HARLEIGH'S POV:
"I, Alpha Lance Grant, of the Dunebourne Pack, choose you, Harleigh Hale, to be my mate and my future Luna."
"If you accept me, I promise to stand by you in any situation, and to choose you over everything else, even when things get hard. I'll love you and protect you unconditionally and for as long as you'll let me."
His words feel as if they're only spoken yesterday. They continue to echo in my ears like a mantra that'll never stop.
And I'm all for it…
"Too excited that you can't stop giggling?" Aiko asks, her brows lifting as she watches me in front of the mirror.
I nod sheepishly.
"Well, dream or not, you're glowing like you already won the moon goddess' favor," she chuckles.
She then opens a small velvet box with a ruby necklace inside. "I worked my a.ss off to save my salary and give this to you. I know it doesn't look as elegant as the dress our Alpha and Luna bought for you, but I hope you..."
I turn my neck slightly, gesturing for her to put it on me.
And she does excitedly.
Aiko has always been a good friend of mine. When I became Alpha Lance's mate, I chose her to be my personal attendant and companion, which makes my younger sister, Harper, a little jealous.
"Thank you," I whisper, touching the ruby resting against my collarbone. "It's beautiful."
"You deserve it," she replies.
Suddenly,...
Harper appears at the door, her smile fading as she hides her gift behind her.
The tension between her and Aiko becomes palpable, and I can't find a word to alleviate it.
Luckily, Aiko gives way, "I'll leave now, so you and your sister can…"
But,...
Harper storms away before Aiko can even finish.
"Sorry about that. She's still young, and can't accept seeing me close with other she-wolves aside from her," I say.
"Don't worry. I understand," she replies.
Aiko stays with me for a moment, but is forced to excuse herself when her phone rings.
A few minutes later, she sends me a text message, saying that she can't come back to the room and will just wait for me at the Grand Hall.
I try to relax my nerves as two female Deltas, the hairdresser and the makeup artist, begin doing their magic on me.
Within an hour, voila! They're done.
I can't even recognize my own reflection on the mirror as they did an amazing job making me look pretty.
The dress embraces my figure, and the veil falls behind my shoulders and back so perfectly.
The reality hasn't fully sunk in yet that today, I'll be marrying my mate, my first and only love, Alpha Lance.
It feels unreal how my situation turns around unexpectedly.
About a decade and a half ago, Harper and I were almost killed during the Ambush of our original pack, the Shadowfang. Our pack was betrayed and wiped out by others who are envious and cruel.
I still remember hiding in a cabinet with Harper, while our parents fought to protect us until they were slain.
But then,...
Alpha Philip, Lance's father, came, saved us and took us in.
No one in the Dunebourne Pack knows our true bloodline except him and Luna Lavinia. We have to pretend that we're orphans, daughters of an unimportant Dunebourne Omega couple, who died from cholera.
To avoid suspicion, we always dye our black hair to look like we belong to the rest of them; mine is chestnut, while Harper's is dirty blonde.
But we can't hide forever. Once we wolf out and our black instead of brown fur shows, everything will be exposed.
This is why Alpha Philip and Luna Lavinia urgently arranged my marriage to Lance after I turned eighteen a few days ago. They believe this will solve our problem: no one would dare harm us, and the rest of the pack would be forced to just accept and respect their decisions.
I only hope… their plan will truly work.
Knock. Knock.
Alpha Philip enters the room with a warm smile, pulling me away from my thoughts. "Are you ready, Harleigh?"
I nod, smiling back.
I take his arm as he guides me down his mansion toward the towering columns of the Dunebourne's Great Hall.
My veil trails behind me, brushing softly against the white sand that surrounds the golden aisle. Everyone turns to look with pride and joy, yet my heart sinks when I notice Alpha Lance is not yet here.
Alpha Philip's arm stiffen under my hand, and his jaw clenches as he scans the hall.
Then the pack's Chief Beta, Aiko's father, rushes forward and whispers with urgency, "We've been calling Alpha Lance, but he's not picking up his phone."
Fear grips me like a vice.
What if something bad happened to him?! What if an enemy sneaked into our territory and kidnapped him?! Or worse…
I stop myself, shaking off the apprehensive thought before it swallows me.
"Don't worry. He'll be here," Alpha Philip says, though his coffee-colored eyes betray his calm words.
Luna Lavinia leads me to sit beside her, while the Betas and Gammas scatter to search for him.
Then,...
My wolf painfully and sharply growls from within, prompting me to clutch my chest and to cover my ear.
No, I can't wolf out now! Not yet!
Ever since I turned eighteen, I started sensing my wolf. I don't know how long I can hold on until it comes out and takes over my human form. But I gotta fight it until I'm officially married to Alpha Lance!
Beep!
A text message from Alpha Lance appears on my phone's screen.
-[Sorry I'm not there yet. I've been busy preparing a special surprise for you since last night. I'm in my apartment. Come, check it alone, please?]-
I type back, [Can you show that to me after the wedding? Everyone is waiting, and your dad is so worried.]
But, there's no reply.
I call him, still he's not answering, forcing me to finally rise from my seat.
"Where are you going?" Luna Lavinia asks.
"I forgot something. I'll be back real quick."
I leave the Great Hall and rush toward Alpha Lance's apartment, which is a few streets away.
I'm panting as I press my finger against the biometric lock on his door.
When the door clicks open, the special surprise he's boasting about chills my blood and freezes me in place.
He's on top of a woman, thrusting himself inside of her. And the woman isn't just anyone, it's Aiko Lockhart!
They're moaning pleasurably, while the sofa creaks with every unified, hard thrust of their hips.
Through Aiko's half-closed eyes, she finally notices me standing by the door. But instead of stopping, she wraps her legs tighter around him and gasps, "Ahh! Harder! Faster! Deeper!"
How could she act like a genuine friend in front of me, while stabbing me behind my back?!
Pain and fury explode through my throat as a ferocious growl, forcing them to finally stop and crawl away from each other.
Aiko slowly covers herself with her ripped dress, while flashing a mischievous smirk.
Meanwhile, Lance's eyes are wide with disbelief, and his face is pale with shame, as if he's not expecting me to be here at all.
I get it now. It's Aiko who sent the text message to me using his number. Aiko wants me to see this before I shackle myself to him.
I'm not sure if that's something I should be thankful for or not.
"Harleigh… I-uh-I can explain," he stammers, reaching out as if his words could undo what I just saw.
"How could you stomach telling me sweet words each time we're together when you're not even faithful to our mate-bond?!" I shout, my voice and entire body trembling. "You should've told me sooner instead of waiting for this day to come! What did I do to deserve your lies and false promises?! Why do you have to hurt me like this?!"
Without the slightest resistance, I finally allow my wolf to come out.
Black fur bursts through my skin, and my bones crack as my form twists and reshapes.
I bare my canines at them, every inch of me burning with the desire to kill them even if it means I'll be punished with a death sentence by the pack's officials.
However,...
Instead of wolfing out too to defend themselves, they just gawk at me with confused faces.
"How come you're a black wolf?" Aiko points out.
I get scared for a moment.
But,..
I realize that I shouldn't care anymore if everyone finds out that I'm a Shadowfang wolf!
I hurl the Dunebourn badge with the sand timer sigil and the ruby necklace Aiko gave me to the floor, and spit on them.
It's time that Harper and I be ourselves and leave this pack after I kill these two!