The Alpha's Commoner Bride

Chapter Six – Once a Commoner

Aurora

Luke appears outside my house, and I want to embrace him and never let go but I am inhibited by Jaxson's arm squeezing around my bicep. He drags me from my parents, being held back by warriors, and I watch them struggle at the sight of me being taken away. 

I leave with a small glance over my shoulder, being tugged into a horse-drawn carriage with the proclaimed prince of the royal pack. He takes a seat on the bench, and fall to the floor, flimsy with fear, his eyes burning holes into my back as the door is thrown shut. I close my eyes, expecting a hit, expecting some sort of pain or to have him finally do what royals do best with helpless, commoner girls.

His brow furrows at the sight of me. 

As the carriage begins to move, he reaches forward to grab me but I flinch, my hands out before me, pleading that he doesn’t touch me. Now that we are alone, and my parents and best friend are out of sight, I feel vulnerable in the carriage alone with this intense wolf.

“Get up,” he commands, tipping his head down at the sight of me. “You do not have to sit on the floor. You can sit here with me,” he adds, motioning to the bench beside him. 

“You’re a royal,” is all I can muster the courage to say. 

He nods, like he understands my intent not to break the social rules between his kind, and mine. “You don’t have to be a commoner anymore,” he says, shrugging. “You and I are fated mates, Aurora. That means you will be a royal when I mark you.”

“Mark me?” 

I swallow hard at the thought of him getting anywhere near my throat. 

“Yes, I will eventually mark you, Aurora. I have to. It shows you are my mate, and it lets me connect into your mind. We will be bonded then.”

I shiver. “I can’t be your mate.”

He squints, something so harsh about his appearance being contorted away from such perfect, polished features, starting to become a real shame. “Are you doubting my word?”

“No,” I reply quick. 

“Good,” he grumbles. “I know you are my mate.”

“How will I know that?”

He leans forward, elbows piercing his knees as he folds his hands over in front of him. I wait for some kind of repercussion to that question, feeling like a child waiting to be punished, but he only inhales and exhales, looking at me with wide, curious eyes. 

“You’ll know on your twentieth birthday, Aurora.”

“Until then?”

“Until then you will live in my palace, under my watch, just so something like last night never happens again. You shouldn't have been in that situation,” he says, shaking his head, something sad in his tone now as he speaks with gray eyes, recalling the memory he must know more about than myself. “If I let you stay home after knowing you are my mate, and anyone tries to take advantage of you like that rogue had, I’d go on a killing spree.”

My heart hurts with his words. 

I didn’t even get to say goodbye to any of my friends. 

He must sense it, too. 

He stands briefly, turning quick before sitting down on the ground beside me, his long legs spread out in front of him, forcing him to scrunch his knees up to make enough room for himself down here. I sit stunned at the sight. A royal is sitting the on floor of his own carriage, next to a commoner from a pack that his warriors have pillaged countless times before. 

He leans his head back on the wall, obviously uncomfortable. 

“Sire, you shouldn’t be—”

“Do not call me that,” he says, his eyes closed, his mind far away. “I am Jaxson Knight. You can call me anything, except for sire.” I want to argue but I can feel his tone heavy on my chest. It wouldn’t be worth the fight. 

“I do have one question,” he says, something about his posture going taut. “How did you end up with those damn rogues last night?”

I try to think back to the events that led to this mess, everything about yesterday so foggy still. “Me and my friends went to the casino to drink,” I say, trying to ignore the reason why I wanted to drown in liquor in the first place. “I left them and got lost. When I walked into the vault by accident, I saw one of the workers dead. A rogue took me with him instead of leaving me behind and—” shaking my head, my wolf whines. “I don’t really remember all of what happened after that.”

He nods, something humorous overcoming his light pink lips. “You don’t remember meeting me last night?”

“No, I don’t, sire.”

He growls, and I flinch. 

“I’m sorry, Jaxson,” I say, whispering his name, expecting it to be an excuse to hurt me, to punishment. Not that he needs a reason; he’s already separated me from my pack, from my parents and my best friends; he can have his way with me however he would like right now.

“You went into heat,” he says after a brief pause. My stomach cramps, the painful reminder of that wretched feeling, only capable of being soothed by one thing, and one thing alone. “I could smell it over whatever potion you were under the influence of,” he adds, shooting me a look in the corner of his eyes.

Potions are illegal throughout our lands. They can cause royals to not find the unmated females they so badly yearn for. If I had been caught by any other royal, a wolf claiming not to be my mate, I would have been killed immediately.  

He continues, thankfully, without punishment. “The rogue was standing over you when I got there, and I had my warriors rip him to shreds.”

I turn away, my entire face flushed burning hot. 

“Thank you,” is all I can manage to say. 

A yawn escapes me, one I’ve been holding for a while.

“We will be at the palace in a few hours, sweetheart. You should rest.”

I hesitate to close my eyes after the nickname her gave me, and the way his voice sounded so gentle after he just explained how he ripped apart a rogue for trying to attack me. I can’t determine if this prince is trying to trick me into trusting him before eventually killing me like royals love to do to commoners.

“Go lay down on the seat,” he says with a stiff tone, leaning forward to move a pillow on the long bench to act as if it’s a small, narrow bed. It would be better than the floor, I admit to myself. “Don’t argue with me about it, either.”

I hesitate but finally oblige, laying on the bench, my back to the prince for now, not caring if it’s safe or not. He is a royal warrior, strong and twice my size. I wasn’t even able to take on the rogue by myself and he did it with one quick bite. I wouldn’t stand a chance against the prince, the wolf I am supposedly mated to. 

None of this makes sense. 

I pretend to sleep, so nervous that it inhibits my ability to actually drift unconscious. 

The carriage stops after ages of moving forward and I stay curled up, too afraid to move. The prince doesn’t seem to mind, pulling me backwards into his arms, leaving me draped against his chest while we exit the cart. The sun is bright, threatening to set in an hour or two. 

I steal a glance of the palace, walking through large, heavy iron gates before we dip into a dark tunnel. I don’t know why but I curl tighter against his chest, gripping at his jacket, feeling the darkness swirl through my mind until we breach the sunlight again. 

A palace stands before us now, a busy courtyard out front with bushes and berries strewn all over with bright summer leaves. It’s a beautiful place, unfortunately hidden behind the dark tunnel and iron gate keeping it a marvelous secret. 

We walk through the marble hallways, the gold trim lining the ceilings above with murals of royals plastered all over the walls, but Jaxson doesn’t seem to care about the tiresome walk while he carries me every step. 

Finally, we reach a doorway. 

Inside is a large, beautiful bed draped with sheer curtains from above, near a chandelier made in crystal and illuminating the room in a golden light, even over the pinkish, ivory walls decorated in floral paintings. There’s a fireplace on the far wall, near a set of couches and chairs for lounging, but my eyes fall to the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the palace and the royal pack below. I can see for miles, craning to see the North Woods pack lands but I’m laid in bed before I get the opportunity. 

“You will be staying in here,” Jaxson says, adjusting the curtains to cover the sunset bleeding bright orange into the room. “I will have warriors posted outside your door if you need anything at all. Otherwise, I will let you sleep, mate.”

I swallow hard, my stomach in knots. 

I can’t ignore the screams in the palace of chaos and pain. This is where commoner females come to die. I have a hard time believing I won’t be one of them.