Royal Wolf Box Set by Haley Weir

Chapter Three

The next day, Rubius came to the castle to see Cassandra and Holly. Aeron immediately knew Rubius knew something was different about Samar too because as soon as she walked into the dining hall for breakfast, Rubius looked up with his yellowish eyes flaring. It was almost an innate reaction, like a scent that you couldn’t help but notice. Rubius opened his mouth to speak, but Aeron kicked him under the table and gave him a slight shake of his head. Rubius seemed confused as he looked around the table and saw that no one besides he and Aeron seemed to notice anything at all. He furrowed his brow at Cassandra until she had to ask him what the matter was.

“Nothing,” Rubius replied to her. “Sorry, I thought I had remembered something that I wanted to mention to you, but I seem to have forgotten it again.”

Cassandra laughed lightly and gave Rubius a kiss on the cheek. As much as it bothered Aeron to see any displays of affection between his wife and Rubius, he brushed the feelings of jealousy off and focused on getting Rubius alone to speak with at some point during the morning.

Samar came to sit down and join them all for breakfast. She looked well-rested, and nourished, and had on a clean dress that Cassandra had left for her. Her long chestnut hair was tied back into braids, and Aeron couldn’t keep himself from staring at her. While he looked at her, it was nearly impossible not to remember and picture what was lying underneath that dress. The thought of it from the night before was driving him crazy. So crazy that he had to think about spiders and worms for a while before he stood again.

Even Theo and Marquette were at breakfast, and everyone was talking with Samar, asking her about her prior kingdom and what she wanted to do while she was in Grenvich. They all conversed with her as if she was just another normal human from the city, and Samar seemed to enjoy talking to all of them. She smiled and answered all of their questions, and then asked some questions of her own. She was intrigued by Grenvich and wanted to see and do everything. And although she did still seem timid and hesitant, she warmed up to everyone in the royal family quickly. By the time breakfast was done, it almost seemed as if she was part of the family.

“Rubius,” Aeron said when he realized that he wasn’t going to get a moment to talk alone with him if he didn’t come up with an excuse to do so. “I want to show you a new sword that I had made. Walk with me to the armory, won’t you?”

Aeron worried that Rubius would decline and choose to stay with Cassandra, but instead, he was eager to accept and stood up from the table ready to go. As soon as they were out of earshot, Rubius wanted to know what was going on.

“That woman is a shifter,” Rubius said while they walked down the hallway together. “Why does everyone act like she is human?”

“Because they think Samar is human,” Aeron answered. “She claimed to be human when she arrived, and for some reason, no one else besides you and I can tell that she’s not.”

Rubius looked as if he was thinking for a moment and then opened his mouth abruptly.

“It’s our enhanced alpha senses,” he said. “That’s what makes us able to see what she is. She must have some ability to try and hide it, although I’ve never heard of a shifter being able to hide their nature from other shifters before. That must be why the others can’t sense it.”

“But Theo is an alpha,” Aeron said. “Why can’t he recognize what she is?”

“He hasn’t been an alpha long,” Rubius answered. “And he wasn’t born into that pack, he came by it through a kill. It might take his heightened senses longer to acclimate.”

Aeron nodded. It made sense. He pulled Rubius into an empty room and shut the door behind them.

“What are you doing?” Rubius asked, startled.

“She’s not a wolf shifter,” Aeron said to him.

“What?”

“She’s a Kitsune.”

“A Kitsune? As in the mythical nine-tailed fox creatures?” Rubius said in disbelief.

“Well, first off, there’s a lot of people that think wolf shifters are mythical creatures too,” Aeron clarified with a chuckle. “But yes, that’s what I mean. At least, I think that’s what I mean. She doesn’t have nine tails, though—only a couple.”

“What actually is she then?” Rubius asked.

“I don’t know,” Aeron answered. “I think she’s the only one of her kind. She told me that she was unique—an anomaly.”

“Why is she here?”

“Her pack was trying to kill her because she is different. She fled and came here,” Aeron answered.

“I thought only humans did shit like that,” Rubius said as he shook his head.

“No, you know better,” Aeron corrected. “Wolf shifters turned on us simply because my son was in love with a human. We are no different than them in many ways. Regardless, she sought sanctuary here, and I think that we need to keep her secret.”

“Even from the others?” Rubius asked in surprise. “Even from Cassandra?”

“Yes. I don’t like keeping secrets from my family, either. But until we know more about her, I think it’s safer for everyone that they continue thinking that she’s just a human.”

Rubius agreed, although he wasn’t necessarily comfortable with the idea of keeping a secret from Cassandra. But as long as Samar could keep up the illusion for the others, and as long as they thought it was safer for everyone not to know, then they would keep her secret..

* * *

Samar spent time both in the castle and outside in the kingdom on the city grounds, and Aeron watched over her from a distance. He noticed that she seemed to really like it there in Grenvich. She found everything to be fascinating, from the open-air markets to talking with the townspeople, and even seemed to like watching the servants do the mundane chores around the castle. It was as if she had never been permitted to explore before, and everything was a fresh and new experience for her.

Aeron figured that if her parents knew that she was in any sort of danger in her old pack, that they probably restricted her from wandering off to have adventures on her own. Being in Grenvich was likely the most freedom that she had ever had. And it showed in her face, which was increasingly filled with wonder and excitement at each little thing and discovery.

Even though it probably came from a tragic background, her attitude was refreshing, reinvigorating. It struck him rather suddenly one day, while he was watching her mingle with the crowds, and she might be putting them in danger. He pushed the thought away.

Aeron found himself beginning to not only watch her when she went outside the safety of the castle, but also even when she was still safely inside of its walls. He began having trouble separating his protectiveness and curiosity from his growing feelings of attraction to Samar. When she walked, Aeron noticed the way her body moved and how her hips swayed in such a graceful and sensual manner. When she smiled, he saw how her eyes instantly looked as if they were lit with small fires behind them. Even her laugh was enticing and sounded as if it was an alluring melody that stroked against his eardrums. He tried not to think about any of it, but that only made it worse. So instead, he just resigned to indulge himself in looking at her, and listening to her, and wondering so many things about her that he felt as if his head was going to explode.

Sometimes she would catch his gaze lingering for a little bit too long, and he would quickly turn away. But even as he did so, he thought that he could see the edges of her mouth form a smile.