Randolf turned around and there she was. She smiled at him seductively as she untied her cloak with a gentle flourish. It fell to the floor revealing she was wearing a blush pink corset with matching garters, thigh highs, and slippers. She looked so sexy. Randolf hadn't realized just how much they both had grown up. He was not stupid. He also knew he had rejected her in a public fashion and he needed to do as his wife suggested and make amends.
"What are you doing in here? Do Baron and Baroness know you are here unescorted?" He tried to sound like the stern mentor.
She closed the space between them by walking towards him.
"They sent me, silly. If I cannot be your bride, then I shall be your mistress." She slowly knelt in front of him and bowed her head until it touched his riding boots.
She spoke, "I apologize if I have caused you dissatisfaction over the years of our betrothal. I am devoted to you and only you, King Alpha. My body and heart are yours." She said.
Randolf felt the guilt creeping up on him. He should have known breaking their engagement and marrying someone else would have made her feel inadequate. Their society was always harder on the woman. He knelt and gently picked her up. He took her by her hands and made her stand up.
He looked into her beautiful eyes.
"Lady Lupin, it is me, who should be apologizing to you and your family. Here." He took his cape off and wrapped her in it, covering her body from view. He gently guided them to the large settee and both sat down in front of the fire pit.
"I should have had a conversation with you about what I had done. I am realizing, now that my actions may be for the greater good, but they can also hurt the ones closest to me. You do not need to be my mistress. You do not need to beg me for forgiveness. It is I who hurt you. As a Loux Garoux, I apologize for my actions. As King Alpha, I will make this right with your mother and father."
Louve was completely taken aback by his demeanor. Who was this? The Randolf she had heard rumors of and seen in action was a kill them now and ask questions later type of person. This Randolf apologized and wanted to be a fair and just King Alpha. He was really in love with that human she thought.
She wanted to know what that felt like. He seemed like a completely different man.
"I do not owe you an apology. I owe Your wife and Madame Bouvier an apology. I took out all of my anger on them. They did not deserve my rage." She admitted.
Randolf could feel the genuine remorse Louve felt for attacking the ladies. "My father believes that you must be publically punished and made an example of. He says that you have committed a grave sin. You attacked a family member. She may have human blood, but she married into our pack and is considered blood."
He saw her shrink in fear at him, repeating what his father had said. He got a small joy out of it. If only she knew the amount of damage she had caused with her temper tantrum.
"Do you know what my wife said I should do to you?" He asked her.
Louve swallowed hard. "I-I don't know. Probably something worse than what King Alpha Adolf said."
Randolf chuckled at her comment. "She said I should forgive you."
Louve looked shocked. "What?"
"Yes. She said I should forgive you because I have caused you pain, and in that pain, you lashed out ." He recounted.
"I-I oh my, I see why you chose her for your bride."
Randolf smirked at her genuine compliment, "It is one of the reasons." He confirmed.
"She is very kind, Your Majesty." Louve complimented Sylvie.
"I think she is quite naive." he countered "She has no idea what I have thrown her into. You do."
He looked at her then. "I do appreciate your apology, but the damage you have caused, cannot be forgotten. What if you had killed Madame Bouvier? Or worse kill them both? I understand you may view them as weak. They are humans who have very little knowledge of our world or the battle we fight to keep them protected. That does not give us the right to mistreat them or to look down at them. I married Sylvie because she is the best of the humans. I married her as a symbol of solidarity. As long as the humans plead loyalty to us then I will protect them."
Louve understood better. Yes, the King Alpha did have strong feelings for Sylvie, but he also wed her for alliance purposes. He was always thinking about battle strategy, she thought to herself. His reasoning made sense and lessened the sting of his rejection.
The horn blew loudly outside signifying the first pack game was to take place.
"I must go. I am needed. Stay here. I will send my man to escort you back to your parent's tent." He informed her.
"But I cannot go back unless-" She trailed off.
"Yes. You will Tomorrow I will speak with your parents. Tell them I will not put you in a compromising position. You deserve more than being my mistress." He said and exited his tent.
Louve was relieved. Her virginity was intact, and Randolf was so in love with his human bride that he would not let her be punished for the attack. He had been right when he told her that humans needed their protection, not their judgment. From the day she was born, she had been taught that she was better than humans and other Loux Garoux females. She had been told over and over again that she had to be the best to receive the best.
Her apology had been genuine. Sylvie had been correct in her assumption about her misplaced anger. She had seen both women as a threat to her position. She realized now, that her position was never really hers. She also realized with the help of the new King Alpha she would be able to choose whom she would wed....
Randolf took a deep calming breath once he exited his tent. He had been ambushed by Baron and Baroness Lupin. If this hadn't been such an important event he would have seen fit to give the pair a piece of his mind. How could they p=foist their daughter onto him like this? Had they no decency or shame?
A blind man could see that Louve was gorgeous and fresh as a daisy, but she was not Sylvie. He had felt guilty seeing her debase herself with her paltry seduction efforts. His wife had been right about the situation. He was glad she was not here to see any of this. He wondered what she would think of finding the woman who had attacked her trying to sleep with her husband.
Sylvie didn't seem like a jealous woman, but Randolf wasn't sure and he did not want to test the theory.
The first game was the rabbit hunt. Any Loux Garoux could participate. Using only their bare hands and no shape shifting they were to catch as many rabbits as they could. The one who caught the most rabbits won. Randolf was to officiate the game. He saw ten strong Loux Garoux ready to play the game.
There were nine young Loux Gaorux men and one single female. She reminded him of her wife. Before going to the podium he found Nikan. Nikan wondered what the King Alpha could want at this time.
"Yes, Alpha?" he inquired.
"I have someone waiting in my tent. Once the game starts please see to it that they are escorted back to theirs. Please be very discreet about it." Randolf whispered.
Nikan could barely hear him. There was someone inside Randolf's tent? Who could it be? Nikan wondered. He nodded his head in acknowledgment and waited at the podium for Randolf to begin to address the entrants.
"We start our first game soon. The rabbit hunt. This game is to test your speed and agility. Meet back here before the sun sets." Randolf held up a pistol and fired it...
The games had officially begun and the young pack members were off in the thick of the woods.
Randolf had hated this game as young Loux Garoux. He was never fast enough to catch more than one rabbit. He also hated that his father never acknowledged his participation in the games. Times had changed. He felt nostalgic and knew one day his little Loux Garoux would be participating in these games. He hadn't thought about having children until now.
It would have Sylvie's stubborn nature and his good looks. He wondered what she was doing and if she was listening to Whitley. Probably not. He deduced. She had a way of making you believe she would do what you wanted, but Sylvie always found a way to do what she wanted.