00:00I was born with heavy breasts and lush curves. My half-sister Chloe was afraid her mate Brad
00:06would go feral over me, so she sold me to an impotent alpha. She patted my shoulder.
00:15Who knows, maybe he's good at other things. Three months later, I was begging for mercy
00:21every night. Funny. He seemed good at everything. Case Valerius. The Blackwood Pax Alpha. The
00:29Lycan King's most trusted war commander. He was carried back from the battlefield soaked in blood.
00:34Someone suggested, a mate bond shares life force. If Alpha Case was bound to a living, healthy mate,
00:40her strength could flow into him and pull him back. Chloe rushed to play matchmaker and presented
00:45me to Martha before I could object. I had no way to refuse. If I wouldn't agree, she'd transfer me
00:50to serve 60-year-old Elder Kevin. I knew she resented my history with her mate. I dropped to my
00:56knees and
00:56swore to the moon goddess. I swear, Chloe, I had no feelings for Brad. Chloe jabbed a finger at my
01:03forehead, fury in her eyes. What good is a vow? Do you have any idea how distracting you are?
01:08I hunched my shoulders. Tears slid down my cheeks. Just look at that ample body and those charming
01:15curves. Parading your body in front of every male in the clan. Who among them would not lose their minds
01:23at the smell of you? I wanted to tell her. To bind my chest, I'd wrapped myself layer after layer
01:29in
01:29the sweltering heat until I broke out in a rash. Her expression softened. She wiped my tears.
01:35It's not that I don't trust you. It's that I don't trust males. Do you know how powerful Alpha Case
01:41is? If my mother and Martha weren't old friends, you wouldn't even have this opportunity.
01:46Chloe, I don't want to be anyone's offering. I'd rather scrub kitchen floors. Just don't make me...
01:55Two sharp slaps landed across my face. My cheek burned.
01:59Leah, are you out of your mind? If I hadn't vouched for you,
02:03Martha wouldn't have given you a second glance. You wouldn't even be worthy of being Case's mate.
02:07The maid burst in breathless.
02:10Miss Chloe, word from the Valerius estate. Alpha Case has woken up.
02:17Chloe dragged me straight to Valerius estate. Enormous. I followed her through the main hall
02:21to a set of heavy double doors, pulled half shut. Through the gap, I could make out a man's shape
02:25in the bed. Thin, motionless, chest rattling with shallow coughs every few minutes.
02:30Martha stood on our side, eyes red. Thank you for everything you've done for Case.
02:35I won't destroy a girl's future over it. Chloe's eyes moved, quick and calculating.
02:39Valerius, the bond should still be completed. Leah arrived the same day Case woke up.
02:44That's the moon goddess guiding us. Seal the bond properly. Her life force will keep pulling
02:49him back toward health. Before she could speak, the healer Ella stepped out, expression tight.
02:54Alpha Case has regained consciousness, but an arrow struck his inner thigh during battle.
03:01I'm afraid he will no longer be able to- Unable to do what?
03:05He will no longer be able to get hard.
03:07Martha's knees gave out. I caught her before she hit the floor. She looked up at me with
03:11hollowed eyes.
03:12Leah, knowing this, are you still willing?
03:16Yes, she's been looking forward to it.
03:18Chloe was already answering for me.
03:20Of course she is. She's just an Omega with no prospects. She should be grateful.
03:25I didn't speak right away. My mind went to my past. There was a young wolf in the poor
03:30quarter behind our estate. I first saw him through the fence gaps. Thin wrists, hollow
03:36cheeks, hunched over a cracked bowl with nothing in it. I started passing food through the gaps.
03:41Bread first, then soup, then whatever I had. Day after day, I watched him change. The hollows
03:47in his cheeks filled out. His shoulders broadened. He started training before dawn, running laps around
03:53the back wall while I was still half asleep. He was going to enter the warrior trials.
03:58I knew it before he told me. When he passed, I went to find him that same night. I was
04:02happy.
04:02I remember it clearly. I was genuinely happy. I knocked on the gate. He didn't open it.
04:07His voice came.
04:08Leah, I'm betrothed now. It wouldn't be proper.
04:10Then a soft thud in the dirt at my feet. A pouch of silver.
04:13Consider my debt repaid.
04:14I stood there for a moment. Then I picked it up and walked away. That wolf became Chloe's mate.
04:19Brad. Brad. I acted like I'd never known him. Chloe found out anyway. I snapped back
04:25to reality. I gathered my skirts and knelt in front of Martha.
04:29My lady. I'm willing. I'll complete the bond, care for Case, and serve you as long as you
04:36need me.
04:37Luna. Martha kept her word and prepared a dignified mating dress for me.
04:40Chloe deliberately chose a day when Brad was away on pack business to send me off.
04:44She walked me to the door, guilt on her face. Even though Case can't get hard, at least
04:50you'll be spared the pain of bearing pups. Don't worry. An alpha who can't perform in
04:56that area is probably exceptional in every other. Honestly, none of what Chloe said had
05:00even crossed my mind. I told myself I was simply moving to a new household. Case was too weak
05:06to stand through the full mate blessing ritual. I completed the bond rites beside his ceremonial
05:11sword instead. Martha watched from the front, eyes wet the whole time. When it was done,
05:17I was alpha Case's mate. The mating chamber was quiet. I pushed the door open carefully.
05:24Case was already inside, half reclined against the headboard in a white bathrobe. He turned
05:28when he heard me. Up close, he was strikingly handsome. Sharp jaw, dark eyes, the kind of face
05:35that didn't need color in it to hold attention. I had no intention of taking a mate, he said with
05:40a low voice. If it doesn't trouble you, we can treat this as a sibling arrangement. He pointed to
05:46the chaise along the far wall. Tonight the bed is yours. I'll take that. Tomorrow you move to the
05:53guest quarters. All right, I nodded. He had thought of everything. It wasn't what I'd expected. Before the
05:59ritual, one of the older maids had pulled me aside and pressed something into my hands. A small handbook
06:04worn at the corners. She'd whispered with a strange look. There are other ways between mates. You might
06:11find it useful. I had no idea what she meant until I opened it. Heat pooled in my core just
06:17from looking
06:17at the pages. Is it too hot? Case was watching me from the bed, eyes direct, unblinking. The dress
06:25is heavy. I'm a little warm. Then wash up and rest. He pulled the blanket over himself and turned
06:32toward the wall. Within minutes, his breathing evened out. I set the handbook down on the vanity
06:37and took down my hair. Then the layered robes, piece by piece, until I was standing in nothing but
06:42my nightgown. I turned to the mirror. The thin fabric clung to every curve, heavy breasts straining
06:49against the cloth, slim waist giving way to the flare of my hips. I walked straight into Case's
06:54gaze. He wasn't asleep. His chest rose hard. The tips of his ears went red. His throat worked as he
07:00swallowed. I grabbed my outer robe and pressed it against my chest. Alpha, I thought you were asleep.
07:07A long pause. I could sleep later. My breath hitched. He rose slowly to his feet, his tall frame casting
07:15a shadow over me. The handbook's images came flooding in. My breathing shifted without me meaning it to,
07:32somehow falling into the same rhythm as his. Then Case turned and walked to the door. The moment cool
07:38night air rushed in, I snapped back to my senses. He'd already disappeared into the darkness. I turned
07:44it over in my mind. When he'd looked at me just now, his eyes had flashed with something unmistakably
07:50like shock. Had my figure actually frightened him? Before I lay down, I made a firm decision.
07:56Tomorrow morning, I was binding my chest at least one full loop tighter. I was hovering somewhere
08:01between sleep and waking when Case slipped back in. The tips of his hair still beaded with water.
08:06He'd apparently gone to shower. By morning, he was already gone. Ivy came in to help me dress.
08:11From the corridor outside came the sound of a man. Once. Then again.
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