Alpha Prince and His Replacement Bride

#2 The Ring

"How could you do something like this?" I tried to put some sense into Emma.

Technically, Emma is elder to me. But she is this sweet little thing. She agrees to almost everything that our father asks her to do, even if it breaks her from inside. Emma is the perfect daughter that any alpha could dream of having. She was beautiful, trained to handle situations under attack, had decent fighting skills, and from a high background full of etiquette. So our father left no chance to use her as a trophy daughter, forgetting my existence. Not that I cared. I would rather live inside a hole than being used for political profits.

To my relief and Emma's dismay, look where she had landed now! She has to spend her entire life in a loveless marriage as the wife of the most heartless creature. Ivan would mark her to show others that she was his property on the first night itself and then forget all about her existence while my sister will have to carry out her responsibilities in the shadow. I just knew it. I had seen it happen too many times to think otherwise. Especially when the alpha prince was in the picture!

I felt proud. But mostly, I felt relieved for being icy. Otherwise, my father or perhaps even my elder brother would certainly dump me to one of these egoist alpha wolves or a royal beta to strengthen political ties or for some negotiations that I might never find out. I would have to live under someone's shadow, having no chance of meeting a man I can fall in love with or experience all this fuss called love. How sad it is even to think about living a life you can't control! I pity Emma because she had to live a life like that.

Also, staying away from this place has other advantages. I might never find my mate. Also, living for so long in the human city has masked my wolf essence. To my respite, even if I stumble upon him on a bad day, he can't pick my smell without getting that human smell they so despise. I don't want to feel forced to love anybody. It should be natural. I would rather die than have anyone like Ivan or Xander as my mate.

It is not that I hate all wolves. I liked it when we were too young. It was before my father started crawling up the ladder. I had many friends, and the ranks hardly mattered then. But as I grew up and my father prospered, they asked me not to mix with just anyone but to look for the hierarchy of the wolf I mingled. Even befriending children of alphas of small packs was a big no. It is this power game of the four families that makes me loathe everything here. At least, that's what I believe.

"It is what father wants, Mia. Everyone cannot run away like you." Emma grumbled at me, trying her bridal dress. She looked pure, serene, and everything exceptional. But I am her sister. I could see the sadness in her eyes.

"I am glad I ran away before they got me married to someone I don't like." I retorted, biting the apple I was holding for a while now. I lack etiquettes or any lady-like manners. I would be an awful Luna or gamma.

"Mia! Ivan isn't as awful as you think. It has been years since you last saw him. He is attentive to me and promised to honor this marriage." Emma let out a deep breath. I cannot tell if it was me because of my resentment towards Ivan or if it was real, but I could tell Emma was hiding something from me. She mentioned that to herself more than me.

"I am glad you think so! But you always wanted to marry your mate." I replied, adjusting Emma's veil. She indeed looked breathtaking if not for those vulnerable sad eyes of her that screamed for help.

"I was a kid then. How long should I wait for my mate? It is delusional. Ivan is the alpha prince. In the future, he will be the alpha king, and I would be the Luna queen. It is something every girl dreams about, but I am the lucky one." Emma gloated to herself. I could tell without even trying that Emma had a successful brainwashing session. When she spitted those words, it was our father talking, not Emma.

I knew it was worth giving up when Emma had made up her mind to be the sacrificial daughter. I tried to be happy as we finally decided on the dress she would be wearing for her wedding. Then we went shopping for the ring.

"This is good. It looks grand." Emma showed me a big, flashy ring. Our elder brother, Gerard, who was here for ring shopping with us, immediately approved of it. It spoke about money and status.

"Worthy of a prince!" Gerard approved, his eyes beaming with pride.

I rolled my eyes, although I kept my mouth shut. I just can't hide my emotions and disgust no matter how hard I try. Why was I so straightforward? Sigh! It is not like I was going to marry that arrogant wolf prince! So, why even bother and waste precious air on him!

"You don't like it?" Emma asked, obviously reading my expression.

"No, it is great." I lied through the teeth, giving a fake smile. But Emma knew me better than anyone. She flashed her eyes at me. "Ok fine, this is everything any man with a bit of sense would despise. Look how big and flashy that ring is. Wouldn't it be awkward to wear that thing all the time? He is bound to take it out."

"So what you suggest?" Emma asked.

I looked over the rings on the display counter and finally settled for a platinum one. I remembered that one time. Emma and I had to accompany Ivan and his sister, Isabella, for jewelry shopping when he was about nineteen. I was seventeen. It was for Isabella's wedding. Like any wealthy family member, Isabella was looking for a big ring to show off. But Ivan had asked her to settle for a simpler one because it was comfortable for everyday use.

"Here! That one." I pointed towards the platinum band I had picked for Ivan. But Gerard made a sullen face. "It is too plain. What will everyone think? That we are broke? That ring makes me wonder if we don't have enough to buy a worthy ring for the alpha prince. It would be too shameful."

"I am just suggesting here! Feel free to do as you like." I rolled my eyes without feeling any need to explain my choice. It is not like I am going to marry that man. I hate him.

"Let's buy the other one." Gerard declared. Emma flicked her eyes between us and sighed.

"Let's buy both. We can let Ivan pick." Emma suggested, looking hopefully at me. I knew she did that to make me feel happy about this marriage. She wanted me to feel important. But my delusional sister was too naive to understand that I did not care. There she would sit on that plane to fly back to the royal family. Here I will fly back to my life in Europe.

Gerard liked that idea somehow. So, they ended up buying both. Then they shopped a little more, buying gifts for almost everyone, including the extended family members of the royals. I wondered how far my father and brother had planned to impress the alpha king and the royal family. They were enjoying this. Having a filial daughter like Emma as the alpha princess would assuredly put them in the lead of the power race between the three families!

The first three days were exhaustive, where we shopped anything and everything. At some point, I even wondered if the royal family had gone bankrupt and they really needed that many gifts to survive. But I stayed low-key and kept my mouth shut as much as I could. When I could no longer control my emotions out of bewilderment, I would grumble before my mother and Emma. But the poor souls listened to me, with no opinion of their own.

It was finally the last night before Ivan would show up here with his family for the marriage. I could not understand why my father thought it was a good idea for Ivan and his family to stay with us. Probably to spend time with the alpha king and build connections. But it was making me feel uncomfortable. They asked me to be at my best behavior and maintain a distance from most. And I happily agreed. If it were possible, I would stay locked up in my room so that I don't have to see Ivan ever. But if that man bullied me again, I was not sure I could keep my mouth shut. To my dislike, Ivan was marrying my only sister! So avoiding this man altogether was out of the question, especially when I was the bride's maid.

It was late in the night, and all the terrible memories I shared with Ivan kept bothering me. I felt impatient that Emma has to give up her dreams to marry him. I was out of my mind definitely, because I walked up to ask my father why he was making Emma marry someone who was not her mate. I knew he was a late sleeper. But when I reached his office room, I found it empty. It was odd. But I assumed he would be tired because of all the wedding preparations. I sighed, making up my mind to confront him first thing in the morning.

I was walking back to my room sloppily, without paying attention to anything. I did not care that it was dark because of my night vision, but I was too lost to see things on my way. I had taken the turn to take the stairs to my room when I hit on something hard. At first, I thought it was a wall or something. But when I looked properly, I knew it was someone's back. A firm, flat, strong back welcomed my face.

I am a tall girl. But this wolf was taller. For strange reasons, I felt drawn. But I shrugged off that feeling. "Who are you? And why are you lurking in the dark in the middle of the night?" I boomed.

But when this wolf turned, my eyes boggled out of bewilderment. What the heck! Why on earth was Ivan Black standing in front of me in the middle of the night? I checked outside. It was still dark. Wasn't he supposed to come tomorrow when it was the daytime? When I can see him clearly and avoid him! Grrr!

"Ivan!" I whispered, taking my steps back carefully. Now I could not afford to irk the groom without a valid reason. Can I?

"Mia?" Ivan called my name. When my name rolled through his tongue, it felt like honey. I shook my head in disgust for even having that creepy idea. How can I even think of something like that? It was Ivan! My sister's to-be-husband, for god's sake! The man I hate to my bones!

But then what surprised me the most that Ivan black, the famous alpha prince, remembered me after all these years! How? Panic slithered inside my skin for no particular reason as I ran from there towards my room.

In the hind of my mind, I could feel Ivan chuckle and whisper, "i***t!" the nickname he gave me when I had made a failed attempt to beat him up for eating my chocolate when I was seven.