Lyall
It was time to have the conversation I had been dreading with Sheila. Even though it made me sick to my stomach to talk about what went down between us, I knew it needed to be done. I need to apologize. I needed to make this right, for her sake and Aria's.
I knew I was asking for too much but sometimes I just wished the two women would come to a truce. Not necessarily a friendship but it would be nice if they stopped trying to kill each other. But who was I kidding? This was all my fault. I should never have rushed into marriage.

I should have searched all the ends of the earth and should have never given up on my mate. But now, my impatience has come to bite me painfully in the ass. I walked through the palace, scowling at everyone in sight and they hurriedly scampered out of my way.
Deep down sometimes, I really didn't like being a symbol of fear but you needed to be one to be called the Alpha of all Alphas. I walked straight into Sheila and I's shared chamber, flinging the door open.
The two maid servants in the room were startled at my presence but Sheila acted like I didn't exist.
“Leave us,” I commanded the maid servants and they rushed out of the room. I stood staring in silence and after a while, she finally had enough.
“What do you want, Lyall?” Sheila asked with a bored expression on her face. It bothered me slightly that she didn't even look at me while speaking to me.
“We need to talk.”

“Like hell we do.” She replied curtly.
“Sheila—”
“Go talk to your mistress.” She sneered and my wolf didn't appreciate her tone one bit. I inhaled sharply, trying to calm him down.
“Sheila, I'm sorry.”

“Oh, really,” She turned to me with an icy glare on her face, crossing her arms over her chest. “What are you sorry for?”
I let out a sigh taking a few steps toward her. “I'm sorry I hurt you, Sheila. I should have never laid my hands on you. I regret it and I know I will for the rest of my life,” I choked out and she winced.
“I can't believe you did that to me, Lyall, after everything we've been through. You are supposed to be my husband! You should be on my side but instead, you chose to pick hers. You choked me because of her! And to make things worse, you fucking ran off with her, Lyall. How is that fair?”
Her eyes shone with tears causing a huge lump in my throat which I couldn't swallow.
“Do you think it's easy seeing you with another woman? Huh? I am your wife, Lyall! Your wife! You betrayed me first by bringing her into our palace but then I chose to understand and accept that you need an heir but then it seems like you actually care about her and then you hurt me because of her!”
Tears streamed down her face and I immediately engulfed her in a hug. Her body shook with sobs and my heart broke for her. This wasn't fair to her or Aria. I needed to tell Sheila the truth— that Aria and I were mates. It was on the tip of my tongue but I couldn't bring myself to do it.
Sheila was too upset right now. It would be better to tell her some other time. I apologized again and again as Sheila sobbed against my chest and after a while, she finally calmed down.
“Feel better?” I asked, patting her hair gently.
“A little,” She said, pulling away from the hug. Her eyes were red and the guilt from the fact that I was responsible for that ate away at my insides. “Do you promise that you won't hurt me again?”
The guilt eating me up intensified. I wouldn't hurt her physically— never again. But emotionally— it might be inevitable as long as Aria was involved. I couldn't just let my mate go and that fact was bound to hurt Sheila.
“I promise,” I replied quietly, hating myself more. She smiled brightly at me and in the past, I could have been affected by it but right now, I felt absolutely nothing.
She stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to my lips. I still felt nothing but I had no choice but to kiss her back. I didn’t want to hurt her again. The kiss lasted for a few minutes but it was bland. I felt no sparks, no electricity which was quite the opposite with Aria.
One touch from Aria could set me on fire. Suddenly, as Sheila kissed me, Aria was all I could see. All I could think about. I pulled away instantly, blinking several times in confusion.
“What's wrong?” Sheila's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
“It's nothing. I have to go.” I turned around to leave but she grabbed my arm.
“Please don't go, Lyall,” She ran her fingers across my chin and neck and I had to stop myself from grimacing. “Make love to me. It's been long.” Her hands moved beneath my clothes and rested on my chest.
I carefully removed her hands. “Later, Sheila. I have a lot to do today.”
Her face turned into an ugly scowl and her lips trembled. “You're going to see her again, aren't you?! I can't believe you, Lyall! I fucking hate you!” She began hitting my chest hysterically which had almost no effect but it didn't stop me from being surprised.
“You're a fucking traitor! You refuse to sleep with your wife but you won't hesitate to fuck that bitch whenever you can,”
My wolf growled at the insult and she kept hitting my chest, beginning to scream hysterically.
“What does she have that I don't? Huh? She's beautiful but so am I! I really hate yo—”
I cut her off by crashing my lips to hers before pulling away immediately.
“Enough! I'll make love to you. Just stop fucking screaming, Sheila. You're making my ears bleed.”
Her eyes were wide and soon, her lips quirked up in a smile. “Good.”
Forcing a smile onto my face, I carried her onto the bed as she giggled seductively in my ear. We changed positions on the bed and she straddled me, pulling off my clothes. I was deeply uncomfortable but all I could was clamp my mouth shut and roll with it.
Although she was a beauty to behold but seeing her naked body didn’t do much for me and it was a miracle that I was able to get hard. She rode me for minutes till I eventually grunted a release.
Tired from our act of lovemaking, Sheila fell asleep next to me but my eyes were wide open. Guilt about what I had just done kept clawing at my insides and my wolf's restlessness didn't help matters.
I just slept with a woman who wasn't my mate and he was very upset. I was very upset. Did I even have any right to be? This was my fault after all. I knew I should resolve all this as soon as possible but I didn't know what was holding me back.
My thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock on the door. I leapt out of bed, slipping on a pair of pants before opening the door.
“What can I do for you?” I asked a smirking Trenton.
“How's she?” He asked in reply and my eyebrows shut up.
“How many times have I told you not to answer my question with a question?” I barked and his smirk only intensified. “She's sleeping. Now, what do you want?”
Trenton's smirk disappeared and his face turned serious. “The council requests an audience with you,” He later added. “Your majesty.”
I almost barked out a laugh at Trenton's use of my official title. The only set of people who addressed me with my official title were the commoners, the maidservants, the guards, and the elders. The royal family didn't bother and definitely not my beta.
And for some reason, people saw me more as an Alpha than a king.
“What do they want?” I asked letting out an annoyed sigh.
“I have no idea.”
I let out a groan. “Maybe I've been too lenient with the council. They forget that I'm their king and they think they can just summon me whenever they wish,”
Trenton stifled a laugh and I glared at him. “I’ll be there soon,” I replied dismissively and shut the door in his face. I got dressed quietly and my annoyance faded a bit. This was an avenue to get away from Sheila and I intended to use it.
I slipped out of the room, shutting the door behind me before making my way to the throne room. I pushed the large doors open and the council members were already seated, waiting for my arrival. They stood up and bowed immediately after I entered the room.
“You may rise,” I said, making myself comfortable on my throne.
“Thank you, your majesty.” They chorused in unison.
“Why have you summoned me?” I asked impatiently, resting my chin on my hand.
One of the council members— the oldest and a man with greying hair cleared his throat before speaking. “Your Majesty, it's about the Lycan Confederate. The games are approaching fast and you still need an heir—”
“Oh, Goddess,” I spat, terribly annoyed at this point. “This again? The last time we met, you told me to get a breeder and I did. What else do you want from me?”
“Well you still need to produce an heir—”
“And we are still working on it!” I snapped. “It’s not like I can speed up the process. I might be the Alpha of all Alphas but some things are just beyond my control.”
Another council member spoke up. “We are aware, Your Majesty. But the situation is getting dire. If you don’t show up with an heir to the games, you know what will happen.”
I pressed my cold fingers to my aching temples as anger bubbled inside me. I was so caught up with the drama inside the palace that I completely forgot one of the major reasons why I made Aria my mistress. I needed an heir and I needed one soon.
“I can assure you all that my mistress will become pregnant with an heir soon, don't worry.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” They replied in unison and the meeting was over. I ran into Trenton outside the throne room and I let out a tired sigh.
“What was that about?” He said with worry written all over his face.
“Same old nonsense about me producing an heir before the games,” I muttered.
“You need to start taking that seriously, Lyall! You know you could get removed from your position as Alpha and King.”
“I know!” I snapped, feeling my headache intensity. “I'm doing all I can, alright?!”
“You're not doing enough. Aria isn't pregnant yet and you know there are a lot of wolves eager to replace you as Alpha.”
As if on cue, Mason struts through the hallway wearing his signature smirk and my hands itched to punch the look off his face. He bumped into me and my eyes glowed red.
“Sorry, brother. Didn't see you there.” He laughed and I rolled my eyes.
“I'm sure you didn't,” I replied sarcastically.
“Loosen up brother,” He patted my shoulders hard and I swatted his hand away with a growl. “You don't need to be so stuck up all the time.” He laughed and walked away.
I gritted my teeth as my anger bubbled to the surface. “One of these days, I'm going to kill him with my bare hands.”
Trenton let out a laugh. “We both know you won't. He's still your brother after all.”
“Well, I'd rather die than let my shitty brother or anyone else take my place in this palace.”
Trenton patted my shoulders with a smile. “That's the spirit. Now, go get your mistress pregnant.”