Page 7 of The Alpha Wolf's Bullied Bride

I pause to regard the conviction in Valerie’s eyes, but it doesn’t have the effect I thought it would. Instead, I’m left feeling disheartened as I watch her leave the training center’s backyard.

I know I’m different…I’ve been different all my life. From the way I feel emotions so intensely, to the fact that I am a wolf-less Omega without a working metabolism, I’ve never fit in.

Still, hearing it from my best friend cuts through me like a sharp, serrated knife, spurring every determined step toward the building in pursuit of feeling better about myself.

If change is possible, then perhaps Valerie has changed, too.

Huffing my irritation, I head to the kitchen after leaving the basket in the washroom. Cynthia stands by the pot of simmering vegetables, stirring a spoon in large circles.

“Oh, Lila!” she cheers with a pleasant smile when she notices my arrival. “I’m glad you came.”

“Uh…me too.” I hesitate as I grab an apron from the hanger and proceed to put it on. My decision to give Cynthia’s strange turn of character a chance is mostly because my best friend just reminded me of something I would have liked to forget. Every day, at every turn, I’ve only ever been reminded of how different I am. Cynthia has always been my greatest adversary, and I’ve suffered enough torment at her hands to be suspicious of what’s going on as she lifts a spoonful of soup in my face.

“Taste it,” she encourages sweetly. “I need to know if it needs more salt.”

I nod tentatively before leaning in and puckering my lips enough to slurp a sip of the hot soup.

“More salt,” I confirm. “Here, I’ll do it.”

Cynthia steps aside to allow me to shake more salt into the pot.

“I didn’t think I’d ever see you in the kitchen,” I comment as I begin to stir.

“Well, I figured I should do more for the pack,” she chuckles. “Especially now that the Blood Moon soldiers are returning.”

Instinctively, I stop stirring the pot. “They’re coming back?” I perk up.

Cynthia nods, offering her hand to take over stirring. “Didn’t you hear? They’re set to return in two days.”

I blink fervently, mentally processing this information as I feel excitement brewing in my chest.

The Blood Moon special ops soldiers will be back soon. That means I’ll get to see my brother, Miles, in two days.

I need to prepare for his return.

Ever since the Blood Moon soldiers left for special ops training in the Ouachita Mountains two years ago, I was left to fend for myself. I found myself filling up my time with every available task in the pack center, from washing to gardening and everything in between. It kept me busy while my brother was away.

While Flynn Lycoan was away, too…

The thought creeps into my mind without being welcomed. I’ve worked hard to become numb to the raging emotions that had me foolishly proclaiming my love for Flynn that day in the woods. A malevolent force of recklessness overcame me in that moment and spurred me on to make the biggest mistake of my life.

Every challenge I’ve faced in my life was brought on by fate. I lost my parents, and then I wasn’t compensated for that loss when the Moon Goddess decided that I wasn’t good enough to receive my wolf. Left desolate as the Blood Moon’s Omega, I’d only made my situation worse when I told Flynn Lycoan that I was in love with him.

It’s not as if I could control the words I spewed that day. In hindsight, I never knew a thing about romantic love. It was a silly crush, developed at the ripe age of twelve when I first visited the Lycoan house with my brother Miles. It shouldn’t have been mistaken for anything more than that.

Didn’t Flynn prove that he wanted nothing to do with me whenever he mocked me and bullied me along with the others?

Even now, the thought of his harsh words leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

“Lila!” Cynthia calls, snapping two fingers in front of my face to jolt me from my daze.

“Y-yeah?”

“You were very far away,” she chuckles, going back to stirring the pot. “What were you doing, huh? Thinking about Flynn?”

My jaw drops and my eyes grow wide. “F-Flynn?” His name rolling off my tongue leaves my throat dry as I gulp. “N-no. I wasn’t,” I quickly defend.

“Good,” she sneers as she drops the spoon on the counter before grabbing the pot’s handles. “I hope not.”

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