Page 8 of The Alpha's Forced Pregnant Mate

Eventually, Whitney and her group made it to the front of the crowd, and Faye became more fixated on the cauldron she was stirring. A hush fell over the crowd as they all realized that the ceremony was finally going to happen. I shifted back to human form, something instinctual telling me that it was the right thing to do for what was coming.

The crowd cheered as the Alphas stepped forward, and I shifted on my haunches, trying to get a better look. Faye was speaking, and then Hector. I couldn't make out all of what they were saying, but got the gist of it—the match ceremony is important, trust the process, all the normal shit that Alphas try to push to keep their pack placated.

Hector was still speaking as Faye dipped her hands into the cauldron, seemingly unbothered by the heat of it. She pulled out two petals, and even from a distance, I could see her entire self change as she read the names. Her spine went stiff with shock, and she seemed to be reading the names on the petals over and over as if she didn't believe what she was seeing at first.

There was something strange in her reaction that caught my attention, and a faint shudder ran through me. Something significant was happening.

Hector stepped up next to Faye, giving her the support she needed to read out the names. "Whitney Gray," she called, tension in her voice, "And Julian Payne."

My name on Faye's lips rang through the field like a gong, and everything seemed to freeze for just a moment.

And then it was like a dam broke, and everyone was moving and talking all at once. Whitney Gray? My mate? How was this possible?

My heart started pounding in my chest as I looked around, searching for her among the crowd. I had been told stories of fated mates when I was young, but never really believed in them. They were fairy tales told to pups by their parents. It was a nice idea, but it wasn't reality. My parents had proved to me that love isn't enough, not in this world that we all were forced to live in.

But there was no denying what was happening here. My mate match was being read out, and it was Whitney. Strong, powerful, demon-fighting Whitney Gray, untouchable Silverfang darling.

The crowd parted, and I saw her standing in the front, her head raised high even though she was shaking in anger. She was tall, but still short enough for me to rest my chin on top of her head if I wanted to. Her hair was white blonde and long, falling down her back in a single braid. She looked like an angel, and I couldn't stop looking at her.

The crowd gasped and began to chatter, but I could barely hear them. My eyes were fixed on Whitney, who seemed to be in shock. Then her shoulders squared, and I watched as her small group of hunters embraced her to try and calm her. I felt a growl rising in my throat as the two other male wolves touched her, but I kept myself under control. Their body language was brotherly and worried. Platonic, not lovers.

Whitney pushed herself out of their grasp and stood alone. I felt it then, the invisible cord tying us together. Thin, even delicate, not yet strengthened by the mate bite, but it was there. Whitney Gray really was my mate.

Mine, I thought internally,she is MINE.

A million feelings rushed through me, but after the wave, only joy was left behind. This was why I had been inspired to come here, not for some alliance but for Whitney. I had been looking for legitimacy and there's nothing I could imagine that would be better than my mate being one of the best demon hunters alive, and a Silverfang member too.

Whitney's reputation and toughness would be the perfect complement to my pack. With Whitney by my side, as the new queen of the Reckless Stalkers, there was nothing or no one that could deny that we were a pack deserving of respect anymore.

Of course, we didn't even know each other, but that would come in time. My blood was already running hot, thinking about chasing her through the woods, catching her, biting her, and making her mine for life. I'd be a good mate for Whitney, a strong and worthy one, and I'd prove it as soon as possible. She deserved nothing less than an Alpha.

All my planning for the future came screeching to a halt as Whitney went to talk to the Alphas and their wives before stepping forward and raising her blade to the air. I'd had trouble hearing everyone talking, but Whitney's voice cut through everything loud and clear. "Let it be known here and now, with the Silverfang Creek pack as witness, I will be Julian's mate in name only. I, Whitney Gray, refuse to let a villain like Julian Payne ever touch me. And if he tries, I'll kill him myself."

Her words rang out across the field, and I felt a shudder of horror run through my body. What was she saying? Was this some kind of joke? No one spoke to an Alpha that way. And why was she calling me a villain?

She's rejecting me and she doesn't even know me?

I stared at her, unable to comprehend what was happening. There had to be more to the story than what I was seeing. There had to be a reason that she would say something so damning. The crowd was murmuring, but they seemed happy to see their demon huntress declaring her independence from me.

All of that exuberance for a rejected mate match…how could that be? I knew my reputation was tarnished, but mate matches were usually met with happiness. But everyone despised me, Silverfang Creek and Red Canine alike.

Most importantly, Whitney didn't want me. She didn't even give me time to prove myself, and the unfairness of it all had anger brewing inside of me. I clenched my fists so hard that my nails were nearly cutting into my palm.

"I hope you know what you're doing," I heard Hector say.

"Yeah, so do I," my mate said.

The crowd continued to cheer, but I felt sick.

Stomach churning, I watched as her group of hunters tried to comfort her again, but Whitney had no desire to be coddled. She shrugged everyone off, and they let her go. She wasn't running, but it was clear that she needed to process the mate match.

To process her link to one of the most hated wolves on the East Coast. Me.

Staying at a distance and still concealed in the woods, I followed Whitney until she made it to her Outback and pulled out of the area where all the other wolves had parked. Panic speared through me—I couldn't lose her just yet, I needed more time to form a plan. So I shifted, grabbed my clothes in my jaw, and loped after the car, staying among the trees the whole time.

I couldn't let her get away.

Fate favored me when Whitney only went a few miles down the road, pulling into the parking lot of a rarely-used hiking trail. It was overgrown and unkempt but perfect for a wolf that needed to be alone.

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