Pursuing My Rejected Alpha

“If something is weighing on your mind, you should tell me openly,” Lucien said while planting a kiss on Ronan’s collarbone in return. “At the very least, I can share your burden with you.”

“Mhm,” Ronan swayed a little with Lucien in his arms. “I need you to be extra careful during the war.”

He loosened his embrace and gazed into Lucien’s bright eyes.

“Not that I plan to be careless, but what made you say that?”

Ronan heaved another heavy sigh and pulled his lips into a thin line.

“Honestly, there are not many places that the Werewolf Council could choose to provoke the Night Prowler Pack. If I am not mistaken, the Night Prowler Pack must be quite pissed right now.”

Lucien guessed as much.

“This is a decision made by the Werewolf Council. Can we rule out any ill intention?”

.....

Ronan shook his head.

“I don’t know. I just know that whatever reason lies behind choosing Shadow Mist Creek will not sit right with Kinnon Youngshaper.”

In fact, Ronan could not think about one single positive reason to support the choice.

The Alpha lifted a hand and caressed Lucien’s cheek gently. Tracing the latter’s pale lips with his thumb, he leaned in and whispered, “There is a slight chance that this is done to enrage the Night Prowler Pack.”

Ronan did not have to tell Lucien that their odds of winning the war had just been diminished by more than just a few percent. The war was difficult enough without having to face a bunch of angry werewolves from the Night Prowler Pack.

Ronan knew that Lucien did not want to hear it, but he needed to say it out loud anyway.

“If worse comes to worst, Kinnon must die,” Ronan stated.

Just as he expected, Lucien’s face darkened in an instant and he pulled away from Ronan’s hug. The latter grabbed him from behind and pressed his body against Lucien’s back.

The two of them had gone through the topic so many times. There were only two ways in which the war could end in the Silent Walkers Pack’s favor : Kinnon’s death or Kinnon’s surrender.

Lucien had been quite adamant about the second one. He did not care how, he ordered that Kinnon must not be killed during the war. Lucien wanted him to surrender. At the very least, this was the only thing he could do for Kinnon without harming Landon and the entire Silent Walkers Pack.

“I know that you want to force him to surrender instead, but if he does not want to, we have no other way.”

Ronan turned Lucien around and cupped his face with both hands. The two men looked deep into each other’s eyes.

“Lulu... if everything goes well, this war will conclude within these few days. Your pack will be saved. And then we will be together forever. I need you to focus on these goals and nothing else.”

“...”

“Promise me,” Ronan pleaded as he pressed a kiss on Lucien’s forehead, “that you will do your best to stay alive. Even if it means that you have to end Kinnon yourself.”

Unable to answer, Lucien buried his face into Ronan’s chest. Ronan’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down in anxiety. It was a tough decision for Lucien. Ronan did not want to force him to answer. He merely hoped that Lucien would do the right thing when they came across a furious Kinnon Youngshaper. Time was slowly running out. The decision had to be made before they stepped into the boundaries of Shadow Mist Creek.

Ronan’s fingers slipped into Lucien’s hair and massaged his scalp gently. Of course, he could always take things into his own hands.

If Lucien was still unable to kill Kinnon in the end, then Ronan would do the job himself.

After a while, Lucien lifted his head and looked up at Ronan.

“Alright,” he said, startling the Alpha. “I promise.”

Ronan blinked at Lucien in disbelief. Against his expectations, he did not feel relieved at all. He hated that Lucien had to make such a commitment.

“I am so sorry, my love,” he whispered into Lucien’s hair.

Lucien merely gave an imperceptible nod.

Swallowing the bitterness into the bottom-most pit of their stomachs, the two alphas hugged and exchanged kisses with each other for some time.

“We have to go back,” Lucien whispered when the dark curtain of night slowly descended around them.

“Mhm. Lulu...” Ronan’s lips brushed against Lucien’s jawline seductively.

“Yes?”

“Can I sleep with you tonight?”

“...”

“I won’t do anything. I just want to be with you. It is the last night before we depart for Shadow Mist Creek,” he reminded Lucien.

“Oh, alright then.”

“Okay, then let me grab my bag,” Ronan said while kissing Lucien’s cheek.

“Don’t you need to pack?” Lucien frowned as Ronan dragged him toward his bedroom.

“I never unpacked.”

“...”

Ronan was too sly. He was determined to make use of the last few peaceful hours before the war. Once they arrived at Shadow Mist Creek, they could forget about their privacy. If the group did not manage to cut enough trees, Ronan might sleep with a lot more people he did not want to be close with at night. And so might Lucien.

Additional to the request of sleeping together, Ronan also wanted them to shower together. The water did not stop flowing for almost two hours. By the time they were done, Lucien felt like he became dirtier than before the shower. Ronan on the other side was fully refreshed.

When Lucien and Ronan came out of the shower in bathrobes, Lucien’s phone was vibrating on the nightstand. He picked it up and saw ten missed calls from an unknown number.

“Who is it?” Ronan asked casually while drying Lucien’s hair.

“I don’t know.”

Lucien pondered about the people from South Bedford City that might give him a call, but none of them had any urgent business with him. Just then, the phone started to vibrate. The same person called again.

This time Lucien was there to receive the phone call.

A childish voice was heard at the other side of the line, shyly calling, “Mommy?”