Page 76 of The Alpha Wolf Defying Fate

“What do you mean?” I asked.

He offered out his hand to me and beckoned me to his side with a smile. “Let the party refresh your memory, Darling. Everyone is eager to see you. They’ve been waiting for so long, don’t keep them waiting any longer.”

I could feel a presence in the back of my mind, the pain webbing back in as I felt it push against some kind of barrier. I paused for a moment and looked at this man, who claimed to be my fate. The man who called me his love.

That presence in my mind seemed to revolt at the thought. I could almost hear a growl as it pushed and thrusted against the barrier, a sound of a voice that I knew yet couldn’t quite place calling out to me. But I couldn’t hear what they said. Only the feeling that they didn’t trust this man. That they didn’t want me to trust him, either.

He frowned at me, his brows creasing and worry darting across his face. “Sasha? Is the voice back?”

My eyes widened as I looked up at him.

I remembered that. There had been a voice haunting me in my mind. I couldn’t remember what the voice sounded like, but it had been there. Calling to me like a wraith in the night. A voice that I feared meant trouble for my future.

I slowly nodded my head. “I can’t hear what it’s saying.”

“That’s good,” he said quickly and gripped my hand. “That means our bond is working to keep the voice out. So long as I’m with you, Sasha, nothing will come for you. No one will take you away from me. I promise you that.”

I couldn’t help the shiver that ran down my spine at his words. His voice had an eerie, almost sinister tone. As if it was more of a threat than a promise. But not towards me. It seemed that it was for anyone who dared to take me from his side.

But that’s how mates always are, right? They are protective to a fault when it comes to their mates.

That’s how my father is to my mother, and my grandfather to my grandmother. Each of them had killed for their mates, so why wouldn’t mine not be the same way?

I pushed away the voice in my head and took his hand with a smile. My nerves jumped at the feel of his skin against mine. I couldn’t place the reaction exactly, though maybe it was the reaction of the bond. Maybe my fainting spell had altered what I recognized as that feeling of fate meeting at last.

Yet again, I felt that voice try to reach me, and again I pushed it back from my mind.

“What’s your name?” I asked my mate, realizing that he hadn’t mentioned it yet. I should know his name, especially before meeting with his people who have waited to meet me at his side.

He smiled and leaned into me, his body so close to mine, maybe too close. I fought the urge to step away from him, not wanting to insult my mate at my discomfort around him.

“Morus, my love. My name is Morus. I’m sorry that you don’t remember, but you will know it for the rest of your life now.”

Another shiver ran down my spine at his words as I swallowed down a hard lump in my throat.

Morus offered me his arm and nodded towards the doorway. “Shall we? Shouldn’t keep them waiting, and it would be such a shame that no one sees you in your dress.”

As I stepped with him towards the door, I felt the birthmark at the back of my neck begin to vibrate. I had never felt it that intently before. It was as if something inside me that laid dormant for years was now awakening with each step we took.

In the hall, I squinted at the brightness of the room lights pulsing from the pillars. So bright that it seemed to wash out the images of the people we passed. Little more than shapes and silhouettes against the bright lights set behind them.

They bowed before us, their heads down with the respect one would pay to royalty. I looked between them and Morus, my eyes moving along his tailored white suit that matched the shimmering white gown I had woken in.

That power he exuded began to make sense as we continued towards the largest set of doors I had ever seen in my life. We passed luxurious rooms and received curtsies and bows from those we encountered.

My mate had mentioned there was a title that belonged to my name. A title that I had gained with him at my side. A title that was my fate with him.

“You’re a king, aren’t you,” I said beneath my breath for fear of being wrong.

I glanced up at him through my lashes, his grin widening as he nodded.

“And you are my queen, the missing piece that I have been searching for all of my life,” he said proudly. “Are you ready to meet your people?”

I looked around us and squinted against the light to try to make out the faces of the guards standing before the doors. I could still feel that annoying nudge from the voice in the back of my mind. It’s panic at not being able to reach me, giving me pause before finally nodding to Morus.

“I’m ready,” I said, ignoring the pained howl that echoed in my mind.

Morus smiled and then nodded to the guards, who turned and pushed open the doors.

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