Chapter 9

AUBREY'S POV "No one," I managed, my heart threatening to burst from my chest. "Didn't seem like that." Knox moved toward me with predatory grace, each step forcing me back until cold stone met my spine. His scent—pine needles and winter storms—overwhelmed my senses until I could barely think straight. "I talk to myself sometimes." The lie tasted weak even to me. "Is that so, little wolf?" He planted his hand on the wall beside my head, effectively caging me between solid stone and his overwhelming presence. The heat radiating off his body made my skin tingle. I nodded, not trusting my voice, as I tried desperately to ignore how perfectly I'd fit against his chest. "If that's all, Your Grace, I'd like to leave." I ducked under his arm and practically fled before he could respond. Holy fuck. Another minute that close to him and I would've melted into a puddle at his feet. "Wait." His command froze me mid-step. My mind screamed at me to run, but before I could decide, he materialized in front of me again. "I want to speak with you about something." "Oh?" The word came out embarrassingly breathless. "Yes." He cleared his throat, and something shifted in those green eyes—an emotion I never expected to see. "I apologize for what happened that night. I was drunk and shouldn't have embarrassed you like that, especially since you're my mate." I stared at him, completely stunned. Did the Crown Prince just fucking apologize to me? "He did! Our mate just apologized for being an asshole! We have to forgive him, Aubrey!" Aria practically squealed in my head, but I was too busy trying to process what was happening. "Do you forgive me?" The raw sincerity in his voice caught me off guard. Someone like him—royalty, future king—they didn't apologize. Ever. The fact that he did told me he genuinely meant it. "I do," I said softly, surprising myself with how much I meant it. Yeah, he was a complete jackass, but owning up to it? That took something else entirely. A ghost of a smile touched his lips, and fuck me if it wasn't the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. He turned to leave, and I couldn't help but watch him go, admiring how his formal attire did nothing to hide those warrior's shoulders. He was so— The thought shattered as someone shoved me hard from behind. Suddenly I was airborne, then freezing water closed over my head. I surfaced, spluttering, my expensive gown soaked through, to find the she-wolf who'd been hanging all over Knox earlier—and other she-wolves all smirking down at me from the lake's edge. What the actual fuck? Why would they— "Bitches like you don't deserve to look at our Crown Prince. Consider this a free eye-washing service." The she-wolf's voice dripped with venom as she looked down at me. "Huh?" I treaded water, my soaked gown weighing me down as I struggled to understand what was happening. One minute I was watching Knox walk away, the next I was in the fucking lake? I moved to climb out, but they stepped forward as one, forming a wall of expensive dresses and entitled sneers. "Just because our Queen took pity on a low-born rat doesn't mean we ladies have to accept you in our court." Sasha's lip curled. "Take this as your final warning, Rogue. Stay away from my prince." My prince? Something snapped inside me. A possessive rage I'd never felt before flooded my veins, burning hotter than anything I'd experienced watching Jax with Ivanka. My wolf surged forward, clawing at my skin, desperate to tear this bitch's face off and make her understand exactly who Knox belonged to. "Crown Prince Knox is mine," I snarled, not even trying to hide the feral edge in my voice. "And I think you're the one who needs her fucking eyes washed. I am his mate—not you, not ever you." She gasped as if I'd slapped her, her perfectly painted face going slack with shock. The raw possession in my tone left no room for doubt—every wolf within earshot would recognize a mate's claim. I bared my teeth in a feral smirk, suddenly not caring at all about my ruined dress or the freezing water.