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“He’s the brother to the Alpha,” she said with a smile. “Sam.” She frowned. “What’s wrong?”
I took a breath. I didn’t want to ruin this for her. She seemed happy.
“Oh, it’s –”
“Don’t say it’s nothing,” Rianne said. “You can tell me.”
“My father is engaged to Megan Chamberly,” I said.
Rianne gave me a long look. “Oh.” She glanced away. “Is that all?”
I blinked. Was that all? She couldn’t be serious right now…could she?
“I don’t understand,” I said, my voice tight. I dropped my hands beside me, clinging to the edge of the bed like it was some kind of lifeline.
She sighed. “I don’t want to upset you, Adrya, but what did you expect?” she asked. “Your father is an Alpha. He’s expected to marry again. Why would this –”
“I know that,” I said. “But why her? Out of everyone, why her?”
“Well, maybe it was mutual?” She lifted shoulder. “Do you remember last year, the anniversary of your mother’s passing, it seemed to really hit him hard? Harder than usual?” I nodded. “I noticed that. Your father is scary, Adrya. I mean, not only is he an Alpha, but it’s more than that. You know it. So, to see him look so…I don’t know, vulnerable, I guess? I was concerned. And I didn’t think anyone really talked to him about it, until I saw them speaking that night.” Her lips curved up as a memory hit her, one she seemed to have no problem losing herself in. “I wanted to tell you, but you were going through your own thing and I didn’t want to bother you, especially if nothing came from it.”
I rubbed my lips together, trying to gather my thoughts without reacting right away the way I wanted to. Because this wasn’t making any sense.
“Okay,” I said. “Fine. But that doesn’t equate to marriage.”
“No, of course.” One arm crossed over her chest protectively while the other remained stiffly at her side.
“You know he’s only marrying her because of The Marriage Law?” I snapped, standing up. It was a cruel thing for me to say, I knew, but the fact that this person was about to marry my father and thought she was in love with him also seemed cruel as well, and I didn’t see any remorse for it because I hadn’t seen her since. “There's no other reason why he would rush into marrying you if it wasn’t.”
I looked at her, really tried to figure out if her surprise was genuine. But how could I know? She had been hiding such a big secret from me that I didn’t know what was the truth anymore.
“My pack,” I said. “My inheritance. It’s going away. Because, for some reason, my father got it into his head to marry me off to another pack. Instead of Alpha tomypack, I’d be a Consort to someone else’s. I wonder if she put him up to this.”
She made a face. “Why would she do that?” she asked. Like she didn’t believe me. Like this whole thing was in my head. “I mean, do you truly believe she has that much power?”
“I don’t understand you,” I said. “Why are you siding with her?”
Rianne crossed her arms over her chest, positioning herself so she could look at me better. “Don’t do that,” she said. “You know that’s not what this is about.”
“Then what is it about?” I demanded, throwing my arms out. I couldn’t remember letting myself be this angry before and it felt…freeing. “Tell me, because I don’t understand your position on this. You’re supposed to be my friend –”
“I am your friend!” she exclaimed.
“Then you’re supposed to be on my side,” I said.
She sat up and placed her hands in her lap. “I’m sorry, Adrya, but that isn’t how friendship works,” she said. “I love you. I’ll protect you. And I know this is the worst thing you think that can happen to you. But you’re wrong with this. Your father is supposed to marry. It’s his duty –”
“He knows how I feel about her,” I insisted. “Why he chose her –”
“She’s the best option for him and the pack,” Rianne said. Her calm voice grated on my nerves. “She’s young and viral and submissive. She’s also beautiful and a purebred wolf. She’s exactly what he needs. And this way, he’s not toying with other wolves. He actually has to commit, and that’s what’s necessary for the pack.”
“I don’t care!” I exclaimed. I sounded like a child, but I didn’t care. “I want, for once, for him to think about me!”
There was a long silence that stretched between us.
“You know he can’t put you first,” Rianne murmured. “Not as Alpha. You’ve always known that. Why the change of heart?”
“My inheritance is slipping through my fingers and there’s nothing I can do about it,” I said. “And you don’t even care.”
