Alpha King’s Wolfless Mate by Scarlett Higgins

Chapter 79

**Blake POV

I stretched my back as the clean up crew closed the tailgate of the truck we had just loaded the lumber from the bandstand into.

It hadn’t taken as long as I anticipated to clean up the mess from the festival. That was probably due to the amount of people that had turned up this morning to help.

“That’s it,”I announced. A small cheer went up fromthe dozen or so people that were still assisting, followed by laughter. I smiled at the enthusiasm. “Thank you all for volunteering your time.”

Maisi e nudged me before trotting off toward the woods where several members of the pack were still racing around and playing. I waved her off. I was glad to see that she was taking some time to enjoy her time at home. It likely wouldn’t be long before she was needed elsewhere in the kingdom once again.

As the crowd dispersed, I noticed the girl from Lanecreek, Margot, standing uncertainly nearby. She was the only one of our esteemed guests who had bothered to help this morning.

I walked toward her and she straightened up nervously and smiled tightly. The poor thing was nervous as a cat and had been ever since she arrived at the castle. Despite the claim that she was here to support Kelly, I hadn’t seen the two spend more than three minutes together.

It was suspicious that they would come up with such a pretense to bring her with them, but I doubtedvery much that she was capable of deceiving me herself. That only made her presence all the more suspicious to me. It wasn’t as though the slim, frightened girl was alluring to me.

Was uncle counting on me pitying her? Is that why he had sent her along?

I did feel for the girl. It was obvious from her demeanor that she had lived a difficult life. However, that didn’t mean that I was going to lose sight of the threat that Lanecreek represented for even a moment.

“Thank you for your help,”I said gently.

Her cheeks turned pink instantly.“It’s really no big deal,” she replied in a rush.“It’s the least I could do after the hospitality you’ve offered us. Besides, I really enjoy being around your pack. It’s wonderful how helpful everyone is and how willing they are to work together.”

I smiled at the compliment.“I’m glad to hear that the pack has been treating you well.”

She nodded enthusiastically.“I felt very welcome at the festivities last night,” she assured me.“I thought that it would be uncomfortable and that I would feel like an outsider, but that wasn’t the case at all.”

“That’s how it should be when a guest is included ina celebration,”I responded.“I am glad to hear that the pack remembers their manners, despite everything.”

“It’s a testament to your leadership,” she answeredsoftly.“A lesser king would not trust his people to behave appropriately with a delegation from a pack they have tense relations with.”“She’s right, you know?”

I bit back a g roan of frustration at the sound of Graham’s voice. He always had to inject himself into conversations, didn’t he? I watched Margot tense and drop her eyes as he approached.

He stopped a foot away from me and smiled good naturedly.“You are a good king,” he said.

I didn’t like the amount of emphasis he put on the word“good”. It felt very much like a backhanded compliment.

“I’m glad that the festival has met with yourapproval,”I replied.

I was careful to keep my tone even as I spoke, though it wasn’t easy. The look on his face as he’d followed Nora around the grounds like a lost puppy last night made my blood boil.

He nodded his agreement.“How do you do it?”he asked suddenly.“How do you manage the responsibility?”

I narrowed my eyes at him. It was such a strange question for an Alpha to ask another Alpha. His interest in the position of king made me uneasy, but I couldn’t tell if he had his eye on my crown. It would be damned foolish of him to be so bold if he did.

He was probably just na ive enough to drop his decorum because of our shared blood. It was reckless for him to do so, but I could understand it. He hadn’t been an Alpha for long and it didn’t seem that he had any good role models for the job. It was possible that he was looking for some guidance, but didn’t know how to go about it properly.“I’m sure that you have some idea of how tomanage it,”I answered ecautiously.“Lanecreek seemed to be doing well on my visits.”

His face lit up at the praise.“We are doing far better than we were when my reign began,” he admitted.

Margot nodded slightly, showing her agreement with that statement. It occurred to me that I should have taken the opportunity to ask her about Lanecreek while we were alone. It was too late to do so now, she wouldn’t be honest with Graham standing beside her.

“But better isn’t good enough,” Graham stated witha sigh.“My ascension isn’t that far off. I would like to have a few more successes under my belt before then. A trade deal would be just the thing.”

I raised my brows at his boldness.“That would be quite the feather in your cap, wouldn’t it?”I muttered.“What do you plan to do about that?”

His face fell slightly, but he forced his smile to remain in place.“I was hoping that my dear cousin may be able to help me with that,” he answered hernestly.

“What is it that Lanecreek produces?” I asked. For allof the time I’d spent focusing on Graham and his pack, I still knew very little about them. It was a serious problem.

Graham looked to be at a loss for an answer.“That’s a good question,” he muttered.

The look of concentration on his face was quickly threatening to become an expression of panic. I watched his face closely. What a strange reaction to such a simple question.“Our farms are very prosperous,”Margot offered.“And we have one of the largest orchards in theregion. Fresh produce would probably be our finest export opportunity.”

Graham smiled and placed his hand on Margot’s shoulder. She tensed under the contact and her eyes returned to the ground.

“That is true,”he said happily.“The food inLanecreek is the finest around because of our delectable fresh fruits and vegetables.”

My face must have shown how unimpressed I was with his bragging. If the food in Lanecreek really was something special, it hadn’t shown in the dinner he had served us. The food had been fine, but it was far from exceptional.

“A good ch ef can do wonders with fresh produce,”Isaid pointedly.

Graham laughed heartily and moved his hand away from Margot. She looked relieved to have the contact broken and took a small step further from him.

I couldn’t tell if Graham wasn’t aware that his close proximit y made people uncomfortable or if he simply didn’t care.

“Is there anything else you have worth sharing withthe rest of the kingdom?”I asked pointedly.

There would be demand for produce, of course, especially fruit. That was hardly going to be enough to entice the other packs to take the risk of opening trade with a reclusive pack that was harboring traitors to the crown.

Graham’s smile took on an edge that promisedharm. It pulled a low growl from Caleb, but I didn’t let on that he had put me on alert.

There it was. I knew that the man had a dangerous side, but this was the first hint of it that I had seen. The look faded quickly, but the damage had been done.

I looked at the door to the castle and stepped away from him.“We’ll talk about this later,”I said dismissively.

I felt his anger as I walked pa st him, but I didn’t look back. It was a petty move, sure, but it had the intended effect. It pissed Graham off.

I could feel his eyes burning into my back as I ascended the stairs and walked into the castle.