The Alpha's Contract Bride

Chapter 9

Aria.

My stomach churned and my intestines twisted and turned, but no matter what I did, nothing was going to calm me down. Instead, the more I tried, the worse it got.

Shit.

I ran a hand through my hair as I mumbled a few incoherent words. The moment my hand dropped to my side, I regretted it immediately. As fast as my legs could carry me, I dashed to my mirror and a loud groan slid past my lid the moment I saw my reflection.

In one minute, I'd ruined the hairstyle I spent at least three hours on. Great. Just frickin great. I tried running a comb through it, but it was no use. It was ruined and now I had to start all over again.

I slumped onto the chair in front of my vanity. The anxiety in my stomach unfurled for a while, until my gaze landed on the dress and accessories that were laid out on my bed.

My wedding dress.

When I was younger, I'd always fantasized about my dress and my ideal wedding and how I wanted everything to go. I would have my best friends by my side with dazzling makeup on my face and my mother crying a river at the back.

Now, a couple of years down the line and nothing from the present matched my past.

If I was being honest, even thinking about it made me want to puke.

As time went by, my imagination changed. Although a few details were missing, one thing had been constant; Callum. But now, even that had changed. The perfect image of me and him had been destroyed, just to be replaced with none other than Damon.

A frown formed on my face the moment he came to mind. Our last altercation came to mind and I let out a long hiss. We hadn't spoken since then and I would be lying if I said his parting words hadn't been haunting me ever since.

“The wedding is in a couple of days.” He'd said. “Choose wisely.”

Like I had a choice in all of this.

It didn't even sound like a choice. It was more like I had to make the right decision, but as I stared at the wedding dress sprawled on the bed, I wasn't sure which decision was the right one.

None of this would be happening if he hadn't gone ahead to announce without my permission or asking me first. Even if he did want to go ahead with it, couldn't he have given me at least five more minutes? I was this close to finding out what I wanted, before his announcement ruined everything.

After Damon had left, I summoned enough courage and turned to Callum. He had a reason for rejecting me and I wanted to know why. The last thing I would believe was the fact that he actually meant all of the nonsense he spewed on the day of his party. It just couldn't be.

But even if he'd eventually told me, what would I have done? Begged him to ignore whatever reason he had and get back with him? Would that severe the deal I had with Damon?

In my search for answers, I only ended up with more and more questions and it was frustrating to say the least.

Slowly, I got up from the chair and headed to the bed. I allowed my limbs their freedom as my fingers grazed the lacy material of the dress before pulling it up and putting it on. A sense of comfort washed over me the moment the fabric rested on my body.

I wasn't particularly looking forward to the wedding, but if Damon had handpicked the dress and accessories, then maybe something good would come out from all of this.

After slipping into the dress and adorning myself with the required accessories, I headed back to the mirror. It was amazing what a dress and diamonds could do for a girl. Almost like it didn't exist, the sulky girl I once was, was nowhere to be found.

I hadn't been to a werewolf wedding before, at least one that held so much importance, but something told me I was dressed right. A tight bustier with a cup smaller than my original size held a decent amount of my boobs, with the rest on the verge of spilling out. Just underneath the bustier, the rest of the fabric flowed around me like a little ball gown, stopping just a few inches above my knee. And at the top of my dress, the crest of the royal family had been etched intricately, it's bright colors quick to catch the eye.

“This is actually nice.” I murmured, at the same time three knocks rasped on my door. “Who is it?”

Silence reigned as I got no response. A couple of seconds stretched into minute, before I called out again.

“Hello? Who's there?” My heartbeat picked up its pace at that response. Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine and I shuddered. I had no idea who it was, but there was no way I couldn't find out right? I muttered a quick prayer as I tiptoed to the door. Fear gripped my sides, but I tried my level best to shake it off.

I had no reason to be scared, I was at the mansion and if I couldn't get maximum protection here, then I couldn't get it anywhere else.

A loud creak broke through my thoughts as I gently tugged at the door. The creaks continued as I slowly pushed the door open. Confusion replaced my fear the moment I saw no one on the other side of the door.

“What the-” I trailed off at the lack of a presence in front of me. A couple of minutes ago, someone had knocked, and now it was completely empty. It made no sense, no sense at all.

“It must be some kind of prank.” I reassured myself after a couple of minutes. Things like this were normal and….

Something poked the sole of my feet. It wasn't harmful, but it was sharp enough to draw my attention to it. I fiddled a well folded note in my palm the moment I picked it up.

Curiosity welled up in me as I quickly unfurled it, before digesting its content. The writing was short and concise.

“Meet me at the spot behind the gardens.” I read out loud. “Signed, C.”

Callum? Was it really him? And why did he want us to meet up? It was barely hours to my wedding and he was sending me this? Why?

My heart pounded deep in my ears as I glanced at the clock. The wedding was scheduled for eight o'clock and here, I'd gotten a letter by seven forty five.

What was I supposed to do now?

Without giving it a second thought and before I would successfully talk myself out of doing otherwise, I pushed my feet into the slip-ons under my bed and headed in the direction of the gardens.

The hall was quiet and empty, save for the lights that lit up the highway, which was weird because seeing that there was a wedding in less than fifteen minutes, the entire house was meant to be a hub of activities.

It was my luck then. I sucked in mouthfuls of air as I trudged to my destination. A million and one thoughts ran through my mind and as much as I could, I came up with answers for the possible scenarios I just might find myself in.

It still made no sense why Callum had asked to meet. He had my number and I still had his saved as amore with a million heart emojis tailing behind, so why did he have to send a note? What did he want to talk about?

I put my many questions on hold as the gardens came into view. Again, it was empty and it bothered me. A chilly wind rustled the leaves and flowers, sending a gentle hum along with the breeze. The stars twinkled In the sky, but I was in no mood for stargazing.

Snapping myself out of it, I shook my head and headed to my destination; behind the gardens. I slowed my steps as I got closer. Dim lights cast its glow above me, but it wasn't enough to illuminate the entire area.

When I was sure I'd walked deep into the back of the gardens enough, I yelled. “Callum?”

The sound of my voice echoing was all I got for the first few seconds, but I wasn't going to give up.

“Callum!” I called out again, this time my voice louder than the last. “Where are you? Are you here? You asked me to….”

The sound of twigs crunching underneath the sole of someone's shoes cut me off. Immediately, and with a giddy expression, I whirled around just to come face to face with..

“You!" I couldn't believe my eyes. "What are you doing here?”