The Alpha King's Mistress Chapter 18: Castle

I glanced at the guards before turning my attention to Gayle, who nodded at them. The guards opened the door, and a gust of cold wind hit me as soon as it swung open. Gayle tugged me outside, and I felt the soft ground beneath my sandals, tempting me to take them off and feel the soil beneath my bare feet. But the sight of the sky-high castle quickly erased that thought. Nicholas had been living here all this time? In a castle?

*Well, what did I expect? A small house?*

I turned to Gayle, who was laughing at my reaction. "Your look was priceless. Everyone who sets foot in our pack for the first time has that kind of face."

"Well, who wouldn't when you all live in a castle?" I couldn't help but exclaim.

Gayle shook her head. "No, you're mistaken. We don't. Only the Alpha King does and few others."

My hazel eyes widened in shock. "Really? He was wasting space."

"The Alpha King gave us permission to live in that castle if we wanted to, but we all decided to make our own houses around our pack land."

"Just how big is your land exactly?"

"That's a secret," Gayle giggled, glancing at the castle. "All of us believe that this castle should be for the Alpha King and his family in the future. That big building will be lively one day."

I didn't have anything to say to that. I could only focus on the ache in my heart. That future didn't include me. Nicholas didn't want me, so it was safe to say that I wouldn't be the one to complete the picture of his family. Someone else would.

I sighed and pushed those thoughts aside, distracting myself with the path we were taking. Finally, we reached the castle, and the guards opened the tall, imposing door for us. We turned down various hallways, and with every step, a headache began to form.

Eventually, we stopped in front of a door that burst open almost instantly. A plump woman with innocent features, wearing a simple shirt and skirt, beamed at us. Her cheerful voice resounded through the deserted hallway.

"OMG! YOU'RE SO PRETTY!"

"Stop it, Layla. She needs to eat and wash, so quit blabbering and let her inside," Gayle snapped.

Layla stepped aside and opened the door wider. "Oh yeah, sorry. Come in."

"Thank you," I said, entering the room with Gayle's help. She carefully guided me to sit on the couch before facing Layla, while I took in the surroundings of the bedroom.

"The Alpha wants her later at 8. So make sure she's cleaned up and has eaten by then. I'll come back later to fetch her," Gayle instructed.

"Copy that," Layla replied excitedly.

Gayle turned to me, waving. "Gotta go."

"Thank you," I said sincerely.

Gayle nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her and leaving me and Layla.

"Hi, I'm Layla," she introduced herself.

"Florence," I replied.

"You're really pretty," Layla said, making her way to the other side of the spacious bedroom to retrieve a trolley that I didn't notice was there. She opened the silver cover and placed a plate of food on the coffee table. It included a bowl of green vegetables, some meat, and water.

My stomach growled at the sight of the mouth-watering food. I was desperate to eat something and fill my empty stomach.

"Go ahead, you can eat," Layla sweetly said, gesturing to the food.

I wasted no time and began eating. I drank water first to soothe my dry throat. The coolness of the water as it passed down made me sigh in relief.

"Water is the best," I commented, feeling slightly better.

Layla laughed at my statement and pushed the trolley to the side. She then sat on the couch across from me, staring at me.

"You're gorgeous," Layla abruptly said. "You're a mistress of the Alpha, right?"

I choked on my water, coughing and hitting my chest.

“Oh, I'm sorry!” She quickly gave me a tissue.

When I finally calmed down, I asked in utter surprise, "How did you know that?"

She grinned, "It was easy to figure out. One, you are a new face, and you don't smell like a high-ranking person. Two, the Alpha asked me to dress you, which only happens for the Alpha's mistresses. And third, you were in the dungeon."

Out of all the things she said, there was one that caught my interest.

"Mistresses? Does that happen often?" I asked.

"Yes, but not as frequently as the rumors out there say. It used to be once a year. The Alpha would bring a woman here and let her serve him for one year," Layla explained.

"So he always had that kind of arrangement," I whispered, feeling a pang of dismay in my voice.

The knowledge that my mate had other mistresses every year was upsetting. He had been unfaithful to his mate, to both of us. Even though I understood that Nicholas may have lived a long life and had needs, I couldn't help but feel a tinge of resentment.

"Arrangement?" Layla's eyes widened slowly. "Wait, are you from Barbara's club?!"

I nodded, confused by her sudden reaction. "Is that bad?"

"No, it's just..." Layla shook her head and let out an audible sigh. "It's just that Alpha Nicholas rarely went to that club himself. He always had our Beta handpick potential candidates for his mistresses, and he would choose from them."

"Oh," was all I could respond to, as I picked at the green vegetables in my bowl and took a bite.

"I heard the Alpha went to that auction held in Barbara's club once, but he never picked anyone there," Layla continued.

"Why?"

Layla shrugged. "Maybe when he went there, no one piqued his interest. So basically, you're the first one from that club."

"How do you know all of this?" I couldn't help but ask after noticing that Layla has a stronger aura than Gayle.

Layla chuckled. "I'm his niece, and I handle everything related to his mistresses—dresses, makeup, making sure they know the rules, what to do and what not to do, and what to expect while living here."

"That's breaking news because out there, it's known that Nicho—I mean, the Alpha King doesn't have any family members."

I hadn't expected Nicholas to have any blood relatives, but it turned out he did. Among the common werewolves, it was known that he was alone, with many titles like Ruthless Alpha, Lycan King, Cruel King, the Devil, and many more that fit the narrative people created. I was genuinely happy to know that Nicholas had family members around him.

But I couldn't say the same for myself. I had no one but my wolf, Nasya.