Chapter 784 – Hidden Desires of the Werewolf King Novel

Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel

He needed to step up big time.

Cristian took Michelle’s hand and lifted it to kiss the back of her palm.

He looked at the woman by his side who was always calm and gentle, enduring the storms with him and helping in any way she could. Michelle never complained, not when they were facing rogues, or shortage of money, or when they were dangerously close to appearing like he was favoring another female.

Cristian hoped Michelle will give him a chance to prove that his loyalty to her was unshaken, but first, he needed to deal with one thing.

“You want me to allow your mate to get scot-free?” Cristian asked Arya. “That’s not how things work.”

Cristian narrowed his eyes at Keith and moved his aching jaw left-right. “You attacked an Alpha. That can’t go unpunished.”

Keith lowered his head. He messed up, he knew he did, but thanks to that, Arya jumped into the fray, and things ended the way they did, and… he had no regrets.

“I will accept whatever punishment you think it’s appropriate, Alpha Cristian,” Keith said.

“I want you to train my warriors.”

Keith looked at Cristian in confusion. “Is that it?”

“I can also throw you into a dungeon if you prefer, but if I do that, you will just eat my food. By training my warriors, I get something in return.”

Keith blinked while wondering if it was that easy. “This should be discussed with my Alpha and Luna. I am my Luna’s head guard, and I can’t just leave.”

“I’m sure we can agree on dates when my safety is not in danger,” Talia said. “Alpha Cristian said that you need to train his warriors. There was no mention of a location or duration.” She glanced at Dayson. “What do you think?”

Dayson rubbed his chin, pretending to be conflicted. “They could come to the Shadow Fang pack for lessons. The Spring Leaf pack won’t suffer a loss if they send us units to train with our warriors under Keith’s supervision. Our warriors could always use moving punching bags.”

Cristian’s eyes flashed in outrage. “Don’t come crying when punching bags give your warriors a beating.”

Dayson stifled a laugh. “When hit hard enough, a bag will sway. It’s not difficult to dodge that.”

Cristian glared at Dayson, and they got locked in an unreasonable staring contest.

Keith was not willing to stand there forever. He cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention.

“Thank you for your generosity, Alpha Cristian. I accept your punishment.”

Cristian lifted his chin. “Generosity? If I hear you are slacking, I will throw you into the dungeon.”

Keith bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from smiling. That was not a punishment. It was an acknowledgment of his ability as a warrior. Keith was happy it happened for Arya to see.

With the punishment formalities out of the way, Keith and Arya returned to her room.

Betty came with a doctor and one more nurse, and Keith stood on the side while they got busy around Arya.

They checked her vitals and removed bandages, putting fresh ones on a few spots that still didn’t heal completely. She also got an ultrasound and an x-ray to confirm things on the inside were healing well.

Arya wanted to shower and tidy up, but the doctor told her to wait at least one more day.

“Your healing rate is close to miraculous,” the doctor said. “Consider yourself lucky that you found your mate when you did, and that he was willing to spend time here so you can heal faster. However, considering the state you were brought in, we want to keep you here until we are sure there won’t be any complications. At this rate, you can leave tomorrow if you promise to take it easy.”

Arya didn’t give up on the showering idea. She tugged Betty’s arm to get closer and whispered, “My mate is right there. He will think I’m a stinker.”

Betty stifled a laugh. “Let me see what I can do.”

Keith ended up waiting in the hallway while Betty gave Arya a sponge bath.

Keith was glad that Dayson, Talia, Cristian, and Michelle didn’t come with them to the pack hospital, because their presence would make things uncomfortable. However, after the doctor and nurses left, Keith was alone in the room with Arya (and two other patients on the other side of the privacy curtain), unsure of what to do.

He observed her lying there, her skin covered in bruises that were fading, and his heart ached while thinking about how she got those.

Arya scooted to the edge and patted the bed on her right. “Will you join me?”

“Is that OK?”

She rolled her eyes. “Didn’t you sleep beside me while I was out?”

Keith raised his hands defensively. “I did it only because nurses told me it will help with your healing.” He was not a creep who sneaks into beds of unconscious women, alright?

Arya pointed at the bandage on her left forearm. “I am still hurt, and I need healing. Your proximity will speed up the process, so…” Arya’s voice trailed, and her eyes darted to the space she freed for him.

Keith felt awkward about this, but he still moved to the bed and settled by her side.

He stared into her eyes while thinking how all this was sudden, contradictory, and he wondered if all mated couples go through this. Actually, mated couples just go with the flow and start copulating right away, which leads to marking, but considering their situation, that was not an option.

Could he just jump on her and go at it? It’s not that Keith didn’t have one-night stands, and he slept more than once with women he barely knew, but this was his mate. No matter how attracted he was to Arya, she was still a stranger, and Keith needed an icebreaker.

“Tell me about you.”

“What do you want to know?”

Keith shrugged. “I heard you are a general.”

“WAS a general,” she corrected him.

“Tell me about it.”

Arya told him how she started as a warrior and that thanks to Alpha Cristian backing her, people took her seriously. She spoke about the high-risk mission she completed without casualties that gave her the first chance to rise through the ranks and how she knew that people were looking down on her as a general because she was so young and a female. “If Alpha Cristian didn’t stand up for me, it wouldn’t happen, no matter how hard I worked or how good my results were…”

Keith felt a pang of jealousy whenever she mentioned Cristian’s name, but the fact that she used his title made things a bit better. He could see that she was proud of her achievements, and she had every reason to be.

“For?”

“Tell me something about yourself, Keith of the Shadow Fang pack.”

Keith told Arya about his work as Talia’s guard, his protein-shake business, that he is a coach, a personal trainer, a Lieutenant, and that he helps his sister with the Shifters nightclub, and Arya’s eyes widened with every next occupation.

“There are only twenty-four hours in a day, and only one you. How do you manage all that?” She asked.

Keith smirked proudly. “With a bit of planning and prioritizing, anything is possible.”

“I should ask you to prioritize my work. I was just a general, yet my schedule was packed.”

“How can you say, JUST a General?” Keith asked sternly. “That’s a lot of work. You need to know military tactics, strategies, latest reports, and movements of enemies, make decisions on the fly, be responsible for your subordinates, and all that while training your mind and body to stay in top shape. Don’t look down on yourself.” Keith genuinely admired Arya’s accomplishments. He had never heard that a person as young as Arya could be a general.

Arya loved how supportive he was. But she also feared that the only thing she had was her status as a General, yet she was leaving that behind to start from scratch. Literally. The only thing she got was a mate, but her budding love life aside, everything else was blank.

“What’s spoiling your mood?” Keith asked, reminding her that he could sense her emotions.

“I just fear that once I leave, I won’t have anything. I won’t be a general anymore. And you didn’t say that you would take me with you. Is it because I’m a nobody now?”

Keith couldn’t believe this. “How can you think such things? We are mates. I will take you with me and take care of you. A job doesn’t define you, Arya, but if you need one, I’m sure we can figure out something.”

“Like, what? The only thing I know is how to fight.”

“Alpha Dayson is always looking for capable warriors. As a newbie, you will start from the bottom. With your abilities, I’m sure you will climb the ranks quickly.” Keith thought of something else. “Why don’t you consider being Luna Talia’s personal guard?”

At the mention of Talia, Arya’s mood dropped.

“I don’t think she will take me.”

“Nonsense. Talia is a wonderful person.”

Arya frowned. How could he call another woman wonderful, and she also felt his admiration, and there was something else she didn’t want to think about.

“You don’t understand. I met your Luna Talia, and I fucked up.”

Keith thought she was joking. Or could it be one of those female-only overthinking qualities? “Really? What did you do?”

Arya was not sure where to start. “We chatted a bit, and she asked me to be friends.” Arya licked her lips and grimaced. “And… I kind of thought she was hitting on me.”

Keith needed more information. “Hitting on you?” With Dayson around? Not possible. “Why would you think that?”

Now that she thought about it, it was stupid, but at that time… “No one ever approached me without an agenda. I don’t have a background or status. People who spoke to me outside army-related business would come and hit on me, so I assumed… I know it’s bad. But I made it worse.”

How could that possibly get worse?, Keith thought. “Go on.”

“I said how I worked hard to reach where I was while she got everything on a silver plate because Alpha Dayson marked her.”

Keith stared at Arya in disbelief, and it took him a few long moments to speak. “That… that’s not Talia, Arya. You have no idea what she went through.”

Arya’s temper flared when she sensed all the warm and fuzzy feelings Keith had for Talia. She couldn’t stand the idea of Keith talking so gently about another female.

“Yeah? What did your precious Luna go through?” Arya snapped at Keith.

Keith didn’t like Arya’s rising hostility, but he kept his cool and answered.

“When Talia arrived at the Shadow Fang pack, she was so small and skinny that a gust of wind would topple her. She is an orphan who grew up in a hostile environment, yet she still carried a bright smile and worked hard while worrying about others. I ended up as her personal trainer, and I saw how much she struggled, but she didn’t give up. She reminded me that kindness is important. She reminded me that I need to do my best if I don’t want to have regrets.”

“How does that translate into her earning the position of Alpha Dayson’s Luna?”

“It doesn’t. It just speaks of her character. You see… Luna Talia doesn’t need Alpha Dayson to stand at the top because…” He leaned closer and spoke softly, only for Arya to hear. “Luna Talia of the Shadow Fang pack is Alpha Natalia of the Midnight Guardians pack.”

Arya gaped at Keith. “You are kidding.”

“Why would I joke about that? And before you think that she inherited that position, she didn’t. Talia defeated previous Alphas and snatched it from them. I don’t pity her. I admire her. You say you offended her, but she still saved you when you were in a pinch, and she came to visit you in the hospital. That is the real strength right there.” Keith patted his chest, over his heart. “Talia has it.”

Arya was not sure what to think about it. She was jealous because Keith had all those gentle emotions toward Talia, and she was remorseful for offending Talia in the first place, and she felt like shit for both of those because Keith was right. Even after all she’s been through, Talia was kind and didn’t lose herself to hatred or power. Talia had enough compassion to come to the rescue of Arya, who offended her only a few hours prior. Shame swelled within Arya, feeling she was not worthy of being compared to Talia.

“How can you address her casually?” Arya asked with bitterness in her voice.

Keith shrugged. “When we met, she was just Talia. I didn’t know she was Alpha Dayson’s mate, and I didn’t know about her Alpha bloodline. If I did, I wouldn’t put her in a ridiculous outfit and ask her to be a team spirit for our soccer team for the whole pack to see.” Keith chuckled. “At that time, we were just friends, and I hope we can continue that relationship. It is my honor that she doesn’t request I use her title, but I still try to do it in front of strangers.”

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