to let Chris mark me, most of the lycans will back off once I receive his claim. However, the rogue lycans that are still planning a hostile takeover are not going to back down so easily. If they still wish to mark me, they will have to kill Chris or force me to reject his mark. Of course, they could always claim a new mate and kill me as well. No matter the choices, until the rogues are in check, we have to remain on guard.

When we arrive at the apartment, I’m spent. I’m not at all sure how I did on my tests, but if I failed, at least I gave it my all. It’ll be at least a week before I know how I did. With any luck, I can do another semester of school and get the credits required to receive my degree. It’s doubtful since I’ve agreed to let Chris mark me, and lycans are known for being extremely protective of their mates, and he is the future king so it’s unlikely I’ll have the time required to do it. Honestly, the fact that I’ve gone this far without him claiming me is nothing short of a miracle. It shows his patience with me, and his willingness to do whatever he can to make me happy. It’s one of the reasons I have chosen to accept him.

There are several, one being in which my wolf has accepted his beast. The main reason that is driving my acceptance is that he will always have my back. He came after me, after I had foolishly, and purposely, left him behind. He rescued me, and instead of getting angry with me the moment I opened my eyes, he listened. He’s also been so supportive of me getting my degree. This is the kind of mate I’ve always hoped to have. He feels like my equal, and not someone I have to submit to. That is rare in the beast world.

I chew on my food as I think that over. I don’t know if I love him yet, but a lifetime with that kind of partner doesn’t sound so bad. Besides, if one of us feels that mate bond, and so does my wolf, he must be my mate. I’m starting to think Mara is right. When I killed Danny during the process of our bond being realized, I had severed that part of my mind that senses it. It looks like I get to fall in love with Chris the old fashion way. This should be fun.

I look at Chris as I think something over. “Chris, what was Danny’s beast’s name?”

That awkward question stops all four men in mid chew. Chris answers, though it seems to pain him. “Raphael.”

I nod, satisfying that part of Mara that has always longed to know the name of her long lost mate. Truthfully, I think that’s one of the reasons we were able to pull through after we had killed him. It’s much easier to grieve a lost mate when you don’t know their name.

Chris comes up to grab my hand and kisses it gently, “Time for bed, my love.”

Since I still feel like my mind and body has just gone through hell, I agree. I’ll shower just before we go. Even if I have to go on the plane with wet hair. The only thing I have left with me is a small dufflebag with a outfit change, and my hair products; though I didn’t even think to keep my hairdryer.

Chris opens my bedroom door and I’m immediately hit with the scent of honey and cinnamon, with a pleasant mixture of daisies. There is a red blanket next to the window and several pillows with tea candles surrounding the blanket to give it a pleasant glow.

Breathlessly my heart begins to pound while my cheeks warm. “What is this Chris?”

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