Chapter 227

Fiona

“You will bite your tongue,” Alpha Mandra says at the same time Ethan speaks.

“You will not disrespect my mate, Alpha Moore.”

“It’s not disrespect if it is true. She is weak and not fit to be the Luna Queen,” Alpha Moore says without fear. He’s brave, or stupid; that’s for sure. “Even though she has shifted, I’ve been told she can’t control her wolf. For Goddess’s sake, why should we accept a Queen who lacks basic knowledge about Lycans?”

Alpha Moore narrows his eyes at both of the men who spoke for me, but before they can continue, I stand, laying my hand on each man’s shoulder. I don’t want them to fight my battles for me without me asking, so I put a smile on my face to let them know I’m fine.

Ethan studies me for a moment, but I only smile and turn to the disrespectful Alpha.

“Alpha Moore,” I speak, gaining his full attention. “Who are you?”

The question catches the man off guard, and he blinks several times before answering, “I am the Alpha of the Bluemoon Pack.”

“And who is your son?”

“What does it matter who my son is?” He growls, slapping a hand on the table in front of him. He sits up, drops his feet to the floor, and leans over the table, “What is your point asking these questions?”

“If you do not believe me to be a fit Queen, then I propose your son is not fit to be your successor. In fact, I do not believe you should be an Alpha,” I tell him, remembering just how horrid he and his son have been to Ethan.

The room goes silent, waiting for whatever comes next.

The man practically explodes, jumping to his feet as rage flows off his body and takes over his scent.

“What the hell would you know!?” He snarls, “A human like you has no place here. I am a Lycan born Alpha—”

“An Alpha who allowed his son to challenge a man ten years older than him. An Alpha who allowed his son to kidnap a defenseless woman,” I step around my chair, ignoring the growl that comes from Ethan as I move toward Alpha Moore. “You’re an Alpha.”

Alpha Moore growls, then stops when he looks over my shoulder. I can feel Ethan behind me as well as the stares of everyone in the room.

“You are also an Alpha who sent several members of his pack to trespass and attack people on our land,” I finish, stopping right in front of him. “So, if I am not fit to be Queen because I don’t know everything about being a Lycan, then you, who deliberately breaks Lycan Law, should be demoted from Alpha of your pack.”

Silence still sits between everyone in the room, and with no more than a glare and a snarl, Alpha Moore falls back to his chair and goes quiet.

If you want to silence a barking dog, take away their reason for barking.

“Yes, I am still new to Lycan culture, but I will not allow you to bully me into leaving my mate because I love him,” I say, speaking to everyone now. “I am learning, though, because I am dedicated to helping Ethan in any way I can. I’m not sure if I will be a good Queen, but I will try with everything in me to be whatever you need.”

“And that is all we can ask for, little Queen,” Alpha Mandra says, bowing his head. The other Alphas around the table also bow, Alpha Moore hesitating for a moment before also bowing his head.

Ethan’s hand presses against my lower back, making me look up. He smiles down at me, a feeling of pride coming through the bond between us, and I smile too. I love that he’s proud of me, especially since I don’t know if I made things better or worse.

“Better,” his voice in my mind says.

“We should get back to business,” Ethan announces, leading me back to my chair. Like the gentleman he is, he pulls my chair out for me and then pushes it back in when I sit. The other Alphas also agree that we need to get back to business because the issue with the rogues is more important than Alpha Moore’s rude words.

I sit back, finished with my tirade, and listen as they continue their discussion.

“We don’t know for a fact that Fiona is the rogue’s target, but it’s a good start. I propose we send a few warriors to No Man’s Land to infiltrate the rogue camps and search for information,” Ethan says, looking to the men around us. “I interrogated some of the rogues who attacked our celebration, but I didn’t get much information from them before they died of their injuries.”

“What did you learn?” Alpha Mandra asks, leaning forward to look around me.

“I learned that they have a leader, or at least someone who sent them to attack.”

“Then, infiltration is our best bet. All in favor?” Alpha Mandra raises his hand, and I watch as everyone in the room follows his lead, raising their hands as well.

“He what?” My father shouts, slamming his fist on the table and jumping up. His chair topples backwards, and I pause midbite as he continues shouting, “What kind of a father treats his daughter that way? If I ever see him, I’ll kill him.”

“Woah, Dad, calm down. Fiona is fine here with us,” Aaron says, putting a hand on our father’s shoulder. “She made it back and doesn’t have to deal with that worthless human any longer.”

I watch as the two of them calm down, Aaron sitting back down as everyone watches them. Our meal has been full of questions and stories, most of which have been for me.

“Wait until you hear about her ex-husband,” Ethan mutters, but it wasn’t as quiet as he probably thought. Everyone’s eyes widen at Ethan’s words. I shoot him an annoyed glare and put my spoon down as an onslaught of questions rain down on me.

“Who was he?”

“What was his name?”

“When were you married?”

“When did you break up?”

“Did you break up because of Ethan?”

Slowly, I raise my hand, and everyone goes quiet, waiting for my answers. I decide that shortened version of the long story would be best.

“Well, his name is Jack. I was married to him for a few years, and he cheated on me with my stepsister. That’s when I met Ethan, and he helped me divorce the bastard. He also tried to burn me alive in my own house, stalked me, and tried to steal everything that my mom left for me in my inheritance.”

Jaws drop and eyes widen, and this time, it’s Aaron who jumps to his feet in rage.

“That bastard!” He roars, eyes blazing a golden orange color.

“Aaron Alexander, have some restraint,” our grandmother hisses.

But as he turns to argue with her, their reactions stir emotions within me, bringing forth sadness and happiness at the same time. If I’d had a family like this growing up, I would have been much happier. A loving family who would protect me, care for me, and get angry for me; that’s all anyone could ask for.

In fact, as I watch them argue and fuss at each other. Their tones don’t relay anger. It’s exactly the opposite, actually. I can tell they love each other deeply just by the way they all interact. My grandmother smacks Aaron on the back of the head and narrows her eyes at him while my father laughs at their antics like this happens all the time.

This is the kind of family I want my baby to have.

“Our baby will have everything,” Ethan whispers, kissing my temple. I nod in thanks, silently vowing that my baby will grow up with a loving family. The little one growing inside me will feel love from both parents, not just one, and where I grew up with very little family, our baby will grow up with so many people around us.

Like Ethan said, our baby will have everything.