Chapter 84: Meet the Family

MADDOX

When she asked if I wanted to go to family dinner, my heart did a somersault. Her family was known for being ruthless. Especially her grandfather, the king, and her uncle, the next in line.

And yet I couldn’t say no to her.

She chatted giddily as she led the way to her car. Thankfully I had taken a few moments to shower and put a shirt on, although her blushing cheeks when I didn’t have one on sat nicely with me.

She looked so beautiful, her skin glowing, the sun shining on her white hair. She was by far the most beautiful wolf I’d ever seen.

~And she’s all mine.~

As we got closer to her car, I reached out and grabbed her hand and spun her around to face me. I clutched her face gently and leaned in, kissing her lips softly, tasting her.

She stepped closer. Her hands resting on my arms, she returned the kiss. We stood like that for a few moments, just taking it all in, our lips moving in sync with each other’s.

When we broke apart, she looked a little dazed. “What was that for?” she gushed breathlessly.

I stroked her cheek with my thumb. “I just wanted to kiss you. You look so beautiful.” I guessed by her reaction she hadn’t had many kind words spoken to her recently,

Her shoulders, which were once tense, were now relaxed. She gazed off to the side, gathering her thoughts. “Thank you.”

I lifted her hand to my lips, kissing it gently. “You’re welcome.”

“We should head to the castle. My family will be waiting.”

I nodded silently, allowing her to lead me to her car. I put my hand out for her keys.

She looked surprised but handed them to me. Walking around to the passenger side, I opened the door for her, holding my hand out to help her as she lowered herself in.

Once she was settled, I closed the door gently and made my way around to the driver's side.

“I can direct you on where to go.” She looked out the windows as I reversed out of the park.

“You can relax if you like. I’m pretty sure I can find a castle somewhere in this town,” I joked as we drove onto the main road.

Little did she know I passed the castle on my way here and remembered how to get there.

We drove in silence. I was admiring the view, and she was deep in thought like she always seemed to be.

~Hopefully I can help ease some of the pressure she’s under. If I survive meeting her family.~

We pulled into the castle grounds. I parked alongside the other cars. “Wait there, please,” I told her before getting out. She looked at me, concerned.

I walked around to her side and opened the door for her. She reached for my hand to help her out. Once she was ready, I shut the door behind her and locked the car.

“You sure you’re ready to meet my family” she joked.

Gripping her hand, I followed her up the steps. “As I’ll ever be,” I replied.

Truth be told, I was bricking it, but I wasn’t going to tell her that. I just needed to survive tonight, and hopefully the heat would die off and we could get to know each other in peace.

She led the way to a dining room. Everyone was already seated around a large table with the king sitting at the head of it. His sharp gaze met mine, and I gulped slightly.

“You must be Prince Maddox. Welcome, my boy. Your father is a very good friend of mine.” He stood up, shaking my hand roughly.

“Pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty.” I flexed my fingers once he released my hand from his vice grip.

“Raphael, Maddox, please take a seat. This is my wife and mate, Frieda. My eldest, Diego. You know Gianna, I’m sure. My twins are out of town on business, I’m afraid, or they’d be here.”

He pointed around the table to the different faces.

Frieda looked like a gentle lady, but the spark in her eyes told me she’d take me out without a second thought if she thought I was a threat to her family.

Gianna smiled at me gently. Diego’s eyes watched every move I made before gazing over my shoulder and hardening. So he wasn’t too pleased about the whole beta fiasco, then.

I felt bad for Reign. She must’ve been through hell these last few months.

I pulled out a chair and guided her into it gently. She smiled in response.

“You have wonderful manners, dear. Your parents must be proud.” Queen Frieda’s words drifted across the table.

“A recent discovery, I assure you, ma’am. I, unfortunately, have a very shameful party past.” I sat in a chair beside Reign, gazing at her gently.

“Ah, yes. We know what that is like. We too had a couple of children like that,” Frieda joked playfully, poking fun at her children. “May I ask what has changed for you, Maddox?”

“Maddox and I are mates.” Reign’s voice came out as a whisper, but the room was silent enough for it to be heard.

“Wonderful news, darling!” Gianna stood up and wandered down to Reign, clutching her in a tight embrace

“Welcome to the family, Maddox.” She hugged me next, squeezing me tightly

“Thank you,” she whispered in my ear, quiet enough for only me to hear.

“And how do we feel about the beta situation, then?” Diego barked down the table, his hands clenched into tight fists. I swallowed down the anger bubbling inside of me.

~Diego Gray is one wolf you don’t want to fight.~

I stared him down threateningly. His eyes narrowed at my challenge.

“I think what happens during a time of grief should be left there. Everyone has a past,” I gritted through my teeth.

Diego’s eyes narrowed for a moment before he scoffed and chugged on his beer.

“So, not to have shop talk during dinner, but Reign, have there been any updates on our rogue situation?” Raphael asked, cutting up his steak absentmindedly.

Reign shook her head. “No, not yet. We’ve got guards patrolling the borders day and night, and there’s no other sightings.

“Milly has upped the frequency of trainings with our warriors, so we should be ready when the time comes.”

“Axel and I will work with the mages to make sure we’re ready too. We don’t want a repeat of the last time we went face-to-face with Keir,” a small girl with weird eyes piped up.

~What was her name again?~

She smiled softly at me. “My name’s Storm.”

~Shit.~

“So have you been to our pack before then? I don’t remember seeing you.” Diego glared at me.

The woman beside him—~his mate, I assumed—~rested her hand on his arm. “Let it go, Diego,” she warned.

“Yes, I was here shortly after Alpha Kol’s funeral. There were many alphas present. I’m sure that’s why you don’t remember me.” I stared Diego down, ~signing my death wish with every passing second~.

Thankfully he looked away and let it go.

“Happy for you, kid.”

I tried not to let my wave of relief show on my face, but the queen gave me a knowing wink with a smile.

“So does someone want to fill me in on who this Keir person is?” I shuffled up straighter in my seat.

“So we’re really just going to skim over the fact that Reign’s dirty indiscretions are just plastered in print for the entire pack to read?

“I mean, Gianna was a nightmare when she was younger, but at least she wasn’t throwing herself at every wolf who batted his eyes at her.”

Diego spat his knuckles white from clenching his cutlery so tightly.

~That’s it.~

I dove across the table, pinning Diego to the ground. “~Apologize now~,” I snarled into his face.

He gripped the sides of my shirt and threw me up to the ceiling. I hit it with a thump and fell to the floor with a crash, knocking all the breath out of me.

“Don’t threaten me, ~punk~.I can rip you in half with one hand behind my back,” he snarled

I stood to my feet, matching his height. I stared him down. “Why don’t you try me, ~old man~.”

“Is all of this really necessary? Raphael, do ~something!~” Frieda looked at the king pleadingly, but my eyes were fixed firmly on Diego.

“Looks like he’ll fit right in, Frieda darling,” Raphael muttered in response.

I did not go there to cause a war between the packs, but he couldn’t speak to my mate like that, even if he was her uncle.

“Diego, stop being a dickhead,” Gianna barked at him. “And leave my daughter alone.”

His snarl filled the room, his fury-filled eyes fixed firmly on mine as I continued to challenge him. I refused to back down from a bully of a wolf.

I took a step closer to him. “You might have terrified half of the packs on the continent, ~Iron Soldier~,but you will not speak to my mate like that while I still take a breath.”

He bared his fangs, his fingers turning into claws. “Then how about you stop breathing, because as long as she keeps that good-for-nothing beta in this pack, she’s a slut.”

“That’s my mate you’re talking about,” I snapped at him.

Diego smiled manically. “And she’s my niece. Blood is thicker than water, my friend. The power that flows through her veins flows through my own. You’re so irrelevant you may as well not be here.”

“Diego, enough! What has gotten into you?” his mate shouted at him, but he was too far gone.

His eyes clouded over, a snarl building in his chest, his body shaking and ready to shift at a moment's notice.

Without thinking, I lashed out and punched him clean in the jaw with every ounce of strength I could muster.

Silence rang out in the room. I stood frozen in place, my heart hammering. I focused all my energy on keeping a straight face.

“I think he was possessed,” I whispered, staring at the king and queen. “His eyes, they went…white, and he didn’t seem there anymore.”

Diego stood up, rubbing his jaw. “Punk-ass bitch. I’ll get you back for that,” he grumbled.

“Diego, darling, let’s get you checked out, shall we?” Queen Frieda looked pointedly at Storm as she led Diego from the room. Storm nodded, following them both.

I looked at Reign and shrugged my shoulders.

So, meeting the family went well, then…