WILD

sixteen

Before either of them knew it, Orion was sleeping on his father's shoulder like a little boy while he worked. Between signing documents and giving out orders from the comfort of his bed, he would glance down at his sleeping son.

He loved him so much. It hurt to leave him like this, and so soon. As grown as he was, that was still his baby, and he knew all of the new responsibilities and the news of him dying was hard on him.

His assistant walked into the room and was about to request that he sign something, but the king quickly held his finger to his lips, requesting that he stay quiet. He motioned to his son. "He's sleeping. What do you need, Kenneth?"

Kenneth gave him a slight smile. He had watched the boy grow up to be a fine young man, and he had been a close friend to the king for years. He knew how important it was for them to have these times together before they couldn't anymore.

"I'll just come back later..."

"No, I assure you, its fine. Come in."

Kenneth entered and quickly walked over to the side of the bed. "This came in the mail. It's from your brother."

The king growled. "Half brother. What does it say?"

"Dear Ares,

I would say that I hope you're doing well, but from what I've been hearing, you're not. A little birdie told me that you don't have long to live, so I figured I would make a visit to your deathbed. Does Thursday sound okay?

I feel as if we have a lot to discuss regarding your kingdom, your son, and that pretty little Luna from my pack. Her father has been asking me to get in contact with you, so I feel that I may be bringing her family along for a visit as well. As you can imagine, they miss her dearly.

I hope you've told your son the news. I'm next in line for that throne, and if he doesn't give it up willingly, I'll kill him for it.

Love,

Warden."

Kenneth rolled his eyes and the alpha scoffed. "What crawled up his ass and died?"

The king was furious. "He threatened my son. If I wasn't weak I would pay him a visit and wring his neck out. That ungrateful dick."

"Agreed."

Orion started to wake and he yawned.

Kenneth decided to finish up his business and give them some space. "Also, this came with the letter. I'm assuming it's a letter to Orion from Lorena's parents."

"Just put it on his desk. Thank you, Kenneth." He bowed curtly and swept out of the room.

Orion sighed, his eyes still closed, but he was conscious. "What did Kenneth want?"

His father shook his head. "Nothing important. Did you take a good nap?"

"Yeah. I didn't mean to fall asleep, but I was up all night with Lorena. I don't mean to slack on my work, but-"

"No. If you're tired, you need to sleep. You can't lead a pack if you're exhausted, now can you?" Orion shook his head. "Don't ever feel bad for putting your needs first if necessary. A great leader cares for themselves almost as much as they care for others."

Orion nodded, rubbing his eyes and standing to his feet. He was still a bit tired, but he could focus better now that he had some sleep. "Thanks, Dad."

Ares smiled at his son, almost a mirror image of himself. Chestnut colored hair, and gray eyes with flecks of gold in them. Strong jawline and perfectly set nose. He was proud of himself for raising his son to be as beautiful on the inside was he was on the outside.

He was still his baby boy.

"Now go get some work done. There's a letter on your desk and if I were you I would read it as soon as you can."

Orion smiled and kissed his father on the cheek. "I will. See you later, Dad. I'll bring Lorena along like we talked about. Hopefully she'll behave today."

The older man chuckled. "She's giving you trouble, isn't she?"

Orion rolled his eyes. "You have no idea. She doesn't listen to anyone. I think I got through to her a bit yesterday, but there's no telling with her."

"Good. She's going to be able to handle everything that comes her way. You can be strong for each other. This job takes a toll on you, Orion. It's good to have someone just as strong as you able to back you up when you need it. She's going to be good for you, you'll see."