Chapter 3: Alpha Hunter Black

Hunter Black, the Alpha of the Silver Moon Pack, was a wall of pure, curved muscle. Even slumped in the backseat of his SUV, he looked like a predator merely resting between kills. His broad shoulders stretched the fabric of his dark, tailored shirt, and his skin bore the faint, jagged reminders of a dozen border skirmishes. He owned the kind of effortless, heavy power that made other wolves instinctively lower their eyes when he entered a room.

He shifted, eyes fluttering shut to block out his Beta’s drone. "Hunter, we're two hours late," Dan muttered, knuckles white as he gripped the wheel. "The Hais family will take this as an insult. We need this alliance, and I am certain you did not need those two extra hours 'consulting' with Meg before we left."

Hunter did not look up, his massive frame radiating a smug, lingering heat. He simply crossed his arms behind his head and closed his eyes, savoring the memory of his encounter with Meg. "The Hais family values strength, Dan," Hunter replied, his voice, a low, raspy purr that vibrated through the car’s interior. "And they respect a man who knows how to keep his house in order. If they want a leader, they will wait. I wasn't going to leave my bed while Meg was still that preoccupied with me."

Dan let out a sharp, incredulous huff, shaking his head. "One day, your appetite for that girl is going to cost you more than just a punctual arrival. You have the strength to crush any Alpha in this region, but you’re risking our standing over a bed warmer."

Hunter’s eyes snapped open, his grey irises darkening with territorial heat. "Meg stays," he growled. "I don’t care about fated mates or convenient alliances. If the Hais family has a problem with my time, they can take it up with me personally."

"That’s the problem!" Dan barked, swerving the car. "You have the strength to crush any Alpha, but no vision. You’re twenty-four with no heir, no mate, and the Elders flatly rejected your request to choose Meg as your mate and Luna. If you don't find a partner with a bloodline as pure as yours, our position will crumble. The neighboring packs are already calling the Silver Moon Pack a 'dying fire' because you refuse to secure your lineage."

Hunter’s eyes turned a piercing, stormy grey, flashing with a sudden, dangerous intensity. He sat up, the leather seat groaning under the shift of his massive frame "My lineage is strong enough to stand on its own," Hunter growled, his voice a low vibration that made the air in the car feel suddenly thin.

"Is it?" Dan countered, refusing to back down. "The Hais clan holds the direct line to the Moon Goddess. A union between you and one of Alpha Rowan’s daughters would lock down our territory for generations. You’re the strongest Alpha in the north, Hunter, don't let your stubbornness be the thing that keeps us from becoming the most powerful."

Hunter looked out the darkened window at the passing forest, his jaw tight. "I don't need a marriage contract to prove my power. If I take a mate, it will be because she can hold her own against me, not because she’s a political bargaining chip."

"Then find one who can!" Dan retorted, pulling the car to a smooth stop in front of the glittering ballroom entrance. "But for the love of the Moon Goddess, get out of this car and start acting like the Alpha they expect to see."

Hunter stared at the glowing ballroom, the sound of music drifting towards them. He stepped out, his tall, powerful form casting a long shadow, and adjusted his cuffs "Fine," Hunter muttered, his expression hardening into a mask of cold authority "But if I find the company as boring as your lecture, we’re leaving before midnight."

The suffocating glamour of the gala had finally lost its charm after hours for Selene and her younger sister, Anna, sneaking into a room where they changed into jeans and fitted t-shirts and messy bonytail, a chance to breathe and be sisters rather than figures of political currency.

In the meantime, Hunter made his way with his beta Dan toward the Luna Agatha and Alpha Rowan; his apology for their delay was smooth, delivered with a practiced, respectful bow that exuded the exact amount of deference required.

But Hunter was playing a game against masters. While the Royals accepted his words with gracious, serene smiles, there was a steeliness behind their gaze that Hunter couldn't see. They already knew. They knew why Hunter was late, they knew of the woman he kept in his estate, and they knew exactly how his desire controlled his schedule. It was how they had survived for centuries, identifying threats and weaknesses long before they grew into a tangible plan or acts of betrayal.

Hunter was no saint; yet, among the passing encounters, one figure remained constant: Meg. Originally a slave while running from an attack from rogues on her pack. Alpha Hunter claimed her as his, elevated her to his private maid and bed warmer. She was a fixture in his chambers, a quiet presence who knew exactly how he liked his whiskey and how to soothe the restless, predatory hum that vibrated beneath his skin. He moved her from the servant quarters to a beautifully appointed guest room on the private residential floor, placing her suite in the same exclusive line as his own master bedroom.

Hunter was unapologetically clear about his intentions, his loyalty, soul, and title would belong only to his fated mate once she appeared. But he had already decided that even if he were forced into a marriage of convenience for the sake of his pack, he would never cast Meg aside, regardless of who might eventually take the throne at his side fated or not.