Page 25 of Fated Alpha Baby

I’m about to become the mate and luna to a man who never wanted me. A man who used me, took my virginity, then left me in the cold with a simple letter that said he could never be mated to me.

What irony!

Perhaps I am his fated mate in a cruel, twisted joke from the Goddess. But this is why I cannot wholeheartedly accept him, or tell him the truth about Clarissa.

All I have to do is go through with this for the sake of the alliance, for his belief that being mated restores his air powers, and to finally free ourselves of the demons. Once it is done, I will return to Augusta with my daughter when an alliance is no longer needed.

That’s why I’m grateful that Amalia prepared more syrup and finally gave me the recipe to make more. My secret will be safe, and I won’t have to risk opening my heart to a man who never deserved it in the first place.

“Yes, I, Hannah Young, agree to be Alpha Conan Becker’s mate and luna.”

Amalia holds out a dagger to Conan—the blade made of platinum with a cured oak handle—and he turns over my hand so my palm is facing him.

I avoid looking up at him. He doesn’t deserve such recognition. We barely spoke since he arrived in Augusta, and the chance encounter in the village wasn’t enough to justify his decision to take me as his luna. Perhaps he feels justified because of his research team and the Bitterroot Valley Council, but he didn’t even bother to ask my permission before he announced his decision at last night’s meeting.

Embarrassed and angry, it is only by the grace of Sister Amalia that I am going through with this at all. And when he slides the sharp blade across my palm, slicing a neat line to draw blood, I don’t make a sound, and I don’t flinch.

Numb.

That’s how I plan on reacting to everything thrown my way while I’m Conan’s luna. It’s better this way, so I never get hurt again.

The ceremony is complete when Conan slices his own palm, and blood drips into a bowl that Amalia uses to perform a ritual. My skin hums with the awareness that he is my fated mate while she stirs the bowl, using herbs as a protective bind, and pouring the mixture into a sigil marked on the ground.

The mate bond is sealed, complete, but I stop it from consuming my very being when the magic surges through my veins and the cut in my palm magically fuses to heal instantly. When it’s over, Amalia takes my hand and walks with us to the van, where Clarissa waits with Milly and Simon.

“Luna Hannah,” Simon greets with a courteous bow that feels too strange, and I shiver as I reach for my daughter.

“Come on, Bug,” I say as I press a kiss to her forehead, noticing how sleepy she is as she nuzzles into my neck. “It’s time to go.”

Clarissa pouts. “Do we have to leave, Mommy?”

My chest tightens with regret as I look up to find Milly staring at us with tears pooled in her eyes.

“Yes, Bug. We have to go. But we will visit the sisters again. I promise,” I say as I hold Milly’s gaze. She bounces over and flings her arms over Clarissa and me.

“You promised, Hannah. No going back on that promise,” Milly warns.

“I know.”

When she draws back, I cup her cheek. “I promise we’ll visit. You’re my best friend.”

She shakes her head as she touches my wrist. “You’re my sister, Hannah. We all are.”

That’s when the entire coven appears from the front door of the main house, the group led by Shanice.

She’s the first to come over to bid us goodbye.

“I don’t like this,” she says, her eyes full of suspicion as she glances at Conan and Simon at the back of the van. “They’re wolves.”

“I’m not the first witch to mate with a werewolf, Shanice.”

“And we all know what happened to Candice,” she returns with an arched brow. “Orlando loved her, and he still couldn’t save her life.”

“Maybe it’s his love for her that weakened her,” I offer. “This is only for the sake of the alliance. I’ll be fine.” My chest tightens when I say the words, my heart threatening to break all over again. I just have to remind myself that it’s not his love I’m vying for. I don’t want anything from him.

“I tried to get Sister Amalia to change her mind, but she wouldn’t listen,” Shanice scoffs, and I shake my head.

“The only reason I am going through with this is because of her. I trust her, Shanice. Perhaps you should, too.”