Chapter 5 - Sean #2
As I turn to face her, the coldness in her eyes reminds me that luck isn’t fully on my side. Her antipathy toward me is palpable, thick enough to be cut through, but resilient enough for that to seem impossible.
No.
Nothing is impossible.
Here I am, standing in front of her, about to take her as my mate.
“I, Alpha Sean Lowell, leader of the Silverfang Pack, take you, Emily Hudson, as my mate and luna of this pack.”
Emily lets out the breath she’d been holding in as she blinks at my hands, which I hold out. Hesitantly, she places her hands on my palms, fingers frigid, her eyes like icicles spearing me.
“I, Emily Hudson…” she grates out as if she’s gritting her teeth. “...accept you as my mate and alpha.”
The hall breaks out into applause, while all I can do is watch Emily’s face as it contorts with an array of emotions. Anger, dread, fear.
I know why the last one is there, and that’s when I pull her into my arms, spinning her to face away from the crowd.
My face is a mere inch from hers, her eyes stunned as she stares at me.
“Shh…” I whisper, watching the way her eyes flicker to my lips, then back to my eyes. “Just stay still, so it looks like we’re kissing.”
“I hate you,” Emily growls fiercely under her breath.
I take the liberty of tucking her hair behind her ear as I straighten up and steady her. “I know,” I nod, noticing how flushed her cheeks are, as if she’s flustered, making the whole act more believable when we turn to the crowd.
More applause and cheers ring out from the hall, and our black ops friends offer us smiles and nods as we make our way down from the stage. Now that the verbal mating ceremony has been completed, we join the pack and our friends for a feast.
I notice that Emily hardly takes a bite of food, as if she resents her plate as much as she hates me.
After mingling with the pack members with more pretenses as they congratulate us on our mate bond, all that’s left is for the newly mated couple to return home, so it’s again more believable.
My home.
Nestled on the south side of Stowe, where the mountains cast a shadow over the house during the day, and act like a protective dome during the night.
Emily doesn’t walk beside me, her arms folded as she stays a few paces behind until I’m at the door. I open up and step aside, curtly offering an arm.
“Your new abode, madam.” I try being courteous, but Emily scoffs and rolls her eyes scornfully as she steps over the threshold.
“What are you gonna do next? Throw me a housewarming party?” she sneers.
“If that’s what you want,” I offer as I step inside after her, my heart lurching as I close the door behind us.
This isn’t going to be easy, but I didn’t expect it would be. Turning slowly toward Emily, I plaster a gentle smile on my face as I nod toward the hallway.
“Let me show you to your room,” I say as I lead the way. She doesn’t say anything as she follows me quietly, leading me to wonder what she’s thinking as she walks through her new home.
This place was a gift from my father upon my return and retirement from the black ops missions. Coming back to the surprise of this newly built structure, designed by my mother, who planned on gifting me the blueprint once I stepped into my role as the alpha of Silverfang, was bittersweet.
For most of my teenage years and leading into my early twenties before Mum died, I pictured my life very differently.
I wasn’t supposed to join black ops. The only reason I did was that Mom died, and I needed to run.
And I wasn’t supposed to reject Emily. She was supposed to be by my side since the very beginning.
I fucked up back then, and somehow, the Moon Goddess saw fit for me to be awarded a second chance to right my wrongs.
Showing Emily to the bedroom I prepared for her is a start. I know her favorite colors. I know the intricacies of her tastes. We’d spent enough time together when Mom was sick, and she lived with us, and I remember our late-night conversations in the kitchen as if they happened yesterday.
Olive green and golden trimmings. That was what she wanted in her bedroom if she ever moved out of her cottage.
That’s exactly what’s inside the bedroom I had prepared for her, along with the oval bed she dreamed of, and the bedposts extending to the ceiling with white organza cascading down.
“This is your bedroom,” I say as I open the door and step aside for her to see. Dustin and the others already brought her belongings in this morning, so all she needs to do is walk inside.
But she doesn’t.
She stands cemented in the hallway, her expression bland and not giving anything away.
“Where’s your room?” she asks, and I pause, not sure why she’s asking.
“Er—” I peep out the doorway and point to the door next to hers. “My room is over there.”
“Do you have another room in this place?” Another odd question, because I would have thought she already knew. Unless she never paid attention, or never cared at all.
It’s not like it’s the first time she’s in my house. I’ve been living here for more than a year, having been gifted this place by my father upon my return from black ops, and stepping into my role as the alpha of Silverfang.
“I do…” I say as I step out, then point to the rooms in the other wing, past the living room. “Two bedrooms over there. Guest bedrooms, without ensuite bathrooms.”
“Cool. I’ll take one of those,” she says nonchalantly as she heads into her prepared bedroom, grabs her trolley bag, and wheels it out into the hallway.
“I prepared this bedroom especially for you,” I protest, but Emily ignores me.
“I want a peaceful night’s sleep,” she throws over her shoulder, and I don’t follow her, standing outside her room, stunned.
“I-I don’t snore, Em!” I call out after her, but she’s already in the other wing, turning toward the door in the least furnished room in the whole house.
“Oh, yes you do!” she calls back with a dry chuckle, saluting me before disappearing into the guest bedroom.
My brows furrow as I stare at the space she occupies, even if I can’t see through the walls. It’s not just because I know she’s in there, but because I can sense her. And I know she isn’t picking a different bedroom because she claims I snore.
It’s like she’s right beside me, breathing, her heart beating, and I close my eyes to bask in the feeling of having her around. Even if she hates me right now—so much that she refused to stay in the bedroom beside mine—what matters is that she’s here with me.
She might think she’s pushing me away with her stubbornness, but I find it adorable. She has no idea that her resistance only makes me especially determined to win her over.
Emily is my mate now, even if it’s just verbally. It’s only a matter of time before I make her my mate in every sense of the word.