He knew he shouldn’t have brought the Omega home. Seeing his mother with her grin only made his stomach clench but he had no choice. He would have ended up like his brother had he disobeyed. But each smile the Omega had only forced him to push him further away before he unlocked that part of himself he’d swore he’d never be again. It was cruel what he was forced to do with him but in this world, there was eat or be eaten. His only freedom would come from his mother’s success. And as the only child left, all pressure fell onto him.

And the heaviest weight on top of all of this? The Omega’s scent, a mixture of amber and honey. That first day he had seen him there in the Spring Court, it had taken every part of his being to control himself. He’d never felt such a longing before. He spent the first night in Spring doing what he could to suppress his Alpha desires. Damn it! The fucking Omega wasn’t meant for him! 

No matter where he put the Omega, he could smell him and it tortured him. But he held strong. For so long, he had reduced himself to his mother’s perfect son and her Crown Prince. He did everything she asked, he became the cold-blooded killer she wanted him to be. All because he had hidden his heart behind a cold block of ice. And yet, Phoenix was nothing more than a burning flame to his ice wall. He had to stay far away from him. He would get his brother peace by ruining his mother’s plans and he couldn’t allow himself to bond with the Omega, whether emotionally or not. 

So, he did what he was told and brought him here to the palace. And the Queen didn’t make his life any easier. He would have been perfectly fine with doing border patrol for weeks if it meant staying away from the Omega but she knew and must have been excited over the idea of giving him no breathing room. Take him to and from his room to wherever next he was supposed to do. Endless training and tutoring, as if he were a true Winter princess. He almost felt bad for him if it wasn’t for the fact that the Omega was illiterate and ignorant of the world he lived in. King Midas had been nothing but cruel in keeping Phoenix under his thumb. All for this stupid plan. 

He stood in the shadows of the stables, leaning back against the archway with his arms crossed as he watched Phoenix bond with a Chepi. It was probably the first time he had seen a genuine smile on Phoenix’s face and the warmth that spread through his chest had him turning and walking away. The nights spent in Phoenix’s room, surrounded by his scent was his own sort of torture but he took it in stride. It was the challenge he needed to better his control and devotion to stay on course. He looked over reports while Phoenix slept and only took short naps on the chaise lounge before he was up before dawn and out the door. He refused to allow himself to be caught up in temptation. 

He busied himself with his duties as Crown Prince. He sat in on Court affairs and even set up the schedule for the guards and training fields for the following weeks. He had been leaving one of these meetings when he heard some females giggling to each other outside the room. 

“-know! Terrible! I have no idea what the Prince sees in him! He stumbles through everything. He can’t even read! And he’s a prince?! Such a shame!”

The other giggled and Aspen stepped back into the shadows as they passed by the open doorway. “I’m sure his dance lessons today will be a riot! He has no sense of balance at all! It’s like he has two left feet!” More giggling and muffled words as they disappeared further down the corridor. 

Beneath him, frost crackled at his feet, making the marble floors crack and buckle. It was the only show of anger he had as he left the room. He went to the Dance Master and slyly asked how Phoenix was doing. He didn’t even protest when the poor male begged him to help Phoenix. It was probably the first thing he had done for the Omega that he felt good about. Even though the dance itself was a disaster, he managed to give Phoenix some dignity when he left the room that day. The gossip would immediately pass that the Prince hadn’t yelled at Phoenix or grown impatient with him. He couldn’t help the smirk of pride he held. He told himself he did all this for Phoenix to give him a better start in life when he was finally free of this tyranny and chose his own path.

Leading Phoenix back to his room, he hadn’t realized he had been distracted until he heard the sound of voices ahead. And he knew the familiar voice of Volcan, one of the Queen’s blood thirsty captains. He had no intention of bringing him around Phoenix. He felt the Omega walk into his back and as a natural reaction, he swung an arm out and pushed him back against the wall behind him. They must have just come from the barracks. He listened intently.

“Jynx returned yesterday from Autumn. Apparently the Autumn Queen herself is coming here.”