The Mad Alpha's Substitute Bride

(DARIAN)

I look at the king, bitterness filling my mouth. I’ve never enjoyed a particularly close relationship with my father. In the eyes of the world, he has been an attentive parent, but I’ve always felt that something was missing. To reject a fated mate is no small thing, and for my father to ask me to make such a sacrifice when my own wolf is not willing is beyond cruel.

"Whatever you’ve decided for me, I’m not going to do it." My voice is harsh. "Whatever deal you have struck with Thomas Elvin, you can call it off. I’m not going to participate. If you think Willow will make such an excellent queen, why don’t you take her as your own mate? After all, my mother has been dead for years now—"

"Enough!" my father roars. "Do not forget who you are speaking to! I am your king!"

I stare at him as he begins to cough violently. My jaw tense, I move forward when he slumps into his chair, but Lucius has already rushed into the study, almost as if he had been waiting outside, his ear against the door.

"Sire!" He pushes me aside and rushes toward my father, his voice stricken. "Call the royal healer!" I hear the footsteps of the guards running in the corridor as Lucius glares at me, unable to hide his emotions. "What did you do?!"

"Nothing," I reply coldly, still reeling from my father’s actions. "He overexerted himself. Take him to his chambers. Send the royal healer there."

Lucius tosses me a hateful look, and as he helps my father past me, I murmur, "You seem to be forgetting your place, Lucius. Don’t ever use such an accusatory tone with me again."

My father’s loyal attendant stiffens. "I–I apologize, Your Highness."

I watch him leave, feeling hollow inside. I may be warm and carefree around Alice, but that is a side of me only she is privy to. I am still the crown prince of the Wolf Kingdom. My father has always taught me to be ruthless in my dealings.

I stare blankly at the desk. The truth is that my father is merely a figurehead now; he has handed over the affairs of the kingdom to me. I have more power than he does, but because I love him, I still let him do as he pleases. All my childhood, I craved his affection. I worked hard, produced excellent results, and became the perfect heir. But it was never enough for him.

I take a few steps forward, lean into his cabinet, and take out a bottle of whiskey. He was never happy with me. It is only lately, when he started to grow sicker, that he began to lean on me. I had thought that we were growing closer, but at the end of the day, he still put his status as king before my needs.

I am his subject before I am his son.

I sit down in his chair and gulp the whiskey, letting it burn my throat.

He has been planning to sell me off. That is the only way I can see the situation. Forcing me to mate with Willow and walk away from my fated mate is something he never even should have considered. Sure, some shifters reject their fated mates, but those cases are rare, and most of the time it’s because the shifter already has someone they are interested in, and they’re able to resist the lure of the fated mate bond. In other cases, they don’t feel any attraction to their fated mate.

The royal family had always chosen to be with their fated mates. If it hadn’t been for my father’s declining health, he would not have suggested that I simply choose any suitable female this year. I now realize his intention has always been to push Willow on me.

I take another chug from the bottle.

I wish I could feel angry at Alice, but since our first meeting, she has been completely resistant to me. What am I supposed to tell her? That I have to be with the woman who hates her? I can only imagine what she will say if I tell her she can still be my mistress. She has pride in spades. She’ll probably spit in my face.

My lips curve at the thought, despite my hurting heat. Even if the image is an unsightly one, my wolf feels proud of how fiery a mate it has chosen.

I drain the bottle of whiskey, getting progressively drunker. I wonder why my wolf is not turned off by the fact that Alice has no wolf spirit. My wolf is pleased with her; I can feel his happiness inside me.

I have no intention of filling Alice in on any of this. She doesn’t need to know that my father doesn’t want her in the royal family. The king will have no say in whom I take as my mate. It’s my decision.

I’m glad I told Jimmy to take her to her suite. I shudder at the thought of how Thomas and his daughter might have cornered her. But how do I protect Alice from my father? He’s not going to sit still while I court her over the next couple of days. I know him well enough to know that he always gets his way.

I am going to have to figure out how to keep my father from having access to Alice. That is not going to be an easy feat, considering he is the king and has eyes and ears everywhere. Leaning my head back in his chair, I look at the ceiling, my insides churning.

The truth is that, if I were to put my feelings aside, I know that as the prince of the Wolf Kingdom, choosing a mate with no wolf spirit is a bad idea. It could potentially cause unrest within the kingdom, and I have a feeling that Thomas and my father would make sure that happens.

I simply have to decide whether I am willing to face that and put Alice through it all. If she stays with me, her life is going to be the furthest thing from easy. And yet, I don’t want to walk away from her. Even if I didn’t dislike Willow because of what she has done to Alice, there’s something about the blonde girl that rubs me the wrong way.

I reach for the other bottle under my father’s desk. I don’t normally drink like this, but tonight, I feel the urge to seek some sort of comfort. I don’t trust myself to go to Alice. I don’t know what to say to her that won’t crush the happiness in her eyes, the happiness she had been struggling to hide. My mate has a tough exterior, but her heart is soft. I don’t want to break it.

I need to warn her of my father’s intentions, though. And I have to keep Thomas away from her.

I take a chug from the bottle, sighing heavily.

It’s typical of my father to ruin my mood. I don’t know why I expected things to be any different today.

Getting to my feet, I walk over to the window and look outside, my heart heavy.

I’ll have to make a decision soon.

Obey my father as I have always done, or choose the woman whom the fates have decreed for me.