Mated To The Barbarian King Who Is My Ex-husband's Father.

​"What is it, my queen?" Kane asked, his voice low with a subtle edge of dread. He was terrified that whatever she was about to confess was the absolute last thing he wanted to hear, yet he forced himself to remain calm, waiting for her to speak the words.

​"I—I..." Arianna started, her voice trembling, but the sentence was severed mid-breath.

​"Fatherrrr!"

​A loud, piercing scream tore through the air. It was Ethan. He was perched precariously on top of a jagged rock formation just beside the one Arianna was standing on.

Before anyone could react, his foot slipped and he went hurtling off the edge toward the ground below.

​Arianna’s hands flew to her mouth in utter shock. A cold wave of disbelief washed over her; she had no idea when he had even managed to climb up there. A dark thought crossed her mind...did he jump on purpose just to interrupt what I was about to tell the King?

​Cassius was standing nearby, his face as pale as a ghost. His eyes darted nervously toward Kane before he scrambled to the edge of the cliff to see if Ethan had truly fallen.

​Without a moment’s hesitation, Kane leaped. He moved like a blur, springing from his rock to the next ledge and diving straight to the ground below to locate his son.

​Arianna stood frozen at the top, her mind racing. She was glad when the king had chosen this secluded peak because she thought no one could ever track them up here. Did Samantha snitch out of sheer jealousy?

She certainly wouldn’t put it past her—Samantha was more than capable of a betrayal like that.

​Moments later, Kane emerged, bounding back up the rocks with his son cradled securely in his arms. He laid Ethan down on the flat stone surface and looked at him, his face a mixture of fury and deep concern.

​"Why would you climb up here when you know you’re terrified of heights?" Kane demanded, his jaw tight.

​Arianna’s brows furrowed in pure confusion. A werewolf who was afraid of heights? She had never heard of such a thing. It felt bizarre, almost impossible but she held her tongue and kept quiet.

​"I—I was looking for you, Father," Ethan choked out, tears welling in his eyes. The sickening angle of his leg made it painfully obvious that he had broken a bone in the fall, yet a breathless, pained chuckle escaped his lips as he looked up at his father. "I couldn’t land on my feet the way you do... What punishment are you going to give me, Father?"

​"What punishment could I possibly give you when you’re in a state like this?" Kane asked, his voice softening slightly as he gently helped his son sit up against the cold stone.

​"I think he broke his leg and that serves as punishment enough," Cassius said, stepping over to join them. He looked down at Ethan, his expression unreadable. "You got what you deserved, Ethan."

​"Why would you say something like that, Cassius?" Kane’s head snapped toward him, his eyes narrowing. "My son is severely injured because you failed to stop him from climbing these rocks in the first place."

​"I told Cassius I didn’t want to come up here, but he insisted," Ethan chimed in quickly, forcing a pained, pitiful tremor into his voice to secure his father’s sympathy.

​Arianna watched the exchange in disbelief. She couldn’t believe Cassius was taking the blame for something that was entirely Ethan’s fault.

Looking at Ethan’s smug, subtle expression, she was more certain than ever that the dramatic fall was completely staged just to interrupt her confession to the King.

​"Nice play, Ethan," she muttered under her breath.

​"Did you say something?" Kane asked, his intense gaze shifting directly to her.

​Arianna shook her head quickly, keeping her face blank. No matter what little games Ethan decided to play tonight, she was going to tell the King the whole truth before the sun came up.

​"My leg hurts so much, Father," Ethan whimpered, the pretense thick in his voice. "It’s taking a long time to heal."

​"You’re a werewolf. You’re already healing," Cassius pointed out dryly.

​"Carry him back to his tent," Kane ordered, standing up from the stone ground. He turned his attention to Arianna, taking in the way she tightly clutched the heavy fur mantle around her shoulders. "It’s freezing out here."

​"Thank you, Father," Ethan said, his dark gaze locking onto Arianna as Cassius pulled him up. A deep frown settled on Arianna’s face as their eyes met. "You don’t need to tell."

​"Who are you talking to?" Kane interjected sharply, catching the slip.

​"To your Queen, Father," Ethan corrected smoothly, not missing a beat. "I just meant... you didn’t need her to tell you she was freezing. You somehow just knew."

​"That shouldn’t be your concern," Kane ignored the comment entirely. He gestured to Cassius. "Take him away."

Arianna watched Cassius haul Ethan away into the darkness. The second they vanished out of sight, she turned back to the King, opening her mouth to finally finish her confession.

But before she could speak a single word, Kane stepped in and unexpectedly swept her right off her feet, scooping her into his arms.

​"Your Highness..." she gasped, startled by the sudden lift.

​"Whatever you were about to tell me can wait," Kane cut in, his voice firm and preoccupied. "I have too many fires to put out in the pack tonight."

​"It won’t take more than a few..."

​"You can tell me when I come back later tonight, or tomorrow," Kane said, cutting off her protest. "Hold on tight. We’re going down."

​Arianna instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling her fur mantle tight against the wind as she closed her eyes.

The descent from the massive rock formation to the flat ground below was a blur of supernatural speed.

When she finally opened her eyes again, she wasn’t on the dark cliffside anymore—she was standing inside the King’s warm, dimly lit tent.

​Her eyes widened in disbelief as she looked around, double-checking her surroundings to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating. It was real. Maria and Eira were already inside, quietly folding and arranging her garments near the wooden trunks.

​"I’ll be back soon," Kane said, looking down at her. "And then you can tell me whatever it is you need to say."

​Arianna wanted to push back—wanted to force him to listen right here and now—but she held her tongue and nodded instead. It was wiser to wait for a time when he could actually give her his full attention.

​"It’s very important, Your Highness," she said quietly. "And I won’t go to sleep until I tell you."

​Kane didn’t offer a reply. His gaze simply drifted away from hers, his expression unreadable. Arianna watched him turn and stride back out into the night, wishing more than anything that she could read his mind. Had he already pieced the puzzle together? Did he suspect what she was about to admit?

​Rubbing the back of her neck to ease the tight knot of anxiety building there, she let out a long, heavy breath.

The moment the flap of the tent fell shut behind him, Arianna collapsed onto the edge of the large bed, burying her face into the soft sheets.

​"How on earth am I going to face him after all of this?" she whispered into the dark.

*******

​"Do you think the stunt you pulled over there was funny?" Cassius asked, as he paced back and forth in the tent. He looked at the man who was supposed to be acting like an adult instead of a child. "You are so wicked, Ethan. How can you do something like this to your father?"

​"It was entirely your fault, uncle," Ethan answered, sitting up straight on the bed. When Cassius refused to listen to him, he knew at once he had to do something to save himself and Arianna.

​Falling off the cliff was the best option because his father wouldn’t stand seeing him hurt. Although the fall was staged, the impact was real. He broke his bones since he couldn’t land on his feet.

​Ethan wasn’t good with heights, but when it came to speed, he was one of the fastest werewolves after his father and Ragnar, of course.

​"You are taking this to be a game... you disgust me." Cassius was furious. He spat and turned back to him. "No matter what you do, I am going to tell him the truth."

​"Why am I getting the blame for everything? You haven’t mentioned Arianna since this conversation started."

​"Why are you being blamed?" A familiar voice caught them off guard. It was his father. Ethan’s heart skipped and he felt like throwing up immediately. "What did you do with Arianna?"

​There was silence. Neither of them expected the king to walk in. Cassius swallowed hard, turning in his direction. "I will tell you everything, your High Highness."

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