The Princess And The Alpha *Excerpt Only*

Tabloids

"Well, that's really a shame for you because I have a mate." I blurted without thinking. The moment the words left my lips I felt my eyes widen and my hands went to my mouth.

The only think that surprised me more than my own brashness was his response.

"I know."

"You know?" I nearly screeched, "How on Earth could you know? No one knows!"

I was about to scream more questions at him, hell I was even ready to grab him by the collar of his dress shirt and shake him until he spewed all the answers. But we both heard the rushed click of high heels and froze. I peeked over my shoulder and saw my mother looking as elegant as ever rushing towards us, her expression serious and only slightly concerned.

"Adeline, what is going on here?" she asked. For the briefest moment I saw astonishment in her eyes when she noticed Lucas but it was gone within seconds, "Well, hello." She greeted warmly. After Lucas dropped into a bow and rose again she smiled at me, "I didn't know you had invited Alpha Lucas back."

"Oh, yes." I lied, "I had such a great time with him at the ball I decided he should be the first man I reached out to."

"Ah, did you two have exciting plans for the day?" she questioned, very pointedly looking at our differing outfits.

"Yes, we do. Now, if you'll excuse us we'll have to be on our way. Busy day ahead." I muttered.

When my mother nodded her head in dismissal I immediately grabbed Lucas's arm- trying to look as kind as possible- then pulled him in the direction of the front door. He knew better than to open his mouth to complain or question me and willingly slipped his shoes back on while I shoved on my training sneakers. With a gruff yank I pulled the front door open and hauled him outside. I ignored the two guards who grinned at me and continued guiding him by his arm until we were out of hearing range for anyone roaming around.

"So these are the royal gardenss? They are certainly more gorgeous than any picture could ever claim." He murmured.

He looked around the gardens in wonder as he sat down on one of the marble benches. He wasn't even trying to hide his awe at the brilliant colours and interesting patterns that my garden held. For a brief second I was reminded that I was actually terribly lucky to be living in such a glamorous place.

Unfortunately, we had more pressing matters than flowers to discuss.

"How do you know?" I asked. My voice didn't come out as strong as the first time. I was less angry now, less stunned as well. Now, I was worried. If Lucas knew who else had found out. And would those people be able to keep a secret.

"That's not important right now." Lucas denied.

"I hardly think that anything could be more important than that." I snapped back.

"Sit. Please." Lucas whispered, indicating the open bench space beside him. "I don't want this to escalate into a yelling match. I just want to talk, okay?"

"Fine." I huffed, plopping down next to him, "Now tell me how you know."

"Everyone knows. It's all over the newspapers and magazines. I don't think there's a werewolf in this galaxy that doesn't know. I'm surprised you didn't know that." He admitted. He slowly moved and placed his hand on the small of my back, clearly seeing I was upset, "I'm sorry, I thought you already knew."

"Oh my god." I whispered to myself. How could this have happened? Who could've told all those publishers? The secret that I had been trying so hard to hide had leapt out into the public without my knowledge. And my parents hadn't even bothered to tell me.

"How long? How long has it been out there?" I asked.

"Since the gala."

"Shit." I mumbled. Tears of defeat stung my eyes, but I blinked them away. I would not cry in front of Lucas. I was just baffled that something like this could've taken place without my knowledge. And I was hurt that my parents hadn't bothered to tell me that my relationship was essentially being broadcasted to the world.

"I'm so sorry, Princess."

Lucas's hand began rubbing my back soothingly. And, as much as I hated to admit it, it felt nice and it was actually quite comforting. For so long I had felt like the world was against me. Even my own parents weren't on my side anymore. So, now, having someone talk to me softly and actually care about my emotions, well, it was quite refreshing.

"I think your parents went public to protect you, though."

"My parents?" I gasped, "My parents are the ones who released statements to the press? They're the reason every werewolf knows about this?"

"Oh god, I'm just making this all worse, aren't I?"

"How would that protect me?"

"Well, I think a guard was the first one to release a statement. I didn't catch much wind at first, people thought it was mostly gossip. No one really believed that the rogue alpha had attempted to storm the castle during the gala. However, once you were kidnapped your parents came forward and confirmed their suspicions. They asked for help in finding you, and some couple in a tiny town reported that they had seen you one day. Once you two were caught the press was filled with all kinds of pictures and stories. It's been pretty ugly for a while now."

"This is absurd." I whimpered.

"I'm so sorry, I honestly thought you knew." He apologized again.

"It's not your fault."

"Well, now I feel like an ass. I assumed that you weren't with your mate because you didn't actually want to be mated to him. Now I see that there's a chance I was wrong." he said, staring at the aggressive scar on my neck. He didn't look disgusted by the odd scarring, just curious.

Silence fell between us as I tried to wrap my mind around what he had just told me. And what his words meant for my future. This changed everything. and it was so deeply overwhelming I wasn't sure I could handle it by myself.

"Hey," I said, startling him slightly, "have you ever ridden a horse?"

*****Thanks for all the comments and votes recently, guys! It's totally motivated me to write more often!*****