My Alpha's Wolfless Daughter
My Alpha’s Wolfless Daughter – Chapter 51

Ayla

My emotions were all over the place as I entered my room to get ready for dinner. If this book didn’t have any answers, what would I do? I flipped through it one more time before I went to have a quick shower. The pages were still blank.

“Really?” I huffed, throwing the book on the bed before storming off into the bathroom.

This was a nightmare. Not only am I away from my mate, but now I have nothing to show for this visit. I dragged Xander all the way here and gave him extra work for nothing.

When I was done in the shower, I braided my hair over one shoulder and stepped into my bedroom to get dressed. It was then I noticed a garment bag lying on my bed. Sighing, I went to unzip it to replace a beautiful emerald green knee-length dress.

The dress had a surplice v-neckline. The long sleeves were made of a sparkly sheer fabric, which also covered the bodice. It created the look of a high-waisted dress.

I quickly got dressed and the dress fit me like a second skin. It was beautiful against my skin and hair. I found a pair of gold sparkly heels before I made my way to replace Xander. I didn’t bother with makeup, I was already late.

Xander was leaning against the wall as I exited my room. He was dressed in black slacks and a burgundy-colored shirt. He had a few of the top buttons undone. He looked amazing as he looked in my direction, taking me all in.

“Wow,” he breathed out.

“Not so bad yourself,” I smirked, and he composed himself.

“Ready?” He asked, holding out his arm and I linked it with mine.

“Not really, but I am starving,” I answered and he chuckled, handing me a phone.

“Here, I thought you’d like to text Nate.” I took the phone.

“Thank you,” I breathed out. I noticed I had messages from not only Nate but Kaden as well. I decided to just text Nate and I’ll deal with Kaden later. I’m sure he’s just worried after learning about the body found.

Me: I miss you, babe. I’m just heading to dinner. I’ll call later. I love you xoxo.

When I was done, I handed the phone back to Xander.

“This dress doesn’t have pockets,” I shrugged and he chuckled.

“I guess you can use mine.” He sighed like it was this huge inconvenience.

“I’m sure there’s room,” I giggled, holding onto his arm as we walked into the dining room.

The table was full, like before, and everyone quickly stood up, stopping whatever conversations they were having. My grandmother stood up and met me halfway.

“Ayla,” she grabbed my hands and kissed my cheeks.

“Grandmother, I apologize for my tardiness,” I told her as she walked with me back to her seat.

“Nonsense, you are right on time.” She smiled. Xander pulled out the seat to the left of my grandmother’s. I smiled at him before he took the seat beside me. As soon as the queen and I took our seats, the rest of the table sat down.

“Now, my dear, I’d like to introduce you to Councilman Andrew’s grandson, Collin.” My grandmother said. That’s when I noticed Councilman Andrew was sitting across from me, on the other side of my grandmother.

Collin was sitting beside his grandfather. He was younger. He had almost black hair and light brown eyes. He looked adorable in his suit. He didn’t look more than sixteen.

“Collin, it’s nice to meet you. I hear you’re my replacement.” I said, taking a sip of my wine.

“It’s nice to meet you, Princess Ayla. Replacement?” He questioned.

“Yes, if I don’t take the throne, then it will be passed down to you. But I am curious about your grandfather’s involvement,” I said, and Councilman Andrew gasped.

“How dare you?” He shouted and I looked at him.

“I see you don’t know that the information about King Kaden was a lie?” I retorted and he shifted uncomfortably.

“All the reports regarding this issue will be presented to me before I leave tomorrow,” I demanded.

“And how do you know they are false?” He questioned and I smirked.

“Kaden and I are old friends. He would never do what he is being accused of. I trust him completely. That is why I’ve decided to split the western kingdom into threes and hand a piece over to the other kingdoms.” I announced. I turned to my grandmother and she had a smirk on her face.

“You have no right to hand over the kingdom!” Andrews yelled, smashing his fists down on the table.

Before I could say anything else, dinner was served. It was a seafood pasta dish and it smelled heavenly. I took a bite and had to hold back the m**n that was about to escape my lips.

“What are you doing?” Xander leaned over and whispered in my ear.

“Not backing down,” I whispered back.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Andrews, what is your position, again?” I asked him before taking another sip of my wine. The taste of the wine pairs amazingly with the pasta dish.

“I’m the head of the council,” he growled out.

“And what is your job description?” I questioned him, before taking another bite.

“To advise the royal family and to make decisions that best benefit the people of the kingdom,” he answered proudly.

“So, not a king or queen?” I asked, nonchalantly. I could see the fury in his eyes, and I just smirked.

Queen Laura told me to never back down, and I was never going to back down again. This is my kingdom and I’m not going to let these men make decisions for me or my grandmother. We need women on the council instead of all these old men.

“Grandmother, this dish is wonderful.” I praised her, turning my attention to her. She watched my exchange without a word.

“Now, Mr. Andrews, your job is to advise, not to make demands of the royal family. You will treat me and my grandmother with the utmost respect from this point forward or I won’t have any issue with having you arrested for treason.” I told him before turning my attention to his grandson.

“Collin, how old are you?”

“I’m fifteen, princess,” he answered politely.

“So, you have three years to prove to me that you can be a king to his kingdom. I trust the other two princes and King Kaden with my life. And if I feel I can’t trust you, then I will split the kingdom between them. Does that seem fair to you?” I asked.

“Are you really the black pearl?” He asked and I nodded.

“And you gave us the mind link?”

“Well, the moon goddess did, but I asked her to gift the mermaids with the mind link. I knew it would be highly beneficial.” He gave me a nod.

“I will do everything I can to make sure you can trust me. I will make sure I am worthy of being the king you need for the Western kingdom.” He announced and I smiled at him. I could see his grandfather smoldering and I just smiled sweetly.

“Perfect, I’m glad we are both on the same page and I look forward to working with you in the future.”

My grandmother reached her hand out for mine and squeezed it. I may have been this scared little girl before, but now, I was going to do everything in my power to protect the people most important to me. And if I had to take down the entire council to make sure they stayed safe, then I would.

When dinner was over, Xander and I excused ourselves. It had been a long day and mentally I just needed to sleep. But there was one thing I needed to do first.

“Could you ask your mom if she’s free to see me?” I asked Xander as we walked back to our rooms.

“I’m pretty sure she’s on call at the hospital tonight, why is everything okay?” He asked, worried.

“I just have a few questions. Do you think she’d have time to see me?”

We stopped outside our rooms and his eyes clouded over. I waited patiently as he spoke to his mother about seeing me. I needed to get options for birth control. I wanted to be in control of when we were to have a baby. Even though we have been irresponsible so far.

“My mom said she can see you now,” Xander said, pulling me from my thoughts.

“Will you come with me?”

“I need to show you where the hospital is. And you need to ask your grandmother to accept you into the pod so we can mind link.” Xander said as he led me out of the palace.

“I will ask her tomorrow before we leave,” I told him.

“Ayla, I think we should wait until Nate gets back to the pack. This could be a trap to get you alone.” He sighed.

“I can protect myself. And I have you. I don’t want my life to be dictated by others who are hunting me. I don’t want to live my life in fear,” I explained.

“Okay, but just make sure you tell him you’re going home tomorrow. And I’ll make arrangements.”

“Thank you.”

It didn’t take us long to walk to the hospital. It was a beautiful evening and it was nice to be out of the palace. Even though these heels were not for walking but for looking pretty.

We both walked into the ER and were greeted by Dr. Evans. She hugged and kissed her son on the cheek before she turned her attention to me. She grabbed both my hands in hers before kissing both my cheeks.

“It is so good to see you both.” She smiled.

“Thank you for seeing me,” I told her.

“Anything for our black pearl princess. Now what can I do for you? Are you hurt?”

“No, I needed to talk to a medical professional. In private.” I stammered out. She stared at me before it clicked.

“Oh goodness, of course. Son, take a seat and I’ll bring her right back when we are done.” She told him before dragging me away. I was feeling nervous about this conversation. I know she’s a doctor and this is what she does, but she is still Xander’s mom.

Once, we were in an exam room and the door was closed. I sat down on the exam table while Dr. Evans sat down in the doctor’s chair.

“Now, Ayla, I assume this is probably about birth control or a pregnancy test, maybe?” She asked.

“Both actually. I just want to make sure I’m not pregnant and then I’d like to talk about birth control options. I’m not ready for a baby just yet.” I told her and she nodded.

“Have you been using any protection?” I shifted uncomfortably.

“I’ll take that as a no. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. We have all gotten caught up in the moment.” She chuckled.

“The bathroom is across the hall. There are specimen cups under the sink. When you are done, bring me the cup and we will test it. Then we can talk about the options.” She instructed and I nodded.

When I was done, I went back to the room. I was feeling nervous about the outcome. It couldn’t be positive, could it? I handed her the cup before taking a seat again.

She dipped the pregnancy test before turning her attention back to me.

“So I would recommend an IUD. I can insert one today and it can stay for up to five years. Or there is a pill or a shot but those require follow-up appointments.” She explained.

“Let’s do the IUD then.” She picked up the pregnancy test.

“Negative.” She announced and I breathed out a breath. I was so relieved.

“Let me go get a kit. Lift your dress and remove your underwear. Place this sheet over you and I’ll be right back.” She instructed, handing me a paper sheet before she left the room.

I was glad when it was all over. The pressure and the pinch hurt like a b***h. But I felt so relieved that I would be able to control when Nate and I start a family. I knew I wanted kids with him, but not now. We still had so much to figure out.

After Dr. Evans said goodbye to her son. Xander walked me back to my room. I was ready to ditch my shoes when we reached the first set of stairs.

“Is everything okay?” Xander finally asked me.

“Yes, everything is okay. I just wanted to ask your mother about lady things.” I answered.

“Lady things?” He chuckled.

“Yeah, it was nothing and she answered all of my questions.”

“That’s good. I’m glad she could help.”

“Thank you for everything, Xander. I really appreciate everything you do for me.” I told him when we stopped outside our rooms. His was across the hall from mine.

“Goodnight.” He smiled, handing me my phone.

“Goodnight,” I said, before walking into my room. I kicked off my heels as soon as the door was closed.

I was glad to finally get some me time from the day I had. My phone chimed in my hand and I held up my phone to see a text from Nate.

Nate: I love you. We are still investigating and dealing with King Kaden.

Me: what? Kaden is there?

Nate: yeah and it’s been a day with him here.

Me: I’m sorry, babe. I’m back in my room now.

Nate: I’ll be able to call soon. Just finishing up. I love you.

Me: I love you.

I put my phone on my pillow before getting ready for bed. Hopefully, Nate will call me soon, I thought as I yawned, climbing into bed. I snuggled under the blanket and decided to answer the other texts I had received.

Kaden: Ayla, I don’t know how you knew the victim was from my kingdom, but I’m on my way there now.

Kaden: I wish you would pick up the phone.

Kaden: I just met your father, thanks for the heads up.

Kaden: can you just let me know that you’re safe, please? I’m going crazy here.

Me: Kaden, I’m safe. I’m at the western kingdom palace. And be nice to my dad. Also, I’ve been busy. It’s been a long day.

When I was done texting Kaden, I put my phone down and picked up the book I was so desperate to replace. The pages were still blank.

“Goddesses, I could really use some answers.” I sighed in the empty room. I would be thankful for anything right now.

I don’t remember falling asleep, but waking up is something I’ll never forget.