They Called Me the Alpha King’s Stolen Bride

Ten hours before my wedding, my future husband pressed a silver dagger to my lower belly and asked where his pregnant mistress was hiding. Our vows lay printed ten feet away. Ethan Black's hand shook around the handle. His eyes were red. His Alpha scent filled the Luna chamber until my wolf whimpered, Mate, then bared her teeth at the knife. I shoved her down. Silver burned before it even cut. "Where is Lily?" Ethan demanded. I stared at the man who had been my fated mate since I was sixteen, the man I had already forgiven once. "Claire!" The blade pierced my skin. "Answer me." Pain tore through my stomach. My fingers dug into the dressing table. "You came into our wedding room with a silver dagger." My voice came out cold enough to scare me. "For her." His jaw tightened. "Lily is pregnant." The words cut deeper than the blade. The mate bond pulsed once, not for my blood, but for his fear for her. Warm blood slid down my abdomen beneath the silk of my rehearsal gown. "Your pup," I repeated. "Our pup, if you stop being cruel." "What did you say?" Ethan's eyes softened, as if that made the words less disgusting. "Lily gives birth, and the pup comes to us. The child will call you Mother. You stay Luna. The alliance stays clean." "You want me to raise your mistress's pup." "You were always afraid of childbirth. This solves everything. You will never have to risk bearing an heir yourself." "You want me to turn your shame into my heir." Impatience flashed in his eyes. "Think like a Luna for once. Blackthorn needs an heir. Moonridge needs this marriage. Stop making everything about your feelings." The man holding silver to my body was tired of my feelings. His wolf pressed against the room, trying to force mine down, though something in him snarled at the smell of my blood. His fingers tightened on the dagger. "You sent her away. Now tell me where she is." Blue roses lay crushed under his boots. I had chosen them because he once said blue looked good against my skin. I gave him the address of the villa near the southern border. Each word scraped my throat raw. Ethan stepped back the second he got what he wanted. No apology. Only relief. His phone rang. The name Lily Grace flashed across the screen. Everything in him turned toward it. His thumb moved toward the call button. "I have to go." My laugh broke. "Of course you do." "Do not start." "You cut me open with silver." "I did not mean to hurt you." "The knife was in your hand, Ethan." His lips pressed into a hard line. "Lily is carrying an innocent life. You can hate me, but do not punish an unborn pup." "You already decided the pup matters more than me." "Because the child is innocent." "So was I." His Alpha aura pushed against my wounded wolf. "You are my fated mate. You will calm down." He turned toward the door. "When I bring her back, you will not touch her. You will not threaten her. And you will not make her feel unwanted in my house." My fingers closed around the Moonridge vow card. "Your house?" Ethan's eyes hardened. "It still can be our home if you stop forcing me to choose." He had already chosen her. "Go," I said. Ethan paused. "What?" "Go get your mistress." I smiled at him. My lips trembled, but I smiled anyway. "She is waiting." His face darkened. "You will regret speaking like that." "No," I said. "I already regret enough." He slammed the door. I slid down onto the carpet, one hand pressed hard over the silver wound. Only Lily's fear came through the bond, wrapped in Ethan's worry. "Stop," I whispered to my wolf. "Do not beg him." I dragged myself to the emergency kit. Fire tore through my stomach. A cry broke from my mouth. No one came. The wedding vow cards were scattered near the bed. Mine sat on top, already printed for tomorrow. Claire Morgan to Ethan Black. Fated by the Moon Goddess. Chosen by love. I picked up the card with bloody fingers. The printed promise blurred under my bloody fingerprints. Then I opened my contacts. Ethan's name sat at the top under Emergency. For years, every danger had meant Ethan. Tonight, he had been the danger. I deleted him. The screen asked me to confirm. My finger shook once. Then I pressed yes. The mate bond shivered. He did not reach for me. I scrolled to a number I had not called in years. Alexander Stone. Alpha King of the Northern Crown. The man Ethan hated most. My finger hit call before fear could stop me. On the third ring, a low male voice answered. "Claire Morgan." His voice was colder now, deeper. My wounded wolf lifted her head. "Alexander," I said. "If this is about tomorrow's wedding, congratulations," he said after a short pause. "I already sent a gift. Try not to throw it at your groom." The familiar sting in his tone almost made me laugh. "You were right." Silence. "About Ethan." The teasing vanished. "Where are you?" "Blackthorn Manor." "Is he with you?" "No. He left." "Why does your voice sound like that?" "He used silver." Alexander cursed, low and brutal. "Where?" "Lower stomach," I said before he could ask again. "Deep enough." "I am sending a healer." "Not Blackthorn." "Never Blackthorn." The certainty in his voice steadied me. "I need your help," I said. "You have it." "You do not even know what I am asking." "Ethan Black had silver in his hand and you called me instead of him. That is enough." Tears slid down my face. "I need you to take over the wedding." Alexander went silent. "Say that again." "The ceremony is tomorrow. The guests are already here. The altar is ready." My voice cracked. "I do not want to cancel it." "You want to replace him." "Yes." "With me." "Yes." Alexander breathed once through the line. "Is this revenge?" "Part of it." "Honest answer." "So will you do it?" "I am deciding whether to kill him before or after I read the contract." I almost laughed. The tears came first. "Alexander." "Send me the vows," he said. "If I come, I will not play the groom halfway."