The Alpha's Temptation

Tania was puzzled but the moment she sensed how worried he was, she clasped his arms with her hands and let him stand behind her for as long as he wanted to.

As if that wasn't enough, Eltanin scooped her up in his arms and carried her to bed. He lay her on the bed and then lay beside her. That too wasn't enough. He slid over her and pressed her body beneath his and covered her head on the sides with his large hands.

"Elty…" she rasped, pressed beneath his weight. "What is wrong, love?" she asked, extremely worried about her, her brows scrunched and her throat dry.

He didn't speak anything but continued to stay like that. After a long moment of silence, he said, "You will not leave Draka without my permission, okay?" Ladon's warning was burning through his chest.

"Okay…" she said in a soft, reassuring voice.

"And if you ever leave the palace, you will keep your mind link open with me."

"I will…" Tania didn't know what was wrong but Eltanin sounded very panicky. She opened her wings wide and wrapped them around her mate. He felt warm and cozy and his tension bled out to a great extent in the small world that she created for him.

After what seemed like eternity, Eltanin slid down from her and pulled her close to his chest. "It has been a long day, Tania…" he said in a dry voice. "I am glad that I am past it. My mission is clearer now."

"That is wonderful, love," she replied, not knowing he meant but happy that the fog from his mind cleared.

Eltanin spent the rest of the day in his room with Tania. Though he spoke less, but his mind was in continuous turmoil. In the evening, he called his General.

When Fafnir came, Eltanin ordered him, "Call for a meeting of all the General in two days. We need to strategize."

Fafnir's eyes widened with shock, but he knew what his king was saying. He bowed to him and left.

---

"What did Taiyi say to you that made you so shocked, King Felis?" Morava asked, as she sauntered in his antechamber. She had come to meet him. Over the past few days, she was not feeling well. She wasn't the type who could sustain ten Alphas on her every other time of the day. She wanted to get out and she knew how to buy a few days of freedom from Felis. If he didn't allow her, she was sure she would be ripped apart and probably die soon.

When she had looked at her reflection in the mirror that morning, she saw how thin and fragile she had become. There were purple circles under her eyes and even though she was fed well, she felt like she could puke anytime. She hoped she wasn't pregnant with the pups of the Alphas. Before coming to Felis, she had painted her face to cover all the dark circles.

"It is none of your concern," Felis shot back at her. "Why are you here?"

Morava scoffed. "That entire family is filled with charlatans. Don't go by their face value. They think deep before acting and the shrewdest of all of them is Lusitania."

Felis cut her short. "What do you want? State your purpose and leave."

Morava sat on the couch. She relaxed back and said, "I have come here to make a few deals with you."

Over the last few months, Felis had gauged her. He smirked, "Of course. You don't speak unless you have a deal to make."

Morava chortled. "You know me well, King Felis, so I am going to come straight to the point."

Felis sat opposite to her, her strong perfume irritating him. "Please, do tell."

Morava looked at her nails and brushed them lightly with her thumb. "Ever since you have come back, I know that you have been meeting with your Generals to come up with a strategy to attack Draka, but—" she lifted her gaze and looked in his eyes. "You forget that in order to control Draka, you must first attack Pegasii."

Felis narrowed his eyes. "And why is that?"

"Lusitania is my father's real heir, as in his mate's daughter."

"I know. She is Kinshra's daughter. My spies informed me."

"Which means that Pegasii rightfully belongs to her. And I also heard that Kinshra is in Pegasii these days. If you attack Pegasii, you will catch her weak point, especially if you capture her mother." She scoffed, "My father is too enthralled by that fae."

"Where are you getting at Morava?" Felis asked, a crease forming on his forehead.

"If you want to weaken the spirits of the Draka King and Queen, you must attack Pegasii and take over it. And I know all the weak points of Pegasii Kingdom. Eltanin and Lusitania wouldn't let it slip because after all, Pegasii falls under their protection too. Once you have Pegasii and seize Biham and Kinshra, taking over Draka would be easy. Lusitania is Eltanin's weakness. And I highly suspect that she is Eltanin's mate."

Felis's eyes became wide as surprise bloomed in his mind. "Mate?" he rasped. How was this possible? He was trying to pluck Eltanin's mate?

"Yes."

"How did you come to that conclusion?" Felis asked.

"He is too protective of her. Lovers are not so protective of each other. When I had taken Tania with me to Pegasii a few months back, Eltanin had encamped outside Pegasii to take her back," she said. She had been connecting the dots all along and only this theory made sense. "Although he covered it up by saying that it was his honor that was at stake when I took his slave, who the hell comes after a mere slave?"

Now Felis's attention was completely on Morava.

Morava paused, sensing that she had drawn his attention. She lifted her chin and said, "I want to make a deal with you if I divulge secret information to you about Pegasii."