Alpha Theo's Unloved Luna - Chapter 26: Chapter 26

~ Gwen ~
"What did he mean by you looked familiar?" Gwen asked Jacob. "Have you met Theo before?"
"Jacob, answer me!" Gwen yelled.
She and Jacob regrouped with Baron in her room after encountering Theo. Thank the goddess that Baron was headed back to the castle when Gwen unexpectedly met Theo. It was her brother who created a distraction for them, allowing Gwen and Jacob to flee.
"Yes, Gwen. I had met Alpha Theo more than six years ago," Jacob admitted, his head tilting, his hands on his waist. "We were pretending to work with the rogues then, and I pretended to be a visitor from another local pack. Baron and I were determining the best way to get you out."
Gwen frowned. She asked, "But how could he distinctly remember you?"
Jacob heaved a sigh. He revealed, "I was near the ports when it happened. I had bought food from a hotdog stand and ate there while eyeing the pier."
"I saw this child. His ball rolled into the middle of the road, and the kid chased it. I ran after the kid and helped him, but when I brought him to the sidewalk, his mother accused me of kidnapping her son," Jacob said. "I thought I would get in trouble, and my cover would be blown, but Theo happened to be there, and he had seen everything from afar."
"He was the one who told the mother how I saved her child instead." Jacob scratched his head and admitted, "He helped me out."
"Theo apologized to me on behalf of the mother, and he even offered a reward for saving the child. I refused. I told him that any man would do the same thing. It wasn't any special heroic act," Jacob said. "But I guess my refusal to accept the reward made him remember me, somehow."
"I did not think my past encounter with Theo was relevant, Gwen. So, I didn't tell you," Jacob added.
Gwen took deep breaths, trying to calm the storm of emotions inside her. She put her hand on her waist and responded, "Okay. I'm sorry. I overreacted. I remember you both said you had explored Port Leon before the rogue attack."
"So, I asked some of the royal guards," Baron interrupted. "The king had invited some alphas to discuss security matters, but they are leaving after lunch. We just need to lay low until they leave. We can request the maids to bring us breakfast in our rooms."
"Okay, but what about the king? He will ask for me," Gwen pointed out.
Baron smelled Gwen. He said, "Your scent had somewhat changed."
Gwen angrily smacked her older brother, revealing, "That's because Jacob and I hid behind the trash!"
"Well, it's a good thing we brought other scents from our pack," Baron reminded her. "We can use that for now. We will cover ourselves up when we see the king later, just to be sure."
Because the Purple-Eye Pack had concealed themselves from the world for so long, they were used to carrying a liquid that could hide their own scent. Gwen never felt the need to use it back in Southern Alfar, but another chance of meeting Theo again scared her.
First of all, she did not even know why she felt threatened. Theo was angry at her and Jacob, but that did not make sense at all! He seemed jealous, but why? Didn't he want nothing to do with her? What was he mad about? Because he thought she was dead? It was utterly baffling to Gwen, but regardless of Theo's reasons, one thing was for sure, she needed to avoid him at all costs!
Seeing Theo again hurt. It hurt like hell! She had to remind herself that he wanted to reject her and that he was probably already married to Madison. Last and most importantly, Theo did not want to accept Ian.
For the first half of the day, Gwen, her brother, and Jacob did precisely as planned. They ate breakfast in the room, and Gwen purposely delayed her meeting with the king. To her surprise, King Arthur also did not demand her presence. Later, she discovered that the northern king had sent the visiting alphas to the gates. Thus, it meant she wasn't seeing Theo anymore. Still, they were determined to remain disguised.
At around two in the afternoon, Gwen left her room, wearing a jacket and a hood over her head. Making her way to the king, she kept her head down. Jacob and her brother were the same.
She met the king in a sitting area on the second level, where they had tea again.
"Doctor Weneth, why are you all covered up?" King Arthur looked at Jacob and Baron, saying the same thing, "Is this your uniform of the day? You all smell different today too."
"Oh, it's a perfume scent, Your Highness." Gwen laughed, saying, "We just thought of testing the bottles we bought."
The king took a big whiff at Gwen and declared, "I don't know. I like your lilac scent more than this jasmine scent." He stared at Gwen's protectors and remarked, "Baron and Jacob both smell like an old man's perfume."
Gwen laughed so hard at the king's comments. Jacob chuckled too while Baron shook his head repeatedly.
She eventually evaluated the king's clinical condition. After confirming that Arthur was indeed feeling better, Gwen offered to walk with the king to the gardens.
Because Baron needed to use the bathroom, Gwen ended up alone with the king. Remembering Theo piqued her curiosity, so she asked, "Your Highness, I heard there are alphas in the castle."
"Ah, yes. I had a meeting with my strongest alphas in the country," Arthur said while slowly following the footpath. The entire time, he held Gwen's arm for support. He let go of Gwen and took two steps forward, saying, "I feel it. I'm getting stronger."
"I'm glad, Your Highness," Gwen smiled. After confirming her brother and Jacob had not returned, she asked, "I think I saw some of the alphas, but I did not see their lunas."
"Oh, most of them are single, Doctor - wait, are you interested in one of my alphas by chance?" The king turned to Gwen with a smirk on his face. He said, "If you are, you need to tell me, Doctor. I can arrange a marriage for you -"
"Oh, no, no." Gwen felt her face blush. She said, "It's not like that at all -"
"Denial, I see," the king teased. His gaze returned to the walking path, and he willingly gave the information.
"There is Alpha Thorn. He is still single. Then, we have Alpha Kael. He is already married, but often, his luna remained in the pack to help the beta with the responsibilities. The same could be said with Alpha Talon," the king went on and on, leaving Theo last. "And last but not least, considered now as the strongest alpha in my land, Alpha Theo Erhart -"
The king took a deep breath, and Gwen could not help but gasp, anticipating the information that could further validate her reasons not to introduce Ian to his father.
"Alpha Theo-" Arthur restarted, "He -"
"Arthur! What are you doing here walking around?"