Page 4 of The Alpha's Bullied Mate

“It would be irresponsible of me to answer the challenge of every hot-headed child who decided to offer up a challenge,” Monroe said. He leaned against the podium. “You haven’t been here for years. What brings you back now? You didn’t even return for your parents' funeral.”

Hayden didn’t blink. To do so would be taken as a sign of weakness. Behind him, his teammates shifted from foot to foot, each one coiling with energy. He sent a calming wave through their bond. Now was not the time to get ahead of themselves.

Each sent back a reassurance that they would wait for his signal. Two were a bit more reluctant, but Hayden knew it wasn’t a reluctance to follow his lead. Neither Derek nor Finn were part of the Bluebell Valley pack, but they had agreed to be part of this plan all the same. That’s what brothers did for each other.

Monroe looked at him up and down, sizing him up. Hayden waited patiently. A demon needed certain circumstances to possess a person. If this demon lost Monroe, it would have a hard time getting someone new. At this point, Monroe might not even be fully controlled by the demon, only influenced.

Either way, the demon didn’t want to risk its host. But Monroe would lose his power in the pack if he refused a challenge.

To Hayden’s surprise, Monroe started to chuckle. Spencer glared at Hayden, but his eyes flickered to Monroe, looking surprised.

“As amusing as it would be, Hayden, you can’t challenge me. You may have Alpha’s blood somewhere in your distant ancestry, but you can’t be an Alpha without ever having had a mate. And you have none.” Monroe shook his head, still chuckling. “Go home, boy, and think about your life.”

Hayden’s jaw tightened. A mate. He’d forgotten about that. Most of the packs he’d come across over the years didn’t require their Alphas to have a mate before taking leadership. Monroe had had a mate up until last year when she apparently died.

This wasn’t going to ruin his plans, though. Hayden loosened his muscles, refusing to allow Monroe to dismiss him so easily.

“That’s true, I don’t have a mate at this exact moment, but I will have a mate soon enough,” he said.

Spencer barked out a laugh. “Oh, will you? What woman would be so desperate enough to accept you when you’re planning on dying anyway?”

The hall buzzed with people’s whispers. Hayden heard more than one mutter of ‘foolish’ or ‘insane.’ He ignored them all, not breaking eye contact with Monroe.

“I will have my mate soon,” Hayden repeated, speaking slowly so as to enunciate every word. “I merely wished to have this matter of my challenge out in the open and settled before I took my mate. That way, we won’t bedistracted.”

He placed heavy emphasis on the final word. A few people gasped. It was purposeful, of course. His parents died when his father supposedly crashed the car they were driving. Monroe’s official report was that it was caused by distracted driving.

Monroe leans against the podium. “Who, then? Who will be your mate, Hayden?”

He spun on his head, seeking out the redhead he’d been deliberately not thinking about. Mica sat with a black-haired woman on one side, and a brown-haired woman on the other. Her expression was clear in the sea of familiar faces. Eyes wide, cheeks pale, mouth slightly open.

Her figure had filled out more since he’d last seen her. It was impossible to tell her true shape in her drab, baggy shirt. Her exceptionally red hair was loose, floating around her as though she was trying to use it to hide away from everyone else. Did she still smell of peaches and cream the way she had when they were teenagers?

“I have a woman in mind,” Hayden said, not moving his eyes from Mica.

She had grown into a beautiful woman, something he was pleased to hear. This may not be what he anticipated doing when he decided to return to Bluebell Valley, but there was something quite intriguing about this proposal.

“I will take Mica as my mate,” he said.

“Mica?” a woman burst out.

Hayden shifted his gaze to the brown-haired woman sitting next to Mica. Elin jumped to her feet, her head swiveling this way and that as though she was trying to find a camera.

“Mica is to be my mate,” Hayden repeated. “We will have the ceremony immediately.”

Mica remained where she was sitting as everyone twisted to stare at her. People weren’t even bothering to whisper now. A few of the men actually laughed.

“You can’t be serious,” Spencer blustered. “The human?”

Hayden ignored him. Mica hadn’t moved. No doubt, she was overwhelmed by the fact that he had finally accepted her as his mate. She had had feelings for him since they were young, after all. This was what she had always wanted.

She slowly got to her feet, shaking visibly. Slowly, she stepped from the rows of chairs. Her hands twisted together as Hayden held her gaze. He smiled at her. She stepped forward, then spun on her heel and dashed out of the hall, her red hair flying out behind her.

Chapter 3 - Mica

Tears burned Mica’s eyes as she fled the hall. Her blood rushed in her ears, drowning out any sound that might follow her. The whole hall was probably rioting with laughter at Hayden’s prank. And to think that when he announced he was challenging Monroe, she had been worried for him! All the while, he’d just been planning on making a big joke out of her.

She couldn’t make herself go back to collect her mother. Ryder was back; he could bring Echo home and then probably lecture Mica for causing a scene and embarrassing them all.

---