Alpha's Broken Luna's Heart

Chapter 4

Steven

The whiskey burned down my throat, but it did nothing to dull the suffocating grip around my chest. I slammed the glass down on the bar top as my wolf paced restlessly beneath my skin.

My wolf. That was the problem, wasn't it? He wouldn't shut up about her.

Amber.

Her name alone made something inside me twist into knots. A mixture of rage and something else I refused to acknowledge. Something weaker. Something that made me feel like I was losing control, and I despised that feeling with every fiber of my being.

"This is insane," I muttered, taking another long drink. My father's demand echoed in my mind like a curse: ‘Marry her. She is your mate. It is my dying wish.’

Why her? Why now? I gripped the edge of the bar, my knuckles turning white.

My father, the great Alpha Derek, was lying in that damn hospital bed, tubes snaking into his arms, his once-powerful frame reduced to a frail shell. And what did he ask of me? Not to step up. Not to prepare myself for the burden of leadership. No. He wanted me to chain myself to a woman who made me feel... everything.

His dying wish? For me to marry Amber. Her, of all people. The girl who’d haunted my thoughts since we were pups, the one who made my wolf stir in ways I couldn’t control. I hated it. Hated her for it.

My wolf fretted restlessly in my mind, urging me toward something I refused to acknowledge. Damn my wolf was craving to have her. He was being desperate for his mate.

And I hated this feeling.

She was moon-touched, gifted with powers from the goddess herself, and every time she smiled or brushed past me in the pack house, it was like a spark ignited in my chest. But weakness? No, I couldn’t afford that.

“Steven, man, you look like you’re about to shift and tear this place apart,” came a voice from my left. It was Brad, one of my closest friends, sliding onto the stool beside me with a beer in hand.

"We need to talk," Rick, my other friend, said, dropping into the chair across from me. "About the pack. About leadership."

"Not now," I growled, but they ignored me.

Rick leaned forward, his voice low. "This marriage thing…it's crucial timing, Steven. The pack is already unsettled with your father's condition.We need to focus on succession, on keeping the territory stable. We need you to focus on stepping up as Alpha. Not some forced mating ceremony. Weddings and bonds? That's a distraction.”

My wolf snarled at the suggestion, which only made me grip my glass harder.

"Amber's always been your father's favorite," Brad said carefully. "Remember how he’d let her tag along on hunts when we were kids? Maybe this is his way of looking out for her. Securing her position or whatever. He would do anything for her. Maybe that's all this is."

"No." Rick's voice cut through the conversation sharply. All our eyes turned to him. His expression was troubled, conflicted. "I don't think that's it. I think Alpha Derek sees something we're not seeing." He looked directly at me, and something in his gaze made my skin prickle. "I think he knows she's good for the pack. Good for you. And I think... I think she cares about you, Steven. More than she lets on."

I laughed, a harsh, bitter sound that echoed off the walls. "You're reading into nothing, Rick."

But even as I said it, I wasn't sure what I really think about this.

The door burst open again, and in walked Brianna, her red hair cascading like fire, tears already streaming down her cheeks. She’d been my on-and-off fling for years, nothing serious, just a way to blow off steam. But now? She looked at me like I’d betrayed her, her lips trembling as she approached.

I groaned in frustration. I was not in the mood to hear her drama.

"Steven," Brianna breathed, rushing toward me. "Tell me it's not true. Tell me you're not really going to marry her."

My headache flared up. I set my glass down with more force than necessary, causing the liquid to spill around.

"Not now, Bri." I warned her.

"How can you say that?" Her voice rose to that particular pitch she used when she wanted sympathy.

“Please Steven,” she whimpered, clutching at my arm. "We had something. We—"

I yanked my arm free, irritation flaring into anger. I hated when she acted like this. We had always made it clear that we were not serious about each other. Because we needed our fated mates. She agreed at the start but then she began to say that we were mates of each other. She was so sure about this but I always had some point of doubt regarding that because I never felt that much connection with her. But I was glad that she could be my mate. The idea was fine and non risky. But when on the lunar gathering Amber appeared to be my fated mate everything changed.

"We had nothing," I said coldly, standing and turning away from her. "Leave."

"But Steven, she's probably doing this for the power. The position. Everyone knows the Alpha favors her. She's manipulating him, to get what she wants. You can’t let her trap you like this! maybe she—"

"I said leave!" My voice dropped to a dangerous growl, my wolf pushing against my skin, eager to assert dominance.

The windows rattled. She flinched, tears streaming down her face now, real ones, born of fear. Good.

Her words fueled the fire already burning in me, but I wanted her out of my sight.

She flinched, pretending to be wounded, then spun on her heel and rushed out, sobbing dramatically. I didn't even bother to watch her go.

I poured another drink, trying to silence the war happening inside my own mind. My wolf wanted to hunt, to claim, to mark. My human side wanted to understand why Amber affected me so differently than every other female in the pack.

Because she is your mate. My wolf growled.

And I was terrified of both urges. My thought went towards my dad.

Dad... I couldn’t lose him. He’d been my rock, teaching me to lead, to fight. Seeing him in that hospital bed, machines beeping like a countdown…it gutted me. I rested my head in my hands, fighting the burn in my eyes.

Brad leaned in, his expression turning serious. “I’ve been thinking. Why didn’t Amber save Alpha? She’s moon-touched, right? Extraordinary healing powers. Remember three months ago? That warrior, Nico, was shredded in that ambush, barely breathing. She laid her hands on him, and boom, he’s back on his feet in days. And let’s not forget, Nico had a massive crush on her. The one would have done anything she asked. Maybe she poured extra effort into him. But for the Alpha? She barely tried. What if she held back?”

I straightened, shock rippling through me. Amber had been there when Dad was being treated, her hands glowing with that ethereal light as she tried to heal him. But it hadn’t worked. He’d stabilized enough to linger, but not recover. Why? If she could heal Nico, why not Dad? My mind raced, piecing together fragments. Was she selective? Saving her energy for those who fawned over her?

Rick frowned, shaking his head. “Come on, Brad. That’s a stretch. Amber’s not like that. She’s loyal. How could she do that to Alpha, who dotes on her so much?”

Minutes passed. Time blurred when you were drowning in whiskey and confusion.

Brad's words from earlier came back to me, suddenly sharp and clear despite the alcohol haze.

Why didn't Amber save him?

I set my glass down slowly, my mind focusing on her.

She'd pushed her power to its limits for Nico.

Why wouldn't she do the same for the Alpha? For my dad?

Unless...

Unless she didn't want to.