Not a Broken Alpha. He's a Beast

The night of my bonding ceremony, I didn't get rough sex and a mating mark. I got a prophecy, floating in the air thanks to my moonstone pendant.

Torn to pieces? My pack, destroyed?

I stared at the words, my mind flashing back to the day the alliance was confirmed.

My mother, her eyes red, pulled me into her room and pressed the pendant into my hand.

“The Moon Goddess blessed this, Cora. It will bring you good luck.”

Good luck? What a joke.

My father lost our territory dispute with the Stone Fang pack. To save our crumbling Silver Creek pack, I became a political pawn for the Supreme Alpha, Ryker.

I never believed a rock could change my fate. I just wore it as a sad comfort from my mother.

But how could I explain these words? Was any of this real?

The letters kept coming.

[When Lorelei comes back, everyone will want her as their Luna.]

[You'll feel like a fool. You'll misjudge everything and break the mate bond yourself!]

Break the bond?

What about the Silver Creek pack? I sacrificed everything, married a stranger, to save them!

If my pack was doomed anyway, what was the point of this marriage?

“How do I survive? How do I save my pack?” I whispered.

The words twisted, reformed, and gave me one hell of an answer.

[Simple. Go to the Alpha you left waiting outside.]

Outside?

Barefoot, I crept to the door like a thief and pressed my ear against the wood.

An intense, aggressive scent hit me instantly. Fir and raw Alpha, seeping powerfully through the crack under the door.

My face burned.

The ceremony flashed in my mind.

The shocking heat of his hand when he’d wrapped it around my waist in front of everyone.

His crushing power washed over me. His nose brushed my neck, his breath hot and ragged.

For a second, I thought the rumors were lies.

The raw power, the possessiveness… he could have devoured me whole.

I’d even closed my eyes, bracing for a brutal mating mark on my neck.

But he stopped. He actually stopped.

His lips grazed my ear, his voice impossibly hoarse. “A mark is… intimate. I want to take my time with my Luna tonight.”

Take his time?

Then he turned around and threw me in this guest room. Alone!

I’d assumed he had no interest in me. That his words were just an excuse not to mark me.

But what happened right before they brought me here… it didn't add up.

We were walking away when we overheard an Omega from his pack scoff in a corner. “A Luna without a mark? She doesn't deserve to drink the finest wine.”

The air turned to ice.

Ryker didn’t even look at her. "Get her out of my sight," he growled.

The next thing I knew, guards were dragging the Omega out of the manor. Her scream tore through the night.

The ruthless Alpha who fiercely guarded what was his… was he the same man who left me all alone in this room?

Click.

The doorknob made a tiny, metallic sound.

My heart hammered against my ribs. I stopped breathing.

He’s coming in?

An image of him filled my head. Dressed in a black shirt, his storm-gray eyes pinning me down.

If he bursts in right now and pins me against the door…

What would I do?

My pulse raced.

But then, after a few seconds…

Click.

The knob slowly released. It clicked back into place.

Heavy, restrained footsteps faded down the hall until they disappeared.

He didn't come in.

I slid down the door, my legs giving out, and landed on the floor in a heap. I was so confused.

So… can he or can't he?!

The moonstone flickered. A final line of text appeared, a phantom whisper that stung my eyes.

[He felt you trembling at the ceremony.]

[Ryker knows you're afraid of him. So he made a rule: he won't force the mark. Not until you come to him.]

[Even as his wolf has been tortured by need, waiting outside your door for an entire hour.]

The words faded.

I sat on the carpet, the moonlight glinting off the wedding ring on my finger.

All that self-control, hidden under that cold, unbreakable shell?

The fear I had for this Supreme Alpha seemed to vanish. In its place, a flicker of something soft… and a wild curiosity bloomed in my chest.

He could have easily taken me, but he’d rather suffer outside my door.

I took a deep breath, stood up, and ripped the designer shawl from my shoulders.

If hiding in this room meant a death sentence…

I gritted my teeth and stared at the door.

Fine. Maybe I should just storm out there and pounce on him myself.

I’m going to find out for myself. Just how much self-control does this 'broken' Alpha really have?