Chapter 3: Wanting Her Mate

-Daphne-

“I don’t know,” my mom said, walking around me as the tailors adjusted the final details of my ceremony dress. It felt tighter than it should, or maybe it was just the knowledge that my union day was approaching, making it hard for me to breathe.

I couldn’t say much anymore. It felt like I was drowning these days, suffocating. I didn’t want this, and it didn’t help that someone else filled my mind now. A werewolf. An alpha. Ana’s cousin, Jackson. And the thoughts were not sweet but filthy, making me feel hot all over. He hadn’t even touched me, and yet I was burning for him.

“It just doesn’t seem right,” my mother sighed.

“Mom, I’m sure it’s fine. You ordered this,” I said, holding out my arms as the long peach-colored dress lifted from the ground, making the tailors hiss at me for ruining their work.

“Yes, but now it makes you look… chubby.”

“Chubby?” I asked, stunned.

“Yeah, it’s too puffy.”

“Puffy?”

“Can we tighten the waist a bit more?” my mother requested.

“Mom, I can barely breathe,” I admitted.

“Good.”

“No, if you tighten it anymore, I’ll faint before we even get through half the ceremony.”

My mom rolled her eyes and walked closer, tugging on the dress, making me gasp as she tightened it just a little more.

“Don’t be so dramatic,” she scolded.

“Me?” I asked, incredulous.

“Yes, you,” she snapped.

“Mom, I can’t breathe!” I growled, frustrated, shoving her hands off me.

“Daphne!”

“What?” I snapped, jumping down from the little podium I was standing on in front of the mirror. Lately, I had a very short fuse. But I couldn’t help it.

“What has gotten into you?” my mom inquired, sounding irritated.

I crossed my arms and sighed. Should I just be honest with her?

You should, Cara, my wolf, urged.

I don’t know. You know how my mom is. She’ll never accept a werewolf.

But we want Jackson, don’t we?

Oh, we do, I replied.

Then be honest.

I stared at my mom for a long moment. It was clear she was waiting for me to speak.

“Can we get a moment alone?” I asked.

My mother sighed, clearly irritated at the delay. “Out. Let me talk to my daughter alone,” she ordered, waving off the tailors.

My family was powerful, and my mom practically acted like a queen—because, in many ways, she was. She carried the power of one.

“Well?” my mom asked as the tailors left, now focusing her attention solely on me.

“What if I was having second thoughts?” I inquired, my voice quieter now.

“About?”

“This. My engagement.”

“Then I’m sure my daughter has suffered a brain bleed,” my mother said dryly, eyes narrowing in disbelief.

“Mom!” I protested, frustrated.

“Daphne, you already broke things off with the king. What would happen if you broke this one off?” she growled at me. “It would embarrass us all! We would never live it down!”

“But what if I was in love with someone else?” The words were out before I could stop them.

My mother’s expression froze, her shock evident. “Sorry?” my mother asked, her voice trembling with confusion.

“What if I was in love with someone else?” I repeated, my heart pounding in my chest.

“You’ve always loved Roman,” she said, almost dismissively. “But he’s taken.”

“Not Roman!” I shouted, my voice sharp. “Someone… else.”

“Someone else?” my mom inquired, raising an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued.

“Yes.”

“Who?” she asked, leaning in.

“He’s from a high-status family,” I said, a hint of pride in my voice despite the fear rising in me.

“Oh, really?”

“And he’s very brave.”

“Oh?”

“Rich.”

“Really?”

“And he’s an alpha,” I added.

“Oh,” my mother said, her smile growing. “Now that’s interesting.”

“A werewolf alpha.”

“Sorry?” My mother’s smile faltered, her expression shifting to one of disbelief. “What did you say?”

“He’s... a werewolf,” I whispered, my heart pounding.

“A... werewolf?”

“Yes…”

There was a long pause. The room felt heavy with silence, and then my mother’s voice broke through, sharp and final. “Over my dead body!”