Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 1232 - 143 : The Importance of Time

Chapter 1232: Chapter 143 : The Importance of Time

*Daphne*

Rion had been nightmare-free for just a little over a week at this point. He had been eager to get home to Thorn Forest and to our children, who we hadn’t seen in several weeks by this point, but I urged him to stay for just a few extra days to make absolutely sure that the nightmares were gone for good.

I missed the children dearly as well, but I didn’t want to risk Rion’s night terrors returning, and we hadn’t truly gotten a chance to relax since arriving at The Sky Temple.

So, Rion and I stayed for another week and decided to thank the monks by helping them with their project to replace some of the old fixtures in the gardens. Rion was gifted in this area, so I helped tend to the plants and flowers while Rion helped replace old wood with brand-new planks.

We spent the evenings as we had since we’d arrived at the temple, taking long walks and just talking about everything. It made me realize that Rion and I had been so busy that we’d hardly had time to just be a couple.

“We should come back soon,” Rion said as we walked through the forest just outside of the Sky Temple. He turned to face me then, and I was surprised by the serious look on his face.

I tilted my head with confusion at his expression but nodded. “Sure,” I said lightly. “I would love that.”

Rion’s eyes softened after a moment. He gripped both my hands in his and faced me fully. “I mean it, Daphne. I’m going to do better from now on. I know leading our pack is important, but we can’t let that get in the way of us.”

I blinked at him. “That’s very mature of you,” I said with a smirk.

Rion frowned at me. “I’m trying to have a serious conversation here,” he said, but the corner of his mouth twitched.

I grinned and wrapped my arms around him so that my folded hands settled over the small of his back. I leaned back a bit so I could look him in the eye. “I know. And I agree with you, but you don’t have to act as if we had control over everything that’s happened over the last year. We both did what we had to protect our pack and our family.”

This only made Rion’s frown deepen, but he looked resigned as well. His hand came up to my face so he could caress my cheek. I leaned into his warm hand automatically, enjoying the feeling against my cool skin.

“I know you’re right,” he said in a low voice. “Being here just made me realize how long it had been since we just got to be together, and how important that time together is.”

I reached up to put a hand over the one he held against my face. “I feel the same,” I told him, feeling my heart flutter a bit.

He smirked at me and bent to kiss me. “Good, then it’s settled. We’ll take some time away from pack duties when possible.”

“Sounds great.” I sighed with contentment. I took his hand so we could start heading back toward the temple. “This has been really nice, and was definitely necessary, but I do miss the children.”

Rion gripped my hand. “I do too,” he said. “What do you think about leaving first thing tomorrow?”

I turned so I could beam up at him. “Yes, let’s go home.”

After months away, Rion and I were both anxious to get home. We took a few breaks on the road trip back, but neither of us wanted to take our time. I kept imagining the way the girls’ eyes would light up when we arrived or how much baby Lucian had grown in the time we’d been gone.

***

I could hardly contain myself when the gate came into view. With the car’s window down, I could hear excited chatter on the other side of the gate, signaling that the entire pack was once again gathered to greet us.

As we drove through the gate, I heard the cheers and applause from our pack members, but I hardly noticed them. I could only see my children.

As soon as we got out of the car, Ayla and Selene immediately tackled our legs. Rion and I dropped to our knees on the ground and gathered them in our arms, pressing kisses to their cheeks and hugging them close.

Rion and I straightened, and our jaws nearly dropped when we saw Lucian, who was reaching for us with his little hands. My eyes were wide as we stepped forward to take him from Jasper’s arms.

I had expected him to have grown, but not nearly this much. The tuft of dark hair on his head was longer, and his limbs were a bit slimmer as well.

Rion and I hugged him fiercely. “Thank you for looking after everything,” he said to Jasper and Eva.

“Don’t thank us,” Jasper said, punching Rion lightly in the arm. “You know we wanted to.”

I hugged Eva, stepping back a bit when something between us bumped me. Eva rolled her eyes as I gaped at her pregnant tummy. “You knew I was pregnant before you left,” she quipped with a laugh.

“Knowing and seeing are two different things,” I countered with a light giggle, but then I wrapped my arms around her again. “Really, thank you for everything. We wouldn’t have been able to do this without you and Jasper taking good care of the pack and the kids.”

“We’re family,” Eva said with a shrug, but her gray eyes were warm as she grinned at me.

That night, we attended the pack dinner that Eva and Jasper had organized to celebrate our return. I was grateful that it was much calmer and more casual than our previous feasts.

We had a couple of large tables stretched out so that we could share stories with one another. We described the beauty of the Sky Temple to our family and told them all about how Rion’s nightmares had finally stopped.

Ayla and Selene suddenly stood up from the table and stepped away, looking at Rion and me excitedly.

“Look what we can do now!” Ayla chirped.

Rion and I watched with wide eyes as our daughters stepped together and put their arms out. A dark purple translucent dome formed around them. Their little faces were pinched as they concentrated hard.

After a few seconds, they dropped their arms and slumped their shoulders. At our shocked expressions, they immediately straightened and beamed at us.

“You taught them how to make force fields?” I asked Eva in shock, my voice rising an octave.

Eva looked pleased but shook her head. “They actually figured it out on their own,” she said proudly. “But I have been helping them hone their new skill. It takes a lot out of them, so I’m making sure not to let them practice it too much.”

Rion beckoned them over and we hugged them and kissed their foreheads. “We’re so proud of you both,” he said, smoothing Selene’s hair back affectionately. “You’ve both grown so powerful in the time we were gone.”

“We’ve grown stronger too, Uncle Rion!” Tarik said as he and Aster came up to us.

“We’ve been helping at the infirmary,” Aster said proudly to me, puffing his chest out slightly.

I stroked Aster’s hair as Tarik started to fill Rion in on everything at the infirmary.

“That’s amazing, Aster,” I said. “We’re very proud of you and your brother.”

It was a wonderful night, and as I looked around the table at our pack members and our family, I couldn’t help but relax against Rion’s side. It felt good to be home.

Rion and I fell back into our routine pretty easily. It had felt like ages since I helped at the academy. The children were putting on a little play for the parents in a couple of weeks, and Alma needed help planning the whole ordeal.

I was helping Alma plan the set for the play when one of our guards burst through the door of the schoolhouse.

“Luna Daphne, may I ask where Alpha Rion is?” the guard asked.

I straightened immediately at the urgency in the man’s tone. “I’m uncertain of his exact location,” I said honestly. “He’s with Jasper patrolling along the borders, but I am more than capable of passing along a message. What’s happened?”

The guard glanced at the children, who were all watching us with wide eyes. “Err....”

I understood immediately and gestured for him to follow me outside.

“We just received word of several sightings of a lone traveler wandering through various villages,” the guard explained once the children couldn’t hear him. “His description matches that of Priest Varge.”

My blood ran cold at his words. I wanted to tell Rion face-to-face rather than through the mind-link, so the guard and I jumped into our car and set out immediately to locate Rion and Jasper.

Thankfully, I was quite familiar with their route, and we were able to find them relatively quickly. Their expressions were concerned as we approached with obvious urgency.

“Daphne, are you alright?” Rion asked at once when we stopped in front of them.

I watched Rion’s face grimly as the guard repeated what he’d told me. My husband’s face darkened, and his jaw locked.

“I want double the guards stationed at every gate,” he barked at the guard, who nodded seriously.

Rion, Jasper, and the guard started to discuss tightening security even further, even going so far as to send someone to buy heavier weapons outside of our territory.

I was no longer listening closely, the fear gripping me. It seemed that our peaceful days might have just come to an end now that Varge had possibly resurfaced.

Rion was obviously concerned as well, but I could tell that he was trying to hide his anxiety so he wouldn’t worry me. His face softened as he took in my obviously worried form.

“It’s going to be alright, Daphne,” he told me, trying to smile reassuringly at me, but it just looked like a grimace.

I knew he wouldn’t want me to be scared, especially since we had just gone through so much because of Varge. It had felt like things were just starting to return to normal. I needed to be strong for him and the rest of our pack, so I offered him a tight smile back.

Rion nodded at me, his eyes warming as he told me in the mind-link that he loved me before he gave the guard a stern look.

“Escort Luna Daphne back into town before going forward with the extra security measures,” he said in a no-nonsense tone.

“Yes, Alpha,” the guard said.

It didn’t make me feel any better that Rion felt I needed an escort back to town, but it was understandable. We were out on the border of our territory, and with any threat of Varge out in the wild, I wasn’t shocked that Rion was being a bit protective.

“It’s going to be alright, Daphne,” Rion repeated before he and Jasper took off in the other direction.

I watched them go for a moment before the guard and I headed back toward town. A heavy foreboding gnawed at my insides as I tightened my hands into fists at my sides.

It felt like Varge had been in hiding for months. What could he possibly have schemed up after all that time?

And when would he strike again?