Chapter 134: Healthy Relationships Require Vulnerability

"Look at you. Using your words." Celeste slow-clapped twice then crossed her legs on the bed. "Here’s the thing. You need an heir. You can’t put a baby in your prostitute slave without starting a civil war. I am the solution. The elders paired us. That’s the reality. I am the top Moonfire draftee princess coming from a pure Alpha bloodline, which means high-quality spawn. That’s why they paired us. That’s how Thunderfang continues being Thunderfang."

"Spawn," he repeated. "You just referred to my future children as spawn."

"Yes. Spawn, Landon. Your heir. Do you want them to be strong? I’ll answer that for you. You do. You need me."

"You’re right," Landon said. "I need a strong heir. I don’t need you. Those are two different things and you keep confusing them."

"Oh, you don’t need me. How fun for you." She let out a laugh. "Reject me. I dare you. And when Starborne pulls every trade agreement, every alliance, every military corridor they’ve given you access to, you can explain to your pack what happened. My father is a petty man, Landon. I’m the reasonable one in my family. Think about what that means. You would be starting a war."

"Your father has two hundred and fifty million reasons to not give a damn what I do," Landon replied, voice clipped.

Celeste rolled her eyes. "The High Luna is going to return the slave. You do realize that, right? Emberclaw is going to purchase her."

"No, she won’t be selling my brother’s mate. You are misinformed," Landon stated.

"Fine. Rewind to the brother part of that statement. Even if the High Luna doesn’t sell the slave, the slave is still your brother’s mate. You have no mate. You need me. Problem solved."

"Guards," Landon called, his eyes still on Celeste.

Celeste was already off the bed. The springs hadn’t finished settling from her bounce. She was mid-launch when the chamber doors opened and two guards filled the doorway. She froze. Mid-air. The physics of the launch carried her two inches forward before gravity reasserted jurisdiction and she landed on the balls of her feet with the grace of a woman aborting a tackle in front of witnesses.

"Remove her," Landon ordered.

Two words. Clear. Direct. The kind of order that should have produced immediate compliance.

The guards looked at each other. The look lasted two full seconds and contained an entire conversation that neither of them wanted to have out loud in front of their Alpha and his mostly-naked future Luna.

"What?" Landon snapped. The word was delivered with the specific flatness of a man who had issued a clear order and received silence and the silence was about to become someone’s problem.

The guard on the left cleared his throat. "Er. The High Luna gave us strict orders to, um." He paused. Reconsidered his career choices. Continued. "To not remove the future Luna from your chambers, Alpha."

The second guard dropped his voice to a whisper that was doing the absolute minimum to qualify as a whisper and the maximum to qualify as audible to every person in the room.

"I didn’t realize it was a sexual game, Alpha." He leaned in slightly, conspiratorially, like he was sharing classified information between men. "The High Luna explained it to us and your secret is safe with us."

The silence that followed was the silence of a man whose grandmother had briefed his security detail on his sex life and the briefing had included the word game and the security detail had accepted the briefing as factual and was now protecting his right to play the game with the woman he was trying to have removed.

Alpha Thunderfang stared at the guard. The guard stared back with an expression of genuine, supportive, you-do-you-Alpha understanding that was worse than any act of war the masked soldiers had committed in the courtyard.

"It is not a game," Alpha Thunderfang said slowly.

"Of course, Alpha." The guard gave a knowing nod. The nod of a man who had been told to say exactly that if the Alpha denied it. "Completely understood. Very normal. Nothing to be ashamed of."

"There is nothing to be ashamed of because nothing is happening."

"Absolutely, Alpha. Your privacy is respected." The second guard was nodding now too. Two men, nodding in sync, radiating the supportive energy of colleagues who had been given a sensitivity briefing by an old woman with a crown and had taken it very seriously. "The High Luna said you might say that. She said to tell you that healthy relationships require vulnerability and she’s proud of you."

"She said that?" Celeste pressed both hands over her heart. "That is the sweetest thing. I told her we were working through some walls and she just got it. Immediately. Your grandmother sees me, Landon."

"My grandmother met you two days ago."

"And in four days she’s shown me more support than you have. That says everything."

Landon turned back to the guards. "The High Luna is misinformed. I am giving you an order as your Alpha."

Neither guard moved. Celeste crawled back onto the bed and was positioned exactly where she had been when the guards entered, legs crossed, looking every inch the woman who belonged there.

"As you can see, boys, Luna Thunderfang is exactly where she’s supposed to be," she called from behind him.

Alpha Thunderfang’s left eye twitched.

"Are you alright, babe?" Celeste called from the bed. "Your eye is doing the thing again. Isn’t it? I told the High Luna about it. She thinks it’s stress. I think it’s repressed passion."

"Do not call me babe."

"Sorry. Alpha. Honey."

"Remove. Her. Now," Landon tried again, visibly confused why they weren’t.

One of the guards scratched the back of his neck. "We... can’t do that, Alpha."

"What the hell are you talking about? You are my guards."

"Yes, Alpha."

"I am your Alpha."

"Yes, Alpha."

"I am giving you a direct order."

"The High Luna also gave us a direct order, Alpha."

"I outrank the High Luna."

The guards looked at each other. The look said: does he though?

"Technically, Alpha. Yes. Technically."

"Yes. I do. What part of get her out is unclear? And how the hell did she get in here?"

Both guards gave Alpha Thunderfang knowing nods. Neither of them moved.

"Thank you, gentlemen," Celeste called sweetly. "The pretending is the best part. He’s very committed to the role."