"Commander Razial!" Siroos called out to the man with ebony hair. He was pacing right outside the dwelling.
Halting his footsteps he turned to watch Siroos’s hulking figure approach him.
"Alpha Siroos!" He acknowledged him with a blank expression, a little weariness remained.
"Can’t sleep?" Siroos asked, halting beside the man with a cloak which determined his rank.
Razial let out a frustrated breath and shook his head.
"New place can do that to you. Fancy a walk? It might clear your mind."
Siroos gestured ahead and both men began to move ahead. The jealousy Siroos had felt for this man had quietly vanished from the moment he learnt that Razial had never touched Cassandra. It further diluted from Faris’s revelation.
"Princess Lotus?" Razial questioned, concerns so deep that they were etched on his handsome face.
"She is with my mate. Resting. She will be safe, I have warriors guarding their room." Siroos ebbed away some of his fears. They both walked with their hands behind their back.
"King Tholarian sends a reminder that in case of a war breaking out, you will hold the end of your bargain."
Siroos knew that there had to be a secret agenda behind the arrival of Tholarian’s right-hand man, apart from acting as Lotus’s personal bodyguard and he revealed just that.
"I am a man of my word. Whenever the need should arise, I will be there to defend the kingdom my mate used to belong to. Although she got nothing but disrespect there," Siroos answered. He still remembered how everyone had treated Cassandra in front of him.
"We failed Princess Cassandra on many levels, including myself. I apologise and would like to walk past that. I hope we can develop a mutual understanding. Princess Cassandra was supposed to be yours, I guess that’s the reason our hearts never opened up to each other."
Siroos knew Razial’s words were true. He might not have taken a stand for Cassandra, but he also didn’t taint her or hold any malicious intent.
"I wish for the same," Siroos quietly answered, staring into the vast desert ahead. The air around him glowed with faint, icy blue light, and the temperature dropped. A chill ran through him as a very cold gust of wind hit his bare torso.
His eyes quickly wavered to Razial who held a small grin.
"It’s hot on your lands; I just dropped the temperature slightly."
Siroos couldn’t help but grin back.
Ranon and another warrior soon arrived there and Siroos asked Raizal to rest.
"See you in the morning then," the mage said and Siroos offered him a terse nod.
The warrior took Razial to the guest chamber while Ranon resumed the position he had vacated and began to take a walk with his Alpha.
"Are you jealous seeing him here?"
"A bit yes, but Cassandra and Razial hold no feelings for each other. They were in a forced relationship. I think both of them feel freer now
that they are not bound to each other," Siroos answered, resuming his walk.
"Makes sense. Heard Faris was flirting with Nissa’s sister," Ranon asked with a laugh falling through his lips. He was away on an errand to deliver Saffron and had just returned.
"You know him. I wonder what he will do when he finds his mate. I don’t want someone innocent to suffer because of his frivolous hankering for women. What if he keeps up his old lifestyle?" Siroos asked his Beta. He could discuss Faris with him because they were best friends, and Faris was more open with Ranon and told him all of his secrets.
"I wouldn’t worry. Mostly he just pretends to be flirting. He has a very soft heart and I believe he will be an extraordinary mate," Ranon attempted to thwart some of Siroos’s apprehensions.
"Only time will tell," Siroos answered with a sigh.
***
The next day’s morning meal was a merry affair. Razial chose to sit beside Lotus before Faris could saunter over and take that seat. Everyone noticed how he was trying to stay glued to Lotus and make small talk.
Faris, as usual, approached and plopped himself right beside his mother, facing Lotus.
"The morning is beautiful for we have a delicate Lotus amidst us," he began with a wink, filling his bowl with porridge.
"You do know how to charm a woman," Lotus gleefully answered.
"I am to please, my lady." Faris took a bow, stealing a glance at the man on the left side of Lotus.
Murder flashed in his eyes for Faris. Giving him his cutest smile, Faris continued his antics with Lotus throughout the breakfast.
Ara stayed at a distance from their table but she watched wearily.
After they were done with the morning meal, Siroos and Cassandra decided to show Lotus and Razial around the pack.
"May I accompany the lady?" Faris was quick to spring on his feet and offer his hand to Lotus before she could leave her seat.
Razial stood up and wedged himself between them and offered his own arm.
"Princess Lotus, let me be your escort. We are in a foreign place and your father asked me to keep an eye on you."
Cassandra and Siroos watched from the side in amusement.
"Would you like to bet how long before Razial punches Faris?" Siroos quietly whispered in his mate’s ear.
"50 gold coins, it will happen before the evening falls," Cassandra murmured back trying not to laugh at the scene in front.
"You got yourself a deal, my mate." Siroos and Cassandra shook hands.
"I understand Commander Razial. You can follow us." Elegantly getting up, Lotus placed her delicate hand in Faris’s, much to the chagrin of Razial. The very veins in his neck tightened and his teeth smashed against each other.
Lotus let Faris lead her forward while Razial was hot on their heels. Siroos and Cassandra stopped murmuring to each other and kept in the rear, wanting to see how everything would unfold.
Throughout the tour, Razial tried to shake Faris off from Lotus, but he stuck to her like an ugly lice on her hair; that’s how Razial saw Faris.
A bloodsucking lice who was slowly sucking away his happiness and any chance he had of having Lotus.
She was all smiles, enjoying Faris’s company, taking interest in whatever he showed her.
Her pinkish cheeks had tainted red due to the heat she was not accustomed to.
And then they reached the bank of the oasis.
Cassandra and Siroos watered their small sapling and told their guests about the uniqueness of their plant.
Being a nature-oriented mage, Lotus was mesmerised by it and bent down to touch it.
"I think this is the most beautiful tradition I have ever seen," Lotus uttered in awe.
Faris broke off a marigold flower and tried to put it into Lotus’s hair.
Instantly, the flower froze over in a casing of ice, and Faris dropped it with an ’eh!’ sound.
Two pairs of angry eyes were now focused on Razial.