Chapter 3 Her Agency

Even as the door was pushed open, Alpha Alaric didn't budge. His eyes kept staring at Celeste's portrait, lost in thought.

"Alaric." Gowen called but he did not respond.

She touched his shoulder and he jerked, blinking. "Mother…why are you here?" His eyes fell to the shredded documents on the floor and she noticed.

She bent and picked it up. "Divorce…"

"I don't understand why Celeste is being stubborn, but I understand her. Maybe I was too harsh," he blurted, and Gowen hit him lightly on the shoulder.

"Don't you ever think like that. She should be grateful for having you, not the other way around. Besides, I have been hoping the mate bond between you two would get broken."

Alaric stared at his mother with wide eyes.

"How can you say—"

"Can't you see she is not good for you?"

Alaric looked away, uncomfortable by his mother's words but not wanting to argue with her.

Gowen sighed, holding his hands. "Teresa has a better family background. Her mother is from the Oak pack. That would build the reputation of the pack."

"But, Mother—"

"Don't." She raised her hand to halt his words. "You're an Alpha. You should think about your people, not some orphan girl who is trying to play Luna."

As she spoke, that was when he noticed that the painting that hung behind his desk was missing.

His brows furrowed as he stared at the empty space. Where were the paintings? Celeste was the one who took care of the house. She had always been particular about everything inside it.

Where did she put the paintings of them together?

A strange unease settled in his chest as he glanced around and before he could stop he ran to the bedroom, only to see the same empty walls.

She had not just taken her things. She had also removed the gifts they had exchanged over the years. The room was stripped bare like their relationship had never happened.

The strength drained from Alaric's body as he stared at the empty room. His knees weakened, and he dropped onto one knee, his hand gripping the edge of the bed as he struggled to steady himself.

"Alaric, you need to pull yourself together. It's good she is gone."

Instantly, he rose to his feet. "This is the problem with you, Mother. You do not listen to me sometimes. I love Celeste, not Teresa. Enough with all this talk about making Teresa my Luna."

Gowen gulped yet risked moving closer to him. "Have you forgotten how your brother died?!" Immediately Alaric froze.

"He died protecting you from rogues. All he had left was one final wish that you take care of Teresa! Now, you are just going to throw that away?!" Her words felt like an arrow piercing Alaric's chest.

"This isn't the time to act selfish because of that orphan. It's time you choose Teresa."

Alaric let out a bitter laugh while shaking his head. "I understand, Mom, I'll take care of Teresa and her pups, but marrying her is something I can't do," he declared in a firm voice.

Unknown to Alaric and Gowen, Teresa was behind the door, listening to their bickering with her fist clenched hard.

Teresa turned and walked away from the scene. Pulling out her phone, she quickly dialled her mother's contact...

~~

Alaric tapped his finger lazily on the desk. "So, what would you do about the divorce with Luna?" Beta Fang asked, making his finger halt.

"I cannot divorce her. You know that, but the actual problem is my mother." He paused, a heavy sigh slipping from his lips. "My mother wants me to marry Teresa."

"What?!" Beta Fang's voice rose, then he quickly swallowed, moving closer to Alaric.

"Why would she want you to do that? Does she realize how it would look to others to marry your sister-in-law?" he said. "It has not even been long since your brother died!"

"Well, I don't want to but…she said this could help us get a chance to develop a relationship with the Dawnfall Pack?"

Beta Fang blinked at Alaric's words, wondering if his Alpha was being serious.

"I don't think that's possible. I mean, who on earth is she to help secure a deal?"

They all knew how notorious, how powerful, and the most sought-after the Dawnfall pack was.

A pack like his, Silvermoon, was nothing compared to the mention of that pack.

"Or maybe since Teresa's father is a council member, it could actually work, though," Beta Fang said, making Alaric stare at him as though he had sprouted horns.

"I don't want to divorce my wife because of a business partnership," Alaric blurted with a frown. There was no guarantee that it would even work out.

Suddenly, Beta Fang clapped his hands lightly as if an idea had just struck him.

"How about the Orland Agency? The agency used to broker major partnerships between multiple packs. They had been initiative for a few years but they just resumed their operation. We could ask them for help."

Alaric's face lit up. He had heard about Orland but completely forgot about them over the years.

Rumour had it that there was no contract that the agency could not secure.

"I will leave it to you then," Alaric said. Now, no one could pressure him to marry anyone.

Meanwhile, Celeste was sitting in her agency's office at the other end of the pack.

The low sound of a document dragged her attention from her laptop.

 "Here is a new client's proposal," Leah said as she took a seat across from her. Rubbing her temples, she set the reading glasses perched on her face aside, opened the documents, and her finger halted at the name staring back at her. "From the Silvermoon Pack?" she whispered, a smirk curling her lips.

Leah looked annoyed. "I wanted to toss the proposal away. Those people deserve nothing from you!"

"That's not fun, Leah," she said slowly, an idea forming in her mind.

 "Business is business. We have to separate these things from our personal lives."

Celeste scribbled a few sentences down on a random paper beside her. She tucked the paper into the file and handed it back to Leah.

"Draft a new contract. These are the new terms for our partnership."

Leah's brows furrowed as she scanned the paper. "You already know Alpha Alaric won't agree to half of these. And these prices…damn, Celeste. Are you trying to rob the male?"

"That's the point." Celeste's smile widened. "I just have to make sure, he'll have no choice."