MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA
Chapter 209: Enough Time To Get Pregnant

Chapter 209: Enough Time To Get Pregnant

Her hand gave him a firmer squeeze in response. "You killed them, didn’t you?"

"A few," he admitted with a chuckle, his free hand now teasing the line of her waistband. "Some were too arrogant for their own good. Others were just loud."

Reana tilted her head back against his shoulder and he leaned in to plant a soft kiss on her parted lips. Her breath was uneven and her face was flushed. "So you left."

"To the Southern Islands," Ryder murmured, nipping her earlobe. "Didn’t come back until now."

"And the Islands didn’t bore you?" Her voice cracked a little as his hand moved lower, his fingers pressing just right through the barrier of her clothing.

He didn’t answer right away. Just slid his hand up under her shirt, palm splayed over her bare stomach, fingers dipping teasingly lower again. "At some point, it did. But they weren’t annoying like the Alphas."

Reana’s breath hitched as she continued her strokes. "How many women did you have over the course of eight hundred years?" she asked, a hint of jealousy creeping into her voice despite the pleasure he was giving her.

Ryder’s chuckle rumbled low in his chest, his lips curling into a smirk against her neck. "None. All our lives, it’s been you. And you only."

Reana didn’t respond immediately, her fingers still stroking his hardness, though now her touch was firmer, more possessive. "Your life must have been... unbearably long without me," she whispered, her voice thick with lust and a hint of pity.

Ryder’s hand stilled for a moment beneath her shirt, then slid back up to cup her face, turning it gently so he could meet her eyes. The shadows made his expression hard to read, but there was no mistaking the raw truth in his voice.

"It was. Centuries of silence, blood, and meaningless victories. Nothing tasted sweet. Nothing felt real. Until I found you again."

Her heart thudded hard in her chest. She felt it more than heard it—the weight of his words, the heavy truth behind them.

Her breath caught, and for a moment, neither of them moved. The fire popped and hissed in the hearth, the only sound in the room aside from their soft, shared breaths.

"Surely, you had women scheming to get under your pants...even now, no?"

Ryder’s lips curled, his hand finally sliding between her legs, making her cry out softly. "You’re dripping. Too hot for my fingers."

Her grip on his monster tightened, and he growled. Her body arched, caught between pleasure and his words. "Don’t change the topic."

He chuckled, "What do you think?"

"I think you did and you killed some." She whispered, turning her head to meet his mouth halfway.

He kissed her hard, messy and deep, full of heat and warning. When they broke apart, he said, "Correct. Some spiked my drink. Some tried to chain me to them... with dark magic. I showed no mercy."

She reached for his hand, guiding him to move harder, deeper. Her moan echoed against the stone. "You’re so... dedicated to your cause."

"I’ve always been." He hissed her forehead.

"Can you make this stop?" Her voice trembled. "I don’t want to show up in the Alpha council tomorrow like this– a horny mess."

Ryder pulled her tighter against him, possessive and protective in the same breath. "Only your mate can ease a heat this strong. And we both know that’s not an option."

"Why can’t you?" she begged. That was a wrong question, because he’d clearly done more than enough. "What’s happening to me?"

Ryder stayed silent for a while. Then his voice turned grim. "This isn’t natural. Your cycle’s too intense. Even freezing water couldn’t temper it."

He frowned slightly as he thought of the only way this could be possible. Something he didn’t want to believe. "There are only two ways. It’s either someone have tampered with your blood, or your heat is being triggered... intentionally...by your mate."

"How is that even possible?!" she cried out.

"It shouldn’t be possible, unless the bitch made it so."

Reana whimpered, her body trembling with each thrust of his fingers. "Then make it stop. Do something, Ryder. I can’t face them like this—I can barely breathe, or walk without moaning. It’s embarrassing."

"Tonight..." he slowly withdrew his hand, dragging her slickness down her thigh before licking his fingers clean. His eyes gleamed with hunger and restraint. "...I’ll take care of you."

Reana’s chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, her heat practically pulsing through the room. Her eyes gleamed, hazy and wild. "Ryder...

"Yes, my Luna?"

"If you let me appear in front of those Alphas tomorrow looking like this... a mess. I will kill you."

He laughed, a low, dangerous sound that sent shivers up her spine. Then, with a growl, he flipped her onto her back, pressing her into the furs. "Then let’s postpone the meeting," he whispered against her lips.

"Can we do that?"

He nodded, eyes dark and shining. "I’ll have enough time to get you pregnant then."

She scowled and he grinned – like a wolf with his prey.

...

Next morning...

Council Hall ~

The council chamber was shaped like a broken ring, so no Alpha could ever sit at the head. There were fifteen thrones – representing the fifteen packs in the whole of Southern Region –islands and Mainland– carved from different stones and color unique to each pack’s land, and not a single one higher than the other.

The hall brimmed with masculine energy, thick with dominance, tension, and barely veiled rivalry. Voices rumbled like distant thunder, low and heavy, as Alphas greeted one another with curt nods or firm, deliberate handshakes. Every movement was calculated, every word weighed.

The only sound louder than their murmurs was the steady echo of boots against stone as the last of the council members entered.

Shortly after, twelve powerful Alphas sat around the stone council table, their shoulders broad, their jaws tight, their mouths twisted in shared disdain as they glared Beta Theon and Malric, who stood alone at the center of the ring, the weight of twelve seething gazes pressing down on them like a mountain.