“THE ALPHA STEPBROTHERS FORCED BRIDE”

The cold rain of Manila beat mercilessly against the glass windows of the small coffee shop where Vivienne worked. For the past five years, she had lived a quiet, invisible life in the human world. She was no longer Vivienne, the weak human stepdaughter of the Blood Moon Pack. She was just a regular girl trying to survive. But tonight, the air felt different. It was heavy, thick with the scent of ozone and something dangerously familiar—the scent of pine wood and fresh blood. The scent of an Alpha. The small bell above the coffee shop door chimed, and a sudden wave of freezing wind swept into the room. Vivienne’s breath caught in her throat. The few human customers inside didn't notice, but her survival instincts, sharpened by years of living with monsters, screamed at her to run. Three tall, imposing men in custom black suits stepped inside. They didn't look like humans; their shoulders were too broad, their statures too rigid, and their eyes scanned the room with predatory sharpness. But it wasn't the two guards that made Vivienne’s heart stop. It was the man walking between them—Ethan Vance. He was taller than she remembered, his jawline sharper, and his presence so suffocatingly powerful that the air in the small shop seemed to vanish. His raven-black hair was slightly damp from the rain, and his piercing blue eyes—eyes that used to haunt her nightmares—locked onto her immediately. He was her stepbrother. The cruel, ruthless heir who had tormented her throughout her teenage years just because she was a human. And now, according to the shifting aura around him, he was no longer just the heir. He was the reigning Alpha. "V-Vivienne..." her coworker whispered, sensing the sudden, terrifying shift in the room. Before Vivienne could even move her legs to escape through the back door, the two guards closed the distance, blocking her path. Ethan walked slowly toward the counter, his expensive leather shoes clicking rhythmically against the floor. Every step he took felt like a countdown to her doom. He stopped right in front of her, towering over the counter. A cruel, dangerous smirk played on his handsome lips. "Five years, little sister," Ethan’s deep, baritone voice rumbled, sending a violent shiver down Vivienne’s spine. "You ran quite far. But did you really think a human city could hide you from my scent?" "Ethan..." Vivienne gasped, her voice trembling as she forced herself to meet his gaze. "What do you want? My mother is dead. Your father is... you have no reason to be here. I am no longer part of your pack." "You are wrong, Vivienne," Ethan leaned in, his face only inches away from hers, allowing her to smell his intoxicating, terrifying scent. "My father passed away last week. And according to his final decree, and the ancient laws of the Elders, I cannot officially ascend the Alpha throne unless I take a bride before the next full moon." Vivienne frowned, her heart hammering against her ribs. "Then go find a werewolf princess. There are thousands of she-wolves dying to be your Luna." Ethan’s smirk widened, his eyes darkening with a mixture of malice and possessiveness. He reached out, his large, warm hand gripping her chin firmly, forcing her to look at him. "But I don't want them, Vivienne. My father's will explicitly stated that to bridge the gap between our worlds, I must marry you. You are going to be my forced bride, little sister. You are going to be the human Luna of the Blood Moon Pack." "No! I will never marry a monster like you!" Vivienne cried out, trying to pull away from his grip, but his hold was like iron. "You don't have a choice," Ethan whispered coldly. He looked back at his guards. "Bring her. We have a pack house to return to, and a wedding to prepare." Before Vivienne could scream for help, the guards moved in, lifting her off her feet. She was dragged out into the pouring rain, forced into the back of a luxury black SUV, right next to the beast who had just claimed her life as his own. Her peaceful human life was over. Her golden cage was waiting.