Chapter 2

• IRENE'S POV
• I threw my head over her thighs as I sobbed like a child. Her gentle pat landed on my head, over and over again.
• "It's going to be alright, Irene," Aunt Teresa said in a soothing voice. I shook my head against her hand.
• I could hear my heart breaking at his rejection and words of comfort reached nowhere near to piecing my heart together.
• "I mean it, Irene," Aunt Teresa sighed. She was adamant on making me feel good this morning.
• After Karson walked out of the room, he was yet to return and I just couldn't stand the terrible feeling that plagued my heart.
• So here I was in Aunt's room, crying my eyes out.
• "Don't shed so many tears, Irene. Your eyes will be puffy," she grabbed my face and jerked my head up. I could barely see her through my blurry vision but her face was in a small pout and her brows were knitted in a frown.
• Her long black hair was let down and she looked like a goddess.
• "Look at you," she sighed. "You're so pretty, don't ruin your face, Irene." She wiped my tears with her thumb and pressed her lips to my forehead in a kiss.
• I closed my eyes as I tried to relax into it but more tears only poured out when I remembered that Karson didn't even kiss me.
• I groaned, throwing my head back as I sobbed even harder. "He didn't- hic- he avoided- hic- I don't know why- hic- but he didn't- hic-"
• "Stop crying, Irene. I can't make out your words-"
• "He didn't make out with me!" I cried harder and stopped to swallow the lump in my throat before I continued again.
• "It's because I'm wolfless and I'm not even his mate! I have nothing- he hates me,"
• "He doesn't hate you," She tried to assure me. "He just doesn't understand-"
• "Understand what?" I cried. "I don't understand either. Make me understand-"
• "Irene!" She grabbed my face again and stared into my eyes. "You can't force your destiny. When the time is right, you'll understand. I have faith in you, Irene."
• I didn't even have faith in myself but her tone was convincing and the way she stared at me with no joke.
• She wiped my tears again and I didn't have the heart to produce any more.
• "Trust me, my dear. You're Luna now and I'm sure you'll be more powerful than ever before."
• ****
• I held onto her words and made them my strength but as the days rolled by, my frustration was beyond me that I would lock myself in my room- as Karson never returned- and cried.
• Our matrimonial bed had become my personal bed. The room we were supposed to share was now my own room.
• The only time we bumped into each other was during breakfast where we ate in silence or going past his office to mine.
• The Luna position came with a lot of responsibility and I was still being eased into it. But with Karson's attitude still on my mind, I was always mentally and emotionally stressed by the end of each day.
• "Luna, is everything alright?"
• I snapped out of my thoughts at the Beta's voice. Wayne stared at me with a worried look. He had been in my office for a few minutes now but I could hardly recall the issue he had raised.
• "I'm sorry," I hurriedly apologized and dropped my pen on the desk, giving him my full attention. "I'm fine. You were saying?"
• He didn't look the least convinced but he had to go on either way. He smiled and the wrinkles around his mouth stretched. He had gotten very old over the years, I guess it was time for him to retire but that was his and Karson's decision to make.
• "Maybe you should get some rest later,"he suggested and I could only offer him a smile. "I was asking your opinion about weapon storage in the Pack. While we don't have any impending threats, I was thinking it wouldn't be bad to restock and increase our budget."
• "A few of our warriors with friends from other packs have mentioned the endless amount of weapons over there. I'm afraid they feel ours is lacking behind," he explained.
• "I understand. But having an endless amount of weapons calls for a higher maintenance budget. If we do that, the tax will increase, the pack members will suffer and all we'll have are weapons while exploiting others," I sighed. "We're building a nation not a military zone. Even during war, we can have enough money and gain the upper hand."
• "I'm afraid I'll have to decline the request to stock more weapons. Instead, could we cover it by high maintenance of what we already have?" I suggested.
• Beta Wayne was already nodding with a satisfied smile on his face, "Yes, that could work. You're right. You're a blessing to us, Irene. Our budget is in safe hands. Our Alpha is really lucky to have you by his side."
• I smiled in response to his words and watched him excuse himself. It was only fair to have brains, in my opinion. After discovering I was wolfless, I trained myself in other ways to help strengthen the Pack and I knew I was successful each time I received praises.
• Even worse, there was something strange that I had started to notice. Wayne's daughter visited Alpha Karson every day.
• "Where is the Alpha, Joan?" I asked the maid that served my tea.
• "He's in his office, Luna," she fidgeted for a while, biting her lip.
• "With who?" I already knew what she wanted to say. The thought of her answer was already making me squeeze the document I was holding.
• "Lexie, Luna Irene," she replied in a murmur.
• I offered her a smile, "Thank you. You can go now." She bowed before rushing out of my office.
• I leaned back on my seat with a hand over my face and a tired sigh leaving my lips.
• Her constant visits to the Alpha's study was becoming alarming. They spent every minute together and he rarely had lunch or dinner with me.
• Her giggles were loud and every time I heard it, I could hear my heart breaking but I would lift my chin and wear a smile.
• I had loved Karson for years and a little thing like this shouldn't be able to shake me.
• I shrugged it off my shoulders and tried to concentrate on my duties. I successfully distracted myself till evening but soon came the migraines that were impossible to ignore.
• I called it a night and started to walk down the hallway. When I approached Karson's door, my heart began to pound.
• I wondered if he was still in and if he was with her. It was almost 9p.m already and she was supposed to be at home. Besides, I was yet to have dinner and I wondered if he had eaten too.
• He had successfully avoided me for a whole month, sharing his attention between his work and Lexie. It was strange to think about but I didn't want to ponder on that.
• Especially when my thoughts would play detective, questioning itself if she was his mate or not. But she wasn't of age yet for him to find out.
• That was the only thread of hope that I clung onto.
• "Maybe I could ask if we could have dinner together," I wondered and I slowed down when I got to his door. Karson's scent was faint but it tickled my nose either way, making my nipples hard and my core already wet.
• Being wolfless, I could hardly distinguish between people by their scent nor could I smell everyone but Karson's scent was one I had thought myself to remember.
• His scent was like wild roses in an open field while Aunt Teresa's scent was warm and sunny.
• I cherished the little gift I had from having two werewolf parents as Aunt Teresa had told me. We never spoke much about them and I wondered why. All I knew was that they were good people who would do anything for the ones they loved.
• Sometimes, I wondered if they didn't love me enough to stay alive.
• Exhaling softly, I held the cold door knob of Karson's office and I pushed it open.
• "Karson, I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner with-"
• The rest of the words died in my throat. My eyes widened and I heard my own heart shatter.
• Dizziness washed over me and my knees wobbled but I gripped the door hard to keep standing.
• Karson had Lexie in his arms in a hug while he backed her against his desk. His mouth was on her neck and the way she held onto him tightly as if she was in slight pain, I could already tell what was going on.
• The mate bite he had refused to give me, he was bestowing it upon her. He had marked her without even stopping to consider our mating ceremony-
• Was she... No! I shook my head even as my thoughts already confirmed it. My lips trembled as tears filled my eyes at the realization.
• Karson was hell bent upon meeting his mate. He hates our arranged marriage because he didn't have the chance to find his destined mate.
• She was his mate.
• The sight before my eyes was growing on my pierced heart that continued to shatter even more.
• The sight burned right into my head that I was sure I could never forget it even if I were to lose my memory today. I would at least remember that the only man I had ever loved, had finally found his mate and I was nothing to him.
• I stepped away from the door like it would explode at any minute.
• "You're only my mother's choice," his words before our mating ceremony began to hunt me.
• My breathing became ragged and I clutched my chest, tugging at the neck of my dress as I found it hard to breathe.
• I staggered backwards with eyes wide in horror. I turned and ran into my room, slamming the door behind me. I sagged to the floor with my knees hunched up to my chest.
• My hands shook and so did my shoulders. The tears fell and all I could do was stare into my palm before slowly placing it over my face.