Chapter 3: The Perfect Bride

Two days later, she arrived.

I was scrubbing the grand staircase when the convoy of black SUVs rolled through the gates. The entire pack house erupted into controlled chaos. Servants rushed to prepare the guest wing. The Warriors lined up in a formal reception. Even the air seemed to change, charged with anticipation and tension.

“Move, move!” Constance snapped at me. “Get out of sight. Guest quarters need to be immaculate in ten minutes.”

I grabbed my bucket and rags, hurrying toward the upper floors. Through the massive windows, I caught glimpses of the arrival below. Alpha Blackthorn emerged first, imposing in a tailored suit. Then her.

Seraphina Blackthorn was everything I wasn’t.

Tall where I was average. Elegant where I was plain. She wore designer clothes like armour, her platinum blonde hair falling in perfect waves. Even from this distance, I could see the confidence in her posture. The certainty that she belonged.

And Kaden was walking down the steps to greet her.

I couldn’t look away. Couldn’t breathe as I watched him take her hand, bending over it in a formal greeting. The perfect gentleman. The perfect future Alpha.

He’d said nothing. Not one word about the Blackthorns visiting. About her visit.

“Close your mouth. You’ll catch flies.” Maya appeared beside me, her own expression tight. “Come on. We’re assigned to the guest wing.”

The guest wing was reserved for visiting dignitaries. Spacious suites with private balconies, silk sheets, and furniture that cost more than I’d earn in a lifetime. Maya and I worked in silence, preparing the largest suite for Seraphina.

“This is bad,” Maya finally whispered as we arranged fresh flowers. “Really bad, Aria.”

“Maybe it’s just a diplomatic visit.” But my voice lacked conviction.

“For three weeks? Right before the ceremony?” Maya shook her head. “This is a courtship period. They’re giving Kaden and Seraphina time to get acquainted before the formal announcement.”

Three weeks. That phrase kept destroying me.

“He doesn’t know,” I said desperately. “Kaden doesn’t know what his father planned. He would have told me.”

Maya’s pitying look said everything her words didn’t.

We finished just as voices echoed in the hallway. I froze, recognising Kaden’s deep tone mixed with a feminine laugh. Light, musical, utterly confident.

“The suite should meet your standards,” Kaden was saying. “If you need anything at all, just…”

The door opened. Seraphina swept in, and up close she was even more devastating. Violet eyes, flawless skin, the kind of beauty that belonged in magazines and dreams. She stopped when she saw Maya and me, her gaze flickering over us with casual dismissal.

“Ah. The help.” She turned back to Kaden. “Thank you for the personal escort, Alpha Kaden. You’re too kind.”

Alpha Kaden. Not just Kaden. She was already positioning him in his new role.

“It’s my pleasure.” His tone was polite but distant. Professional. “I’ll leave you to settle in. Dinner is at seven.”

His eyes met mine for a fraction of a second. In that moment, I saw confusion. Discomfort. But not understanding. He still didn’t know what this was. What she was here for.

“You two.” Seraphina snapped her fingers at us once Kaden left. “I’ll need my bags unpacked and pressed. Also, draw a bath. The travel was exhausting.”

“Yes, Miss Blackthorn.” Maya bobbed a curtsy, elbowing me to do the same.

We worked quickly, efficiently, while Seraphina inspected the suite like a general surveying conquered territory. She picked up objects, tested the mattress, and examined the view from the balcony.

“So this is Shadowpine territory.” Her voice was thoughtful. “Smaller than I expected. But the location is strategic. Once the packs merge, we’ll have access to the northern trade routes.”

My hands stilled on the silk blouse I was hanging. Once the packs merge.

“The bathroom, girls,” Seraphina said impatiently. “I don’t have all day.”

In the marble bathroom, Maya and I prepared the enormous tub in silence. The expensive bath oils Seraphina had brought smelled like roses and money.

“Did you hear that?” I breathed. “She’s already talking about merging packs.”

“Because it’s already decided.” Maya tested the water temperature. “Aria, you need to accept…”

“Accept what?” I turned on her, anger finally breaking through the numbness. “That everything Kaden promised was a lie? That I was just a distraction while his real future was being negotiated?”

“I don’t know what Kaden promised you. But I know how pack politics work.” Maya’s voice was gentle but firm. “Love doesn’t trump alliances. It never has.”

Before I could respond, Seraphina appeared in the doorway. She’d changed into a silk robe, her hair pinned up. For a moment, she just studied me with those cold violet eyes.

“You,” she said finally. “What’s your name?”

“Aria, Miss Blackthorn.”

“Aria.” She tested the name like wine. “Are you good at your job, Aria?”

“I… I try my best, Miss Blackthorn.”

“Mmm.” She moved past me to the tub, trailing one hand in the water. “I’ll need a personal attendant during my stay. Someone who knows the pack house, the routines. You’ll do.”

No. No, no, no.

“I’m sure there are more experienced” I started.

“Are you arguing with me?” Her voice dropped to ice.

“No, Miss Blackthorn. I’d be honoured.” The words tasted like ash.

“Good.” She dismissed Maya with a wave. “You can go. Aria will handle things from here.”

Maya shot me one last worried look before leaving. The door clicked shut, trapping me in the bathroom with the woman who was about to steal my entire future.

Seraphina let the robe fall, stepping into the tub with unconscious grace. She leaned back with a satisfied sigh, utterly comfortable with her nakedness. Why wouldn’t she be? Every inch of her was perfect.

“Tell me about Alpha Kaden,” she said suddenly.

I nearly dropped the towel I was holding. “Miss Blackthorn?”

“You work in the pack house. You see him regularly.” She opened one eye to look at me. “What’s he like? And don’t give me some scripted answer about him being strong and honourable. I can see that myself. I want to know the real him.”

This was torture. Exquisite, calculated torture.

“He’s… dedicated,” I managed. “He cares deeply about his pack. About doing what’s right.”

“Boring.” Seraphina closed her eyes again. “What about lovers? Does he have anyone?”

My heart stopped.

“I wouldn’t know about the Alpha heir’s personal life, Miss Blackthorn.”

“Liar.” But she smiled when she said it. “It’s fine. If there’s some omega he’s been amusing himself with, it doesn’t matter. Boys will be boys before they settle into their responsibilities.”

The casual cruelty of it stole my breath. I was an amusement. A distraction. Something so insignificant it didn’t even warrant concern.

“I’m going to be Luna of this pack,” Seraphina continued, her voice taking on a dreamy quality. “My children will be the strongest Alphas this region has ever seen. Kaden is handsome enough, and his bloodline is impeccable. We’ll be a perfect match.”

She opened her eyes fully then, fixing me with a stare that was suddenly sharp. Calculating.

“You understand discretion, don’t you, Aria? What’s discussed in private stays private.”

“Of course, Miss Blackthorn.”

“Excellent.” She settled deeper into the water. “I think we’ll get along just fine. Now hand me that soap.”

I spent the next hour attending to her, each moment a fresh hell. She talked the entire time. About her plans for redecorating Luna’s quarters. About which pack traditions she’d keep and which she’d eliminate. About the wedding she’d been planning since she was sixteen.

A wedding to Kaden.

My Kaden.

Except he wasn’t mine, was he? He’d never really been mine. I’d just been too naive, too desperate, too stupidly in love to see it.

By the time I escaped back to the servants’ quarters, I was shaking. Maya found me in our shared room, curled on my bed, staring at nothing.

“What happened?”

“She’s going to marry him.” My voice sounded hollow. “It’s already decided. The wedding. The future. Everything.”

“Aria”

“I need to talk to Kaden. Tonight. I need to hear it from him.”

Maya bit her lip. “And if he confirms it? If he tells you it’s over?”

“Then at least I’ll know.” I stood, straightening my uniform. “At least I’ll know the truth.”

But as the sun set over Shadowpine territory, painting everything in shades of blood and gold, I realised I was terrified of that truth.

Because deep down, I already knew what it would be.