Substitute Bride of The Masked Alpha

Chapter three

Anna’s POV

“Yes. I'll do it. I'll marry the man, whoever he is,” I hastily agreed to the deal as much as I didn't want to. The lives of my sister were at stake and nothing was more important than that, not even Fred, my boyfriend.

Fred was a Beta wolf whom I had met a few years back. He was the most handsome man I'd ever seen in my life.

With his curly, black hair, icy green eyes and well-chiselled body, Fred was every woman's dream. They flocked around him like flies did around corpses but he didn't have eyes on any of them. Not my Fred. His eyes were only meant for me.

The instant I set my eyes on him, my wolf leapt for joy. That's how I knew that he was meant for me. When he approached me and told me that he was in love with me, my joy knew no bounds.

I almost jumped into his arms that instant but a lady just had to remain calm and collected. I didn't want him to think I was cheap or anything but I was head over heels in love with him even before he said a word to me.

Our love blossomed into something beautiful. It was even more beautiful than I had imagined at the start. Fred was everything that I hoped he'd be and a lot more. He was kind, compassionate, caring and most of all, he was loving.

But he only fell short in one thing. He was a middle-class Beta who also struggled to get by, just like me. He promised to get me the whole world, to make sure that I never had to suffer anymore but it was hard to believe when he, too, was suffering.

I couldn't look up to him for any sort of financial help but it was okay. I didn't choose him for his money or anything. We loved each other and that was more than enough for me.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I left the house knowing that I was about to take the hardest decision of my entire life.

I promised him that I'd never leave him, that I'd stay by his side no matter what and I meant every word. How could I tell him that I couldn't be with him anymore?

Getting to his house, I knocked. Then I remembered that I had his spare key with me so I quickly took it out of my bag and unlocked the door.

As soon as I got inside, I saw him standing beside his square centre table with a smile on his face. “What a surprise.” He spread his arms wide for a hug but I couldn't get myself to hug him even though I badly wanted to.

Placing his hand on my shoulder, he asked, “What is it? You don't look too happy.”

One more time, I gazed into his eyes as tears rolled down my cheeks. I loved him so much and wished it didn't have to end that way but this was a matter of life and death. I hoped he'd understand.

“I'm breaking up with you, Fred,” I blurted out, covering my face with my palms as I sobbed in shame. “I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. It's just… It just has to happen.”

“Why?” He asked, staring at me almost emotionless. “After everything we've been through, this is what you're saying to me?”

I opened my mouth to speak but the words just won't come out. I couldn't tell him about the plan. That would have jeopardised the entire thing and I couldn't let that happen. But it was the only thing I felt could make him calm down, especially after being with him for several years.

“I'm sorry, my love,” I blurted out once more and without a word, he turned around and walked away from the sitting room only to come to a halt at the door.

“I hoped we'd end up together, Anna. That has always been my dream and this was the year that it was supposed to happen,” he revealed with sadness in his voice. “Regardless, I love you. I will always love you. I don't think my heart can ever beat for anyone the way that it does for you. Bye.”

He walked inside and I fell on the sofa with my hands still over my face and wept profusely. It was my dream too. I hoped to get married to him. He was the best man in the entire world. Yes, to me, there was none better.

But My stepfamily… They always found a way to ruin anything good happening in my life. First, it was my father. Now, it was my boyfriend.

As I stood and left the house, I hoped they would fulfil their part of the deal knowing that they could always decide to change their minds and there was nothing I could do about it.

**********

Two days had passed since I broke up with my boyfriend and I still hadn't heard a thing from my stepmom.

“Would you go to work today?” Summer asked softly.

“Yes. Of course, I'll go to work,’’ I lied to her, just like I'd been doing for the past few days since I couldn't tell her where I always went. “Are you alright? Do you feel any pain at all?”

She nodded. “My tummy hurts a lot.”

As he spoke those words, tears stung his eyes and his brother who stood beside him clutched his stomach too, teary-eyed.

The pain had come back and this time, it looked even worse. I had to get that money. I had to visit my stepmother just to remind her to pay what she owed. I couldn't let summer suffer that way. Not after what I had done to ensure that it'd never happen again.

I picked up my phone so I could call Mrs Gina, just to let them know that I was going to show up but to my surprise, I was met by several email notifications from all the hospitals and stores that I'd visited in the past year.

“OMG! I can't believe this! Thank the Goddess!”

I jumped on my bed full of excitement. They all mailed to inform me that I had cleared all of my debts. I was free. I could finally get my twin the treatment she required.

I didn't have the money for the surgeries but at that point, I didn't care. I was going to get her to do it so I'd pay them later. Seeing how I cleared all my bills at once, surely they'd believe that I could.

I helped the boys onto the bed, kissing them on the cheeks with a smile on my face. “Don't worry, my Summer. Everything will be alright,” I assured them. “Your big sister will never stop until you are in perfect health. Trust me.”

I dashed into the bathroom to have my bath and in a few minutes, I was already done. I slipped into the bright red dress that I entered the bathroom with and when I got back into the room, I put on my black, flat shoes and grabbed my purse to leave.

Picking up my phone to call Fred just to know if he was around, I thought against it, electing to pay him a surprise visit instead.

I missed him. I missed him so much and wanted to spend one more night with him. Each time I recalled what I did to him, I was hurt. But it wasn't just because I betrayed him. I betrayed myself too. I rid myself of the chance to be with my true love forever.

Getting to his house, I took out his spare key. Thankfully, he hadn't taken it from me yet. With it, I unlocked the door and walked into the house, opting to sit on the sofa for a while before going into his room.

I sighed, relieved that I had a chance to get some rest. The amount of trekking that I'd subjected myself to was enough to win a Marathon race.

As I looked up at the wall in front of me, I saw a portrait of myself hanging on the cream-coloured wall. He got it the previous year and promised to always have it there and despite having broken up with him, his promise remained.

As I stood to get a closer look at the portrait, I heard some strange sounds emanating from his room and quickly headed over to find out what it was.

The closer I got, the more the sound increased and just as I stood outside the door, I heard him groan out aloud before falling over on his bed.

“Your sister is the dumbest woman that I've ever met in my life,” Fred said to the woman who lay next to him. Opening the door slightly, I realised it was none other than Mara by his side as they both lay naked on the bed.

I couldn't believe my eyes. What the hell was she doing in his room just two days after we broke up? How could he do something like that to me?

“She's not my sister,” she retorted. “That fool can never be part of my family. She brings nothing but bad luck to whomever she gets close to.”

“Well, good thing I've finally gotten rid of her. Maybe now, I can see good things flow into my life…”

“Maybe?”

“No. Now that it's just the both of us, everything will change in my favour,” he voiced, planting a kiss on her lips. “I'm so happy that we're finally together. To think she believed that I loved her.”

They both shared a laugh and I pushed the door open in anger and walked over to them on the bed.

“What the hell did I just hear?” I asked on the brink of tears. “What is she doing on your bed, Fred?”

They didn't even try to cover up. Instead, they looked at themselves and laughed hard once again, pointing their finger at me. “What business of yours is what I decide to do with my life?” Fred sneered. “You're nothing to me. You should be glad that I let you share the same space with me.”

Mara pulled him in and they shared a passionate kiss as I watched on in shock. “Don’t look so surprised. Mara and I have been f*****g for over a year now and we don't plan on stopping anytime soon,” he revealed, sending me into further shock since it meant he was cheating on me. “To be frank, she's much better in bed than you can ever be.”

“f*****g backstabbers!” I cussed out as the tears finally flowed. “I regret the day that I met you, Fred.”

“Me too. The feeling is quite mutual,” his voice trailed as I left the room and began to make my way back home.

I'd barely walked five minutes when I heard my phone beep. I took it out from my purse and checked the notification only to see that it was from my stepmom.

She sent me a picture of my husband-to-be and all I could do was burst into tears. Not only was he in a wheelchair, he had a mask on.

I'd been told that he was disabled and disfigured but how was I to know that it was so bad that he had to hide his face?

Leaning on a poll on the street, I wished that I could somehow get out of the deal that I signed myself into but I couldn't. There was no way out.