His Wolfless Bride

CHAPTER 6: An Inevitable Decision

HAILE’S POV:

I relax my jaw and square up my shoulders when I notice that Marguerite is staring at me, confused and worried. Her eyebrows are furrowed. Her eyes are inquiring. I smile at her, perhaps the weakest and the most forced I’ve ever given to her, but she doesn’t smile back. She doesn’t want my smile, she needs my assurance. Before I could make a move or could even speak, my wolf, Umber, snatches my attention.

“Alpha Marcellus’ offer shocks me both in a good and in a bad way. We’ve always wanted to be promoted to a higher rank coz it’s our hearts’ fulfillment to serve our pack and our members and promotion means that we’ll have more authority and freedom to do that.”

I know that. Be that as it may, I can’t marry Alpha Naomi. I don’t love her and I already have a mate, whom I promised to always love and protect.

My head is still teetering when Alpha Marcellus fazes me more.

“You’re silent for a while. It seems like you’re considering my offer?” he says, with an undertone of minute excitement in his voice.

Marguerite’s big, blue eyes are now brimming with moisture. I flinch when guilt bolts. My silence is hurting her, but her pained face is hurting me more. It’s not my intention to make her feel the way she does. My brain just suddenly flakes out.

I walk closer to her and wipe her eyes dry before giving her tears the chance to fall. I kiss the bruise on her cheek. She jolts, but doesn’t complain. I then slide my mouth to her ear and whisper,

“I love you.”

Finally, tiny curves appear at the corners of her quivering lips. If only I could kiss her now to show Alpha Marcellus that I meant what I said, I will. But disrespecting him isn’t a smart idea.

I turn to Alpha Marcellus, bow down and say, “Thank you for lending us your time and giving us your blessing, my Alpha. Marguerite and I have to go.”

I gently pull Marguerite to my side, then drape my arm around her tiny waist. After taking a couple of steps away from Alpha Marcellus, his voice grips our attention, forcing us to pause.

“You didn’t reject my offer.”

Marguerite’s shoulders tighten and so does my chest. Alpha Marcellus is right, I forgot to reject his offer.

“No! That’s not it! You don’t have the heart to reject or accept his offer! That’s why you deliberately didn’t answer!”

I inwardly groan at Umber. If only I could gag his mouth, I will. He isn’t helping! But he is probably right and I hate admitting it.

I examine Marguerite’s face. She’s avoiding my gaze. She can sense what’s going through my mind and it makes me anxious to cause her anxiety! She’s been through a lot. Nobody is ever there for her except me. I’m the only one she can lean on and I can’t fail her. I’m so selfish for only thinking about myself for a second! I have to give Alpha Marcellus a principled answer right here, right now! Just when I’m about to respond, Alpha Marcellus adds, pointing at his chest.

“A true, competent leader never makes a decision based on emotions.” He then moves his index finger up to the side of his forehead. “It’s always here.” He tucks both his hands in his pockets, then continues, “That’s what I learned from your late father.”

Seriously? Using my late father to sway me? He really knows my weakness and he targets it with swiftness and accuracy. My indecisiveness fidgets again, dismantling the response that I was about to say and even restricting me from thinking anything else.

“I’ll give you time to think. I hope you’ll make the best choice for yourself and for our pack,” he adds.

Marguerite shoves my arms away from her and walks forward, favoring one leg. I jog towards her and attempt to touch her, but her glare freezes my hands away. She continues to walk while I do nothing to comfort her. All I could do is to tail her shadows and stare blankly at her back.

I can’t blame her if she’s mad. If I am in her shoes, I'll be furious even. The option is between my demotion or my promotion, her or Alpha Naomi. I want a promotion, but I also want her. Is there something I can do to get both? My head wheels as I’m doing my desperate best to search for an answer.

“The answer is in the deepest cave of your heart. Just patiently dig and you’ll soon find it.”

That’s what I’m trying to do! Can you just be quiet and let me be at peace for a moment?

Umber doesn’t say anything anymore, but he chuckles, which I find irritating. There’s nothing fun about what I’m going through!

Night falls and Marguerite hasn’t talked to me since then. She’s in her room, all by herself. Since it’s all my fault, it’s just right to apologize to her. I can’t let this day pass without resolving our issues. I ascend to the second floor where her room is located, then stand still for a few awkward moments in the small hallway, before finding the courage to finally knock on her door.

“Can I come in?” I ask.

There’s no reply and the door isn’t locked, so I assume that the answer to my question is an unspoken yes. The door screeches as I push it open, then I peek through the narrow opening between the door and the jamb. Marguerite is sitting on her bed, her knees to her chest and her eyes to the awning window. I know she can hear and smell me, but still, she refuses to meet my gaze. I sit beside her and don't waste time in breaking the profound silence.

“About earlier…” I pause to collect myself when she finally turns her swollen eyes to me.

My chest cramps. She once told me that I’m the only one who doesn’t make her cry, so I promised that I never will. But, I just thoughtlessly broke that promise. It hurts and angers me at the same time!

“I… I just didn’t want to disrespect Alpha Marcellus. That’s all.”

I wait for her response, but don't get any. She just stares with an unuttered proclamation that she’s not believing me.

“Fine,” I say. “I don’t wanna be demoted, but I also don’t wanna marry Alpha Naomi.”

“So what will you decide then?” she asks.

Her question is what I’m expecting to hear and I’m prepared not to dodge it.

“Tomorrow morning, I’ll head back to Alpha Marcellus’ house to personally reject his offer, I promise.”

“Why not now?”

I smirk, a lustful one, which instantly shifts the mood of the atmosphere from dismally bleak to exquisitely sultry. A blush tints Marguerite’s cheeks as I crawl closer to her. When I’m already on top of her, I whisper,

“Because I have other plans for now.”

Marguerite giggles at my touch. Those giggles become moans when my tongue begins cuddling her neck. My hands advance to her b.reasts area. She moans louder, urging me to do more. Her n.ipples are getting hard underneath my palms as I continue to massage her ample, soft b.reasts.

“Hm… Haile, please, don’t stop.”

I lower her dress’ puffy sleeves from her shoulders, exposing her c.leavage that I’ve not seen nor touched for months. Oh, I miss her. I need her. If I’m to marry her and be demoted from my position, I can climb my way back to a higher rank in a matter of months. But if I’m to marry another woman, then I will forever lose this love and warmth that only Marguerite could give. On that account, I’ll choose her over any temptations that will be thrown at me.

My c***k twitches when my skillful hands finally get rid of her dress and undergarments. Her swollen, rosy n.ipples captivate me, begging for my mouth to suck them. For a minute, I tease them by playfully pinching and encircling them with my fingers, before putting one of them inside my delighted mouth. Marguerite arches her back, but I push her down and suck her n.ipples harder. My tongue rubs her n.ipples in all directions it can, making her tremble every second or two. After giving so much rapt attention to her b.reasts area, it’s time for the main event. I forcefully separate her legs, but quickly regret my action. Instead of eagerness, it's panic that arouses when she yells in pain. I curse under my breath for letting the pleasure consume me and forgetting that Marguerite is still bruised and injured.

“I’m sorry,” I say, gently resting her head on my chest and snuggling her in my arms.

We don’t move for a moment and as soon as her painful moans fade, relief parches my cold sweat.

“I’m sorry. I don’t think I can make love with you now,” she says.

“That’s alright. Let’s not force it tonight. But after you’re healed,...” I pause to soften my voice, before continuing, “I’ll go wild on you.”

We whoop in laughter, something I’ve not done while I was away. For four months, all I talked about was the dreadful reality of our kingdom’s politics and the only ones I discussed it with were the cheerless Gammas and Betas of our pack. But now, it’s different. I’m talking about s**x with my beloved mate and I enjoy it more. This simple moment secures my belief that Marguerite is the best thing I need to be happy.

Later that evening, knocks come at the door. I glance at Marguerite’s peacefully sleeping face, before climbing down the bed. Behind the door is my mother. Her face turns sour when she glances at Marguerite, but she immediately fakes a smile when she notices that I’m noticing her expression.

“There are Omegas outside. They said Alpha Marcellus is summoning you now.”

“At this hour? What for?” I ask.

Mother shrugs, then says, “Just hurry. You don’t wanna make him wait.”

I glance at Marguerite once again and a smile curls on my lips. Following that, I fix my uniform and my messy hair, before heading downstairs.

As I’m walking my way towards the Alphas’ residence, his offer from earlier niggles at the back of my mind again. The more I try to brush it off, the more it troubles me.

Right, once Alpha Marcellus opens the conversation about the offer, I’ll quickly and politely reject it like I’m supposed to. I’d rather get demoted than marry his awful daughter.

Unlike what it has always been, Alpha Marcellus and his wife, Luna Claudette, are already seated in the living area when I arrive. Their humorless smiles send discomfort to me, but I make an effort not to show it. I maintain an impassive facade as I sit opposite to them.

“I’m glad you didn’t bring your mate here. She’s difficult,“ Alpha Marcellus says, disregarding that Marguerite is somebody important to me.

“She’s sleeping and your Omegas only called for me, so I didn’t know that Marguerite was needed here.”

“She wasn’t needed,” Luna Claudette says while wiping the lipstick’s stain on the rim of her teacup with her fingertips. “We’re gonna be straightforward. We summoned you here because we wanna know your decision about my husband’s offer.”

We? So did they plan for this the whole time? My brow furrows, only this time, I let them notice it.

“About that,” I say, doing my best to stay polite. “Promotion is great, but I have to reject it. I’ve decided to marry Marguerite.”

Luna Claudette’s chin moves up as she takes a deep breath. On the other hand, Alpha Marcellus retains his calm expression. He’s the first one to speak after a moment of immensely savage silence.

“If that’s your decision, then we’ll respect it. But if you think that by marrying your mate you’ll have her promoted as a Delta, that wouldn’t happen. In fact, my wife came up with a finer idea than I did. If you marry her, then you two will be kicked out of our pack and will become rogues. And as you know, she’s wolfless and can’t fight back if you two ever encounter other rogues outside our kingdom,” Alpha Marcellus says.

Anger flares all over me, heating up my chest and smoldering my mouth. Before the words could blast off me, I manage to hold down a huge lump of my anger to at least give them the respect they expect from me.

“What makes you hate Marguerite so much? And please don’t tell me because she’s wolfless?”

Alpha Marcellus darkens his stare at me. “We don’t hate her, we’re just giving you options.”

“Options? You’re threatening me,” I counter.

“Are you threatened?” Luna Claudtte asks after taking another sip on her tea.

Her question rings a bell. She’s right - I am threatened and, with a little more push, they might succeed in making me concede to their demands that they’re disguising as options.