Alpha's Wrong Bride: Seraphine

te'

l marr

that-like it was as instinctive as ordering

im of my glass, letting the silence hang

if I

ed, cold. Predator in a suit. "You w

and acidic. "She

n't m

oes t

as smooth as rocks over marble. "We don'

gy passed from teeth to throat. My father was not a man.

n the table. Thick

ack at me as if she knew. As i

an," I

eplied, as innocent as s

ught his eye

. Legacy. Alliance. She's from a strong Alpha li

it. This was no wedding. This was a breeding plan. Cold wolf

he Dark Ages,

e. The Dark Ages end

always. Volmores nev

out, he hammered

Real wolves build empires. The

e was

osed to bind myself to in front of a pack of wolves who wore perfume a

asn't

s a l

already ga

-

crawl by, feel the weight of them pressing down. Forty-eight hours. Two day

w. It should be peaceful. The way everything looks when you'

tter under my b

s to run wild. Over the wolf that wants t

wolves - wolves who can't command, wolves who thi

nes. The pack. The empire. The Volmore name is

g, and it's s

A wife, a union, a life tied to another, bound by

gging my nails into th

the word slipping

that other world. The one I've buried deep. The

re's a small silver vial. A reminder of what happens whe

the vi

sn't even a choice. But sh

e in again. The hunge

waiting fo

-

ll moment, a kno

look up.

ith his usual s

d, his tone as neutr

oward the window, then I tu

uarters. She's

he kind of stillness that comes

ion the guards. No exit

ter," Eno

ll pick a size dress. I paused. Thought for a while, continued with a more

ch

, the command a little sharper. "We're not dragging this out.

ot runni

t flinch. "

how he knew. Enoch wa

oo

eptible gesture that tells me

eaves. The doo

ed behind him, I whi

she run

nswered with a qu

f she

-

glass, hands sunk deep in pockets, eyes tracing movement below. The estate looks like a kingdom o

egists. Wolves in wedding dresses. All preened and primed, waitin

't see t

resence. Heavy, contained.

r click

the

all dressed out. No tie. No softness. Only the

nothing

s standing over the window together, watching the

finally, low-pitched. Gravel

ng will see you gutted.

ess of this," he continues. "To

've got neith

omething that might be prid

e says, turning to face me

if something that was intended for

," he goes on. "You cho

s meeting his. "Di

he says. "You just

nce between u

t just a son. You're not just Alpha. You become the

od

my shoulder - heavy, quick- a

e cuff of m

almos

ing feel

d to a stop l

ery step hanging in front. I glanced at my own face in tinted g

ame

nto an excess cathedral - imported white marble pillars for the occasion, silk flags suspended between

orchestral, staged. Too beautiful to be

at the surface but not at my core. They did not desire Dante

en I s

lo family

ogant smile as if sewn on his face. Her mother held a silver purse h

ged cows in a marketplace. A legacy

ove

er, waiting for the pomp to begin. Every seat was filled by the powerful, the feared, the beautiful and brutal.

ing calm, the wolf within me coiled like a s

sic sh

sh of silence

was

within recognized that it

de was

od so quiet. Not even

white-gold light from stained glass. Music wafted through the air-an ele

to shatter a bone. I stood at the altar, j

th

ente

br

like a ghost trying to betractive. Her step was practiced, lovely, the

tep forward, my stomach respond

g was no

ne stuff, but too transpar

a l

eno

t did n

ecoi

s not

. Each step she took closer cau

s. Not the same mouth slant. The picture in the file was sti

o

asn'

ven c

he occasion. But then I saw them-Stella's parents. Front row S

am with pride. They s

nt, that unmistakable, unavoidab

me wasn't Ste

't even

as h

ma

e, twice, harder and harder. A growl rumbled at the back

is t