The Alpha's Secret Mate

chapter 15

Back in my old pack, I had grown used to living in a cramped space. Maria’s home wasn’t exactly small, but compared to this… it felt worlds apart. The moment I stepped into the room, its luxury overwhelmed me. I couldn’t even picture myself staying here—it was far too big. My old room wasn’t even half this size.

He lifted an eyebrow, studying me. “Why? Don’t you like it?”

I shook my head quickly. “No, it’s not that. It’s just…” I hesitated, my voice dropping. “What if my presence bothers you?”

A frown crossed his face as he glanced toward the balcony, his expression turning thoughtful. “Hmm… now that is a concern.”

“Yes. You get my point, Alpha,” I replied, completely missing the faint trace of amusement in his tone.

He turned back to me and stepped closer, the air between us tightening with each inch he closed. His arms slipped around my waist, pulling me firmly against him. I gasped at the sudden movement as he forced me to face him. His gaze locked onto mine—deep, intense, impossible to escape.

“How about we stay together,” he murmured, his voice low and husky, “and find out who really bothers whom?”

Heat rushed to my ears. “I… don’t understand.”

A smirk tugged at his lips as his hand lifted to my chin. His thumb traced slow, deliberate lines along my jaw, sending a soft, tingling warmth through me. My stomach fluttered, and I couldn’t tell if it was the dim lighting playing tricks on me or something else—but his eyes seemed to darken.

“You will,” he whispered. “Soon.”

He released me, and I let out a slow breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. “It’s been a long journey,” he said gently. “You should take a bath and freshen up.” I nodded in response, too drained to say much.

A few minutes later, I was alone in the room, left with nothing but my thoughts and the suffocating silence around me. Raymond had said he needed to check on a few things before returning, and for once, I was grateful for the distance. I needed room to think, to steady myself. My nerves were stretched thin as dreadful possibilities crowded my mind, each one darker than the last. Source

Think positive, I told myself, though the words felt weak against the storm inside me.

I opened my suitcase, my hands trembling as I searched through my things for the small pouch that held my pills. The moment I found it, I cast a quick glance toward the door, making sure no one was coming, then slipped one into my mouth.

Staring down at the little white bottle, unease coiled tighter in my chest. No one could know about these pills. No one. Not even Raymond. But where could I hide them?

My gaze swept across the room until it landed on a potted plant tucked away in the corner. A hiding place. Surely no one would think to search there. Moving quickly, I crossed the room and pushed the bottle deep into the pot, covering it carefully with soil before settling the plant back into place. Relief flickered through me when I saw that the pot was large enough to conceal it completely.

“Oh, my Goddess!” a female voice cried out from behind me. My entire body went rigid, my back stiffening at once.

Luana

I closed my eyes, whispering a quiet prayer that I would make it through the day alive.

“Turn around, you filthy girl.”

The sharp command sliced through the silence. My body stiffened, but I obeyed, turning slowly as my pulse thundered in my ears. The moment I faced her, I froze.

Emerald eyes.

Cold. Piercing. Judging.

They held me captive without a single word, and yet I felt scolded under their weight. Their owner stood before me—tall, poised, and unmistakably powerful. Her almond-brown hair was drawn back into a flawless bun, not a strand out of place.

I didn’t need to be told who she was. Everything about her spoke of authority. The soft gleam of pearls at her neck, the smooth maroon blouse tucked neatly into a fitted black skirt—she wore wealth and status as effortlessly as she wore her composure.

Her brows drew together as she examined me from head to toe, her gaze critical, almost offended.

“How dare you attempt to steal from this house?” she said, her voice cool but laced with anger. “You must be the new maid tracy mentioned.”

A maid?

The word echoed in my mind, sharp and unbelievable. Did I truly look like one to her?

Before I could gather my thoughts, she continued, her tone hardening. “You will be punished for trying to steal from us. Tra—”

“Miss, you’re mistaken,” I interrupted quickly, my voice unsteady. “I—I’m not a maid.”

She fell silent.

And then she simply looked at me.

No words. No movement. Just that unyielding stare, as the seconds stretched long and heavy between us.

“If you think lying to the Pack Mother is your way out, then you are gravely mistaken,” she said, her voice cold and unyielding. “I will make sure you pay for—”

Pack Mother?

The words struck me like a blow. My eyes widened as understanding settled in. She was Kyle's mother—no, stepmother, since they shared no blood. A chill ran through me. My very first day in the manor, and I had already managed to cross paths with the former Luna of Blackwood.

“I—I’m not lying, Miss,” I stammered, my voice barely above a squeak.

Panic coiled tightly in my chest. What if she discovered the antidepressants I had hidden? Which would be worse—to be branded a thief, or to be exposed as a wolfless girl bound in marriage to her son?

I drew in a shaky breath and closed my eyes, trying to ease the tension knotting inside me.

“Then what exactly are you?” she demanded sharply. “And why are you in that—” her gaze flicked past me, as though checking for someone’s presence, “—in that scum’s room?”

Scum?

Was she talking about Kyle?

“I am—” My hands clenched into fists, my throat tightening painfully. The answer refused to come. Who was I, really?

You are an unlucky freak.

Michelle’s voice echoed in the back of my mind, cruel and unrelenting.

“I don’t have all day, you filthy peasant!” the woman snapped.

Her voice lashed out like a whip, and my body jerked at the force of it.

“I am the Alpha’s wife,” I said softly, the words foreign even to my own ears. Though it was true—though I was legally bound to Kyle—I couldn’t help but question it. Did I truly deserve that title?

I lifted my gaze and found her staring at me, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating, broken only by the steady ticking of a clock somewhere to my right.

“You?” she said at last, the single word dripping with disbelief and faint mockery as her eyes swept over me from head to toe.

Without thinking, I tugged at the hem of my dull green top, trying to smooth it over my torn jeans. Standing before her—so polished, so refined—I felt painfully out of place, like I didn’t belong in the same world.

She raised a hand to her lips, as though suppressing laughter. My gaze dropped instantly to the floor. I didn’t need her to say it aloud—I already knew what she was thinking.

Someone like me…Kyle’s wife?

It was almost laughable.

I had thought the same thing myself.

She cleared her throat, though the amusement still lingered in her expression. Her eyes gleamed with open ridicule as she spoke.

“Well, this is unexpected,” she said lightly. “I heard my son had married some lowly girl from the South, but you…” Her gaze flicked over me again, sharper this time. “You exceed even those modest expectations.”

Her manicured fingers gestured toward my clothes with thinly veiled disdain.

“Is this what you people wear in the South?”

I followed her gaze down to my outfit, suddenly hyper-aware of every crease and tear.

Was it really that bad?