“Can I help you?” came a voice from beside me, and I almost jumped in surprise.
A woman was standing by the bookstore’s doorway, a few feet away from me. She had silver hair that looked flat and thin, like a grandma, but her skin was free of wrinkles. She must be in her mid to late twenties.
“Oh, no, I’m just looking while waiting for my fiancée,” I replied.
“Be careful with the book. It’s ancient.”
“Excuse me?”
The woman stared at her for a few more seconds before vanishing inside the store without a word.
“Rude,” I muttered under my breath as I leafed through the book again before slamming it close. I was about to place it back on the shelf when I noticed I was holding an old leather-bound volume. The embossed golden letters on the cover read: Grimoire. I let out a little shriek and dropped the item as if it burned me. “Ew, ew, ew!”
I wagged my hands in front of me as if getting rid of something revolting in my hands. What was a witch’s bible doing in a place like this?
“Becca, my sanitizer,” I commanded without thinking, holding out my hand beside me.
“Who are you talking to?” asked another voice. This time it came from under me, and I jumped back in surprise. A guy was squatting in front of me. He was holding the bible in one hand. He must’ve swooped in before it fell to the floor because I’m sure he wasn’t there before.
“What is wrong with you people?” I blurted out, about to lash out, but I could only gulp air when the guy straightened up and I realized how tall he was. He must be at least six feet in height. My neck hurt just by looking up at him, mouth agape. He reached out to touch my chin to close my mouth but he retracted his hand quickly as if he were burned.
“Ow!” I looked at him in alarm because I was sure I felt something when he touched me. It was like a bunch of pins pricking my skin. “You’re hot.”
I thought he felt it too, but seeing him smirk at me, I realized he was just being cheeky.
My heart jumped to my mouth when the guy thrust his hand toward me. I stared at his palm, cringing at how rough it looked.
“Jasper,” he said in that rich baritone voice of his, and I realized he was introducing himself. “But you can call me… ‘baby.’”
My cheeks burned a deep crimson color. I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to chastise him for his arrogance, but I appreciated the attention and the ego boost.
“Do you have a name, or can I just call you ‘mine?’” the guy continued with his cheesy pickup lines. I wanted to laugh but I put my hands on my hips instead, raised my eyebrows, and stuck my chin up in the air.
“Do these pickup lines ever work for you?” I haughtily asked. I stammered, but I schooled my expression in neutrality fairly quickly.
“I don’t know, you tell me,” the guy answered, placing the book on its shelf carefully before facing me again, crossing his arms on his broad chest and raking his eyes on my body. He didn’t even try to be subtle about it. He was cocky, and it was clear he liked what he was seeing. “D*mn. Where have you been all my life?”
Two could play this game.
I swallowed my embarrassment and studied the guy as well. Despite his goofiness, he was actually attractive. Beautiful tawny skin free from blemish and imperfections; shiny raven hair pulled into a messy man-bun; a pair of piercing, deep-set eyes, dark and bright at the same time; prominent cheekbones; an aquiline nose and a chiseled jaw. He was wearing a white shirt under a red-brown jacket, and brown work boots over a pair of dark denim jeans. He was carrying a small black plastic bag in his hand. The way he stood and carried himself—brimming with confidence and commanding presence—made him appear to be someone important, or at the very least someone who does modeling for a living.
I shuffled my feet unconsciously, and it reminded me of my current predicament. I bit my lower lip to stop myself from crying out.
“Did you get hurt?” questioned the guy, his demeanor changed from playful to consternation, his eyes filled with concern. He glanced at my feet. I shifted them again, this time with caution, but was still hit with searing pain. “How about you take a seat?”
I allowed him to guide me toward the bench. He smelled like jasmine, lemon, freshly cut grass, leather, and a scent I couldn’t place. He smelled so good. Jasper knelt in front of me, grasped my ankles with his big, warm hands, and removed my shoes. I hissed in pain.
“Sorry,” Jasper said.
My blisters were in worse condition than I thought. They all popped and were now bleeding. It was customary to have my new shoes broken in before I wear them to prevent things like these, but I was so excited to show them off, I didn’t let Becca touch them. My bad.
He rummaged in his plastic bag and produced a small package of cotton swabs, a bottle of iodine, alcohol, and a roll of bandage.
He just happened to have all of these things prior to meeting me? How convenient. Not creepy at all. /s
He placed my foot on his thigh and silently cleaned my wounds. I don’t usually allow people to touch me because, for one thing, it’s against the royal protocol. Two, I loathe being touched by people. But I couldn’t help but comply with this person. Perhaps because I didn’t feel violated at all. He was only trying to help me. His intention felt genuine.
I stared at the top of his head. It felt like I’d seen him before, but no matter how I wracked my brain, I just couldn’t remember.
“I know you haven’t told me your name yet,” the guy said as he wrapped a bandage around my foot. He’d already finished with the other one. He’s surprisingly good at it, I don’t feel pain or discomfort anymore. “But do you want to go out on a date?”
He’s so forward! His shit-eating grin, combined with his confidence and pretty face, and the honey-brown eyes which were quite appealing! It made me want to accept his invitation. It didn’t help that he was charming... in an exotic sort of way.
If only…
“It doesn’t have to be today if you’re working,” he said as he put his belongings back into his plastic bag after bandaging my foot. “Perhaps on your day off?”
“I’m not—”
“Is Princess Selina with you now? You work for her, right?”
“What?” I stared at Jasper incredulously. Was he mistaking me for Becca? Was he toying with me because he thought I was some naïve servant? Wait, if that’s what he thought, how did he know Becca? Was he a spy? A kidnapper? Just who was this guy?
“Jasper!” a shrilly, tiny voice called the guy’s name sharply from somewhere and both of us looked at the source.
A girl no older than thirteen was charging toward us like a bull. She was tan and had long raven hair tied to a side braid. She had the same eyes and prominent cheekbones as Jasper’s, but a rounder, softer face structure. It’s clear they’re related.
“What are you doing?” the girl asked, stopping in front of Jasper, exasperated. She grabbed the black plastic bag and looked inside. “What’s this? Why are all they open? You’re supposed to help me buy medicine, not flirt with anyone with a skirt!” She looked at me like my very existence disgusted her. “No offense.”
I gasped at her audacity, but before I could answer, the girl was already pulling on Jasper’s arm.
“Come on!”
“Maybe next time.” Jasper winked at me before turning away and hissing at the little girl. “You are such a c*ck-block.”
“And you’re a man-wh*re!” the girl shot back, firmly clutching the guy’s arm as they walked away. “Buck is hurt, I knew I couldn’t trust you to go on your own.”
“Where did you learn that word?”
“Internet, duh!”
“That’s it, no more cell phones AND Wi-Fi for you.”
“You can’t do that, you’re not mom or dad.”
They were still arguing before they disappeared in a corner.
My face felt hot, and I was still a little pink in the cheeks when Henry came back from the toilet.
“Hi, sorry for taking so long,” he said while wiping his hands with his blue hanky. “There was a line and… are you all right, Selina?”
“Can I ask you a question?” I asked instead of replying. “Do I look homely?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do I look incredibly dull? Unattractive? Would you recognize me as a princess if you didn’t know who I am and we passed each other on the street?”
“Uhm…”
“Or would you think I was a maidservant?” I was getting agitated and angry by the second. “Is it my clothes? Do I look shabby?”
In my kingdom, nobles weren’t allowed to wear flashy clothes and too much jewelry. We wore high quality clothes made by the best fashion designers in all of Terran, but we made sure they were simple and elegant. Were my clothes too simple? Was that the reason why that guy thought I was —
“What brought on these questions? Did something happen while I was gone?”
I did not answer. But that Jasper guy, he’s going to pay for his insolence.
____________
“Selina, I’d like you to meet Jade, president of the student council.” True to his word, Henry called his chauffeur to take us to the university. When we arrived, we stopped by the enormous wooden doors, by the bulletin board where a young woman was waiting. Henry excitedly approached her, both of them smiling and staring at each other for a few seconds before the king introduced us. I inspected the girl in front of me. She was pretty, looked a little older and was about Henry’s height. She was skinny, with a tawny, yellowish-brown complexion, clear brown eyes, an aquiline nose, high cheekbones, and full pink lips. Her jet-black hair was pulled in a hasty ponytail, and she was dressed casually in a university sweatshirt and dark skinny jeans. “Hi, it’s an honor to finally meet you, Princess Selina,” Jade said. She seemed friendly, but I could tell her smile was a little tight. “Henry told us so much about you.” “Did he?” I copied her tone. “All good things, I hope?” “Certainly. An
“Let us start the tour, shall we?” Henry took my hand in his and pushed his way to the front of the throng. Jasper and his younger sister stayed behind, quietly squabbling by the bulletin board. “Aldervolf University is one of the top universities in Volfenheim and in the world,” Jade was saying as we walked through halls and lecture rooms, museums, and other historic places inside the university. “It was home to the greatest scholars that ever lived, including Marion the Great, Lord Volfenheim’s first-born son and heir to the throne.” I was completely oblivious to the tour and the stories because I was too preoccupied with Henry, who had been holding my hand the entire time. He was listening to Jade intently, but he often smiled at me and asked if I was okay. He also introduced me to other students as his fiancée. It almost made every sacrifice and every pain worthwhile. Almost. “The University of Aldervolf’s mission and core values,” Jade continued, stopping at the center of the
“What about you?” I turned to see Julian walking towards me. He was scowling and was still red in the face. Humiliation and anger do that to people. When I looked over behind him, I saw the entire tour group was watching us. “You’re the future empress, but you look like you’re clueless about it, like the rest of us.” “Of course not.” I raised my chin in the air. “Henry told me about it all.” It was a lie, but they don’t need to know that. “So you approve of this?” I don’t, but my stepmother’s words rang in my ears. People loved Henry and his mother and they supported the Royal Family’s decisions. I needed them to love me, too. “The king does not need my approval to do anything. It’s his kingdom,” I said, earning several nods and murmurs from the group. “He knows it better than anyone. Now, if you’ll excuse me...” I left the quad, and as soon as I was far enough from the group, I made a turn to one of the buildings and hid there, trying to calm myself. Although I was born and rais
“You’re Selina, right, from Rozenberg?” “Who’s asking?” I raised an eyebrow at the girl in front of me and crossed my arms across my chest. How did Henry ever get used to ordinary people calling him by his given name? “Henry is looking for you. He’s waiting for you on the rooftop of the Science Center.” “Really?” My mood quickly shifted after hearing that. I did not even thank the girl or anything. I just turned on my heel and left. I went straight to the Science Center, an extensive structure on the university’s west side. It has only five floors, but it covers thousands of square feet of land. It comprised a broad range of scientific fields, including my new major. I took the elevator to the rooftop, but when I arrived, all I saw was a lot of nothing. I looked in every nook and cranny of the place, but there was no Henry to be found, save for a large stretch of blank concrete floor, numerous industrial air conditioning and ventilation systems, solar panels, and a massive water ta
These were the three things we knew about Jade at the time. Number 1. Jade is a liar. Number 2. Jade is a scientist and the student body president. She was way up there in the social hierarchy. Occult or not, everybody loved her. Number 3. Jade is madly, deeply, irrevocably... in love with Henry. The first two, I agree. The third one I’ve yet to find out. When I left the Science Center, I found Henry alone in the garden in a much better mood, but he looked like he was about to pass out from exhaustion, so I called the driver to pick us up and take us home. I never mentioned what I saw, and he never mentioned having company. Jade never texted me about Henry’s location either, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt and waited until midnight for her to contact me. It never happened. Two days later, when the lockdown was finally lifted, Empress Camilla hosted a televised State Reception for me. She granted me Volfenheim citizenship and then introduced me to their people as Henry’s f
Hello, readers! It's me, Salvia. If you're a new subscriber, you can scroll past this note. If you've been here before, please reread the story from the beginning because I did a major editing. Here's what I did. *I switched the point of view from third to first *Introduced a few minor characters *I wrote a few more scenes *Merged some of the old chapters *Gave the existing characters a little backstory *I also changed the title from Enemy of the Wolves to Alpha's Mate: The Villainess because that is what people thought of Selina, a villainess. Now, don't let me keep you. Happy reading!S.A. Avery
I knocked three times on the door before a uniformed maidservant opened it. “Is Henry here?” I inquired. After the incident in the Ball Room, I left to find where my fiancé took his best friend’s sister. People would think of me weird if I didn’t. Henry’s reaction to what happened was excessive. The other guests thought so too, so as my stepmother and Becca. If there really was something happening behind the scenes, I needed to put a stop to it. Or at least I needed to tell them to tune it down. “Who is it, Malia?” Henry asked from inside the room. “Your fiancée,” I replied flatly, brushing the servant girl aside and entering the room. “Well, well...” Henry was standing next to Jade, who was sitting and crying into a handkerchief. She was still dressed in her wine-stained gown. Seriously, she went to a party without bringing a backup dress? What a m*ron. “What are you doing here, Selina?” Henry demanded, clearly irritated. “What do you mean?” I asked, a wry smile on my face. “I’
I set out to find Becca throughout the palace as soon as lunch was finished and we were allowed to loiter. I didn’t like how Jasper looked at me at the time. It was as if he knew I had purposefully spilled the wine on his sister, so imagine my distraught when she and Jasper didn’t show up for the luncheon. I feared he was torturing Becca for information so he could expose me. Everything will be ruined. I’d be ruined. I didn’t come all the way here to fail.I asked Clifford for assistance, and he dispatched the servants under him to find the two.I went to the garden to relax and take in some fresh air. I need to find Becca and make sure she won’t talk and—When I heard laughter from somewhere in the garden, I perked up. I paid close attention and was certain it was Becca and someone else. It was coming from a dense hedge maze ahead. I did not move from my seat and waited for someone to come out of the maze.“Oh, Your Royal Highness,” my lady-in-waiting exclaimed in surprise when she s