The Alpha's Contract Luna novel Chapter 3

~Alexia~

‘This is… Alpha Kieran Stone?’ Alexia asked herself quietly as their eyes met.

As if time had stopped completely. Nothing else mattered but the man before her. Silence engulfed her, and only the beating of her heart became deafening. At that very moment, she could not fathom why her emotions were off the roof at the sight of him.

For a fleeting moment, she swore she felt his eyes were soft on her. However, as soon as she acknowledged this, Alpha Kieran averted her gaze. When he returned his attention to her, his eyes were unfeeling toward her.

“Leave us,” Alpha Kieran instructed his Beta in his glacial tone.

Alexia heard the doors shut behind her while she stood rooted to the floor, her eyes still glued to the man they said was hideous-looking.

Sure, he carried around him an authoritative air. His cut was imposing and towered over her little frame. In her view, he was probably around six feet, while she was five feet and five inches tall.

He had a long scar from his forehead, going through his right brow and extending out to the side of his cheek. Other than that, Alexia thought, if he had other scars on his face, they were not so evident.

Was she supposed to be scared of him? If anything, Alexia thought, his scar was a unique mark on him that made him appealing; dangerously handsome, to be exact.

Alpha Kieran was moderately bearded around his chiseled jawlines, down to his chin. He had intense dark brown eyes, and he had jet-black hair. He had a long roman nose and tanned skin.

Alexia speculated where the rumors about his ugly features came from, but this man was far from it. In fact, up until that very moment, she could feel her ears burning at how attractive he was.

Just when she was in a daze, appreciating the man before her, Alpha Kieran ordered, “Sit.”

Alexia sat in front of his table while he took the opposite chair across from her. Kieran growled, “I don’t know what your father or anyone from your pack said to the king, but I loath this marriage! And I am supposed to fulfill my duty to the king and the nation this way?”

In her defense, Alexia tried to explain, “I never wanted this -”

“Did I say that you could speak?” Kieran interrupted, his eyes burning through her body. “The king may have asked me to marry you, but there will be no real marriage between us!"

He grabbed the document from his table and threw them at Alexia, demanding, “Read!”

With her hands trembling, she flipped through the papers. As she went over the terms of the contract, Alpha Kieran pointed out, “We will display our so-called tranquil marriage in front of the King and in public. You shall be addressed as the Luna of the Stone Blood Pack. However, within the packhouse and without any guests present, I am under no obligation to treat you as my wife!”

"I will never mark you, and you are not allowed to mark me as well!" He spitefully described. “You will not sit with me, eat with me, nor share the air I breathe.”

“You will not share my wealth. You will work for your own income, however, and whatever you can contribute to this pack!” He narrowed his eyes as he resumed, “I reserve the right to cancel and amend this contract- reject the marriage at any time I please!”

The list continued, all indicating that Alexia had no say in the marriage. Each time she proceeded to the next part of the contract, she merely nodded in agreement. So far, she had seen nothing that would cause her harm. All she needed to do was stay away from him, which was precisely what she wanted.

“Lastly, I will never love you. I will never take you to bed. You will have your own room - two floors down, across my wing, farthest away from me,” the Alpha added as his voice intensified.

‘I will never love you.’ Alexia could not understand why, but that stung her a little. Hearing how he would never take advantage of her, however, she sighed in relief, her hand resting on her chest as she closed her eyes.

She could still save herself for her true mate if she ever gets away from this contract marriage. With this in mind, she unwittingly muttered, “Thank you, Moon Goddess.”

When she opened her eyes, she saw the angry glare from Alpha Kieran. It made her wonder what upset him, but then again, she realized the marriage had long angered him.

His lips twitched before he remarked, “You sure are happy to be married to me. You had to thank the Goddess in front of me!”