The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 66: To the East.EASTERN PLAINSThe night hung heavy with tension as Jana led Regina back to the safety of their castle, the weight of their shared burden pressing down on them like a suffocating blanket. Regina's heart still raced with the memory of her encounter with the alpha guard, her mind swirling with a whirlwind of emotions as she struggled to make sense of it all.As they entered the dimly lit room, Jana guided Regina to a small cot in the corner of the room, the soft glow of the moon casting long shadows across the floor. With a gentle touch, she urged Regina to lie down and rest, promising to keep watch over her as she slept.Regina's eyelids felt heavy with exhaustion as she sank into the welcoming embrace of the cot, her body craving the solace of sleep after the tumultuous events of the night. With a weary sigh, she closed her eyes and let herself drift into the comforting embrace of dreams.Meanwhile, Prince Damien paced rest
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate . Chapter 67: her decision . As the sun dipped low on the horizon, painting the eastern plains in hues of orange and gold, Mattel arrived with his cousin in tow, the vast expanse of grassland stretching out before them like a sea of undulating waves. The air was crisp and cool, a gentle breeze rustling through the tall grasses as they made their way towards Damien and Jana, who were waiting for them at the edge of the clearing."Finally decided to show up, huh?" Damien quipped, a hint of irritation evident in his voice as he crossed his arms over his chest.Mattel offered a sheepish smile in response, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "Sorry I’m late," he apologized, his tone contrite. "I ran into some unexpected delays on the way here."His best friend lost the frown and went over and nudged him playfully in the ribs, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Translation: Mattel got lost again," he teased, earning a chuckle from Mattel.Jana stepped f
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 68: Can we?.King Mattel visits Regina in the morning, after she has awakened, to reinstate the usual system of guards around the palace and her room both.When he returns, feeling already as though he’s been gone for far too long - despite it having only been a few hours - he finds Regina sitting on the floor of the room, dressed and wide awake.The girl is laughing.The curtains are wide open and a gentle breeze filters in, making Regina’s hair dance with the motions of the wind; her skin is awash in a warm glow, kissed by the light, eyes bright and dazzling as her laughter chimes like a song of bells in the room.Mattel can see sunbeams, blindingly bright, in the flush of delight on Regina’s cheeks, the curve of her smiling eyes. She’s dressed in a ruffled, balloon-sleeved chiffon blouse of daisy yellow, a lively, pretty brow tied at her neck; the sleeves, too, sway in the cool morning air.She’s resplendent.Dressed in the color of the su
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 69: leaving again? .The Eastern Plains envoys arrive in a grand, stately procession, befitting of the honored and revered name of the great bloodline of their namesake. That goes to say, it is a much, much larger party that arrives that afternoon, than the paltry three carriages that had accompanied Regina on her trip back here.The horses are bedecked in the golden crest of their house, glimmering in the late sun, pulling a series of nearly ten carriages with them. Flanking each stately carriage is a small cluster of guards, they, too, bearing the noble insignia of the Eastern Kingdom, their swords gleaming proudly with every trotted step. And in the center of the entire group, a massive, portly carriage catches the eye - of polished white and gilded in gold, accented with royal burgundy curtains and golden tassels; all around the top is a series of pointed, golden fixtures, creating an appearance not unlike a crown.As the party nears the
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate.Chapter 70: ask me to stay .“We weren’t going to leave you here,” Jana says. Her voice grows dark and abhorrent on the word here, as though she were saying- “With that, with him.”Regina grows rigid.Damien’s eyes watch her carefully, as Regina extricates herself from Jana’s hug, expression scrunched up into a frown. “Don’t say that,” She says.“Don’t say what?”“Don’t- talk about him like that,” Regina hunches her shoulders, crossing her arms uncomfortably. “Don’t use that tone when talking about him.”Jana stares at her. “Don’t talk about who like that? Him?”Regina stiffens even more. “Yes,” She says sharply. “He’s- Mattel isn’t-”“Mattel?”Regina curls back, stung by the sheer incredulousness in Jana’s voice. Damien steps in. “Regina,” he says patiently. “Tell us what’s going on in your mind.”For an individual whose prodigious telepathic abilities could present to him, at a moment’s notice, all the inner thoughts and secrets of any mortal man, D
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 71: denying feelings? .So, with tears burning along her lashes, anxiety swimming in her stomach and making her fingers tremble, Regina says (pleads) again, “Ask me to stay.”Mattel looks at her, this darling, wonderful girl, who glows with sunbeams and starlights and illuminates the room she stands in, as if she carries the light with her wherever she goes. As if her presence - luminous and incandescent - is enough to bring a brilliant, dazzling light to every dark corner, even when there’s something as dark as Mattel present. At his little dragonheart.Impossibly, stupidly, beautifully brave.Mattel won’t (can’t) ask her to stay, here, in the shadowy depths of the dark where vile things like Mattel belong.Regina belongs in the light; she deserves to bask in the effervescent sunlight, like the vivacious, rosy-cheeked miracle that she is. (Mattel can already feel that treacherous beast inside of him, growing greedier and hungrier; fears tha
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 72: is it too late? .Regina’s lips part in wordless shock.Damien shrugs. “Perhaps it is foolishness,” considering just how much a man like crown Prince Damien might have to lose. “But what is love, if not tempered with some uncertainty? It is not trust, otherwise.”For Damien - who had been Gifted with the greatest telepathic abilities recorded in history, whose prodigious talents had allowed him to expertly and effortlessly assess the threat behind every smile and every kind word - his brand of love, is trust.The blind, admittedly potentially catastrophic, kind of trust, that comes with believing in a person without ascertaining their thoughts even when he can.For Damien, this has been his greatest declaration of love possible.Regina stares, lost and uncomprehending. “But that- I...I never knew.”Damien’s smile shines like diamonds, the kind of happiness that only Jana has ever been able to place on his mild expressions. “So,” he laughs.
The Alpha King’s Runaway Mate .Chapter 73: a reconciliation, maybe ? .Regina freezes. And, as though - inexplicably - she has been jolted with more life than she’d demonstrated the entire day, she scrambles to peer out the windows with wide eyes.Jana’s eyes fly to Damien’s, before a mutinous, cold rage fills her gaze. Her jaw clenches. She snatches the sword at her side.Princess Jana, blue-blooded noble as she may be, is a talented swordsman whose skills have been hailed as second to none in their country; had she not be married to such a wealthy and illustrious family, she would have had a marked and lauded career in the military, no doubt.“Stay inside,” Jana commands, clicking the hilt of her sword out of its scabbard with an expert flick of her thumb. Fury casts her beautiful features in a strange allure, her broad shoulders moving to cover the doorway as his hand reaches out to swing it open.“Wait, no!” Regina throws herself at the princess’s arm - the one clutching the