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Home / Werewolf / The Alpha’s Bastard Bride / Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

All Chapters of The Alpha’s Bastard Bride: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

152 Chapters

C1

“Are you trembling because you’re afraid, little wolf?”The heat of his massive frame pressed me into the furs, his breath ghosting over my ear like a summer storm. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe.“Your heart is hammering against your ribs, Lyra,” he murmured, his voice a low, primal vibration that made my skin prickle. “You can still walk out of this lodge. I won't stop you.”I curled my fingers into the sheets, my knuckles turning white. “No. I’m staying. I want this.”“Good.”He leaned down, his teeth grazing the sensitive cord of my neck where a mark should have been. The night became a blur of silver moonlight and raw, overwhelming sensation.“Is the gold in the bag?”Vespera Crowe didn't even look up from the shadows of the Crimson Fang Lodge lobby. She kicked a heavy black satchel toward my feet as I stumbled out of the elevator, my legs shaking and my scent heavy with another man's musk.“Every coin is there, Lyra,” she rasped. “You did your part.”“I’m leaving,” I snappe

C2

“I’ll hand over the deed to the Nightbane territory the second the blood-bond is sealed,” Darius growled, his jaw tight as he paced the small room in the Moonshadow Infirmary.“You’re really going through with this?” I asked, leaning against the cold stone wall, my eyes tracking his every move. “Trading me away to a man who can’t even hold his own blade?”“Liora is a delicate flower, Lyra! She’s the pride of the Nightbane line. I won’t tether her to a male who can’t shift, no matter how noble the Blackthorne name is. A wolf who can’t run with the pack is no better than an Omega in the dirt. You, on the other hand… you’ve survived the Expanse. You’re hardy enough for a broken Alpha.”I felt the bile rise in my throat. “Hardy? Is that what you call it? We were starving, Darius. My brother died because we didn't have the gold for the healers.”“Your mother clearly failed to teach you respect while you were rotting out there! You have no manners!” He stepped toward me, his Alpha scent fla

C3

“That suite is reserved for the High Alphas and their mates keep your paws off the handle and use the common room to the right,” the saleswolf snapped, her lip curling as she looked at my frayed sleeves.I didn't argue. In a place like Ironvale City, the scent of poverty was a crime. I ducked into the smaller changing room, but the walls were thin. Thin enough to hear the muffled conversation from the VIP lounge."Kaelen, look at me," a feminine voice pleaded. "Since that night in the Expanse... after you survived the silver-poisoning... I thought we were more than just Alpha and assistant. I saw the blood on the sheets, Kaelen. I know what you gave to me.""I haven't forgotten, Elowen," the man’s voice Kaelen Blackthorne responded. It was a rich, heavy baritone that vibrated through the wall and settled in my marrow. "The elders were certain the silver would kill my wolf. If you hadn't stayed... if you hadn't endured that night...""I would do it again," Elowen Frost whispered. "But

C4

"Our mothers bound our fates before we could even walk. How could I possibly be the one to sever that blood-oath?"I kept my gaze fixed on the floorboards of the Nightbane entryway, refusing to look Kaelen in the eye. I could feel the weight of his stare, heavy with a silent fury that matched my own. He didn't want this union any more than I did, but in the Duskwild Expanse, an Alpha’s word especially a dead mother’s word was law."Marvelous! Simply marvelous!" Darius clapped his hands together, his voice oily with a joy that turned my stomach. To him, I was just a pawn to be traded for a seat at the Blackthorne table. "The Blackthorne Pack and the Nightbane line, united at last. Kaelen, please, stay for the feast. Our hunters brought in a fresh kill this morning."Kaelen’s lip curled in a micro-snarl as he looked at my father. "I have no appetite for Nightbane hospitality. I have pack matters to attend to."He gestured to Director Halric Voss to begin wheeling him toward the Obsidian

C5

"The Alpha rarely sleeps under this roof when the moon is high, it is Miss Frost’s birth-night, after all."Mirelle lingered at the threshold of the Alpha’s Shadow Chamber, her voice carrying a sharp edge of pity that felt more like a serrated blade.I didn't give her the satisfaction of seeing me flinch. "Then I suppose the house will be quiet. Thank you, Mirelle."Technically, the ink on our bonding scrolls wasn't even dry. It was our first night as a mated pair, yet he was celebrating with the woman who had stolen my credit. I didn't care. In fact, his absence was a mercy. I watched Mirelle leave before turning to the room. It was a cavern of black stone and white silk, smelling faintly of cedar and expensive whiskey. It was cold, predatory, and far too large for one person.I couldn't sleep. The silence of the Blackthorne Pack Estate felt like it was watching me. I pulled my phone out, the screen glowing like a beacon in the dark, and began scrolling through the Ironvale digital b

C6

"You really have the nerve to lecture me on privacy while you're nesting in my territory with a bastard in your womb?"Kaelen’s sneer was like a physical blow. He didn't just look angry; he looked lethal. He rose from the edge of the bed, his movements precise and predatory, the atmosphere in the Shadow Chamber thickening until the air felt too heavy to breathe."I...I can explain," I stammered, my voice failing me as I saw the dark thunder in his expression."Explain what, Lyra? That you planned to use the Blackthorne name to shield your shame? Did you think I’d be a convenient father for your illegitimate pup?" He stepped toward me, his brow furrowed in a deep, dangerous line. "Was our deal just a lure to trap an Alpha into raising another male’s seed?"The accusations cut through me, and I felt my legs begin to give way. I backed into the cold stone wall, my hands flying to my abdomen in a protective gesture. I wasn't just afraid for myself anymore; I was terrified for the tiny spa

7

"Lola, look at me and tell me the truth. What is going on with your body?"My mother’s voice was a jagged blade of panic. She stood in the doorway of the washroom, her face losing every drop of color as she watched me hover over the sink. I could see her mind racing, trying to find a reason—any reason—other than the one staring her in the face."I can't hide it anymore, Mom," I whispered, my fingers gripping the porcelain so hard the stone felt like it might crack. I turned to face her, forcing my heart to steady. "I’m pregnant."Selene stumbled back, her hand flying to the doorframe to keep from collapsing. "How? You were always so careful... you never even looked at a boy in the Expanse. Lyra, talk to me!""It doesn't matter how," I said, my voice thick with a resolve I didn't truly feel. "What matters is that I'm keeping it.""With what money?" Mom’s eyes went wide as the pieces began to click together in the most horrific way. "The insurance for the rogue attack... the gold for th

8

"Are you out of your mind? You can't just bolt from a healer's room like a rogue!""Mom, let go! I told you, I'm not doing it!" I wrenched my arm away, my chest heaving as I staggered through the Silverclaw Wing. My eyes were blurred with tears, and the sterile scent of the infirmary felt like it was choking me. I didn't care who was watching. I didn't care if the whole Blackthorne pack saw me unraveling."You have no choice, Lyra! If Kaelen finds out—"I didn't hear the rest. I turned a corner too fast, my boots skidding on the polished floor, and slammed right into a solid wall of a chest. I stumbled back, my hands flying up to shield my face as I sobbed. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, please just let me through—""Lyra? Is that really you?"The voice was calm, like a cool breeze over a fever. I slowly lowered my hands, my vision clearing enough to see the man standing before me. He was flanked by a group of elders and high-ranking pack members, all of them looking at me with a mixture o

9

“Thirty days, Mom. It’s just a thirty-day contract, then we’re gone.”I stood in the small rental kitchen, trying to ignore the way my mother’s hands shook as she gripped her tea. Her face was ashen, the lines of exhaustion from our years in the Expanse carving deep shadows under her eyes.“A contract?” Selene’s voice was a jagged whisper. “Lyra, you carry a secret that could get us both exiled—or worse. If the Blackthorne elders realize you were already with child before the bonding... they won’t just void the deal. They’ll hunt us.”“Kaelen doesn’t want me, Mom. He wants his assistant, Elowen. This deal is his way out as much as mine.” I leaned over, pressing my forehead against hers. “He’s faking his paralysis to avoid the marriage. He’s as much a liar as I am. We just need to survive one month, get the land deeds back from Darius, and find a place where no one knows our names.”“I’ll hold you to that,” she murmured, her wolf-scent spiking with a mix of fear and resolve. “But if th

10

"Don’t read too much into it, Elowen," Kaelen muttered, his voice dropping an octave as he draped a heavy arm over her shoulder. "The Shadow Chamber is yours tonight. Sleep."I stood in the doorway of the kitchen, clutching my glass of water so hard the surface tension nearly broke. Elowen didn't answer him, but I saw her eyes turn a puffy, wounded red. She climbed into his bed with a practiced, obedient grace, but I could smell the sharp, metallic tang of her frustration. She was waiting for him to stake his claim, to prove that he wanted her as much as he said he did.Kaelen lingered at the bedside for a moment, watching her. I saw his shoulders tense. He was likely thinking of that night at the Crimson Fang Lodge—the night he believed he spent with her. He reached out, pulling the heavy furs over her trembling frame."Rest," he said, his voice thick with a strange, forced sense of duty. "Once we are officially bonded before the pack elders, I will fulfill every obligation I owe you

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