AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I looked down at where my uncle was gripping my arm, then leaned in, invading his space as I let my frame overshadow him. I normally wasn’t one to use my designation against people, but I let an alpha rumble build up in my chest—something my beta uncle couldn’t generate.
“That’s the thing, Uncle. I don’tthinkI’m better than you; Iambetter than you. Now let go of me before I relieve you of your hand.”
He recoiled at this, staring at me with a truly shocked expression. I didn’t waste time gloating, instead moving past him like I’d originally intended. I wasn’t exactly eager to hurryup and meet with my parents, but it wasn’t like Graham’s presence was any more welcome, either.
Naturally, I was in a mood when I entered my parents’ sitting room, the whole place grating against my soul. They were all from another world, and I was navigating their ways, except their culture was the opposite of everything I valued and everything I knew was right.
I was surprised, however, when I entered and saw my sister Amelia there. Despite her having arrived several days earlier, we hadn’t seen each other. It wasn’t outright hatred, but it was clear to anyone with eyes or a nose that we didn’t get along.
“Who’s that?” A little girl asked, and I realized she was my first niece, three years old, and goodness, the spitting image of Seraphina at her age. One thing was for certain: the DeLune genetics ran strong.
“That’s your Uncle Nikolai,” Amelia said. I didn’t understand why she’d want to talk to her own daughter in such a bored tone, not even looking up from the magazine she was paging through, but I didn’t let the irritation show on my face.
Instead, I crouched in front of the girl so we were about as eye to eye as we could get and offered my hand. “Hey there. Nice to meet you finally.”
My niece looked uncertain, and I watched as her dark eyes flicked to my sister, looking for guidance. But it was as if the little girl didn’t even exist.
“It’s okay,” I said after a beat. “You never have to shake someone’s hand if you don’t want to.”
That slight bit of encouragement was just what the girl needed because then she thrust her hand forward.
“I can shake!”
“That’s great,” I said, taking her tiny hand in my own. I couldn’t help picturing what my daughter with Ayla would look like, or how she’d act. My three-year-old niece would probablybe too old to be a playmate, considering Ayla and I were alongway to getting there, but she’d certainly be a fun older cousin.
I’d have loved to have just stayed there, interacting with my attention-starved niece, but naturally, my father had to interrupt.
“Enough dallying. We have a proposition for you, son.”
I straightened, hoping it wasn’t what I thought, but when my uncle entered, I put the pieces together.
Great.
“I’m sure even with your absence, you haven’t forgotten the DeLune line has ruled for generations by passing this illustrious throne from firstborn son to firstborn son.”
“I am aware,” I said flatly, waving off the no doubt expensive drink my mother tried to press into my hand. I could tell what she was doing, but I wasn’t going to go along. I didn’t want to be pleasant or pliable.
“Don’t you think it’s high time you produced an heir? Especially if you insist on continuing these ridiculous military roleplay trips of yours! What if you die in the service of these peasants and we’re left with no one to continue your line? What then?”
When I didn’t say anything, just returning his look dully, an angry rumble rippled through his chest, and he continued.
“You don’t even have to deal with having a pregnant mate around. The woman we think would be best for you is extremely close with her family. I’m sure she would be more than happy to consecrate your marriage bed, then return to her home manor while you run around and play captain.”
It would’ve been a tempting offer if I wasn’t already deeply in love with my fated mate: a get out of jail free card where I gave my father a viable heir, and I’d return to Fort Canid without them on my back.
“You know,” I said calmly, refusing to rise to my father’s bait. “Perhaps it’ll make things easier if we stop couching this in polite language and discuss how you want to breed me like a prize bull.”
Was it crude? Yes. But it was true. At this point, they would probably be happy if I came into a cup so they could artificially inseminate a future royal wife, and I’d end up assassinated somewhere as soon as a male heir was produced.
An awful way to think, but how could I not? My father had proven again and again there were no limits to what he would do to secure his power, and I was clearly bucking up against all his nerves.
“Nikolai,” my mother gasped, while my father’s brows snapped together as if drawn by a magnet.
“You’re being needlessly stupid,” my father growled. “I am working with you, letting you play the little soldier you’re so obsessed with, and you throw every effort in my face. And why? We know you don’t have some long-term woman clinging to you. Your reputation in this regard is quite clear. If you prefer the company of men, just say it. There are ways we can let you have your fun and still maintain our reputation with foreign dignities.”
What a weird way to be accepting. I knew there were many people out there who wished their parents would accept they were gay, and here my father was, not upset in the slightest beyond public appearances. Still not exactly healthy, but certainly strange.
“I’m not gay,” I said with a sigh, deciding to try a different strategy. “It’s just… you have to understand, I’ve seen some real horrors in this war, and I truly fear bringing a child into a world with the rising threat. So, unless you know a possible window for when this conflict could end…” This time I raised my gaze to stare at my father directly, to look into those eyes, so much likemine. Strange, to see a face that shared so much in common, yet we were like completely different creatures.
