Love and Betrayal: Who is My Fated Alpha?

Joseph’s hand paused on the brass doorknob. He turned back, his gaze heavy, and crossed the study in two long strides. He grabbed my waist, hauling me hard against his chest.

"Trust me," he demanded, his mouth crashing down on mine.

He didn't wait for a response. He dragged me down the hall to his private bedroom, kicking the heavy oak door shut behind us.

"I need to fuck you," he growled, ripping the cream dress down my shoulders. The fabric tore, pooling at my feet. "Tell me you're mine, Vivian. Say it."

"I'm yours," I gasped, my hands frantically unbuttoning his shirt.

I remembered the day I turned eighteen. The exact second our eyes locked across the training grounds, the mate bond snapping into place like a steel trap. He had been wild back then, a relentless force of nature, claiming me with a ferocity that terrified and thrilled me.

Now, his hands were rough, shoving my underwear down my thighs.

"I'm going to stretch your pussy out," he snarled, shoving two thick fingers deep inside me. "You feel so fucking good. Always so wet for me."

"Joseph, please," I begged, my hips chasing his hand. "Put your cock in me. Now."

He unzipped his pants, freeing his hard cock, and pushed into me in one brutal thrust. I screamed his name, my back arching off the mattress.

"Fuck, Vivian," he grunted, slamming his hips against mine. He grabbed my thighs, pulling them wider. "I'm going to breed you. I want to fill your womb with my pups."

His words shattered my hesitation. As the pleasure built, tightening my muscles around his thick shaft, I couldn't keep the secret anymore.

"Joseph," I cried out, my nails digging into his bare shoulders. "I'm pregnant! I'm having our baby!"

He froze for a fraction of a second, his eyes widening. Then a raw, ecstatic roar tore from his throat. He pounded into me with frantic, desperate force, hitting my deepest spot over and over.

"Our baby!" he yelled, burying his face in my neck, biting down on my collarbone. "Fuck, yes! A baby, Vivian!"

He came inside me with a violent shudder, crushing my lips with a bruising kiss. He held me tight, his heart hammering against my chest. He was happy. He loved me. Everything was going to be fine.

***

The next morning, the illusion shattered.

I walked into the parlor of my adoptive parents' house. Caroline sat on the velvet sofa, sipping herbal tea.

"I heard the news, stray," Caroline sneered, setting her porcelain cup onto the saucer. "You're knocked up."

"How do you know that?" I demanded, my hands curling into fists at my sides.

"Word travels fast when a human pet visits the pack clinic." She stood up, smoothing her crimson skirt. "Whose bastard is it? Some rogue you spread your legs for in the woods?"

"Don't you dare," I snapped. "This baby is Joseph's. He knows about it. He's thrilled."

Caroline laughed, a harsh, grating sound that bounced off the high ceilings. "You really are delusional. You think the Alpha would claim a mutt's offspring?"

The front door opened. Joseph walked in, Marcus right behind him.

"Joseph!" I rushed forward, grabbing his arm. "Tell her. Tell Caroline about our baby."

Joseph stopped. His jaw locked. He looked at Marcus, then at Caroline, and finally down at me. His eyes were completely blank.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Vivian," Joseph said, his voice carrying through the quiet room.

The floor seemed to drop out from under me. "What?"

"Caroline is carrying my only heir," Joseph announced, stepping around me to stand beside my sister. He placed a protective hand on her waist. "Whatever bastard you're carrying, it isn't mine."

I stared at him, my stomach twisting into violent knots. "You're lying. Last night—"

*It's only temporary, darling,* his voice echoed in my head, invading my mind through our mate bond. *Just to put your parents at ease. Play along.*

I stumbled back, my shoulder hitting the doorframe. Play along? He was publicly disowning our child.

"You ungrateful wretch," Marcus spat, glaring at me with pure disgust. "Living under my roof, eating my food, and you bring this shame upon us? Claiming your filth belongs to the Alpha?"

"Dad, no," I whispered, shaking my head. "I'm telling the truth."

"Silence!" Marcus barked, his Beta aura flaring, pressing down on my human senses. "Sit down in the corner and keep your mouth shut, or I'll throw you out on the street right now."

I sank into a wooden chair by the window, my legs refusing to hold my weight.

Joseph pulled out an armchair for Caroline, kissing her cheek before sitting beside her.

*I love you, Vivian,* his voice murmured in my mind again. *I'm doing this for us. Be a good girl.*

I watched them. Marcus laid out fabric samples and catering menus on the glass coffee table.

"The Luna ceremony needs to be perfect," Marcus said, pointing to a swatch of gold silk. "The entire council will be there to witness the union."

"I want white roses," Caroline said, resting her head on Joseph's shoulder. "Thousands of them. What do you think, Joseph?"

"Whatever you want, Caroline," he replied, squeezing her hand. "Money is no object."

I sat in the shadows, perfectly invisible. Nothing had changed since I was a child. I was still the outsider, the unwanted burden. No one in this room cared about me. Not Marcus, who viewed me as trash. Not Caroline, who stole my life. And not even my mate, who sat there planning his wedding to another woman while our baby grew inside me.

"I need to use the restroom," Caroline announced, standing up with a delicate smile. "I'll be right back."

She glided out of the parlor. A minute passed. I couldn't sit there watching Joseph pretend anymore. I stood up and slipped into the hallway, needing a moment to breathe.