8. Rehn

EIGHT

REHN

T he road from the Sorcerer's Academy to Rehn's castle took the royal party into the forest. Being among the trees with the sounds of birds chirping, small animals scurrying, and the babbling of every little stream, all nearly untouched by man and of the occasional hint of potential prey, usually calmed Rehn's inner animal – the bear living just under his skin.

Today, that beast had only one thing on its mind, their mate who accompanied them. Rehn couldn't give in to his inner animal's desire, though. He rode near the front of the royal party with their new addition, his unknowing mate Leila, farther back and protected by several royal guards.

Being near her was too great a distraction, at least right now. His inner bear's protests, pushing just under his skin for release, to rush back and claim her now gave him all the more reason to stay away. Drystan was dead but the threat to Leila, to his mate, remained in the unknown sorcerer who aided that madman. If Rehn had to stay away from her so he and his guards could better protect her, he would… for now. The sooner they got to the castle, the better, though.

It also had given him time to tell Idris about Leila being his fated mate.

"You're showing great restraint, my friend," Idris said. "When I first discovered my bond with Yaldred, we… well, let's just say neither of us were in the mood to wait. Her inner beast was as insistent as mine."

"Leila doesn't have an inner animal," Rehn replied, "and whoever helped Drystan escape is still out there and may not be working alone. If I am going to protect her, I need to be able to focus."

"You, my king, need not do everything alone." Idris's head shook and he let out a sigh. "You have me and your royal guards to help protect both of you. At some point, you are going to have to talk to her, get to know her."

Rehn could rely on his men and that went double for Idris. The man had earned his place as the king's closest adviser and not just because of their long friendship. Idris and the royal guards knew their duty and would carry it out all in Rehn's name, but the crown with its responsibilities and the ultimate duties that came with it rested on his head alone. Now, he and his inner animal had the added duty to protect his mate.

"Did you get to know Yaldred before you claimed her?" he asked.

"If you asked her, I bet she'd say she claimed me ," Idris replied with a chuckle. "It will be different with you and Leila. She has no inner animal with its primal call for its mate. You are going to have to do things the old fashioned way. You have to woo her, win her affection."

The very idea had Rehn's inner bear growling, his fur rippling just under his skin. A deep breath calmed him, but a hint of his mate's scent on the breeze tickled his nose, earning another internal growl from the bear.

He agreed with the beast. The very idea she didn't feel the same way as he did rankled as if it were a rejection. Logically, he knew it wasn't, but the mating instinct was just too strong to be defeated that way. If not for Idris, he might have given in to the beast's demands then and there.

"It should not be difficult for you to woo her, my friend." Idris waved his arm around, past the guards to the forest beyond. "You are the king and even if you had no crown, you could still win her over."

"It doesn't feel right. She should be able to sense the connection, inner animal or no," Rehn said.

"I've come to think our inner animals give us a better connection to something primal, to the natural world," Idris replied. "Our sharpened senses aren't limited to our noses. We sense our mates strongly, but that doesn't mean she does not sense the same. Just as her nose can't match yours, maybe she feels the same, only dulled by her lack of inner animal."

That felt like cold comfort to Rehn, an excuse, not an explanation. A dulled sense meant she didn't feel the same way he did, she felt only a fraction which might as well be nothing. But it wasn't nothing, maybe it was a start, something to nurture and grow. He accepted the wisdom in such a thought, but not his inner beast. The bear cared only for claiming his mate.

The forest ahead opened into the familiar fields covering the valley. They lined both sides of the road as it set a straight path to the bridge over the river and Rehn's castle rising beyond. As was his custom, Rehn urged his mount forward, moving to the head of the royal party. A king leads from the front.

"Wait, wait," Idris called out, pushing his steed to catch up, "are you really going to storm to the castle leaving your mate behind?"

Rehn hadn't even thought of her when he spurred his horse on. He just fell into his common pattern, the way he always arrived home, leading the way and charging ahead.

"Ride back to her, let her see the castle with you by her side," Idris said.

"So be it," Rehn replied, turning his horse.

Even as he rode back, passing several in the royal party, he chafed at the change in his normal protocol, though wondered if something else darkened his mood. The idea of having to woo his mate still felt like a rejection and his inner bear wholeheartedly agreed. Then, Leila came into view at the edge of the forest.

She had stopped her horse and stared out across the valley to where the castle rose beyond the river. Her wide eyes seemed to try and take everything in at once and her jaw had fallen. It brought a smile to his face, seeing her experience the castle for the first time. He'd lived there his whole life. Maybe that familiarity had diminished the majesty of it, but seeing it through her eyes reminded him.

"Wait until you see the inside," Rehn said, startling her. "Come, we shouldn't keep everyone waiting."

"Of course," Leila replied, nodding, her cheeks dusted pink.

Riding beside her toward the castle felt like torture in a way. Rehn held his inner animal at bay but only just. Her scent perfumed the air, and the way she kept craning her neck, taking everything in all with that smile of hers, kept him pulling back at the beast with all his willpower and at the same time watching his mate for any and every hint of her feelings. It was exhausting and exhilarating at the same time.

Once past the gates and into the main courtyard, a weight lifted from Rehn's shoulders. Inside his castle, he could protect her better than anywhere else. His bear still rumbled just under the surface, demanding he claim his mate but the beast no longer feared for her safety.

"I'll have to show you the castle gardens," he said, pointing to the tall hedges separating the gardens from the rest of the courtyard. "There is a pond in their center I go to when I don't have the time to head into the wilderness. It is the most beautiful place in the castle."

"I'd like to see it." Leila glanced where he pointed but only for a moment before her eyes climbed the towers rising from the main keep.

"You must be tired from the journey," Rehn said. "I'll show you to your quarters where you can rest and relax before getting ready for dinner."

"Oh, I'm sure you've got more important things to worry about than me," she replied, head shaking.

"I promised to ensure your safety and when I make a promise, I keep it," Rehn said.

Groomsmen approached the royal party when they neared the stable. Rehn swung off his horse, nodding to the man who took the reins before moving to Leila's horse, offering his hand to help her dismount. She smiled shyly at it before accepting the help. His inner bear savored her touch as much as he did, though it was all too brief.

Off their horses, he led her toward the main keep. Her roving eyes grew wider inside, studying tapestries on the wall and the mosaic floor in the entryway. Servants already began preparing the great hall for tonight's dinner, cleaning tables, setting up chairs and place settings. They paused as Rehn and Leila entered, bowing to their king who waved them back to their duties while his companion gawked at the room with its towering ceilings and ornately carved pillars.

Rehn escorted her past the great hall and up the stairs to the royal residential wing. He waited for Leila when she turned to study a stained glass window in an alcove off the hall. She rushed to catch up with him once she noticed he'd stopped. Their destination lay only a few doors down, across from his own chambers. He pushed open the doors to the queen's quarters and waved her in.

"I'm so used to the academy, form over function," she said with wide eyes, taking the room and its furnishings in. "I'm more than happy with the simple rooms I had there, this is all so overwhelming. It is too much."

No, as far as Rehn thought, it was exactly what she deserved, the exact place she belonged as his mate and future queen. He dared not say that, not yet.

"My chambers are just across the hall," he said. "Like I said. When I make a promise, I keep it and I have promised to keep you safe and there is no safer place in my castle or my keep than near me. Beyond my closeness, the royal wing is constantly guarded by only the elite royal guards, even when I am not in my chambers."

"Thank you again for offering your protection," she replied, running her fingers across the curtain tied to the corner of the bedpost.

"I will leave you to rest and get ready for tonight's dinner," Rehn said, before hurrying from the room, across the hall to his own.

He let out a breath, leaning against the door. Seeing her standing so close to the bed, caressing the silk curtains had his inner beast so close to the surface, demanding he claim his mate. If only she were a shifter like him, feeling the mating call the way he did. Things would be so much easier. With any luck, wining and dining her will change things tonight.