Author Note: Dear readers, please keep in mind that it is an enemies-to-lovers trope novel. You may find Fredrick hateable at the beginning but trust me, you will eventually love him as the story grows. Another reminder, the book contains light-dark romance with a lot more explicit spicy scenes than my other novels. So go ahead if you are okay with everything that I mentioned.
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" Isn't she the stolen princess?"
" Hush! Someone will hear you, Ryan!"
" What? I am telling the truth. Other members are also saying that the king has stolen a princess from her wedding."
Murmurs returned to the dinner table as Everett emerged through the door, carrying a plate of food. She was more than cold-blooded to remember that she was standing in the middle of the Lycan dens. Those young Lycan boys had been training hard to become a warrior. They all were between 18-20 and they all shot glares at Everett. They hated her because of her father. After her father killed the Lycan Royals, they all had to hide in every corner of the kingdoms to save their lives from humans.
Everett approached them with her shaky hands, her body trembling in nervousness. Just when she almost calmed herself down, someone spanked her ass in front of everyone. She gasped in pain and heard a shrilling voice from the head of the maid,
" Are you a turtle? If you move like this, it will take forever to serve those foods. Walk faster!!"
The whole dinner table erupted into laughter. They enjoyed seeing her getting bullied. Only one soldier named Ryan didn't look pleased with the scene. His mother had a kind heart and had taught him to respect women. He didn't find it funny. Besides, there were more than forty boys here. Werewolves lived like packs. Although they had their king now, they all lived like one pack and family.
Ryan hissed at the boys, trying to divert their attention,
" Stop it, guys! She is new and scared !!!"
Some of them stopped talking but a few continued to mock her clumsiness. Everett stepped forward to serve dinner, her tears threatened to fall. How badly she wished to hide herself in the castle, under her bed !!
By the time, Everrett had finished serving, she was tired. Her earlier bruises weren't healed yet. She came back to the head of the maid who had a great time bullying her. She hated her from the moment when she refused to give her the wedding gown. Just as Everett returned, the maid opened her mouth to give more orders but another maid came to intervene, her face carrying a grim expression,
" Misses! The king has returned. He wants the new Mistress to serve him dinner."
The news made Everrett's face sour. She recalled what Fredrick told her when she entered this lycan castle. Her face turned pale like a paper sheet. Even the head of the maid wasn't pleased by the news. She always served the king by herself and secretly hoped that he would pay attention to her someday. But she couldn't deny the order that the king gave. The head maid replied in a gruff voice, sending a hateful glare to Everett,
" Did you hear that? Come with me and serve our king with manners. Otherwise, the spanking will continue."
Another laughter erupted from the boys as Everett followed the maid reluctantly.
In the King s chamber, Fredrick inspected the arrow deeply. He didn't breathe a word out to anyone. If someone was plotting against him, he needed to stay quiet. He had been a master of the long game. Alerting his enemy could be his biggest mistake.
His door knocked smoothly twice. His eyes darkened at the thought of the princess. Her presence reminded him of his past and the cruelty of her father. Fredrick gave a cold reply, not bothering to cover his naked frame,
" Come in!"
Everett slipped in, holding her breath. As soon as she came, her eyes swam to his naked torso, then the thin layer of boxer. She almost... almost let out a loud gasp. Humans weren't comfortable watching someone naked so frequently. On the other side, werewolves were more than comfortable walking naked or stripping into their naked frame at any time.
Blush crept on her cheeks. She kept looking down, watching the wet carpet strangely,
" Your Highness! Your...your.. food.."
Fredrick walked lazily to the couch, looking satisfied to see her in this shabby dress. He hated to see her wedding dress. Crossing his legs casually, he ordered calmly,
" Crawl to me with the food! One drop of those foods, and you will be spanked here."
Everett was stupefied beyond words for a few moments. She looked down at the big plate, full of food. There were at least eight bowls on her plate, especially the meat soup. It was impossible to keep it in check if she crawled to him. Besides, what kind of punishment was this? Spanking her?
The imagination of this punishment rose heat to her cheeks. Even though she despised the idea of getting spanked by this beast, the temptation was vivid in her body. Fredrick read through her dumbstruck expression. He said with a growl again, glaring at her face,
" You don't know what my mistresses do here? It's how they serve their master. Now as long as you obey me, this is going to be less tolerable for you. As much as I hate your father, I am not a monster like him."
Everett suddenly blurted out, her words slipping out even before she could control herself,
" My father.. isn't a monster.."
Her response made Fredrick's face darker in deeper shades. All the muscles in his body popped out in rage as he replied with a sneer,
" It seems like you can talk back to me. I thought you are mute like a doll. But you have done worse to yourself by opening your little sweet mouth, Princess."
He grabbed the closest vase next to him and threw it, straight on the floor, right in front of Everett. The vase broke into pieces all over the ground. The glass pieces lay scattered everywhere on the red carpet. Fredrick's eyes burnt in fury as he repeated his order, growling like a hungry beast,
" CRAWL TO ME NOW!!"