Alpha's Secret Bride

Brandon leaned back in his chair, studying his mother for a moment before setting the document aside.

"And you’re telling us now?"

Alexandra raised an eyebrow. "Would you have preferred I tell you after I left?"

"That isn’t what I meant." Brandon pushed his chair back and walked toward her. "If you’re leaving the kingdom, I should know before you’re ready to board the aircraft. We could have arranged an escort and made sure everything here was taken care of while you’re away."

"I didn’t want to turn it into a palace matter," Alexandra said. She adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "Everything is already arranged. The royal aircraft is ready, and the pilot has been briefed. I won’t be traveling alone. Besides, I didn’t want to interrupt the time you and Emma have been enjoying together."

Brandon’s eyes moved from the bag on her shoulder to her face.

"Where are you going?"

"Egypt."

He paused.

"Egypt?"

Alexandra nodded. "I have a moonally there. We haven’t spoken in a long time, and I need to see her."

Brandon folded his arms across his chest. "And this couldn’t wait until after the council meeting?"

"No."

The answer came so quickly that Brandon’s eyebrows lifted.

Alexandra lowered her gaze for a moment, then looked back at him. "I’ve put this off long enough. If I wait any longer, I may lose the chance to make things right."

Emma had been quiet throughout the conversation. She watched Alexandra’s fingers tighten around the strap of her bag before relaxing again.

Brandon let out a slow breath and rubbed the back of his neck.

"All right. If it’s that important, I won’t stop you."

A small smile touched Alexandra’s lips. "Thank you."

"But promise me you’ll be careful."

"I will."

Emma stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Alexandra. "Have a safe journey, My High Luna."

Alexandra returned the embrace and gently patted Emma’s back. "I will. Take care of my son and grandpups while I’m gone."

Emma pulled back with a smile. "I’ll try."

Alexandra smiled and gently squeezed Emma’s hand. "I know you will. And don’t let him work too hard."

"Of course. I’ll take good care of him."

Brandon stepped closer and gave his mother a brief hug before letting her go.

"Call us when you arrive."

"I promise."

Alexandra looked between them, her expression softening. Then she turned toward the door.

"Safe journey, Mother," Brandon called after her.

"Be careful," Emma added.

Alexandra glanced over her shoulder with a warm smile.

"I will."

A few minutes later, Alexandra’s footsteps faded down the corridor. Emma remained by the window, watching until the royal aircraft lifted into the moonlit sky and disappeared beyond the palace grounds. She stood there for another moment before turning back to Brandon.

"Do you think she’s seeing someone?"

Brandon looked at her, then laughed.

"Why is that the first thing you thought of?"

Emma shrugged as she walked back toward him. "She’s been a widow for five winters. She’s traveling all the way to Egypt to meet a moonally, she’s carrying a bag, and she wouldn’t tell us much about the trip. What else am I supposed to think?"

Brandon shook his head, the smile still tugging at his mouth. "I don’t think my mother is ready to see someone."

Emma slipped her hand into his. "Poor widow. Five winters is a long time. She must feel lonely."

Brandon’s smile softened. He looked toward the window where the aircraft had disappeared.

"Maybe she does."

Emma gave him a curious look. "So?"

He slid an arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

"We’ll find out."

Emma had guessed that Alexandra was hiding something personal. She just had no idea how close she was to the truth.

Brandon had returned to the documents on his desk, but his attention kept wandering toward the door Alexandra had walked through earlier. He picked up his tablet, unlocked it, and opened the royal travel system.

Emma noticed him scrolling through the flight records.

"What are you doing?"

"Checking something."

"Your Majesty."

The teasing note in her voice made the corner of his mouth lift, but he kept his eyes on the screen. He entered a few details and waited as the travel information loaded.

Then he stopped.

His eyebrows drew together.

"Moonheart."

Emma set down the document she had been sorting and walked over. "What?"

"I think I know who she’s meeting."

Emma leaned closer as Brandon opened the flight details again. He stared at the destination for a few seconds before looking at her.

"My father had a weakness for women."

Emma blinked. "That’s a rather blunt way to put it."

A quiet laugh escaped him.

"My father loved sex just as much as I do. The difference is, I stuck with one woman."

Emma slowly folded her arms.

"Starlit."

"What?"

"You’re not exactly making your investigation sound reassuring."

Brandon laughed and turned the tablet toward her.

"Look."

Emma’s eyes moved across the screen.

Then the smile disappeared from her face.

Madison Natalie Frostbane.

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

Brandon’s expression turned serious as he looked at the name on the screen.

"If I’m right, Mother didn’t go to Egypt to visit an old moonally."

Emma lifted her eyes to him. "Then why did she go?"

Brandon tapped the name with his thumb and leaned back in his chair.

"She went there to bring someone home."

"Who?"

"Darius’s mother."

Emma’s eyebrows lifted. "Madison?"

Brandon nodded and leaned back in his chair. "You remember Darius helped me expose Samuel and uncover who was responsible for his father’s death. A few corrupt nobles had accused my father of killing his own brother, but Darius found the evidence that cleared King Eldric’s name."

Emma moved closer, listening.

"When Darius first contacted my father, he warned him about Samuel and how dangerous he was. Father didn’t believe him at first. Then Darius sent Samuel’s secret network code through Nelson, and that changed everything."

Emma’s expression tightened. "Nelson?"

"Yes." Brandon rubbed his thumb along the edge of the tablet. "Nelson’s escape from the palace was staged. We needed Samuel to believe we were turning against Nelson so Darius could continue working without exposing the rest of us. If we hadn’t done it, there could have been chaos during Elara and Bernard’s royal mating ceremony."

Emma stared at him. "And you knew about all of this?"

Brandon nodded.

"I did. At first, I refused to get involved. But after I saw how close Samuel had come to destroying me and my father and taking the throne, I changed my mind. I joined them because we needed to bring him down before he could make his move."

He paused, his fingers tightening around the tablet.

"But Samuel found out we were working against him."

Emma’s eyes narrowed. "How?"

"We discovered he had a spy among the maids." Brandon reached for her hand. "That’s why I kept you out of the operation. I couldn’t risk telling you and giving Samuel another way to reach us. I hated keeping you in the dark, but at the time, keeping you safe mattered more."

__

Thousands of miles away, Alexandra’s aircraft landed in Egypt.

She waited until the aircraft came to a complete stop before unfastening her seat belt. She picked up her small bag, thanked the pilot, and stepped onto the stairs.

The warm Egyptian air met her face as she descended. A car was waiting near the aircraft, and after confirming the address with the driver, she climbed into the back seat.

She had not traveled this far for romance or a simple visit with an old moonally. There was something she had carried with her for twenty -five winters, something she had never been able to put behind her.

Madison Natalie Frostbane.

Alexandra still remembered the day she had discovered the truth.

Madison had once been someone Alexandra trusted, especially as the mate of King Eldric’s late brother. She knew how to gain Alexandra’s confidence, and she used that trust to convince her to leave the palace for a few days, knowing Eldric would be there in her absence.

At the time, Brielle had already been dead for three winters.

Alexandra had believed she was simply helping an ally who needed her away from the palace. She had no idea Madison had another reason for convincing her to go.

During those days, Madison and Eldric had slept together.

When Alexandra eventually discovered the relationship, she confronted the truth she had never expected to face. Madison had not only deceived her; she had deliberately created the opportunity for it to happen.

Madison disappeared soon afterward.

She had been afraid of what Alexandra might do once she learned the truth, and rather than stay and face her, she left the kingdom. For twenty-five winters, she remained away, leaving the anger and betrayal between them unresolved.

Now Alexandra was finally going to see her again.

She rested her hand over the small bag beside her and watched Egypt pass through the car window. Her fingers tightened around the strap before slowly relaxing.

She wasn’t going to Egypt to punish Madison.

She was going for Darius.

And this time, she was ready to forgive.