Betrothed Marriage Novels & Stories

"Yes, one of you must marry Hannah, daughter of the Alpha of the Silver Pack. So, you boys can't claim Alice as your mate," My heart quickens, confusion and disbelief marring my features. "What?" I blurt out, my eyes searching for confirmation or denial from my parents. They avoid my gaze, refusing to meet my eyes. The realization hits me like a sudden storm – I have been betrothed without my consent. Cameron voices the disbelief that resonates within me. "You must be joking, Father." "He's not, son." Luna Marley interjects. "How can you make such a huge decision without consulting us first?” Lorenzo questions, frustration evident in his voice.

“Planning?” “For the mating rite.” I still have one more full moon before I’m obliged to transform and decide my fate once and for all. This year, the moon of my decision takes place on Lupercalia, the festival during which mating pacts are finalized. I can’t be mated to Ashton if I haven’t gone through at least one transformation, and our marriage can only take place on the night of Lupercalia. We’ll have to wait an entire year. My sentence has been suspended.

I instructed her and left with my message. "You want us to walk together? My father knows about the arrangement, Ashton then what is the need of pretending?" She asked blankly. I rounded my way to her and leaned over her body. She breathed heavily under our close proximity. "My dear wife, I made a promise to your father that I will be a good husband to you. Real or fake, this marriage happened under the blessing of God." Saying this, I sealed my lips with her soft ones.

“Of course. It’s been ten years. Who else could I marry but you? “Autumn, what are you even thinking about?” Right. Ten years. Yet the words on the metal box kept appearing in my mind, uncontrollably. “The greatest regret of my life is that I can’t give you a wedding.” He let go of me, brimming with excitement as he discussed the details of tomorrow’s wedding rehearsal. He mimicked the priest reciting the vows. “For richer or poorer… in sickness and in health… “To take Miss Autumn Taylor as your wife… “To be married to…” But every single word felt like a needle piercing my chest.

But when our businesses clashed, the streets ran red with the blood of our homeboys. The violence only ended when John Wenston —son of Karl Wenston married a Shelby daughter out of love, forging a fragile peace. A union that started out of love, gave a momentary peace, but it grew to become our law —a contractual marriage: a decree demanding sons from each family marry daughters from the other. I was briefed about the consequences —the stories of daughters who took their own lives rather than be betrothed to monsters. It was a peace built on broken lives, and perhaps if not for my medical knowledge, I would have considered the same fate.

That wouldn't come as a surprise with all I had witnessed so far. "Irene." He took hold of my hand, and to my relief, there was no vision. "I have told you before, and I stand by my word. You are the one restored to me by the stars. My betrothed queen. You are the only one I have eyes for. The only thing that saddens me is that you cannot remember. I waited thousands of years for you, and now that I have been blessed again, I would not throw that blessing away." "All of this is hard to take in." My lips pursed together and my forehead creased in exhaustion.

He chose to be with another woman instead, I was nothing but an omega chosen by a dying grandma, nothing but a chore Damon had to do. I remembered the day I understood what betrothal means, I had thought about my marriage with Damon since that day. It was supposed to be a joyous occasion, a day where I could shine as a woman who was loved and respected, but everything went wrong. Every single thing. As an omega, I had always dreamt of my wedding day. I imagined walking down an aisle strewn with rose petals, the air filled with the sweet melody of violins. I envisioned a flowing gown of lace and silk, its train spreading like a cloud behind me, and my mate would be waiting for me at the altar

Isadora's hands had gone still on the folder, her expression caught somewhere between dread and dawning realization. "The marriage record isn't the only entry connecting my family to Draven's Hollow," she said slowly. "There's a second one. More recent. Barely two generations back, not four." Her eyes lifted, something urgent and frightened settling behind them now. "And this one isn't simply a marriage alliance. It's a formal betrothal contract, drawn up between a Blackthorn ancestor and a Draven's Hollow heir, that was never actually completed."

The same hand that had signed my permission slips and written 'I love you' in the margins of my childhood notebooks. "THE SACRAMENT OF UNIFICATION." My eyes scanned the archaic language, tripping over terms like primogeniture and dowry. And then, I saw the word that turned my blood to slush. "Matrimonium." "Marriage?" I whispered, the word feeling like a jagged stone in my mouth. "This... this says that in exchange for the Moretti protection and a ten-million-dollar 'gift,' the firstborn female of the Vance line is betrothed to the heir of the Moretti estate."

“Why would you call me that?” He looked down at the floor. The shadows from his bracelet flickered over his face, sharpening the lines of tension. “It slipped,” he said. “No. It did not. That felt deliberate.” His throat moved. A swallow. A bracing breath. Then finally, in a low voice that scraped against the walls, he said, “We were betrothed.” The words felt like a blow. A physical blow. They knocked the air from my lungs. “What.” He still would not look at me. “When we were children. The pact was made between the king and your mother. Your magic and mine were compatible. The union would strengthen the bloodlines. Unite houses. Create stability between realms.”