Chapter 2

My father didn’t waste much time; as soon as we arrived in the North Pole, he urged me to enter the cabin of our Alpha, even though he wasn’t there to welcome us.

“Dad, wouldn’t it be better if we waited outside?”

I looked around, admiring the snow that fell continuously and slowly. All I could see was white and blue sky; it was still daytime, but soon the night would fall, dense and lasting. Dawn would take a while to come at this time of year.

“It’s freezing quickly; I fear you might get sick.”

I looked at him, unable to hold back a genuine smile. He called me, and I approached. His expression pleased me because I had never seen it on his face before; he always showed me a deep hardness, along with immense personal dissatisfaction.

“Go in; I’ll stay outside. Don’t worry about anything else, Luna.”

He adjusted my warm cloak, a high-quality fabric traditionally used by the old royalty. For the first time, his eyes sought mine suddenly, vividly, as if he was truly seeing me. My heart overflowed with so much joy that I just obeyed. After saying goodbye to him, knowing he would wait for my future husband to negotiate the marriage better, I climbed those three steps with great confidence.

Before opening the rustic wooden door, I gave one last glance at my elder, offering a sweet smile. He smiled back, sighed deeply, and encouraged me to proceed. I turned, brushing the remaining snow off my travel boots, the ones I used for extreme cold.

His quarters were comfortable, warm, and very masculine. There wasn’t a feminine touch like a flower vase on the coffee table, or the lavender scent that young women like to spray around. However, he seemed to be a strictly organized person, which pleased me. I sighed thoughtfully while hearing the sound of the car engine being turned off from behind the door. I didn’t try to turn around; I knew my father would speak on my behalf before I said anything.

I quickly heard them talking.

“Alright, the delivery has been made. Do what needs to be done; do I have your word?” my patriarch said dryly and to the point, making me flinch at the sudden change in his mood.

“Yes,” Lucien replied curtly.

“But…”

Impulsively, I turned around, furious and deeply hurt by this sad realization. “Was my father going to deliver me as if I were mere merchandise?”

I gathered the rest of my dignity to leave that place, but as I headed for the exit, a wall of muscle intercepted me. Lucien was very tall, and considerably broad and spacious. His presence was intimidating, frightening to any small creature.

But I stared at him, pulling away from that warm mass of flesh. I faced him directly, crossing my arms over my chest when I noticed his indiscreet gaze. He arrogantly twisted his mouth to the side before speaking.

“Your family left you here with me,” he stated the reality of my fate.

“And you accepted willingly,” I retorted, seeing his serious expression closely observing my lips.

“You accepted me first; if you hadn’t, you wouldn’t be in my house. You’d be with your own, in that archaic tribe.”

The alpha’s voice was deep, and carried a certain dominance in its tone. It seemed to come naturally to him, as he made no effort to show his inherent authority.

“Take me back.”

Even though I was trembling inside, I kept my voice firm.

“I can’t. We have formally committed. Besides, we’re married.”

“What?”

I tried to pass by that shield again, but his hand firmly grasped my wrist, stopping me once more. I breathed heavily, nervous about how everything had happened so suddenly.

“Don’t worry; I accepted you with another purpose. I have no sexual intentions with you.”

This time, showing that I was shaken by the situation, I gave in to the fear. Trembling, I looked at his rugged face, feeling his strong arm pulling me into his embrace. I had never been so close to a man, and it brought me a strong feeling of… affection for him.

It was automatic, instinctive. Uncontrollable.

“I want… to return to my family, Lucien.” My lips trembled along with my verbal intonation.

Anger erupted on that harsh face.

“Which family?! The ones who abandoned you here! That damned family?!” He raised one eyebrow, as if challenging me to defend them.

“Yeah…” I tilted my chin in a hostile manner.

“Masochist…”

“No!” I shouted, extremely angry.

I tried to leave, but he was much stronger than me, even though he wasn’t using a fraction of his full alpha strength.

“Listen here, Layla, I chose this marriage because I understood your side of this whole story.”

“My side? What are you talking about?”

His grip loosened, so I gradually freed myself from him.

“The oppressive side; they never loved you and they never will.”

I pulled away, twisted by the raw truth being dumped by a still-unknown being. I had always known of his ancient existence, but it didn’t change the fact that his presence was a mystery to me.

“What am I doing here, Lucien? I mean in this cruel world.” I sobbed, still restrained.

“There must be a reason.”

He sighed and fixed a strand of my blonde hair that kept straying from its place.

“I was born defective; do you really want a defective she-wolf who can’t even transform?”

His eyes didn’t leave me despite hearing such an offense. A she-wolf given in marriage to an alpha should be perfect. Without blemishes or flaws.

“I don’t care about any of that; I’ve already said, I need your service for another matter.”

“And what would that be?” I asked, noticing a friendly glint in his gaze.

“You’ll find out soon, my… Luna.”

He brushed the backs of his fingers against my face, causing a stir in my innermost being. Lucien immediately sensed the scent of what seemed to be my excitement, bringing a flushed embarrassment to my cheeks. So much that I turned my face, completely ashamed.

Lucien slowly withdrew his touch, scrutinizing my reaction to this sudden attraction.

“Don’t worry about that either; even if you’re in heat, I won’t touch you. I won’t betray my beloved Lia,” he answered sadly, gradually moving away from his new partner.

“Understood.”

I sighed in disappointment and contentment, watching him enter another room while telling me to make myself comfortable, that this was my new home. However, I thought to myself how difficult it was to balance such emotions; after all, I had never felt a male touch before, so I felt somewhat out of control around this man. Out of the ordinary.

It seemed Lucien was a desirable male to my inner wolf, which was strange since I had never felt her emerge. Not even close to the surface. But she seemed to be connected in some way to this being. Now it remained to be seen if his inner wolf would feel the same, at least in the future. Would Lucien ever come to love me for who I am?