Stronger- #Wattys2019

Part 13

Groaning, Alexander cursed as he looked at the clock. Another night of not sleeping well. His instincts knew his mate was close by. They pulled at him to go talk to her. However, he refused.

Instead, he was haunted.

Her scent, her strength and vulnerability, her horrid past and tiny frame. It all played through his head. Mate or not, she hadn't deserved her trauma. It sickened him that any wolf would abuse a child in such a way. Part of him wished he could roll back the clock and kill Lukas himself. The bastard.

Well, his alarm had been set to go off twenty minutes later. He supposed it was pointless to try to sleep more. With his focus on his wandering thoughts, it took him longer to get ready than usual. Yet, he still found himself in his normal routine, grabbing a bottle of water from the private kitchens down the hall, Alexander made his way toward the palace gym.

He liked to work out during the quiet mornings. There was a peace to the routine, the way his body moved and stretched, pushed and burned. It woke him up and helped him feel energized. Better as he was there before others. He didn't have to worry about interruptions or gossip. He didn't have to deal with the egos of his warriors who commonly poked at each other and erupted into fights.

It was simply his time to focus on himself. Then, after breakfast, the rest of the pack had their alpha.

Surprisingly, a guard was outside the gym door. That wasn't a good start to his morning of solitude.

"Ari." The king acknowledged the guard who tilted his head in submission. "What are you doing here?"

"Guarding the Bosch girl. Beta Yuri gave her permission to workout."

Alexander growled softly. It wasn't the guards fault.

Opening the door, he saw his tiny, unwanted mate. She wore tight fitting athletic capris and an oversize men's sport tech shirt. "Wearing loose clothing like that is dangerous. You're likely to get caught on something."

Nadine paused for a moment, then continued to kick at the bag suspended in the corner. Her hesitations and soft winces let him know she was still in pain from the injuries she had from the challenge. "Safer than showing anything underneath. Males are stupid and assume showing skin is an invitation."

The reaction surprised him. "You don't want male attention?"

The glare she threw him was full of anger and rage. "Why would I? Lukas showed me what males are capable of. The only male I would have ever considered would have been my mate. Of course I had hoped for a quiet, patient male who wouldn't have rank. Someone who would understand if it took a long time for us to complete anything. Someone I could just hide with..." She drifted off as her thoughts wandered. Then she looked back up as if remembering who she was talking to. "But the Moon goddess seems to have had different plans. I won't question that, but you certainly do. Honestly, if your going to reject me, I rather you just get it over with."

She stopped and moved toward a folded towel and water bottle.

Alexander watched her closely. He didn't sense a lie in her words. He was curious, so ignored her last statement for a while. "You really aren't searching for a male of power?" She was a strange girl. He couldn't wrap his head around her lack of interest. He'd had countless numbers of females offer to warm his bed, both before and after Claudia. She-wolves were always drawn to the strongest male. It was instinct. Of course she had suppressed her wolf against instinct. So... she wasn't normal.

"Not all females do." She shrugged. "I just wanted someone to feel safe with. Not the drama or politics. And I never wanted to be in a position of knowing what it's like for omegas, being close to power, yet having no true power to change it." It was a cultural problem. No one luna or alpha could fix it easily. She knew that. It was a cause she was willing to take on, if she had the support. However, she knew that reality. She was a wolf in disgrace. She would have no support.