The Alpha's Bride

Chapter 841: A NOT secret pregnancy (1)

Keith, Luna Michelle, and Alpha Cristian were also there.     

Ashton was holding Talia's hand and ignoring angry glare of the Alpha, who was on Talia's left.     

Luna Michelle tried to get Ashton into another room, but the boy was sticking to Talia, and Talia melted at his big puppy eyes directed at her, and "Do you want me to leave?"     

He was adorable.     

"Ashton is not bothering me," Talia assured the boy's parents.      

And that's how Ashton ended up sitting next to Talia.     

'He is just a child,' Talia would say to Damon through their mind-link every time Damon would growl at the boy.     

'If he is a child, he would call you Aunty and not treat you as his future wife!' Damon grumbled.     

Damon knew that Ashton was just a pup, but the idea of anyone being close to Talia was driving Damon mad.     

'Where do you draw the line?' Damon asked.     

Talia didn't get it. 'Excuse me?'     

'How old do they need to be before you see them as a threat? Ten years? Fifteen? Twenty? I guess your limit is higher because Keith was all over you, and you didn't think of chasing him away.'     

'That's not fair, Damon.'     

'What's not fair is you making me watch as another human clings to you.'     

Talia exhaled helplessly and turned to Ashton. "Would you do something for me?"     

Ashton's eyes lit up. "Anything." The boy didn't flinch at Damon's growl.     

"I heard from your mom that you are quite an artist. Will you draw something for me?"     

"I can draw a house and people. Will you come and watch me work?"     

Talia smiled. "How about you make it a surprise? Show me when it's done."     

Ashton nodded vigorously, and then he turned to Damon.     

"Uncle Damon, I need you to take care of my Luna until I'm back."     

Damon's lips twitched in annoyance, and Talia wondered if he will snap at the child.     

"I think you should get going, Ash," Luna Michelle said. "Don't make Talia wait. After that, we need to get you ready for the party."     

Ashton flashed a smile at Talia, and then he left the room.     

'Better?' Talia asked Damon.         

Damon put his arm around Talia's waist and pulled her closer to him. 'Better.'     

Talia was not sure if she should laugh or cry. She looked at Damon, intending to scold him for being irrational, but then she saw his enamored gaze directed at her, and her fighting spirit sizzled away.     

Cristian cleared his throat before saying, "Thank you for coming early. Preparations were made, per your suggestion."     

Since Cassie gave them a warning that rogues will attack, Damon had several online meetings with Cristian to discuss countermeasures.     

Tony and Maddox agreed to send their people, as well as selected warriors from the Dark Howlers pack. Pierce and Liam were there with their mates, and Amelia was their secret weapon as no one could expect a witch among troops. They distributed scent-suppressing mixture and were ready to confront rogues, in case they attacked.     

Due to Tanya's pregnancy, Maddox didn't want to risk her coming there, but Tony and Kalina were on their way.     

"I would like Keith to familiarize himself with people who will be in charge of patrols around the venue," Damon said.     

"Of course," Cristian agreed immediately, and his eyes lost focus for a moment. "My people will show Keith what we have in place. Other than your guys that arrived yesterday, teams from the Lightclaw and Blue River pack are here. I want to thank you for your assistance with this matter."     

"It is I who should thank you for agreeing to proceed with Ashton's party," Damon said.     

No one would blame Alpha Cristian if he decided to cancel the event. He would ensure the safety of his pack, and that would cause rogues to postpone their attack, but that's what it would be… just delaying the inevitable. Rogues would regroup and wait for the next opportunity. Like this, they knew to expect them, assuming that Cassie's information was legitimate.     

Two tall males arrived. They were lieutenants in the army of the Spring Leaf pack who held a similar status as Keith.     

After exchanging a few words, Keith left with them.     

"How far along are you?"     

Talia's eyes widened when she saw that Michelle directed that question at her.     

"What?" Talia asked.     

Michelle smiled knowingly. "Your pregnancy. How far along are you?"     

Cristian's eyes darted from Talia to Michelle, and then he looked at Damon. "Is it true? You have a pup on the way?"     

Talia was flabbergasted. "How do you know?" She asked Michelle.     

"I can see how Damon is holding you," Michelle responded. "And also…" She pointed toward Talia's stomach. "If you don't want people to know, you shouldn't put your hands on your abdomen every minute. Only pregnant women do that."     

Talia stared down to see that Michelle was right. Talia's hand was there, her palm resting low on her stomach.     

Talia chided herself. Why was she thinking of concealing her pregnancy if people could see through her easily? At this rate, they might put it on billboards for everyone to know that Alpha Damon is expecting a child with his mate.     

Talia released a long breath. "It's not really a secret, but considering the situation with rogues and everything, we were thinking of not announcing it. The fewer people know, the better it will be."     

"I agree," Michelle said. "Well, your secret is safe with us."     

"Woah!" Cristian exclaimed and stood up to shake hands with Damon. "Congratulations! If you thought that leading a pack is challenging, wait until your little one starts crawling."     

Damon was confident that Cristian was messing with him. How could one child be more work than a pack?         

A figure appeared at the door.     

"Am I late?"     

It was a tall brunette with an exotic air around her.     

"You are on time, Arya," Cristian said. "These are Alpha Damon and Luna Talia…" His voice trailed as he looked at Talia. "Is that how I should introduce you, or…"     

Talia knew he was asking if he should introduce her as Alpha Natalia.     

"Any is fine. We are not keeping secrets." Talia said.     

"Right," Cristian said. "You are just not announcing it." He turned to the brunette. "This is Arya, the rising star in the army of the Spring Leaf pack. She might look harmless, but I can assure you that's deceiving. Arya is a general in my army."     

Damon looked at Arya with interest. "Considering your age, your skills must be impressive."     

Talia felt a pang of jealousy in her chest. Why was Damon praising another female? And it was obvious that Arya was not mated!     

Damon whipped his head toward Talia. "I was just wondering about the standards for Generals in this pack. She looks too young and feeble for such a position. There is nothing more to it."     

Talia responded with a stiff smile and a mental message, 'There better not be more to it.'     

"Don't look down on my Generals," Cristian said, feeling that Damon's comment about standards in the army of the Spring Leaf pack was a personal attack. "How about we organize a joint training session where we can exchange notes?"     

Damon was still looking at Talia. 'Kitten?'     

Talia exhaled sharply. "Excuse me. I need some air." She glared fiercely at Damon, "You should answer Alpha Cristian's question." And Talia moved toward the door.     

Damon was about to go after Talia, but then he heard her voice in his head, 'Stay there. I need space.'     

---     

You can find pic of Arya in the comments.     

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