Chapter 5 The Luna Suite

• *Rose*
• I look around. Is there another woman on the stage? Who is she?
• Then… he answers the question for me. “Rose Forrest of Elm pack!”
• He is gesturing at me….
• I’m the Breeder? Because of my stupid abnormal uterus? That’s all it takes? Really?!
• Am I really going to be the Breeder for four men??
• I don’t even know how to react. My knees are threatening to give way. All I want to do is to run down off of the stage and hide somewhere–anywhere.
• But I’m here, and I can’t. There are guards for one thing. Also, my parents would murder me if I came home now. News travels fast here and when they found out I had been selected and had managed to outrun the king’s guard, they wouldn’t accept me back in their house. They would beat me out in the streets like a stray dog caught stealing food.
• I try to refocus my attention on the room around me. Many people in the crowd are clapping and cheering, but on some of the other girls’ faces, I see outrage.
• “Thank you all for coming,” King Gene continues. “Now… you may all go!”
• For a moment, I hope that I am somehow included in that statement.
• But it doesn't last. He turns to me and says, “Except for you, of course.” A wicked smile pulls
• back his parted lips, and panic washes over me.
• Dr. Pendergan stays with me, and I notice a couple standing down at the bottom of the stage. Still, my heart is pounding in my chest. I wonder what in the world is going to happen to me now.
• “Well, I must say,” the Alpha King begins as soon as we are mostly alone, “when I met you earlier, I was not expecting you to be the winner.”
• I can only stare at him. Believe me, I wasn’t either.
• “But once Dr. Pendergan told me of your unique situation, well, how could I choose anyone else?” He smiles at me again, and like before, I feel my stomach tighten. I don’t like that smile.
• It’s… creepy and makes me question his sincerity.
• “I think that she’s a bit overwhelmed,” Dr. Pendergan says, resting her hand on my shoulder.
• “Perhaps we should let her have a rest before you introduce her to the Alphas?”
• King Gene is still staring at me, and I’ve felt his eyes wandering along my form as the doctor is speaking. When that handsome man in the hallway did that earlier, it made me feel attractive and beautiful. But this makes me feel almost as creepy as his smile.
• “Yes, yes, of course,” the king finally says. “Beta Adam! Can you and Shelby escort Miss Rose to her room?”
• “Yes, Alpha,” the man who is still standing at the edge of the stage answers. I look at him closely for the first time and see he isn’t much older than me. I had no idea that the Beta was so young.
• Perhaps he hasn’t been the Beta for long? No one ever speaks of the Alpha King’s Beta.
• He gestures for me to meet him at the stairwell, and I realize, with the king in the room, I’ll have to back down the stairs.
• In these shoes, that seems dangerous.
• I’m not supposed to turn my back on the king, though.
• Thankfully, before I make it to the edge of the stairs, the king turns and walks off in the other
• direction.
• Thank the Moon Goddess!
• Beta Adam offers me his arm, and I take it. He helps guide me down the stairs as I hold up my gown with the other hand.
• “Hello, Miss Rose,” he says to me in a kind voice. He is quite good-looking himself, though not as handsome as the men I met in the hallway. He’s tall and strong with reddish-blond hair and kind green eyes. My body doesn’t feel a spark when I’m around him, but I’m happy to at least have another friendly face to add to my circle seeing as I might be stuck here for a while.
• “Hello,” I say to him, realizing I’m shaking a bit. I’m so nervous about all of this. I can hardly even wrap my mind around what’s happening.
• “This is my wife, Shelby,” he says and the woman who was standing near him earlier walks over. She’s adorable, with a button nose and apple cheeks. Her hair is a bit more brunette than his but still with shades of red. She has a smattering of freckles across her nose. I think she is probably just a few years older than me.
• “Hello,” I greet her. “It’s nice to meet you.”
• “You, too,” she says with a smile, and instead of shaking my hand, she loosely wraps her arms around me, like we are already long-time friends. “I’m so excited to get to know you!”
• Dr. Pendergan pats my back and says, “I shall see you soon, dear,” before she heads off to the
• exit.
• I’m not sure if he’s talking to me or Adam or all three of us, so I say nothing, but when he withdraws his hand to carry along on his way, my arm feels cold, like it’s meant to have his hand on it.
• Shelby giggles. “Isn’t he dreamy?”
• Before I can respond, Beta Adam clears his throat. “You know I can hear you, right?”
• “Oh, Adam!” she says rushing up to grab his hand. “You know I think you’re the dreamiest of all!”
• Poor Beta Adam. He looks over to me for backup but I don’t want to lie. I remain silent.
• By the time Shelby returns her attention to me, I feel it’s too late for me to speak. So I say nothing.
• But yes… I do think that man was dreamy.
• Whoever he was.
• A few minutes later, we arrive at a large wooden double door, carved with flowers and filled with gold inlay.
• It’s beautiful.
• “Here we are,” Beta Adam announces, pushing the door open.
• I stand outside and stare for a moment, first at the door… and then at the room.
• It’s gorgeous–and huge. I think most of my house back home would fit in here.
• There’s a living room area with a large plush red sofa set before an expansive television set.
• The sitting area is nice and inviting, despite the bold colors. The rug on the rich wooden floor is also red with gold accents. My eyes follow it over to the bedroom area where a huge four-poster bed with a red canopy and matching silky red bedspread invites me to collapse and take a nap.
• All of the woods are a rich brown color with red tints.
• Behind Beta Adam, there are three huge floor-to-ceiling windows with matching red and gold drapes. I can’t see outside just yet because of the angle, other than the bright azure sky. I can’t wait to rush over and see if there’s a garden view. That would be lovely.
• “This is great, isn’t it?” Shelby asks. “The king had it done up as a second Luna suite. Oh, and in there is your bathroom! All white marble with a jetted tub big enough for at least two! Who will be the lucky man?” Shelby giggles coquettishly.
• My eyebrows arch. I would love to sit in it… alone if possible.
• I notice that the room matches my dress and wonder if that’s just a coincidence. It would have to be, I suppose.
• “It’s beautiful,” I tell them.
• She walks over to an armoire and pulls it open. “There’s a ton of clothes in here. I think you will find that everything is in your size, but if not, let us know, and we’ll get you the right fit.”
• All I can say is, “Thank you.” It probably makes me seem unappreciative given the room that was just offered to me, but, you know, I didn’t ask for any of this.
• She smiles at me and closes the armoire door.
• “Well… I’m sure you’re probably tired,” Beta Adam says. “We’ll get your luggage from your escort and make sure that you have your things from home.”
• I haven’t brought much, but I would like to have the little I did pack. “Thank you.” That seems to be all I can say.
• “Of course. You’ll have some servants, but we’ll give you a chance to rest before we bring them in to meet you. If you do require anything, just pick up the phone and dial nine.” He gestures to the gold antique-style telephone on the nightstand.
• “Thank you….”
• He smiles at me and then gestures for Shelby. “Come on, honey.”
• She walks back over to me first. Wrapping me up in another hug, she squeezes tighter this time.
• “I’m so glad you’re here,” she says before the two of them give me a little wave and leave the room.
• I am alone–and I feel it. Even though Shelby is nice, and I’ve met some very attractive men who seem to be interested in me, it doesn’t matter because I have no idea who they are. And I still haven’t met the four men I’m meant to bed.
• My eyes go to that piece of furniture. All I want to do is fall asleep and wake up back at home.
• I sit down on the edge and take off my shoes, but I’m too afraid to change clothes since I have no idea when I might be summoned. I lay down on top of the blanket that matches my dress and close my eyes, wondering what will happen next.
• *Reece*
• I’m almost late.
• I didn’t really have time after the king’s announcement to duck out of the auditorium and make it all the way back to my room, but I realized I was underdressed when I saw the other three Alphas standing in suits in the back of the room. When the king asked us to meet with him, I figured I shouldn’t be the only one in jeans and a polo.
• So… I’d rushed back to my room to change. Now, I have to rush to get back to the king’s office for our meeting.
• But I’m glad I went.
• It gave me a chance to see the girl up close.
• She’s beautiful… and even though I know she’s nervous and probably a little scared, it’s quite clear that she is as attracted to me as I am to her.
• That will come in handy…. If King Gene said that I had to bed an unattractive woman just because she was the healthiest of the pack or the most well-bred, I would protest.
• But this girl was gorgeous, and I didn’t even care whose daughter she was at this point. I just wanted to see her again. When my hand rested on her arm, I felt a warmth radiate up to my elbow. It was like I was meant to touch her.
• I rush into the room with less than a minute to spare and find I’m the last one to arrive.
• “Hey, Reece!” Tristan says, a crooked grin on his face. “Nice of you to join us.” I growl at him and take my seat at the end, on the other side of Mark. The others look amused, except for the king. He doesn’t seem annoyed that I’m almost late, but he isn’t happy either.
• But then… King Gene is never happy.
• “Sorry, Sir,” I mutter.
• “You’re fine,” he says. “I just wanted to go over the rules with the four of you, to make sure you’re clear on my expectations and what I plan to do in terms of determining who will be my heir. All four of you have proven yourselves to be loyal to me. You’re good leaders, brave warriors, and attractive men. A child any of you produces with this girl will be an asset to the kingdom. So… that’s it. That’s how we will decide the heir.”