The Lycan King’s Arranged Bride

Josie’s POV

I was being forced into a political marriage with the King of the Lycans to seal peace between humans and Lycans. My father was the Chancellor of the human territory, and he had offered his daughter as the bride who would seal the alliance. He called it peace, but to me, it felt like I was being sacrificed for something I never asked for.

I tapped my fingers against my thigh, unable to stop the nervous rhythm.

The chapel was annoyingly beautiful with white flowers decorated the aisle, and candles flickered softly along the walls.

Everyone here looked ready to begin a new life of peace, and I could only think about the one I’d been forced to leave behind. It didn’t feel like a wedding to me. It felt like a funeral for me.

“Don’t do anything foolish, dear,” my father murmured beside me. “A lot depends on this.”

I turned and glared at him.

A part of me wanted to ask if he had ever looked at me and seen his daughter, or if he’d only ever seen a piece on a chessboard.

My mother gave me a small, encouraging smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

The music began, and I looked down the aisle. The humans sat on one side of the chapel, and the Lycans on another. Neither group looked happy to be there. Their hatred filled the room like a storm waiting to break, and at the end of the aisle stood my groom. Ronan Osborn, the King of the Lycans.

His back was turned toward me. He didn’t look nervous, impatient, or even curious. Instead, he stood there like this was an obligation he had already finished enduring.

I swallowed hard and started walking. Every step felt heavier than the last, and when I reached the altar, he still didn’t turn.

Then he finally did, and my breath caught in my chest. I knew he was handsome. I’d seen a picture of him before, but it hadn’t done him justice.

He was tall, broad-shouldered, and intimidating, with dark hair and steel-blue eyes that locked onto mine.

There was no warmth in them, only coldness.

I glanced toward my parents, silently begging them to see what I saw, but they had already taken their seats.

They had already given me away. The ceremony passed in a blur, It felt like a dream I couldn’t wake from. There were vows, signatures, and words I barely heard. Then it was over, and I was his wife.

I barely had time to look back at my parents before Ronan spoke.

“I’m done.” His voice was cold. 

He walked away before I could even process what had happened and half an hour later, I was standing outside the castle in Lycan territory.

The castle looked like something from another world. Its tall windows reflected the evening sky, and the enormous doors made me feel even smaller than I already did.

The driver opened my door, and I stepped out in my wedding dress. When I looked back, the car was already pulling away and I was alone.

Taking a shaky breath, I walked toward the entrance and pushed open the large doors. Music and laughter filled the room, and I froze. I stood there for a while before someone finally noticed me.

“The human is here!”

All eyes turned toward me, and I had to suppress a whimper. Their eyes moved over my dress, my face, my existence as though I were something strange they’d never seen before.

My hands trembled at my sides, but I forced myself to smile. Some people nodded, and others looked away as the music started again. I stood there in the middle of the room, a bride with nowhere to go.

“Hi, Josie, right?” I turned at the voice. A man with black hair and a muscular build approached me.

“I’m Kane. I’ll be your aide. King’s orders.” He bowed his head.

“The washroom,” I whispered, my voice slightly trembling. “Could you show me where it is?”

Kane led me there. I barely recognized myself in the mirror. The woman staring back looked like someone who had been broken apart and carefully put back together. My lips trembled, and tears stung my eyes. How did my life become this?

I glanced at the emerald ring around my finger. My fiancé, Jonathan, had given it to me. He’d once promised me forever, but when I needed him to fight for me, he’d chosen not to.

Maybe I should have known that in the world I was born into, promises didn’t always mean forever.

I closed my eyes and took a breath. I wouldn’t cry here. I wiped my face and left the bathroom.

I hadn’t walked far when a familiar voice made me stop in my tracks. My heart pounded in my chest. 

“Do you think I’m happy about this, Sadie?” That was Ronan's voice, it was low and angry.

“If I could have stopped this sham of a marriage, I would have.”

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. I just stood there, completely hollow and empty.

“There should have been another way. I was supposed to be the Luna. I’m your mate!” A woman exclaimed. 

Mate. The word echoed in my mind.

I knew what it meant, but hearing it from her made it feel different. Sacred. My mind searched desperately for another explanation. Maybe she was a friend or a relative. Just anyone.

“I know, baby,” he whispered, and my heart dropped. 

Baby. My husband called another woman baby.

“That human is nothing to me.” He assured the woman. 

My feet were on autopilot, carrying me closer to the sounds. Through the crack in the door, I saw Ronan had his arms around her. Her hands were around his waist, and before I could comprehend what was happening, his lips crashed onto hers.

My eyes widened, and a gasp left my mouth. My husband was kissing another woman.

“Ronan,” she moaned.

Everything around me went silent. The ground tilted beneath my feet. The man I had just married was holding another woman like she was the only person in the world who mattered.

“You’re mine, Sadie,” he said breathlessly. His hand gently touched her face.

“Nothing will ever change that.”

My throat closed. I felt like I was going to be sick.

I had been married to this man for less than an hour, and he was already telling another woman that she was his.

My eyes burned. I tried to step back quietly, but Ronan’s head suddenly turned.

His cold eyes met mine. For a second, none of us moved, and my heart was racing in my chest.

There was no guilt in his eyes. Only a strange flicker of surprise before his expression hardened again.

“Is this the ugly human you’re forced to marry?” Sadie sneered, approaching me. 

I swallowed, standing my ground. Her eyes scrutinized me with disdain, and I matched hers too. 

The woman suddenly grabbed my hand and yanked me into the study. She was strong.

I gasped, stumbling on my feet. Ronan’s hand moved instinctively to catch me, but he stopped himself at the last second.

“Listen to me, human slut,” Sadie snapped, cupping my chin with one hand, a sneer on her face.

“You are nothing to Ronan but a symbol. I’m his mate and his love. So if you have any intentions of seducing him, forget it. Am I clear?”

I pushed her off me angrily, and she gasped. She made another attempt to approach me, but I lifted my hand and she halted.

“I have no such intention,” I retorted, my eyes pinning on Ronan with a fiery glare. “He’s not my type anyway.”

A low, animalistic sound came from his throat, and his eyes flashed. I flinched but didn't run. 

"Good," She spat. 

I knew that already, but it didn't hurt any less hearing it from her mouth. 

I swallowed the lump in my throat and looked at Ronan.

He hadn’t said a word. His eyes were still fixed on me, his jaw clenched tightly.

I couldn’t look away, our eyes held, and then his gaze dropped to my hand.

To the emerald ring around my finger, and I saw his expression change, his eyes darkening. 

“Who gave you that ring?”