Alpha's Secret Bride-Chapter 84: The Mate They Cannot Take

"Hi," a he-wolf waved at Emma and smiled as soon as she stood in the doorway. His face carried the unfamiliar scent of a stray from a distant pack, so she guessed he was one of the wolves Lunara had stationed here when she left. The visitor’s administrator had never announced that two wolves had come seeking an audience. However, his words stirred her instincts and threw her off guard.

"It’s good to finally see you, Emma," he grinned, walking towards her with the confidence of one on a mission, stretching his hands for a handshake. Her wolf bristled immediately because it was obvious—he had come with purpose. He couldn’t even allow her to cross into the sitting chamber before attempting to assert his presence so desperately. She ignored his outstretched hand and turned her gaze to father, who gave her a do-you-not-recognize-him kind of stare.

"Have we met?"

"Emma! I can’t believe you have forgotten me!" He said happily, his wolf aura flickering, and she frowned. She snapped her fingers sharply at the two guards stationed at the main entrance. At once, they stepped forward, their boots echoing dominance.

"Please, throw him out!"

"Emma, wait, let me introduce myself. I know you must have forgotten, and I don’t blame you because it’s really been a long time."

"No! When you return to your pack, use a glass of water and wash whatever lies you came to spill down your throat! I don’t want to hear it. Now, get out!" She barked, her Alpha command slicing through the air as she stepped away from the doorway.

"Emma, I...am..."

"Out!" She cut him off. Teddy gestured, and the guards escorted him swiftly out. She turned her face, her gaze turning sharp and predatory as she stared at father, wondering when he would finally stop playing these, pupish games. She was no longer that naive she-wolf with a clouded mind.

"It takes you five hours, ten minutes, and fifty-four seconds to attend to your guests now?" Her father bellowed, his Alpha tone laced with rage. She ignored him and sank into a chair with calm authority. Lunara was nowhere beside him—perhaps the wait had drained her patience, and she fled.

"Why did you strike Lunara?" He roared, and she smirked, her wolf amused.

"Your she-wolf, Lunara Greens, is nothing but a servant in this pack estate, Alpha Daniel," she replied coldly, "and I will keep teaching her how to serve properly."

"Will you shut your foolish mouth?" He shot up, roaring. "She is the future High Luna! The Alpha King and Queen Luna have already accepted her as the prince’s destined mate! You are nothing but a failure. None of your schemes have ever succeeded, and this latest cruel attempt will fail as well! Neither you nor your cursed moon-bound schemes can break a mating bond! You cannot stop them!!" He thundered, slamming his palm against the side table.

"I’m surprised you didn’t ask why I never sent her away," she replied smoothly. "Well, here is your answer—she will serve me and my starlit mate for the rest of her miserable existence."

"Oh...so it is revenge?" he sneered. "You stole your sibling’s fated mate to repay us? To repay us for saving you when your mother—nothing but a wandering she-wolf—abandoned you and fled back to Belarus?"

"I didn’t steal Brandon," she grinned, her wolf calm. "You handed me over to him."

"I did not, you shameless liar!"

Their heads turned as Mr. Richard stepped into the sitting chamber, his presence calm yet commanding. He greeted her father with a polite wave and a composed smile, but father turned his face away with clear disdain.

"I heard raised voices. I hope everything is in order, Alpha’s mate?"

"Everything is fine," she nodded.

"I will be in the Alpha’s hearth," he said warmly. "I intend to prepare a special meal for you and your mate. It has been many moons since he last tasted my cooking."

"I look forward to it, this moon-fall," she smiled faintly. "Do you know him?"

He glanced at her father and then back at him.

"He is your father," he said gently. "Of course, I know him. I met him the day I arrived at your pack-house."

"Alright," she said, watching him leave before shifting her gaze back to father, her expression hardening once more.

"When will you release your sibling’s fated mate? Their mating ceremony is set for the next full moon."

"I am not living with her fated mate," she replied calmly, her lips curling slightly as she caught her mate’s familiar, soothing voice drifting down from the stairs. He was engaged in a device conversation, his tone low and controlled.

"Emma, why have you become so cruel?"

"The father who cast me out of the pack house gifted to me by the Prince on my birth moon cycle—and sold me to a stranger—now asks why I am cruel?"

"You are a dev!l!" he spat. "I gave you twenty-four hours to leave Prince Brandon for your younger sibling. If you refuse, a storm will rise! There will be no peace in your false mating bond until you stay away from Lunara’s mate! They were destined for each other! My she-wolf knows what must be done, but I have been the one restraining her."

"Then I suppose she failed to tell you that I met him first."

"You rejected him before our father!" Lunara’s voice rang out sharply as she appeared at the doorway, her eyes blazing. "I accepted him! I defended him! I declared before my father that he was my moonmate!"

"And what did you say before Brandon’s father?" Emma countered coolly. "When he asked what you desired...what answer did you give?"

"I was just twelve!"

"Yeah, and I was thirty-one the day Oliver Brandon came to our pack house, right? You will remain his sibling forever!"

She stood up after reading a message that flashed across her device and began to walk towards the door, her wolf already alert. Lunara, who stood in the doorway, immediately stepped aside, instinctively yielding. She knew Emma would not hesitate to shove her aside before their father if she dared block her path.

She remained there, watching her retreating figure as Emma climbed the stairs swiftly, drawn toward her mate’s presence. He stood just outside her bedchamber door, his aura heavy. The moment she approached, he slid his hand around her waist, pulling her closer. His wolf felt unsettled—his brows drawn tight with worry—and it stirred her curiosity. The door unlocked at her touch on the scanner, and she gestured him inside.

He dropped onto the bed, exhaustion weighing down his limbs, and she began to undress him slowly, starting with his shoes. Her fingers moved with care, but her eyes searched his face, trying to read the storm within him. She failed. Soon, she left him in only a singlet and thong and carried the rest of his clothes to her laundry chamber. Returning, she sat on one of the chairs in her chamber and tapped the intercom.

"Bernard, tell Paige I want to see her now."

"Alright."

Silence stretched between them, thick and unspoken, their wolves watching each other cautiously.

"My moonblessed one...come to me," he called softly, his voice mirroring the tension in his eyes.

"Will you tell me why you are worried?" she asked.

He nodded and curled his fingers, beckoning her. She climbed onto the bed and settled firmly over his loins, her hands moving to massage him, easing the tension from his body.

"I remember a few winters ago when you refused to massage me at Silver Muscle Haven," he said with a faint grin. "Well, it wasn’t my fault. Some he-wolves claimed they were Oliver."

"You never give wolves the chance to explain themselves, and I do not like it," he murmured, locking eyes with her. She lowered her gaze, knowing exactly who he referred to—the stranger her father had brought.

"But today, after listening to a he-wolf your pack-kins hired to impersonate your first love, I regret even letting him speak. I should have ignored him like you did," he added weakly.

She let out a soft laugh, her curiosity deepening.

"What happened?"

"I saw him struggling with one of the guards when we stopped at the parking lot. I called him over to find out what the issue was."

"What did he tell you?"

"He said he wanted to speak with you, but you drove him out...didn’t even allow him a word."

"Of course I did! I don’t know him, and his scent was off. Did he even tell you who he was?" she asked, raising a brow. Brandon fell silent, his gaze fixed deeply on her. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Yes," he muttered, then paused again, his wolf hesitating.

She resisted the urge to force the answer from him, though impatience flickered beneath her skin.

"What did he say?"

"He claimed...he was the random he-wolf you shared a night with in Springfield Territory nine years ago," he said slowly, his face twisting into something between disbelief and amusement.

Her expression broke instantly into laughter. He rolled with her, gripping her waist tightly as their laughter echoed through the chamber.

"You have been summoned by the Council of Kingdom Elders," he said quietly behind her once the laughter faded. "The highest ruling council of the Kingdom. You are to stand before the High Fang Regent, the Keepers of the Moon Seal, and the senior pack wardens."

Realization dawned, and she finally understood the source of his worry. She turned to face him, her expression calm, steady.

"You are not going."

"Why?"

"Because they already stand with your sibling. Their verdict is decided before hearing you. There is no point walking into a den where judgment is already sealed."

"They stand with her because they haven’t heard my side," she replied evenly.

"These elders do not understand love. All they care about is tradition and the stability of the Kingdom. They will sacrifice your happiness without hesitation. My moonblessed one...you will not answer that summons."

She knew persuading him would not be easy. The last time she reassured him—before visiting the royal den the previous Sun-cycle—he had trusted her completely, unaware she had even considered leaving him.

She leaned forward and pressed her lips gently against his. He responded with a softness that revealed his vulnerability, and she wished he could feel the certainty burning within her instead.

She slowly pulled away when the intercom light blinked. Bernard’s signal. Paige had arrived. She rose quickly, retrieved the door device, and granted access.

"Prepare our bathing water," she instructed.

Paige curtsied respectfully and moved toward the bathchamber.

Emma returned to the bed, settling beside her mate once more.

"Do you still want to know why I’m worried?" he asked.

Her heart skipped. She had thought he had revealed everything—but clearly, he hadn’t.