The Alpha King's Rebellious Queen
The Alpha King’s Rebellious Queen Chapter 27

I slowly got to my feet and held my hand on my sore back. There was no wild s*x tonight, I thought. Hopefully, Cassius won’t blow a gasket when he sees the bruises. I hobbled after my mother-in-law. The other females were watching quietly. Silently we walked into a large classroom where an older she-wolf with blonde hair and green eyes was standing at the front of the classroom with her arms folded.

“Sorry for the delay, Sarah,” Izzy explained. “I had to teach my daughter-in-law a lesson.”

The teacher nodded at her as about twenty she-wolves filed in and took their seats. She glanced at me and then at Izzy. We both had visible bruises on our faces and bodies. Our clothes were a little messy. “Well, take your seats, ladies, and let’s get started.”

Izzy took a seat behind the teacher’s desk while I tried going to the classroom’s furthest back desk. “Sit up front, Jemma.”

I turned to my mother-in-law as she pointed to one of the desks in the very front of the room. My shoulders slumped. “But-“

“Do I need to teach you another lesson?” She raised an eyebrow while still pointing at the desk. “You may be my son’s mate, but until next week at your coronation, I am still the Queen. Now sit.” She ordered. The look on her face told me not to argue.

Reluctantly I walked to the desk and sat down. Izzy smiled at me and then looked at the teacher. I heard the other she-wolves snickering behind me. “You may begin, Sarah,” Izzy said to the teacher, who nodded at her.

An hour later, I tried my best to keep my eyes open while Sarah, the teacher, was talking about what flowers went with what and what events to use different flowers for. I was trying to take notes but ended up doodling. She had us all pair off to make a suitable arrangement for an alpha swearing-in ceremony. I was partnered with a black-haired she-wolf named Avery. She trembled as we worked silently together. She seemed a little too nervous to be a luna. “So, what pack are you from, Avery?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood. Hoping she would relax.

“I-I’m from a small pack. You probably never heard of them.” She mumbled. “But I am to be future luna of the Silver Crescent Pack.”

I smiled at her. “Jude Harrison, is your mate?”

She nodded. “Yes, Queen Jemma.”

“Just call me Jemma, please,” I told her as I looked at the pile of flowers surrounding us. I spied some lovely looking orchids. They were a deep purple color, almost black.

“Have you met Jude?”

I nodded. “Briefly at the Royal Mating Ball. He seemed to be nice. Is he good to you?”

“Yes, Qu- Jemma.”

She was still slightly trembling as I placed the orchids in a large vase. “Why are you so nervous?” She and Jude seemed to be the perfect match. Both nervous and unsure of themselves. Indeed a match made in heaven. Unfortunately, that may lead to the downfall of their pack. Silver Crescent was not a large pack, but it was a strong one.

“I-its just I never saw myself as a luna even though I am an alpha’s daughter. I am content just to read and paint. Being a leader isn’t something I think I can be.”

I sighed. “You need to think better of yourself, Avery. The Moon Goddess paired you with an alpha for a reason. She saw your potential.”

A small smile formed on Avery’s face. “Thank you, Qu- Jemma.” She laughed nervously. Maybe these classes would help teach her some confidence. She picked up some daisies and arranged them around my purple orchids. “That doesn’t look so bad, does it?”

I shook my head. “It looks alright to me. Though to me, flowers are flowers.” I found some dark purple ribbon to tie around the vase. I handed it to Avery. “How are you at tying bows?”

She took the ribbon and began tying it elaborately around the vase. The teacher and Isabelle were walking around the room, inspecting everyone’s work. Sarah was making suggestions. She stopped at our table. She c****d her head. “That looks, good ladies. I wouldn’t think daisies and orchids would go together, but that looks elegant but simple.”

Isabelle appeared beside Sarah. “See, Jemma. Flower arranging isn’t so bad, is it?” I rolled my eyes at her, only to have a slender finger at my face. “Roll your eyes at me one more time, and I’ll teach you another lesson.”

I smiled at her. “I’m sure Cassius wouldn’t appreciate his mate and mother injuring each other.”

“Oh sweetie, if I recall, you were the one that spent most of her time on her back.” She smirked and walked away.

“I love you too, Izzy.” I shook my head and laughed.

Sarah clapped her hands to get our attention. “Okay, ladies, you all did a fine job on your flowers. Now, let’s move onto interior decorating.” We all returned to the desks.

I g*****d silently as she started talking about fabric swatches and other useless crap. I had to blink back my boredom. ‘Can this be any more boring?’ Leonora mumbled in the back of my mind. I had to stifle a snicker at my wolf. I looked up to see Sarah glaring at me with her hands on her h**s.

“Queen Jemma, would you care to share your thoughts with the rest of us?”

I shook my head. “No, ma’am. My wolf just commented about something.”

Sarah glanced at Izzy, who shook her head. “And what comment was that?”

“You don’t want to know. She is a foul-mouthed beast. It’s not an appropriate comment for the class.” I replied, eliciting a growl from Leonora. ‘You are the foul-mouthed beast.’ She snarled. ‘Sorry. I’ll make it up to you later.’ I replied to her. I felt eyes on me. “Sorry, Sarah. Please continue. I’ll try to keep my wolf at the back of my mind.” Sarah sighed and returned to her lesson on fabric swatches. ‘You owe me, Jemma.’ Leonora growled. ‘Um, well, I’ll let you take control later on our run so you and Enoch can have some private time.’ She purred.

‘I accept your apology.’

Twenty minutes later, I was paired up with Avery again as we made a mock design for another party. We were flipping through swatches and other materials. Avery leaned over to me. “To tell you the truth. I find this stuff boring too.”

I laughed. “I’m not bored.”

“Please.” Avery returned the laugh.

Sarah had turned on music while we worked. It was some pop music causing me to g***n. “Ugh, of course, it has to be Taylor Swift.”

Avery snickered. “I don’t like her either. I’m more into metal.”

My eyes widened. “Really? Me too. I mean, you don’t look like a metalhead.” I looked over the raven-haired female. She was dressed simply in a pair of jeans and a white blouse.

“I hide it well. I also like older rock and roll. Like Elvis.”

I nodded. “My dad got me into it when I was little. We went to a lot of concerts. It was our things because no one else in our family liked it.”

“My dad is the same way.”

We talked a little more about the bands we liked. “Have you heard of Wullfsbane?”

Avery nodded. “Yes. Oh my god, they are awesome. I wanted to see them this weekend-“

“But the show is sold out. I know. My dad was going to take me to it. Though I wonder if Cassius would even let me go to a concert.” I sighed. “It’s probably too much of a security risk.” I frowned.

“Yeah, Jude isn’t really into concerts either.” She picked up a fabric swatch. “I kind of like this.”

I looked at what she was holding. It was a shimmering dark purple fabric. I ran my hands over it. “That is cool.” I looked at the other materials. Some of them weren’t completely terrible. However, my decorating taste would make the castle look like some medieval monstrosity fit for a vampire. I happened to hear Delilah talking from the next table over.

“I can’t wait until I am Luna. The packhouse is in desperate need of redecorating.” She said to a blonde she-wolf whose name escaped me.

“What’s wrong with the packhouse?” I interjected.

She sneered at me. “It’s old fashioned. I keep trying to tell your mother how to change things, but she won’t listen to me. She says it’s too expensive. Like please, your pack is one of the largest in the kingdom. They can afford it.”

I rolled my eyes. “What the hell do you want to change that is so expensive?”

“I want to knock down some walls and add some marble. Make it look like a palace.”

A snort escaped my nose. “It already looks like a palace.”

“Oh, please, Jemma.” Delilah looked at her blond-haired friend. “You are just saying that because you get to live in the palace. The packhouse needs updating big time.”

I shook my head. “We just remodeled like three years ago.”

“And it still looks old.”

“That’s because it is old. It’s around two hundred years old. Built by the first of the MacKenzie clan.” I explained to my brother’s mate, who only rolled her eyes.

“Hell, I think we should just knock the whole thing over and start over.”

“My father would kill you.”

She glared at me. “Well, I’ll wait till Iain is alpha and convince him. Then your dad won’t have a say.”

I growled. “I doubt Iain will go along with that.”

Delilah was about to say something when Sarah stood in between us. “That is enough, ladies.” She ordered.

I sighed. “I’m sorry, Sarah.”

The teacher clapped her hands. “Okay, ladies. I think that is all for today. You are all dismissed. The class will resume on Monday.” She turned to me. “I hope you will be there, Queen Jemma.”

“Of course she will.” I heard Izzy say from the front of the classroom.

I sighed. “I’ll be here, Sarah.”

The teacher nodded and patted my arm before walking towards Izzy. The other she-wolves stood up and began to file out of the room. I walked out with Avery. “Hey, want to hang out tomorrow in the game room?” I asked her.

She smiled. “Are you sure you want to hang out with me?”

I shrugged. “Yeah. You seem cool, and I like Jude.” She stiffened slightly. I held up a hand. “Not like that.”

She laughed. “Sorry, I never saw myself as jealous, but ever since I have been mated to Jude-“

I laughed. “I know what you mean. It’s natural, I think.”

“Who the hell would be jealous of Jude Harrison?” Delilah snickered next to her blond friend and a few others. “I mean, seriously, he doesn’t even look like an alpha. He’s more like an omega disguised as an alpha.”

Avery frowned and looked at the ground. I glared at my brother’s mate. “Shut the f**k up, Delilah.”

My sister-in-law seemed taken aback by my language. “Geez, Jemma. No need for that kind of language.” She was trying to sound innocent. “You are about to be queen.” She glanced at her blond friend.

“There is no need for you to be a b***h to other she-wolves, but here we are.”

Delilah scoffed. “Sorry, Avery.” She mumbled. “Look, Jemma, I think we should try and get along since we are family now.”

I folded my arms. “Try being a little nicer, and I’ll think about it,” I said to her. “My brother doesn’t need a bitchy she-wolf who treats others like s**t as a luna.”

She sighed. “You are right.” She held out her hand with a fake smile. “Sisters?”

I grabbed her hand and looked her in the eyes. “Sisters.” I bore into her green eyes. “Let’s all hang out tomorrow in the game room and get to know each other,” I said to Delilah and her blond friend. “You can come too,” I paused.

“I’m Becky.” She smiled at me.

“After lunch. Let’s make a day of it. Play pool or bowl. Eat junk food.” I described it as other she-wolves looked at us. “You are all invited.” I smiled at them.

They smiled and then bowed as I felt a presence behind me. The heavenly scent gave it away as strong arms wrapped around my waist from behind. “Sounds like you are making a good impression,” Cassius murmured into my ear.

I shrugged. “Just making plans for tomorrow.”

“Just remember, tomorrow night we have a date.” He kissed my cheek.

“Care to elaborate on what we are doing?”

“Nope.” He turned me around in his arms till we were facing each other. He leaned down and placed a soft k**s on my lips. “I need to get back to work. I just came down here because I missed you.”

“Do you need me to help?” I asked him.

He shook his head. “No, just stay here with your new friends, and I’ll see you later.”

“Can we have dinner in our room again and watch tv?”

He nodded. “Sounds like a date. Just tell the chef what to make and have it sent to our room.”

“What would you like, my love?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “Surprise me.”

“Tofu loaf it is, then.”

He laughed as he kissed me again. I momentarily forgot others were watching us as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I love you,” He whispered against my lips before pulling away.

I let out a whimper from the loss of contact. “See you later, Cass.”

He released me and nodded to the other she-wolve standing behind me. “Good day, ladies.” He then walked down the corridor towards his office. Some of the other she-wolves swooned as he walked away.

I put my hands on my h**s. “I know you all weren’t just checking out my mate.”

“Oh, come on, Jemma. You are mated to the king.” Delilah said to me.

“You all have your own mates.” I snorted as I folded my arms.

“That doesn’t mean we can’t still look,” Becky giggled. “Seriously, King Cassius is so hot. I mean, how can we not look.”

“Quit drooling, Becky.” I rolled my eyes at her. “And you are right. He is hot.” I laughed.

“Hey, Jemma, let’s all go watch a movie in the theatre,” Avery suggested.

A few of the other females all nodded. “Sure,” I replied to her. “I’ll meet you all in there. Try not to fight trying to pick a movie.” They all laughed and walked away except for Delilah. I glanced at my side, where Izzy had been standing, watching. She had a smile on her face.

She took a step towards me. “A couple of days ago, you didn’t think you had what it took to be queen.”

“I still-“

“Bullshit.” She cut me off. “From what I saw, you may even surpass me as a great queen.”

I smiled at her with a slight blush. “Thank you, Izzy.” She hugged me. I pulled away from her as a thought came to me. I needed to ask her something. “Izzy, I need to ask you something.” I glanced at Delilah. “In private.”

Izzy nodded and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “Sorry, Delilah. This is a conversation between queens.”

“I’ll see you in the theatre with the others,” I said as Delilah rolled her eyes and then walked away. When she was out of earshot, I looked around the corridor, and there were only a few guards. “I need to ask you about something Cassius told me. About the heir.”

“Oh.” She pulled me back into the now-empty classroom, and we sat at desks across from each other. “What did you need to know?”

“Is its true? If I am not pregnant by Cassius’s birthday, then he’ll lose the crown.”

Izzy took in a sharp breath. “I’m afraid that is true, Jemma.” She sighed.

“How come I have never heard that before?”

“It’s not something that is common knowledge in the kingdom. In the past, it wasn’t an issue because kings usually found their mates early enough. But now we are on a time crunch. As long as you are pregnant, we will keep the crown.”

I sighed. “I so wanted to wait years before having pups with Cass. I mean, I am only twenty one.”

“I understand, dear. But you don’t have years. The council is adamant about that law. Years ago, the kings stayed in power too long, and that caused problems, so they wanted to limit the time of their reign by making sure the heir took over by the age of twenty-one and had an heir by twenty-five.” She explained.

“So no pressure.” I snorted dryly.

She patted my arm. “I’m sorry, dear. If it takes much longer for you two to conceive, we may have to go with a surrogate.”

My mouth fell open. “Why?”

“So, we can guarantee we have an heir. It’s the last resort.”

I sighed heavily. “Wait, so Cassius would have to get another she-wolf pregnant?”

Izzy shook her head. “We’d use artificial means. Like how the humans do. And then you and Cass would raise the baby like it was your own.”

“We would be taking another she-wolf’s pup from her?” I was horrified at the thought. “I couldn’t do that to another mother.” When I left home, my son screaming for me popped into my head as tears formed in my eyes. Izzy leaned forward and touched my arm. “I mean, if you have to use a lab, can’t you use my eggs and Cass’s s***m. I know I am fertile. I got pregnant once already.”

Izzy sighed. “We’ll explore all of our options. I don’t think we should panic yet. It’s only been a week. There is still five and a half months.”

I stood up from the desk. “Thank you, Izzy. I am going to watch that movie now. I’ll see you later.” I didn’t wait for her to respond before leaving the room.

After watching a movie with the girls, I was sitting in my and Cass’s room watching TV. He said he had to work late. I wanted to help him, but he wouldn’t let me. A knock at the door made me jump slightly. I opened it to a kitchen omega who had our dinner on the cart. The omega rolled the cart in. “Thank you,” I said to him as he bowed and walked back out.

I sighed as I lifted the lid on the food. I was starving and didn’t feel like waiting for Cass. I had ordered pork roast with potatoes and veggies along with some wine. I was digging into the food when he walked in. “Hi.”

He smiled at me. “I’m sorry I’m late, baby.” He walked over and kissed my cheek before sitting beside me. “Oh, that looks good.

“Sorry, I didn’t wait for you. I was starving.”

He stood up and got his plate. “That’s alright, love.”

“So, what was taking you so long?”

“You remember Alpha Thomas?”

I nodded as I took a bite of potato. “Yeah, the one who won the challenge.”

“Well, he’s having a bit of trouble with some of the members of the pack he acquired. So Deke and I were helping him gain their loyalty and respect. Some of them chose to go rogue but whatever. Most of the pack is falling into line.”

“Good. Alpha Thomas will be good to them. Better than Alpha Brown was anyways.”

Cassius sipped his wine. “I agree.”

We ate in silence for a few minutes. “So, you telling me where we are going on our date tomorrow night?”

He shook his head with a smirk. “Nope.” He rose from the couch. “Are you ready for our run? Enoch is howling up a storm to get out.”

“Yes. I owe Leonora.” I laughed.

He started taking off his shirt and walked towards the balcony, and opened the door. “Has Leonora ever leaped that far down?”

I looked over the railing to the ground five stories below. ‘I can do it.’ Leonora said in my mind. ‘Are you sure?’ I asked her nervously. ‘Trust me, Jemma.’ I nodded. ‘I trust you.’ I looked over at Cassius, who was just standing there naked. I smiled as I took off my clothes and then shifted into my white wolf. He shifted into his black wolf.

‘Ready?’ He asked in my head.

Without a word, I let Leonora take over, leaped over the balcony’s railing, and landed on the ground. We looked back to see the black wolf just standing there watching. ‘Are you coming or not?’ I said to him as I trotted towards the woods.

A second later, the black wolf was at my side. He circled me and nosed my side. ‘Cass, I am going to let Leonora take charge so she and Enoch can have their privacy.’

‘I was about to say the same thing.’ He agreed. ‘Goodnight, love.’

I watched as his wolf’s eyes went from blue to black. ‘Okay, Leonora. Have fun.’ I said to her as I retreated to the back of my mind. ‘Thank you, Jemma.’ She then took off into the woods with her black-furred mate close behind.