Protect Me, Alpha King - Chapter 178: Chapter 178

Harbor
There was a tingling sensation I felt when our hands were interconnected. The alpha king's palm was warm, giving me comfort, which I did not understand, anyway. I was furious at him, right? So why? It did not make any sense.
My little pumpkin.
It must be him telling me that I should already forgive Maxxwell, which I did not feel right now. As of the moment. Forgiveness (if it will indeed happen) will come at the right time.
My feet started to get sore just by walking, even for a few minutes. But I liked this experience. Back at the palace, I was usually imprisoned in my room or hiding away from the alpha king. The twins had managed to talk to me, and I had the heart to consider forgiving them for their betrayal. The only person I could not forgive was the alpha king himself.
Could I forgive him?
Only time could answer me.
I wiped the sweat from my forehead as we approached the harbor. From our location, I could hear the worker's shouts as they did their job for today.
"Careful, my Queen. Are you tired? Perhaps you want me to carry you? You weigh nothing." His voice was playful.
I scoffed. "That's an insult, Maxxwell. I practically carry another living human body, and I weigh nothing? You make me laugh."
He did not even mind everything he was carrying. But Maxxwell did not say anything. He may be the alpha king of the kingdom, but for me, he was willing to become my servant. He would do anything to earn my forgiveness.
What a load of crap.
"Laugh all you want. I want to hear you laugh, my Queen." His breathing was labored. His upper top was soaking with sweat. Despite that, he smells nice. Sandalwood. My favorite scent.
"Hahaha," I said with sarcasm. "There. Satisfied?"
We were approaching the harbor, and instantly, I spotted the beta and the delta talking about something.
Their eyes widened when they saw me and hurried to meet us.
So this was the reason why they were busy? This was Delta Isagani referring to back then?
They instantly approached us and hovered over me as if protecting me from enemies. I could smell their sweat and the sun's rays hitting their skin.
I instantly put one of my hands on my nose, saying, "You two stink. Go away."
The beta and the delta shared a look. The former quickly gave me his distance and followed by the beta.
"It's natural since we are bathing in the sun while working here, Your Grace," Delta Isagani politely answered.
"Yeah, yeah. And I don't want to smell you."
We started to grab everyone's attention, and they gave their courtesy bow to us. For them, I was the queen who replaced Zenith, but I could never replace her. Not an ounce. "Your Highness, the queen is not safe here. There could be enemies hiding."
"Thank you very much for the concern, Beta Valentine, but I would rather enjoy my stay here than think of someone trying to assassinate me. Do not attempt to scare me."
Delta Isagani politely snatched the things we bought earlier from the alpha king's hand.
"This is not safe," the beta whispered.
"Everything is not safe. As long as evil exists, no one will be safe." My eyes narrowed at the beta. "Why are you always cranky, huh?" I asked, showing my full-blown irritation. The clouds temporarily covered the clouds. No. I was not scared of burning my skin. "You know what? You should find a mate. Maybe that will make you less cranky," I suggested.
"I'm not interested. My work in the palace is more important than looking for a woman."
He was back to his blind loyalty to the alpha king.
"Yeah. Yeah. I know it. You will more likely marry Maxxwell than your mate."
That earned a smile from Maxxwell and a scowl from the beta. "I'm straight."
"That was sarcasm, Beta Valentine."
Isagani looked at the alpha king. "Your Highness, is it okay for the queen here? We do not know the dangers."
The alpha king's lips pressed into a thin line. "Some of my warriors are already in the perimeter of this harbor. They will ensure no one will pass their defenses and vowed to keep the queen safe. I want to believe they will be true to their words."
"Still...."
"Don't be too much of a worry-wart, Delta Isagani," I chastised. "Nothing will happen, okay? Let me enjoy my stay here. Please do not ruin my mood. This is my first time knowing there is this kind of place in the palace."
"There is nothing to see, Your Grace. You can go back. You are safe in the four walls of the palace."
I glared at the beta, which he did not mind as long as I was safe.
"Valentine!" Maxxwell scolded. "I am here. I will protect the queen all my life. Stop worrying too much. You make me feel as if I cannot protect her."
He bowed even if his eyes told me he had a lot to say on his mind but chose to stay silent. Still, his worry did not waver.
"Are you questioning my ability, Beta Valentine?"
I stuck my tongue at the beta.
"That's not what I am implying. It's just that she is carrying the heir to the throne. If something happened-"
"Do all of you only see me as a tool to carry the heir?" I spat. Did they also see me as the person I was? Of what I could be capable of doing? Not just some random woman who the alpha king impregnated? Maxxwell's expression softened. "It's not like that, River. Please understand that all we want is your safety. That is our goal here. I admit I did not think of your safety when I brought you here because I was confident I could protect you alone. You could say these two are overreacting."
"We are not overreacting, Your Highness."
I held my hand, stopping Maxxwell from saying further. "I don't want to listen to any of your excuses. Why don't you walk me around? I'm starting to get annoyed, Your Highness, at the three of you." "There's nothing to see."
"There is a lot to see," I corrected. The sizes of ships amazed me so much that even my little pumpkin kicked my stomach. "If no one wanted to walk me around and satisfy my curiosity, I would do it alone." "Look at the way you walk. It looks like you are already getting tired. Returning to the palace is the best thing right now, Your Grace."
I stopped and glanced at Beta Valentine. "Why don't you shut your mouth, Beta Valentine? I don't want your opinion as of the moment."
Beta Valentine gritted his teeth, not liking my tone. Will, he started it.
"What are these ships for, Maxxwell?"
"It's for trading, shipment, and war. Sometimes, my men would go on expeditions or travel to unknown places and stay there and study the surroundings. Sometimes, they would bring slaves." "You are also preparing for battle?"
How severe was the problem right now?
"You can say that, River." The alpha king sighed. "If that brat insists on taking me as his husband, I have no choice but to declare war against their kingdom."
Brat.
Princess Leonora.
The alpha king glanced at his shoulder, and it was then I realized he was mind-linking his beta and delta. The next thing I knew, the two went in the other direction and disappeared from our sight. "Still not considering marrying her? Princess Leonora is a total package. She is beautiful and looks smart. Their kingdom is huge and famous."
"That is not a good joke, my Queen. You know my stand. Besides, I did not love her. She is nothing but a child in my eyes."
Was I joking? I was not. Marrying that brat would stop the upcoming war. Maxxwell did not see that.
"Why?"
It had been how many times since I pushed him to Leonora, but he would never budge.
"Why, why? You know the reason for that, I believe."
Maxxwell offered his hand for me to talk while we faced one of the giant ships so far. His one seemed abandoned by its men. Perhaps they went to eat first. I had never seen anyone on board. Queen Zenith. A ship in honor of the former queen? "Queen Zenith?"
His eyes turned flat. "The former queen had come here. This ship was made when I found out she was my mate."
"How old is this ship?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "Don't recall the numbers."
Did he not? Or did he not want to remember my sister?
Choosing to brush her name, I asked, "Are you sure it's okay to come here?"
Maxxwell was back to his mood earlier.
He chuckled. "Why not? This is my ship. Everything that you see is for our kingdom. For me. For you. For our child."
Even this ship that belonged to my sister? I wanted to ask but stopped myself.
As if to encourage me, Maxxwell smiled even wildly. "You will fully view the surroundings if we are up. It will be worth it, my Queen. You will love it there."
I accepted his hands, and I jumped again at the tingling sensation when both of our hands were interconnected. Little bolts of electricity traveled between our connected hands, and the more Maxxwell tightened his hold on me.
From the corner of my eyes, I was no longer focusing on the strong wind kissing my skin and disarranging my hair in any direction, making me look like a hag. In other words, I examined the ugliest while the wind continued lambasting my hair.
"Always be careful of the steps. The floors may be slippery, so you have to hold my hand. We don't want anything to happen to our child, my Queen."
I rolled my eyes at him but followed him, still.
We stopped. "There. Easy. You can look at the surroundings now."
And I did.
I sucked in a breath.
I had an overview of the whole harbor and everyone working on it. The alpha king stood proudly next to me. "So....how is it? Did you regret coming with me?"
Putting one of my hands on the other side of my hair, I responded, "It is beautiful, Maxxwell. I don't regret coming here."
He inhaled deeply while his hands transferred to my back, supporting me. "I regretted not bringing you here before."
Still beaming with joy while inhaling the salty air coming from the sea, I said, "Stop looking back at the past, will you? It's becoming irritating in my ears. For a whole year, show me everything you want to show me." Before I left the palace with my little pumpkin, I did not want to regret anything.
Maxxwell chuckled. "There are still a lot of beautiful places the kingdom could offer. We are still starting, my Queen. When our child comes out, I will bring the two of you to magnificent falls and temples. You will love them. I hope, for once, I bring you happiness, my Queen." His voice cracked in the end.
Scowling, I tilted my head and saw his eyes watered while looking below. But his eyes were smiling.
"Why are you happy, Maxxwell?"
"It's because you are slightly opening your heart to me."
"Am I?"
"You will not ruin my mood by that answer, my Queen."
"The next time we return, it will be the three of us here. Me. You. And Quinn."
"Quinn?"
"The name of our child. I want to call him Quinn. Prince Quinn. My successor. The heir to the throne of the kingdom of Vernice."