The Alpha King's Bride

Kyle stepped up beside me, all soothing tones and fake sympathy. "Don't blame me, Lilith. You shoved Sylvia into the pool last week in front of everyone. Made her lose face in front of the whole pack. So she just wanted a little payback—letting you draw the one wolf everyone's terrified of. That's all.""She's young. Innocent. Don't give her a hard time anymore, alright?""Relax. It's just a small punishment. Doesn't count. You really think I'd be cruel enough to let you mate with someone that dangerous?"The words hit me like a nail straight through my chest. My blood turned to ice.Whispers swelled from every corner of the hall. A low, buzzing roar.Kyle cleared his throat loudly, then raised his voice. "My sister's hand slipped just now. The draw doesn't count. We're doing it over."He shot a quick, pointed glance toward Raymond.Raymond Hale. My childhood friend. The pack's youngest Beta. My fated mate.I looked up at him without thinking.He was leaning against a pillar, his unifo

By the time I got home, dinner was already on the table.Raymond was there too. Sitting right next to Sylvia.The moment they spotted me, the laughter died. Every smile froze mid-air. The dining room that had been buzzing just seconds ago went dead quiet.Kyle was the first to recover. He waved me over. "Lilith, come eat.""Not hungry. Going upstairs." I turned to leave."Lilith," my mother called out, getting up and walking toward me. "There's something we need to talk about."I stopped. "What?"She came up to me, hesitated, then said, "Your father and I have discussed it. We've decided to finalize the bonding arrangement between your sister and Raymond."I looked up at Raymond. He looked away.A faint smirk crossed my lips.My mother took my hand. "I know you and Raymond grew up together, sweetheart. But feelings aren't about who came first—it's about who's right for each other. I promise I'll make it up to you later..."I gently pulled my hand back and cut her off. "I don't have a p

The banquet was still in full swing when a frantic shout cut through the laughter: "Something's wrong! Alpha Thorne's grandson fell into the artificial lake!"The entire hall went dead silent. Alpha Thorne was a visiting Alpha from a neighboring pack—Lilith's father's equal, and a key ally the Worth family had been courting for months. Everyone rushed toward the hotel's back garden.Lilith passed through the archway and saw a crowd already gathered by the lake.Up close, there stood Sylvia in a brand-new gown—the birthday girl herself—with Kyle beside her. Both of them had their arms pinned behind their backs by two soldiers."What's going on here?" Lilith's father demanded, alarm flashing in his eyes as he looked at his children.A soldier stepped forward and reported: "Alpha, at the time of the incident, only these two were present on the west side of the garden. We restrained them immediately upon arrival."Before he'd even finished, a nanny burst through the crowd, sobbing, and poi

The Alpha King beside me had fallen into a deep sleep. The crowd dispersed, leaving only me behind—at Ezra's insistence.In the days that followed, I stayed by his side, healing him. His illness was hereditary, something no one had ever been able to cure. Until me.I started noticing that when he wasn't in the grip of an episode, his features would soften, just slightly, around the edges. I found myself wondering—what kind of man was he, really?Over the next while, I essentially moved into Ezra's chambers.His episodes came without warning. Sometimes I'd be reading, and he'd suddenly curl up, his nails digging into the edge of his desk and splitting the wood. I'd put down my book, cross to him, and press my palm against his back. That warm current would surge out, and I'd feel his shoulders loosen, inch by inch.He never said thank you.But after that day, a small oil lamp appeared beside my bed—one that never went out through the night.A few days later, I started noticing the little