The guests stood frozen, enveloped in a silence so profound that even the faintest sound seemed to echo. Alexander's declaration had stunned them all.
"Mate!!!"
Arabella's wolf unleashed a haunting howl, resonating with a wild fervor that echoed Alexander's proclamation. It meant only one thing.
"Fated mates..." The words drifted amid the astounded onlookers.
"The first fated mates!" A murmur rippled through the crowd.
"How... how can this be?" The disbelief in the whispered conversations was palpable.
"It's impossible!"
"She is already mated to King Zephyr!”
"It must be a mistake," echoed several voices in rapid succession.
Arabella and Alexander stood, equally shocked. Their wolves surged within, urging them to stake their claim, to mark each other before the assembled guests
