Betrayed by the Alpha: Your Wife Is Mine Now

LILY The crystal chandelier above the mahogany conference table cast dancing shadows across my father’s stern face as he delivered the blow I’d been dreading my entire adult life. “Lily,” Dad banged his hand on the table, making the coffee cups rattle against their saucers. “I can’t let you handle the business. You need to get an Alpha, then we’ll transfer the business to him to control.” My mother’s perfectly manicured fingers traced the rim of her teacup as she nodded in agreement. “Honey, your Dad is right. You’re too soft-hearted for this world.” The sting of their words cut deeper even though I kept telling myself that I understood them. I straightened my shoulders, fighting back the tears that threatened to betray my composure. “But Dad, without my brain, this business wouldn’t flourish the way it does now.” The numbers didn’t lie. My strategic guidance from the shadows, made our family conglomerate grow from a modest regional company to a multinational corporation. Every major decision, every innovative approach, every calculated risk that had paid off bore my invisible fingerprints. Yet here I sat, being dismissed like an incompetent child. “Yes, we appreciate that,” Dad said with finality. “When you get your Alpha, you continue to use your genius brain to make more successful decisions.” They valued my intelligence enough to rely on it completely, yet deemed it insufficient to warrant actual authority. I was good enough to be the brain behind the operation, but not strong enough to be the face on papers. The contradiction would have been laughable if it weren’t so painfully personal. Everyone in our social circle envied my parents’ business success. At every gala, and every exclusive gathering, people whispered about the Thornfield family’s golden touch. The profit margins never diminished, our stock prices consistently soared, and our competitors scrambled to replicate strategies they couldn’t quite understand. What they didn’t know was that everything was thanks to me. While other women my age were planning elaborate vacations or shopping for designer handbags, I was crafting business proposals and negotiating deals from behind the scenes. I barely had time for myself let alone the time to go in search of a mate. All my mornings and weekends were dedicated to work. But apparently, none of that mattered without an Alpha by my side. The meeting ended with my parents’ expectations crystal clear. Find a suitable Alpha mate, transfer control of the company to him, and content myself with being the brilliant woman behind the powerful man. It was a narrative as old as time, and I hated how perfectly I fit into it. My grandmother was brilliant too, they said, but she married young and faded into the background of her husband’s achievements. My mother had shown promise in her youth, but she’d chosen the safe path of being a supportive wife rather than a pioneering businesswoman. Was I destined to repeat their pattern? Mother arranged meetings with eligible Alphas. Each potential suitor came with impressive credentials and obvious ambitions. They all wanted the same thing— access to the Thornfield empire. They all went straight to what they wanted. Every single one of them saw me as a beautifully wrapped key to a very lucrative kingdom. Will my life become a transaction disguised as romance? ~~~ I met Xavier, not out of desperation. He was different, maybe it was because he didn't know my background, which I guess not. Where other men calculated and schemed, Xavier simply smiled. He didn’t ask about my family’s business. Instead, he wanted to know about my favorite books, my thoughts on art, my dreams that had nothing to do with inheritance. Xavier wouldn’t stop amazing me every time we met. He possessed a calmness that seemed to steady my often chaotic thoughts, and a charm that felt authentic. Though I didn’t know everything about his background yet, I sensed that time would reveal all the layers of this intriguing man. When I mentioned work, his eyes didn’t light up with dollar signs. Instead, he’d change the subject to something more personal, more about us. His indifference to business matters was refreshing. Xavier seemed genuinely interested in me as a person. ~~~ “I can’t wait to be your Alpha and love you more,” he said, tracing my eyebrow with such tenderness that my heart fluttered. Looking at him, I couldn’t help but marvel at how this wonderful man had entered my life. The timing felt almost magical, just when I needed someone who could see beyond my family name and social expectations, Xavier appeared like an answer to prayers to the moon goddess I hadn’t even known I was making. Xavier was someone I could trust completely. His actions consistently matched his words, giving me a sense of security I’d never experienced. In a world where people often had hidden agendas, his straightforward nature felt like a rare gift. My family adored Xavier, though probably not for the reasons I did. Dad appreciated that Xavier was respectful and well-mannered. “He’s not a gold digger,” Mom observed approvingly. “He genuinely cares about you, not what you can give him.” She was right. Xavier’s attention never wavered whether we were at expensive restaurants or walking through public parks. After six months of dating, we agreed to marry. Today, surrounded by flowers, music, and the faces of everyone we loved, I married the man of my dreams. As I walked down the aisle toward Xavier, seeing the joy and love shining in his eyes, I knew I’d found my perfect match. The business transfer my parents wanted would finally happen, but it no longer felt like a loss of my independence. Instead, it felt like the beginning of an adventure with someone who loved me completely for who I was. Standing there in my wedding dress, holding Xavier’s hands as we exchanged vows, I felt like the luckiest woman in the world. ~~~~ The following week, my parents handed the documents of the business to Xavier just as promised. Xavier accepted the responsibility with appropriate sincerity, promising to honor the legacy my family had built while bringing fresh perspectives to future growth. He insisted that I remain involved in all major decisions, be an actual worker rather than a shadow, and describing us as a team. I couldn’t be happier that we were moving into our own standalone manor. My parents gave it to us as a wedding gift, though the deed bore Xavier’s name since he was my Alpha. The legal formality didn’t bother me; I knew Xavier saw our marriage as true love. As I stood in the doorway of our new home, watching Xavier carry me across the threshold with a grin that lit up his entire face, I felt a deep sense of completeness. My wolf settled contentedly in my mind, finally at peace with our new life. We would live happily ever after with our future pups. But the truth was that I was Jinxed. **** The red lingerie felt like a desperate prayer as I struck a pose on our king-sized bed, desperately hoping to catch Xavier’s attention and make him touch me like he used to. A few weeks into marriage and I was already reduced to this—playing the seductress in my own bedroom, begging for affection from the man who’d promised to worship me forever. My wolf paced restlessly beneath my skin. She could sense something was wrong with our husband’s behavior but couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had shifted. I smiled until my cheeks cramped, arranging myself in what I hoped was an irresistible position. Surely this would work. Surely he’d remember the passion we’d shared during our courtship, the nights when he couldn’t keep his hands off me, when he’d whispered promises about how much he needed me. The moment I heard the sound of his footsteps in the hallway, my heart raced with anticipation. This was when everything would go back to normal. But when Xavier finally walked into our bedroom, his eyes swept past me without even a flicker of interest, dismissing my carefully seduction as if I were invisible. He moved toward his side of the bed, pushing me aside like I was an annoying obstacle in his path to sleep. The dismissal sank deep in my chest. My green light had somehow become a blazing red stop sign that irritated him beyond measure. I watched in stunned silence as he began his nightly routine. Not once did his gaze linger on my exposed skin or acknowledge the effort I’d put into trying to entice him. “Xavier, what’s going on?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper as I reached for his arm with trembling fingers. The moment my skin made contact with his, the muscle beneath my touch turned to stone. He went rigid like I’d burned him, then violently jerked away from me with a force that made me gasp. “Can’t you just let me be? Is it too much to ask?” His voice exploded through the room like thunder. This wasn’t the gentle man who’d courted me with poetry. This was a stranger wearing Xavier’s face, speaking with Xavier’s voice, but completely devoid of Xavier’s warmth. Could I really just watch my loving husband disappear before my eyes? I’d tried everything I could think of to bridge the growing distance between us. His favorite meals sat untouched on the dinner table while he grabbed protein bars. Romantic gestures were ignored or met with irritation. Attempts at conversation were shut down with increasingly hostile responses. I’d planned surprise dates, bought new perfumes he used to compliment, even suggested activities we enjoyed during our courtship. Nothing worked. Each attempt seemed to push him further away, like I was speaking a language he no longer understood. “You’ve been so cold toward me. You don’t even see me anymore, Xavier,” I poured out my heart, desperately hoping he’d hear the pain bleeding through my words and remember who we used to be together. My wolf pressed against my consciousness, urging me to fight for our husband despite his obvious rejection. “Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?” he snapped back, though we both knew he spent most nights tossing and turning like he was fighting invisible demons. I’d been watching him for weeks now, he acts disturbed every midnight, there were times I woke up to his scream. Every time I tried to comfort him, he’d pushed me away with the same violence he was showing now. The worst part was the complete absence of physical intimacy. He hadn’t touched me—not sexually, not affectionately, not even casually. My mate, the one person who should be drawn to me by every primal instinct nature had programmed into him, acted like my very presence disgusted him. Even when I intentionally walked around our bedroom completely naked, hoping to trigger him and get some response, he’d just ask me to put clothes on like I was a child misbehaving. “Lily,” he called without even turning to face me, like I wasn’t worth the effort of eye contact. “Yes?” Hope fluttered in my chest like a caged bird desperate for freedom. At least he was acknowledging my existence. Maybe this was the moment when he’d finally explain what was wrong, when we could start working through whatever was driving us apart. “Before I forget, from tomorrow, you don’t have to go to work anymore.” The words crashed over me like ice, stealing the breath from my lungs. Work was the one place I still felt competent, still felt valued and respected. “But why?” My voice cracked with barely contained panic. “Well, someone competent will be taking your role,” he said with the casual cruelty of someone discussing the weather. Someone competent? Who could be more competent than me in this field?. “Someone competent?” I repeated, unable to process what I was hearing. “I don’t understand what you’re saying,” I said, my voice small and confused. “But what will I be doing all day at home?” The question escaped, tinged with the desperation I was trying so hard to hide. I’d never complained about working long hours, never expressed any desire to become a decorative housewife who spent her days planning dinner parties and arranging flowers. The thought of being trapped in this beautiful manor with nothing meaningful to occupy my mind felt like a death sentence. “Maybe work on yourself since you’re close to being obese,” he shot back with vicious precision, each word designed to cut as deeply as possible. Obesity? I stared down at my body in the red lingerie, suddenly seeing myself through his cruel eyes. Had I truly gained weight? Was that why he’d lost interest in me? The insecurity crashed over me, making me want to cover myself with the bedsheets. Yes, I wasn’t skinny like every other girl, but I was still far from obesity. But that wasn’t what any devoted husband would do? “Xavier!” I called out angrily, my own impatient blood finally rising to meet his challenge. He turned then, but instead of the reconciliation I’d desperately hoped for, his eyes held nothing but cold fury. There was still no recognition of the woman he’d claimed to love. His hand shot out faster than I could react, wrapping around my throat with just enough pressure to make breathing difficult for me. “Have you forgotten I am the head of this family?” His voice commanded absolute submission, pressing against my consciousness “You will follow whatever instruction I give you.” This wasn’t how mates were supposed to treat each other. This was how enemies behaved. His grip tightened for a terrifying moment, and I saw something dangerous flicker in his eyes—something that made me wonder if the gentle man I thought I married would kill me. Finally, he released me. Tears formed at the corners of my eyes as I stared at this stranger who wore my husband’s face. What made him this cruel?