Love and Chaos Series
The Alpha King’s Ugly Bride Chapter 35

Important note: The Lunar Eclipse, although also a full moon, is reverenced more than the full moon.

It is more powerful and rarely ever happened. Different from the full moon, where werewolves can choose whether to shift, during the Lunar eclipse, every werewolf shifts.

***

Mia took a deep breath while staring at herself in the mirror after the last touch of make-up brushed against her face. The event of the night was grand, and king Xavier wanted her to look her best since her natural face wasn't the best. The king had hired Juliet D'Souza, the kingdom's greatest make-up artist, for her. Juliet came to do her magic.

"What do you think?" the old woman asks, turning to her. She had so many layers of powder touch on her face that made her look strange in Mia's eyes.

"I look okay," Mia tried her hand at being polite.

The overconfident woman scoffed, "You look so much better than okay compared to..." she pressed her lips together and smile nervously, knowing she had almost stepped out of line. "That's all I'm going to say," Mia replied, her tone changing into a hard one.

Toni walked over to her and took the covering around Mia's neck away to reveal the red lace gown she had underneath. The gown held onto her and displayed her curves in all the right places, but it was one she could easily slip out of. Just like the make-up artist, Xavier had also chosen her outfit for tonight, because he wanted everything to be at its best.

It is a feast to celebrate the awakening of Robb Ainsworth as alpha of alphas. Its preparation had been in place for a while now. This is also the first full moon Mia would experience since being at the palace, and it was the lunar eclipse.

The awakening of the alpha king has played a major role in the change taking place. Since Robb Ainsworth awakening, Wahala, unlike other kingdoms, hasn't had a full moon. This was abnormal and also normal.

The full moon occurred between twenty-seven to thirty days of every month. With this calculation, Wahala should have had two full moons already. This made it abnormal.

It was normal because according to the shamans' revelation, the awakening of the alpha of alphas always brought the Lunar eclipse, also known as the blood moon. Unlike the full moon, the formation of the lunar eclipse usually took at least two months to set. It had been over two months since the alpha of alphas woke from his sleep. So, tonight would not only be the feast to celebrate his awakening, but also the lunar eclipse shift. Dignities, royals and nobles from all over the Kingdom and beyond would be in attendance. They came to celebrate and shift with pride.

Being the alpha king and Robb's oldest son, Xavier had the pressure of bringing out the best as well. Throughout the past week, Xavier had sort for perfection, placing pressure on creators to bring out nothing but the best. So her look tonight didn't surprise her. "Are you ready?" Toni asked, snapping Mia out of her thought.

She almost said no.

Unlike the usual full moon, the lunar eclipse meant a mandatory shift for all werewolves, from the highest rank to the lowest. No one was an exception. It meant no one would remain in their human form once the full moon came to its peak.

Mia had heard stories about werewolves shifting and running through the woods and howling at the moon, but never experienced that. Jobe didn't follow the norms, and she and Ariel never shifted outside her father's territory before. Tonight she would.

She told Xavier how uncomfortable the thought of shifting while surrounded by strangers felt, and he told her he knew what he was doing.

It scared her, but she couldn't back out, no matter what. She also had to trust Xavier.

She sighed and nodded.

Mia exited the room and the guard waiting led her toward the Palace Hall, but getting there, she saw no sign of the alpha king.

"He isn't here." She turned back to the guard that brought her.

"He might still be in his chambers, my queen. I will tell him you're ready."

"No, I'll go," she said, heading in the direction of his chamber.

She got to his door and knocked, but got no response from inside. She knocked again. When she still got no response, she pushed open the door and entered.

The smell of the room engulfed her as soon as she closed the door. The clean, rich and masculine smell of the alpha king dominated every corner of the room and claimed it as his. She couldn't get enough of it.

The room was also void of Xavier's presence from what she could see. She looked around, stepping further into the room when the door to the left, which Mia suspected was the bathroom, opened. Xavier strode in, wearing a long red robe with its materials matching hers.

He slowed as soon as he saw her. The little frown that settled on his face faded away and he huffed a breath in disbelief at her sudden appearance in his room. He had done well with choosing the colour and also the dressmaker. He wanted her to look glorious and with what he could see; she looked as expected.

"Are you okay?" she asked before she could help it. Her concern got the best of her.

"Yes," he strutted towards her, his confidence radiating. "Why won't I be?"

"You had a frown on your face." she pointed to the look she saw immediately after he stepped out. It had now been replaced with that of lust.

"Well, it's not important." he reached where she stood and his eyes did not hide his fascination for what he saw. "You, however, look like you're going to steal the night."

Being so close, his scent filled her nostril, and she wanted to pull him closer and never let go.

Her cheeks burnt at her thoughts, and her head dropped. "This is what you wanted." she pointed out.

He smirked, and a flicker of desire traversed his gorgeous face. His hand comes up to tilt her chin. "Yes, and I like what I see."

She wanted to ask why he thought she needed the make-up for the night. Yes, looking good was one thing, but the lunar eclipse was about being one's true self. This isn't her true self.

He let her go and stepped back. "Give me a moment and I'll be done." he walked to the side of his wardrobe and adjusted his sleeve, then reached into the drawer and picked out something.

He strode back to her with a smile, making his already handsome face look sinful, and she lowered her gaze and cleared her throat.

"Shall we go?"

She turned around to leave, but he took her by her arm and stayed her position. His grip was easy on her. He didn't have to apply any sort of force, yet she stayed without rebellion. She didn't know what he wanted to do, but she didn't want to ask, fearing that her voice would betray her.

"Not yet." he released his grip, but she didn't move. He unclasped his right hand and in it was a diamond necklace. His feet pushed slowly, and he stood behind her. He moved her hair on her back to the side with his left hand and his fingertips grazed the skin of her back and caused turmoil within her. Her skin looked alluring, and he almost forgot what he wanted to do. He cleared his head, placed the necklace around her neck before letting her hair fall. Mia's hand travelled to trail over the fine crystal, and her heart swelled a little.

"I can't see it, but I bet it's beautiful."

He chuckled and placed his hand around her waist. "Well, that's the whole point. It was my mother's."

Her breath thinned at his words and she glanced at him, but he looked too serious to be playing. "Then it shouldn't be on my neck."

"It should. You're the queen and now it's yours."

Somewhere between those words, he seemed to have forgotten the pact they made before this entire act started and Mia had to remind him.

"I'm not the real queen, Xavier, you should save it until she comes."

The look on his face was almost unreadable. "Sure. When the time for your departure comes, don't forget to leave it behind then." He said before leading them out of the room.