All Chapters of My Husband’s Brother Is My Mate?!: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"Say it, Selene. Say the vow."Cain's voice was low and cold. He sounded like a man reading a contract, not a promise.I looked up at him. Alpha Cain Blackthorne. Tall. Dark hair. Eyes the color of storm clouds. Every unmated she-wolf in the hall wished she was standing where I stood.They did not know the truth."I, Selene Ashford," I said, "take you, Cain Blackthorne, as my husband and my Alpha."My voice did not shake. I was proud of that."I will stand by your side. I will honor your name. I will protect your pack as if it were mine."The words came out smooth. Practiced. I had repeated them in the mirror every night for a week.Cain's jaw tightened, just a little. "And I vow to protect yours," he said. "As long as this union stands."As long as this union stands.Not "forever." Not "until death." He had added a condition in front of two hundred wolves, and nobody noticed.Except me.Fine. That was our deal. Written in ink. Signed in blood.My pack was small and tired. Rogues had

"Rule one. We sleep in separate rooms."Cain said it without looking up from his tea.I stared at him across the long breakfast table. Sunlight poured through the windows of the pack house. Servants moved around us, silent and careful. Last night felt like a bad dream, except for the ache still sitting in my chest.Last night, Cain had taken my arm, walked me back to the hall, and introduced me to three elders. He had not asked one question about the balcony.Not one.Until now."What did my brother say to you?" he asked.My spoon froze halfway to my mouth."He apologized for being late," I said. It came out smooth. Too smooth. "And he congratulated us.""That took a while.""He talks a lot.""Rhys?" Cain finally looked up. "My brother speaks perhaps ten words a day.""Then he saved them for me."A long pause. His storm-gray eyes studied my face. I kept it blank. I had learned that trick at twelve, standing at my father's gate with rogue wolves growling on the other side.Then Cain lo

"Selene Ashford! You look like death."I spun around in the doorway of my new bedroom. Standing in the hall, with a travel bag over her shoulder and a huge grin on her face, was Mara.My best friend. My only real friend."Mara!" I threw my arms around her. "How did you get here?""Your husband sent a carriage. A carriage, Selene. With cushions." She pulled back and looked me up and down. "And you are skinny. And pale. And you have bags under your eyes. What did the Ice Alpha do to you?""Nothing.""Nothing? That is worse.""It was a quiet wedding night," I said. "Separate rooms.""Separate rooms." Mara pressed a hand to her chest. "Thank the Goddess. I was afraid I would have to fight him."I laughed. It was the first real laugh since the wedding. Mara dropped her bag on the bed and flopped beside it as if she lived here."Okay," she said. "Talk.""There is nothing to say.""Selene.""Truly.""I have known you since we were six. You chew your thumbnail when you lie."I looked down. My

"Get the children inside! Now!"Cain's roar shook the courtyard. Wolves poured out of the pack house in every direction. Warriors shifted mid-run, clothes tearing, bones cracking, fur rising.I ran with them."Selene!" Rhys caught up beside me, already half-shifted, claws out. "Go back inside!""The village is down there!" I pointed at the black smoke curling over the rooftops. "Those are my people now!""You are not trained for this!""I fought rogues at my father's gate for ten years!"He swore under his breath. "Then stay close to me.""Gladly."We hit the bottom of the hill at full speed, and the world turned to chaos.Rogues poured down the north road. Dozens of them. Matted fur, yellow teeth, red eyes full of hunger. A barn was already on fire. Mothers dragged children toward the stone cellars. Beta Dane's warriors had formed a line across the square, snarling, holding the gap.The smell of smoke and blood filled my nose.Selene, Thea said. Her voice was low and sharp. Let me ou

"You want me to do what?"Mara's whisper was so loud that I clapped a hand over her mouth."Shh!" I dragged her behind a stone pillar in the corridor. "Keep your voice down.""You want me to distract Vivienne," she hissed, "so you can break into the Alpha's study?""I am not breaking in. I am borrowing something.""From a locked room.""I have a hairpin.""Oh, well then." She rolled her eyes. "That makes it perfectly legal.""Mara. Please."She searched my face. Whatever she saw there made her sigh."Why?""Because someone put my family's brand on a dead rogue. Vivienne says my pack is behind it. And I signed that treaty without reading every line twice." I swallowed. "I need to know exactly what I agreed to.""And if Cain catches you?""He is at the northern border until sunset."Mara groaned and rubbed her forehead. "Twenty minutes. Not a minute more.""Thank you.""I will tell Vivienne I need help choosing wedding gifts for the pack. She loves to be needed.""You are the best frien