Chapter 5

“My god, you are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen,” Lena, my dressmaker comments as she looks me up and down from head to toe.

“Cut the crap, Lena, I know you tell that to all of your customers,” I retort, giving her an amused face.

She shakes her head at me in disbelief. “I’m gonna miss your witty remarks, child.” Fixing my dress, she caresses my curly hair and pins them from the side. “You look just like your mother when she married Alpha Robert. I have no doubt you’ll have a wonderful marriage as well.”

“That was a different time,” I reply, my face looking grim. “My parents both love each other when they married. But all I feel for Alpha Blake is hate and disgust.”

“You might loathe him but you won’t be able to resist your wolf any longer.”

“He’s our enemy. I doubt he has love for a stranger like me. I’m just another Alpha’s daughter who happens to be his mate.”

“But you are different. Something tells me he can see that. Besides, it isn’t hard to love a beautiful girl like you. You have a very pretty face and sexy figure, dear Scarlet. Use it to your advantage. Make him beg for it.”

I look at myself in the mirror, thinking about her words. Wearing a white wedding gown feels a bit overwhelming. I don’t think I’ve ever thought about wearing something as fancy as this in the near future. I’ve wanted to meet young werewolves my age. But instead, I’m taken away by my mate at first sight.

My red long hair flows down in waves and I can see Lena braiding them from behind. With my blue eyes and fair skin, I can see the perfect resemblance between me and my mother. Despite our similarities, we have a totally different personality. She is righteously kind and perfectly decent.

Meanwhile, I’m chaotic and what they usually call... a beautiful mess. They say I bloom like a red rose with thorns underneath me, untouched and uncontrolled by anyone.

Honestly, I like the sound of that.

Just at that moment, the door opens and my mother walks in with a smile on her face.

“You look gorgeous,” she greets with bright eyes. Lena bows down before her before finally leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

I roll my eyes at my mother who’s now looking at me with close inspection, looking at my dress and my make up. It feels like I’m being sold for an auction. In this case, however, I’ve already sold my body and soul to the devil himself. Alpha Blake has requested my presence today and I can’t be any sadder than I already am. Soon, I will be traveling far north. I will be leaving my family. My pack. My home. If it weren’t for peace, I would’ve run away. Far from here. But neither I nor my parents have a say in this.

They are even willing to dress me up nicely and make myself look pretty all in the Alpha’s favor.

I know everyone feels sorry for me. I feel sorry for myself too. But being Alpha Blake’s mate is probably the worst kind of fate anyone can have. I wonder what it’s like to be in his home. Some say he has conquered big packs. That he owns a lot of gold and has thousands of werewolves under his leadership. He must be such a busy Alpha with all those riches and territories.

“Scarlet, are you listening?” my mother’s voice comes chiming in inside my head.

“Y-Yes,” I answer, coming back to reality.

“Really? What did I say?” she asks, putting a hand on her hips with a raised eyebrow.

“Um...”

She sighs. “Can you please listen to me? You’ll be married today and I want this day to be special for you.”

“How can it be special when I’m being married to him?” I retort.

“Don’t say that. He’s an Alpha. The strongest, richest Alpha there is. He can protect you more than anyone.”

“But will he take care of me?”

“Of course, he will. He’s your mate.”

“I didn’t ask to be his mate,” I huff. Just because we’re mates, it doesn’t guarantee he will take care of me. How can my parents trust me, their only daughter, to the likes of him?

“Neither did I,” my mother answers, deep in thought. “But the moon goddess has her own ways of playing with our fates. Sometimes she sends troubles our way and sometimes we overcome them. But you... You are very brave and courageous to speak up to Alpha Blake. We all saw it and because of that, we are saved. You have a long way ahead of you, sweetheart, and I don’t want you to think this is the end.”

I look at my mother and see her eyes are teary. She looks very happy for me despite her words of wisdom that are filled with sadness. I take a deep breath, feeling my heaving chest. It feels like it’s getting too much and I can barely even hold it all up. I finally break down crying and my mother hugs me, giving me comfort.

“I-I don’t know what to do,” I sniff, hugging her back.

“I know, sweetheart,” she murmurs, kissing my hair. “I know.”

With teary eyes, I look up at her with wet cheeks. “Will it ever get better?” I ask weakly.

“Of course, sweetheart.”

“Do you promise?”

“I promise.”

A knock on the door interrupts our moment. My mother and I turn to see the door opening. Lena peeks inside, giving us a worried look. “I’m sorry for interrupting, Luna and dear Scarlet, but Alpha Robert says it’s time to go.”