Chapter 127

Maeve’s POV

My heart was racing as I sat in the doctor’s office. Kenneth called us last night to tell us that the appointment was set for this morning. Xaden sat by my side the entire time and held my hand while the doctor performed the test. He left to send in the results and now we were waiting for him to return.

A few minutes later, the doctor walked into the room.

“You are free to go. The test has been sent to the lab and it’ll take a few days for the results.”

I frowned, my stomach twisting into a tight knot.

“A couple of days?” Xaden asked. “You were supposed to be the best in the country.”

The doctor raised his brows.

“Even the best doctors can’t rush paternity tests. Especially when it’s done on a fetus.”

I sighed and leaned against Xaden, feeling my heart sinking.

“Well, then I guess we will find out in a couple of days,” I murmured, feeling a wave of disappointment.

“I’ll call you personally with the results,” the doctor stated. “There’s nothing you can do until then.”

I nodded and thanked the doctor while Xaden helped get me dressed. We left hand-in-hand.

“A couple of days,” he murmured. “I just wanted to shove the results in my father’s face.”

I smiled up at him.

“We will,” I assured him. “There’s nothing to worry about. You are the father of this baby and soon, everyone will know it.”

……

Third Person POV

What do you mean she’s coming today??” Lucas asked, staring at his mother and father with a shocked expression on his face.

“We mean, Princess Mia is arriving early, and she’ll be here any hour,” King Arlan said, raising his brows at his youngest son. “There’s nothing to worry about. The palace is preparing for her arrival as we speak. All you need to do is be presentable.”

“I thought she wasn’t going to be here until next week,” Lucas said, shaking his head before he turned to look at his mother who was watching him with a worried expression on her otherwise perfect face. “Wasn’t she scheduled to come next week for the full moon ceremony?”

Queen Leonora nodded.

“Yes, but she called and decided she wanted to arrive early. She wanted to get to know the kingdom a little better. She only ever heard stories of the wolf Kingdom, but never seen it with her own eyes.”

Princess Mia was a vixen and had been kept in the vixen territory her entire life. This would be the first time she traveled outside of her own territory. The wolves were doing everything they could to prepare for her arrival and make her feel comfortable.

A tight knot formed in the pit of Lucas’ stomach as he thought of Princess Mia. He had only ever seen her in the fashion magazines Charlotte made him look at. She was very beautiful, but it was also a little intimidating. He’s also done some research on her these last couple of days and there were plenty of media stories that he didn’t particularly like.

He was supposed to marry her so they could join the vixen territory with the wolf territory and be a strong and unbeatable force against the bear shifter community. The vixens were known for their stealthy and limber warriors and wolves could use that as allies.

But the closer it got to the day that Lucas was supposed to marry this woman, the more nervous he grew.

Was this really the right decision? Marrying for duty and not love?

“It’s going to be okay,” Queen Leonora said, putting her delicate hand on Lucas’ shoulder, and giving him a reassuring squeeze. “You are going to learn to love her over time.”

It was as if she could read his thoughts.

“And if I don’t?”

“You don’t have a choice,” the King said firmly, his aura darkening as his anger started to take place. “This is your duty as the royal son, Lucas. You can’t back out of this because it’s not up to you.”

Lucas bit his lip and nodded. He wasn’t sure if this was what he wanted, but he knew he didn’t have a choice. He worried about what was going to happen when she arrived.

Who was this girl?

…….

Princess Mia sat aboard the ship, staring off into the distance as the shore came closer. Her nerves were eating away at her stomach. She tucked a long strand of brown hair behind her ear and chewed on the inside of her cheek.

“Are you nervous?” Her handmaiden, and best friend, Emily, asked from beside her, watching her with a worried expression.

Mia nodded, not wanting to lie to her friend, knowing that Emily would be able to see right through her.

“Very,” Mia admitted. “What if I don’t like him?”

Mia couldn’t mask her disappointment over the situation; she was meant to marry the other brother, Xaden. But a little over a day ago, she was informed that plans changed and now she was marrying someone she knew nothing about. She did all the research she could about Xaden and knew almost everything about him.

Who was this Prince Lucas?

“Well, if things don’t go well, then we can fight for the other one instead,” Emily reminded her. “It’s never too late. We don’t know why the plans changed but you are the princess. You can change them back.”

Mia thought back to the phone conversation she had last night. The man on the other end of the phone insisted that Prince Xaden would be a better choice and that she should reconsider as if it was her doing in the first place to change the original plan.

“It was my father’s doing,” Mia had told this man. He introduced himself as Alpha Kenneth, a trusted ally to the royals, so Mia was quick to accept his phone call when his Beta called her father’s Beta. “I’m now engaged to be married to the youngest son.”

“I understand that,” Kenneth had told her. “But Lucas is nothing more than a boy… the chances of him becoming the next King is slim in comparison to his brothers. Henry is already married… Xaden is the next best choice. I’m sure after a bit of convincing, your father will see reason.”

It was true, she would rather marry someone who had a fighting chance at the throne, and she knew her father would want that as well. She didn’t understand his logic. She was a princess after all, and it only made sense.

“We are about to arrive, Princess,” one of the shipmates said as he pointed to the nearing dock. “The King of the wolf territory arranged for a car to take you to the palace, along with your warriors.”

Mia sighed and allowed Emily to help her to her feet.

“Will my future husband be there as well?” Mia found herself asking, the inside of her cheek growing raw from her chewing.

“It’s assumed so, Mam,” the shipmate said, bowing his head.

“Then, we shall go right away,” she said, motioning for Emily to follow her.

Once they were off the ship and in the car, Mia felt her heart racing at lightning speed. Emily kept whispering reassuring words in her direction, telling her that everything would work out well enough, but still, Mia held so much doubt in her heart.

When they reached the palace, they were greeted by the royal guards. Beyond them were crowds of people and paparazzi who had heard of her early arrival. This was what she was trying to avoid by coming early.

“Princess Mia, it’s an honor to meet you,” the guard said, bowing to her as he helped her out of the car. “I am the commanding officer, Nicholas. If there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Mia smiled at him; he was quite handsome. If she weren’t aiming to marry one of the royals, she would have settled for him. She could see his aura clear as day and she knew that he was of the Alpha bloodline.

The paparazzi were all chanting for Mia, and she was nearly blinded by the flashing lights from the cameras. Emily did well at blocking her from most of the pictures and telling them that she wasn’t going to be answering any questions right now.

Nicholas sent his guards after the paparazzi, forcing them to stand down.

They fought their way through the crowd of onlookers until they reached the front doors of the palace. She paused when she saw a tall and muscular gentleman standing in the front foyer, along with a stunning woman. She knew from the pictures that they were the King and Queen.

Arlan and Leonora.

“Princess,” Arlan said, stepping forward. “It’s an honor to finally meet you. I am King Arlan, and this is my wife, Luna Leonora.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, darling,” the queen said, bowing her head respectfully.

Mia nodded and found herself glancing around, expecting to see Lucas nearby, but when she didn’t see him, she frowned. The queen glanced at the King, both of which were frowning as well. They knew who she was looking for and they both looked a little uneasy.

“Our son, Lucas, is still getting ready for your arrival. Your early arrival took him by surprise, and he doesn’t know you are here yet,” the queen informed her.

“Good evening, Your Majesties. I am Emily, Mia’s handmaiden. She is rather tired and would like to rest. Do you have a room ready for her?”

“Yes, of course,” the King said, nodding at Emily.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Emily,” the Queen said with a wide smile. She glanced at the guards that were standing nearby, her eyes scanning the area and resting on one of the maids that stood in the distance.

“Rachel, can you bring Princess Mia and her handmaiden to their rooms?” The Queen asked. “And as for her warriors…” the queen continued as she glanced over Mia’s shoulder to look at her warriors.

“We stay with the princess,” one of them said, folding her arms across her chest.

“Of course…” the queen said, a bit awkwardly. “We can set some rooms up next to Princess Mia’s. Rachel, can you get on that as well, please?”

Mia took note of the queen; she seemed kind and treated her staff and Mia’s warriors with equal respect. She admired that. Mia loved her warriors and wanted them to feel comfortable as well.

“Of course, Your Majesty,” the maid, Rachel said with a curtsey. “Follow me,” she added to Mia, Emily, and the warriors. They all followed after the maid; she could hear her warriors murmuring to one another and taking note on everything they’ve seen so far.

Mia’s warriors were all women who wore tight-knit clothing, leaving their bellies bare, and showing off their feminine physique. They needed this type of clothing so they could move easily; their bodies were their weapons; however, they kept actual weapons attached to their backs. Some had swords, others had bows and arrows.

They were limber and quick; the vixen force strived on stealth, but not so much on strength. This alliance was meant to join together the wolves and the vixens because the wolves could use these stealthy women on their team and the vixens could use the strength of the wolves on their team.

Together, they would be unstoppable and it was up to Mia to make it happen.