Chapter 1

Evelyn’s POV

I had to go through half of my wedding without my groom.

Before I stepped onto the empty altar, I walked down the aisle in silence and passed by a crowd of judging, displeased face.

Now, I stand here alone and still have no idea where my so-called groom could be.

I’m trying not to let my shoulders shake as I wait, but the whispers from the guests are anything but helpful.

“Look how frail she is,” a woman whispers.

“She looks weak,” the man sitting behind her states. “Does she really have Silver blood? I doubt she has one useful gene in her entire body.”

“It’s ridiculous,” the woman replies. “Kane is the Alpha of the strongest wolf pack in the North. How could he be marrying her?”

“Perhaps he’s not,” the man whispers. “After all, he’s not here. He’s probably unhappy about having to marry such a weak girl and ran away while he still could.”

Ouch, that stung. But they are telling the truth.

This marriage between Kane and I is arranged by the Alpha King himself. I can’t disobey him or else I risk losing everything.

Everything my mother built.

My mother was a rare Silverwolf, a female Alpha. It’s not common for a female to be an Alpha nor for a male to support her in the traditional Luna role like my father, which is a testament to my mother’s strength.

Her leadership over our pack was admired and envied by all - we flourished under her reign.

That is, until my mother’s death years ago. However, with her last bit of strength, she left behind a will that named me as her sole heir to the pack.

There’s only one problem, though. A major problem.

My wolf is weak. So weak that I can’t even shift. I can feel her there, but I can barely ever talk to her.

Desperate to continue my mother’s reign, I’ve been taking medication to try and grow my strength, but nothing has changed. I’m still too weak.

Which means I’m also too weak to take my rightful place as the next female Alpha. My mother’s will is useless due to my inadequacy.

My father and stepmother have had to take over leadership in my place.

They’ve also nearly destroyed my mother’s pack. Over the years, their flawed leadership has caused the condition of the pack to worsen, and we’ve become weaker and weaker with every passing day.

Now, to save my mother’s pack, my father is forcing me into this arranged marriage. A marriage proposed by the Alpha King. I am to wed Kane - the strongest Alpha in the North and renown playboy - and produce a powerful heir.

I know they just want my mother’s bloodline, and I hate being a pawn in their game. But I cannot allow my mother’s pack to perish or be absorbed.

I need this marriage to work.

And I need to at least try bearing with the embarrassment.

More similar comments are being made by other guests. Swiftly, my eyes slide over to find Kane’s parents in the front row.

They also look displeased. Kane’s father has his arms crossed and a sneer on his face. Meanwhile, Kane’s mother openly scowls.

“Rodrigo,” she suddenly snaps, catching the attention of a tall, brown-haired man off to the side. Quickly, he approaches.

“Go find Kane. Now,” she instructs. “And make it quick.”

Immediately, Rodrigo takes off down the aisle and goes out the doors. As they close behind him, the chapel falls silent.

There are no words to explain how terribly awkward this is. Awkward and difficult. Especially as I chance a glance to my group of guests and make eye contact with my stepbrother and stepsister.

“Fragile little Evelyn,” my stepsister, Katya, teases. “Can’t even keep a husband who hasn’t seen her yet.”

My stepbrother, Flynn, snickers. “He doesn’t need to see her. Her wolf is so weak that any sane male would run the other direction.”

I resist the urge to close my eyes tightly. If there was ever a time when I wished my wolf would suddenly appear and allow me to shift, it would be now. I want to run as far away from here as quickly as I can, but that’s out of the question.

I’m just wondering how long I should put up with this, questioning if he truly has made a run for it, when the doors to the chapel slams open.

My eyes snap to the end of the aisle, along with every guest still sitting in their seat. However, the crowd around me seems to slowly disappear as I become fixated on the man making his way up the aisle.

He’s tall, very tall. He wears a well-tailored black suit that hugs him in all the right places, showing off the muscles in his biceps. His jet black hair is styled in a way that seems effortless without being too unruly.

When he smiles and shows off a set of perfectly straight, white teeth, I’m pretty sure my stomach tumbles to the ground.

He’s handsome - incredibly handsome. And as he’s making his way toward me, a terrifying yet exciting realization floods over me.

This is Kane.

I’m nearly startled as he chuckles, offering a few apologies to guests.

“Fashionably late,” he says, causing some of them to laugh and smile with him. However, Kane’s parents look anything but pleased as they shoot daggers in his direction. As he gets closer to their seats, his father sighs.

“Stop flirting with the crowd and hurry up,” he says to his son. “Let’s get this wedding over with.”

Kane doesn’t seem bothered by his father’s comments or his mother’s cold stare. Instead, he simply makes his way up the rest of the aisle and then he’s stepping up to the altar.

The minute he’s standing in front of me, I realize that my heart is racing. My eyes may even be blown wide as I stare at him, but he doesn’t stare back.

He towers over me, even in my two inch heels. I can see the sharp angle of his jaw as I study the side of his face, my chest quickly rising and falling. However, my breath catches as my gaze lowers and I notice something on the side of his neck.

Oh, Goddess.

It’s a hickey.

And based on the color, it looks fairly new. That’s what he had been doing while I’d been standing here being ridiculed by dozens of guests?

Asshole.

However, my anger is hard to hold onto as Kane’s head slowly turns. Suddenly, and finally, his green eyes meet mine.

I twitch. I can’t help it as my chest slightly lurches as if being tugged toward him. It’s at that moment that his scent meets my nose, threatening to make my knees give out.

He smells wonderful. I’ve never smelled anything like it, causing the pace of my heart to only quicken as I long to bury my nose right in his chest.

What is wrong with me? How can I feel an urge that strong for someone I don’t even know? It’s as if I’m oddly drawn to him.

I swallow, soothing the dryness in my throat as I watch Kane’s head slightly tilt, as if he’s considering something. Considering me.

Another flutter meets my heart at the same moment that I nearly choke from the word suddenly echoing through my mind.

“Mate.”

No. No, I didn’t hear that right, did I? There’s no way.

“Mate,” the word repeats in my head, stronger than before. My wolf’s voice continues to echo again, sounding prideful as my jaw drops open at her declaration.

My…mate? Kane is my mate? My fated mate?

Surprise continues to overwhelm each of my senses as Kane and I stare at one another. Even though he doesn’t say anything, something within me somehow knows he’s learned the truth too.

However, while I’m shocked to learn Kane and I are fated mates, Kane looks anything but pleased.

In fact, he looks like he’s just been given his death sentence.

Slowly, he sighs.

“Fuck.”