The Alpha's Substitute Bride

Chapter 5

~ISABELLA~

I don't know why I'd said it. Angering the beast was not what I was trying to do. Or maybe that's exactly what I wanted. I was angry that he had a mistress and in turn I wanted to make him just as angry as I was. Why should I be the only one frustrated over something that I could hardly control? I glared at him from across the room, challenging him to force me to go to that dinner party.

He took a step in my direction with determination in his eyes but paused at something. It was only then did I realize someone was knocking on the door.

I felt my body stiffen as I saw that woman enter the room. I narrowed my eyes as she walked over to Hunter with a soft smile on her face.

"Your presence is needed in the kitchen." She informed him. "The cooks want to know what to prepare for tonight."

Hunter turned to me and his penetrating gaze went straight through my feigned calm composure. "Tonight, Isabella. Be ready. I don't want to have to repeat myself again."

I watched as he left the room leaving his mistress behind with me. She turned to me on her heels and eyed me from head to toe. She was quiet as she watched me with bored yet envious eyes.

"So you're the woman my Hunter was forced to marry." She said suddenly, breaking the silence between us.

I got up from the bed and pretended like she didn't exist. I knew women like her well. I wasn't about to let her intimidate me even though I was angry about this entire situation.

"You're absolutely no one to him; soon you'll realize that on your own." She hissed. I sensed that my attempt to ignore her did well in my favor. However, her words did strike a nerve.

I narrowed my eyes and finally gave her the attention that she so desperately wanted. "I don't see a wedding ring on your finger."

Her eyes flared. "He's known me way longer than he's known you. Believe me, he will always choose me over you."

I quirked a brow and crossed my arms over my chest. "Is that really what you believe? Honey, if you haven't noticed. I'm the one he's married to. I'm the one he's made room for in his bed. I'm the woman he's throwing a dinner party for tonight. If you ask me, you've already been replaced." I said calmly. "I don't understand why a woman such as yourself would settle being someone's mistress but that really isn't my problem, is it?"

I inwardly laughed at the expression on her face. She’s the one that wanted to play dirty in the first place. Without another word she stormed out of the bedroom leaving me alone. This, I was grateful for. I’d had a very long day and I could already tell that I was about to have a long night as well.

. . . . . .

I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back against the bed head as I heard Hunter enter the room. This was the first time he’d stepped into the room since our earlier disagreement and I was preparing whole day for the fight that was about to take place between us. I pretended to be paying attention to the book in front of me, though I didn't have the slightest clue of who was the main character or what the book was even about.

"Isabella." Hunter growled. "What do you think you're doing?"

I purposely let the robe fall open, revealing the lingerie underneath. I never thought I’d be this bold with anyone but with Hunter, I always wanted to get a reaction out of him. "Surely you have eyes of your own; I don't need to say anything more."

I heard his sharp intake of breath which in turn made me look in his direction.

As soon as I lifted my gaze I had to fight the moan that threatened to leave my mouth after seeing the hungry look in his eyes. Even though the hunger was there, there was also a slight hint of irritation on his face. Whoever those people were that he'd invited today, they clearly meant something to him. He seemed restless to introduce me to them.

"The guests are already gathering downstairs Isabella." He said again, this time in a hoarse whisper. "Don't let me come over there."

I lifted my gaze to his again, remembering everything that blasted mistress of his had said to me before. "Or what?"

His eyes narrowed and he took fierce steps towards me. Part of me wanted to run and the other half that had a lot more control decided that she wanted to stay and fight.

He gripped my hair and lifted me a little off the bed so that we met halfway. "You don't want to play these games with me Isabella." He threatened with our lips inches apart. I inhaled his scent and a small whimper escaped my mouth before I could stop it. His eyes darkened a shade and his hands on my hair tightened as he pulled me closer. I felt electric shocks all over my body at our closeness and I could feel my skin grow hot all over.

“Hunter we’re all-

The man stopped mid-sentence after witnessing the scene before him and I felt my cheeks turn bright red.

Hunter growled and covered my body with the sheets. "Get the f**k out of here Harry."

“You’re not going to like what will happen if I have to return here again Isabella. Trust me.”

I wanted to tell him that his threat didn’t work on me but my fast beating heart had already betrayed me.

As soon as they both left the room, I angrily pushed out of the bed and grabbed a dress from the closet. Apparently, Hunter had already gotten my measurements from the council before we left and had gotten a few dresses as well as other clothing necessities for me. I had no idea how he'd thought of all of those things so quickly. I also had no idea why he was so anxious to hold this event tonight.

After slipping into the dress, I tied my hair into a neat bun and proceeded out of the room.

The moment my feet touched the first step and I came into everyone's view, all eyes were on me. It was awkward, especially since the once noisy house had suddenly turned quiet.

I held my head high and remembered what I'd been taught back at the council. It was important that I carried myself with grace and did nothing to embarrass neither myself nor Hunter. I found him at the bottom of the stairs staring darkly at me. I tried not to shiver under his hot and needy gaze. I loved the way his eyes travelled down my body a lot more than I wanted to admit.

"Everyone," he said as he gently took my hand in his. "This is my wife, Isabella."

One by one they all came up to me and introduced themselves. It was hard to keep up with all of the names. Though, a few of them did stand out. The women in Hunter's life were beautiful. But most of them here were already wives of Hunter's friends. At least I think they were his friends.

I focused on the man he was speaking to now. He had blond hair and deep ocean blue eyes.

"It's nice to meet you Isabella." He said. "My name is Bruce."

He extended his hand and a growl immediately left Hunter's mouth. Bruce looked startled by Hunter's reaction. He gave him a confused look and gently took his hand back, clearing his throat. "I'm your husband's closest friend. . . Almost like a brother. I'm happy that he has someone with him now, someone that could keep him company and take away the lone—"

"Bruce." Hunter growled in a warning tone. Before his friend could respond he was already guiding everyone into the dining room which was big enough to accommodate all of the guests and even more if we needed to.

I tried to remain calm after all of the judgmental gazes sent my way the moment we were all seated. I focused on the food in front of me; there was a huge variety of things to choose from. My eyes travelled to the basket of fruits and I was surprised when Hunter brought it closer to me, almost as if he thought that I wanted it. Our hands touched by mistake and everything completely disappeared around me. As far as I was concerned, it was just Hunter and I in the room now. His eyes found mine and our gazes locked. My lips parted and Hunter followed the small movement, his eyes now focused there. Somehow, his gaze was so searing that it burned straight through me.

"I'm really happy that you finally decided to move on Hunter. We were all worried about you."

I flushed, suddenly remembering that we were still in a room full of people that didn't know me.

"Yes, it's nice to see you at least try to make something work again rather than keep blaming yourself for my niece's death." A woman with long blond hair said suddenly.

Her niece? Then she was related to Hunter's late wife.

Hunter stiffened at her words and so did everyone else in the room. Clearly no one was expecting her to bring up his past mate when I was around. The tension was so high that some of the guests started to panic, I could see it as clear as day on their faces.

"Even though no one can replace my Maggie and even though she's the most beautiful and kind hearted woman you've ever had in your life. I'm still glad to see that you can give someone else a chance. Though it may not work as well as your last, it can still do something rather than nothing."

I pressed my lips together. The woman was definitely trying to insult me in front of all of these people. It wasn't just about protecting her niece's image, she clearly didn't like me. I didn't like this, at least back home I was surrounded by people who cared for me.

"I mean no offense to your current wife—"

"Enough." Hunter roared, I could feel the anger radiating out from him in great waves as he glared at the woman. She looked startled at his reaction. In fact, everyone did. I didn't think anyone expected him to defend me, even I didn't. Especially not when she was praising the wife he had actually cared about.

"I think we should all just eat, we can have discussions after." Another woman suggested as she grabbed a knife and fork.

For the rest of the night, I felt extremely uncomfortable. This was the last thing I was expecting to experience at this party. I was already insecure where Hunter's past was concerned after knowing how much he'd loved his last wife and that it wasn't possible for him to ever love me like that. Now her aunt just proved that to me and in front of so many people.The dinner couldn't possibly have gone any worse than this. . .