Her Surprise

Zion's P.O.V.

I watched as Rain's mother pulled all of the ingredients for the cloaking spell from her bag, placing them on the kitchen table while Rain was still in our room getting dressed. When Rain finished getting dressed, she came out of our room to see her mother and me talking. She looked at both of us and then at the table with confusion before asking what was happening. Lady Ezmerelda explained what was happening and what the ingredients on the table would be used for.

"This was your plan?" She asked me as she realized what was happening.

"I know being in this suite is getting to you, so Ryker and I thought it would be good for you to get out for a bit," I tell her.

"Thank you, my love!" She says as tears begin to fall from her eyes. I rush to her side, wrapping my arms around her shoulders, letting her cry into my chest, soaking my shirt while I rub circles on her back until she calms down.

"You don't have to thank me, my Queen. I love you and will always have your best interest at heart. I will always be there to protect you and support you no matter what. You, Odett, and these twins are my number one priority, and the Kingdom is a close second, of course." I say with a laugh. "You and our kids are my blessings from the Goddesses."

"I love you too." She says with a smile as she places her hand on my chest before looking at her mother. "So, how do we do this cloaking spell?"

I leave Rain and her mother to work on their magic as I enter our bedroom and change into a clean outfit for our date. After checking to ensure I look good enough for my mate but also not so good that I don't look like I'm mourning her loss to the others. The last thing I need is for them to think that I don't miss her because that would make them question everything.

"I can't wait for this to be over," Ryker tells me.

"I know, but we need to hold out a little longer. The pups are growing so fast that Doctor Jameson thinks it will be safe for her to have them soon." I tell him. Neither of us likes it, but we know she will want to re-emerge once she has the pups. "She'll want to return to being the Queen publicly as soon as possible. That's what we had to agree to so that she would go along with our plan, and I have no intention of keeping her locked away after the birth of the twins."

"I doubt we could stop her even if we wanted to. She has become a force to be reckoned with. Remember, she can even use an Alpha command on you." He retorts.

"Us!" I remind him.

"She would never need to command me because I'll support her and submit to anything she wants in a heartbeat." He says with a laugh. I swear if he wasn't my wolf, I would strangle him.

I check over my appearance one last time in the mirror, and when I'm satisfied, I leave our room. I walk into the living room to find my mate and her mother sitting on the couch, talking about the twins and Odett. Rain hasn't been able to see Odett much lately since she's spent most of her time sleeping while Odett spent a lot of time training or playing with the other pups. Rain's mother has been helping to keep Odett occupied when she wants to see her mother. She knows we must keep her mother's survival from the poisoning a secret, so she's been good at keeping the talk about everything with anyone outside of the castle to a minimum.

"Is everything done?" I ask them as I sit beside my mate.

"Yes, all that's left is to smudge her, and then she will appear invisible to everyone but you since you are bonded to her." Lady Ezmerelda explains.

"That's perfect. I would hate being unable to find my mate while on our date." I joke, making them both laugh. Goddess, her laugh is perfect. I grab her hand, bring it to my lips, and place a kiss on her knuckles, making her smile up at me. "Are you ready?"

"Are you still not telling me where we're going?" She asks, and I shake my head in response, earning a pout from her before she huffs and then smiles. "Okay."

"Is Dosha awake?" I ask her.

"No, she's been asleep for a few days now. She deserves the rest." She answers, and Ryker whimpers a little.

"I'll be okay. I'm sure she'll be back to normal after the twins are here." I say, trying my best to console both Rain and Ryker.

"Doctor Jameson says she's most likely trying to store up as much energy as she can to help with the delivery of the twins." She says.

"It makes sense," I say with a nod.

"She will be needed during the delivery since they are not only Alpha pups but hybrids as well." Lady Ezmerelda says. I had almost forgotten that she had experienced the birth of a hybrid/Alpha pup.

"How did you get through it without the presence of a wolf?" Rain asks her.

"It wasn't easy, but I had my magic, as well as your father and his wolf Syther, by my side to help me." She answers.

I was thankful that Rain would have not only Dosha and her magic but myself and Ryker by her side as well. As excited as I am to meet the twins and hold them in my arms, I'm also nervous about what my perfect mate will have to go through during labor and delivery so that she can bring them into this world. I would be forever grateful to her for bringing our little Princess Odett into my life, and now she was giving me twin pups as well.

I received a link from Orian and Jess, letting me know that everything was ready and that my Jeep is waiting in the garage for us with the newly tinted windows just in case the cloaking spell fades before we can return. I was also grateful to our Betas for understanding their Queen's needs and my request. I thanked them and closed the link before standing and holding my hand out to Rain to help her off the couch.

"Are you ready for our date, my love?" I ask as she stands with my help before placing her other hand on her growing belly.

"Yup, now I just have to use the smudge stick and recite the incantation, and we can leave." She says before taking the stick, her mother offers to her and lights it.

"This won't affect me, will it?" I ask them.

"No, this is specifically for Rain and the pups." Her mother answers, and I nod in appreciation.

"Wait, did she say pups?" Ryker asks me.

"Pups?" I ask her with a look of confusion.

"Yes, they would be able to hear the heartbeats if they tried hard enough. We had to modify the spell to cloak their heartbeats as well. And once Rain has them, it can be used to cloak them." She explains.

"Thank you for the explanation," I say, and she gives me a warm smile in return.

"We can't very well have the King go missing too." She says with amusement.

"Hopefully, we will have our Queen back soon as well," I say, and she nods in agreement.

"I'm ready, my love." Rain says as she joins in on our conversation.

"Good timing, our ride is waiting for us," I say and laugh when she gives me a look of confusion.

"We're leaving the castle?" She asks me.

"It's a surprise. Shall we get going, my Queen?" I respond with my own question as I reach out my hand and wait for her to take it before we leave our suite. I can tell she is curious and slightly nervous about where I'm taking her.

"Do something to calm her nerves," Ryker tells me. I swear he's become increasingly on edge since Dosha has been sleeping more often.

"Do you trust me?" I ask her and can feel her shock through the bond at my question, which only makes her more nervous.

"I said to calm her nerves, not make them worse, you idiot!" He roars.

"I'm trying to calm her, you mut!" I growl back at him before turning to my mate and pulling her into my arms. "My love, I need you to trust that you will be safe with me."

"I trust you, Zion. I'm just scared. I don't want to risk our plan being exposed." She says as she wraps her arms around my waist.

"Everything will be fine. I promise." I tell her as I kiss her forehead.