The Alpha's Mistress

5

Word Count: 1990

~Sienna

I stare off into the distance, my knees pulled up to my chest, the back of my pants dampening against the grass.

Distantly, clouds grow thick and threatening, rolling mercilessly over the far-away settlements.

Up here, on this hill, I can almost see out to the ocean. At least I like to imagine I can, especially when there's no clumps of cloud blocking my view. Today I see little of the generous landscape.

Footsteps hurry from behind me. I don't glance over my shoulder.

"Sienna." Onyx sounds slightly out of breath. "I was looking everywhere for you."

He sits himself down next to me, looking laughably out of place amongst nature in his all black tunic and pants and brooding stature.

"Your ancestors did a good job securing this territory as their own," I mumble. "It's beautiful."

Clusters of lakes scatter haphazardly across the land, breaking up the endless forest and fields that can't seem to decide if they want to blend or not. We live up on a sprawling hill, allowing us to see much of the rest of the flat land.

I can feel his apprehension in the way he scans my face, in the way his breathing seems stilted.

"Many died to procure it, and many have died to secure it," he recites.

I turn my head. "That's what your mother used to tell me when I was younger."

"Me too. She got it from my father."

I never got to meet Onyx's father. He doesn't mention him often, and I don't press the issue. 

He sighs. "I'm sorry about that."

My brows raise. "The ambush?"

"Yeah."

I huff out a bitter laugh. At least I can safely chalk that up as one of the most uncomfortable experiences of my life.

"It's okay. I understand." I've taken the time to consider the proposition being made to me, and I've finally reconciled with the idea.

Its good timing that I've figured this out too. It's going to rain at any moment. The air is heavy and the wind is laden with the promise of a strong fall.

"So..."

"I'll do it." I straighten, pressing my shoulders back to convey confidence. "I'll be your mistress."

It's a bizarre sentence that tastes wrong coming from my mouth. Knowing it's bureaucratic nonsense and not a proposal to actually service my Alpha has made this pill a lot easier to swallow.

It's just a title. I don't actually have to fuck him...I don't think.

His lips curve upward in both relief and surprise. "Really?"

"It freaked me out at first, then I came out here and actually thought about it," I say, the wind rustling my hair loose from its tie. "Your mother is right."

"She loves you so much. She is frightened of seeing you harmed because of me.

"I get that."

And I do. I know I'm in danger here. Becoming his mistress is good logic.

"You need to think about this. Truly. Not just for a couple of hours, but for days, weeks even." Onyx takes my hands into his, squeezing tightly.

There's something about the earnest look in his large, almost black eyes that has my stomach twisting. The air is already starting to curl the edges of his hair around his face. I like when that happens.