The Hidden Luna Queen (Maeve and Xaden)

"I have visited my brother's mansion many a time," Charlotte remarked calmly, leveling her gaze to match that of the heiress, "and I can assure you, I have not seen any woman, nor any such indication that a woman is living in that house. Well, apart from his lovely housekeeper, but she does not seem to quite fit the rumors," she teased.

She hoped that would be the end of that, but the emergence of this new rumor seemed to have sparked the other girls' interest.

"In his mansion?" Talia, seated next to Paige, questioned with visible shock. "When was this, Bella?"

The daughter of Alpha Charles was keen to answer. "A couple of weeks ago, actually. One of my old friends visited with her family and, sure enough, it was the housekeeper who alerted them about a woman living there."

"Many important visitors come and go all the time," Charlotte commented, once again raising her cup. "In fact, he's met with a few ambassadors for treaty negotiations. It's very likely he invited a few to stay at his mansion in the meantime."

What Bella said next made her almost jolt in her seat, and made the other girls explode into frantic babbles.

"I-I've also heard she's pregnant with the prince's baby."

If Charlotte was being honest with herself, that rumor caught her completely off guard. Not only because it was a-very-true secret that they were working so diligently to hide, but if it were only a mere rumor, it would be quite an accusation to raise among one of the members of the royal family. No one would dare to question the honor of a prince so brashly-in front of his own sister, nonetheless!

But, as far as the public was aware, it was only a rumor.

And she was going to keep it that way.

"My word," Charlotte let out a laugh, prompting the rest of the frenzied party to ease their murmurs. "First, Xaden has a secret live-in lover, and now he has a child on the way? Just where is this friend of yours finding all this sort of gossip?"

"She gets around," Bella answered quickly, her gaze starting to dart around the room. "But I trust her judgment. She's never lied to me before."

All of a sudden, Charlotte placed her teacup down loudly on its respective saucer, not flinching when the clamor echoed around the quiet garden space. The other girls, however, went still and silent with bated breath. "Your friend sounds like quite the interesting character," she remarked with a polite smile, hiding her tension. "Do you really trust her judgment over mine, Bella?"

The gauntlet had been thrown. Everyone at the table could see it.

It was up to Bella to accept the princess's challenge or admit defeat.

Much to her credit, even Bella knew not to mess with royalty, especially after what happened last time, unbeknownst to Charlotte and the rest of their company. "O-Of course not, Your Highness," she relented, smiling and dipping her head. "You Know Prince Xaden better than anyone else here."

Indeed, Charlotte thought, hiding her relief. And I know my brother's life is his own.

"If we're done talking about boring

brothers..." Charlotte began,

focusing her attention on a different girl with an amused grin. "Talia, I'd love to hear more about this troublesome sister of yours. What on earth made her stray from her hiking trail?"

And with that, the tea party resumed without further interruptions. Charlotte had done her part, but Bella was nowhere near finished.

The moment Bella left the palace grounds, she carefully took in her surroundings before pulling out her cell phone and dialing a private number. It didn't ring for long before a woman's voice, harsh and refined, answered the call.

"Is it done?" the woman asked, quick and to the point.

"Yes, everyone left," she answered quietly, maintaining as much discretion as she could. "I'm alone now."

"Did the princess say anything about Maeve?"

Bella bit her lip. "No..." she admitted, "she was very careful not to admit anything. To be honest, I'm not even sure if she's aware of her-"

An exasperated sigh resounded on

the other end of the line. "Of course she is," the voice snapped, making Bella flinch. "She's only pretending not to know so she can help protect her brother's reputation. Not even Prince Xaden would be able to hide such a secret from his family for so long."

"R-Right..." she answered, her hand trembling as she held onto the phone. The mere mention of the alpha prince was enough to send tremors throughout her body, remembering her last encounter with him all too well.

Just thinking about it made her head ache.

He had been so fearful... and yet, so beautifully commanding. Unlike any force of nature she had ever seen before. It almost didn't matter that he frightened the life out of her and her family-her adoration for him never wavered.

That beauty of a prince deserved far better than the servant-girl he settled for.

"Well, we've done what we can for today," the woman on the other end reluctantly conceded, once again capturing Bella's ready attention. "Go home and await my call. We shall need to meet in person to discuss what to do next."

Bella set her jaw, determined. "Alright. Until next time."