Love and Chaos Series
The Alpha King’s Ugly Bride Chapter 40

Xavier took her hand and led her through the open pace and into the woods as the lunar eclipse moved to set. He wanted to move her to the highest ground, around where they would be on top of everything, with her beside him. He could hear it with the way her hearts pounded and blood raced through their veins and how alert his senses became.

The ground beneath Mia's feet felt lighter than ever, and her heart was racing. She glimpsed the alpha king and watched the wind of the chilly night blow over his face and through his hair. She wanted to capture the moment, or at least pause it so she could run her fingers through it. The full moon set, and she felt the change through her body, trying to adjust to the times and their effect on her.

Xavier picked up the change, he could tell. The little cracking noise her bones made told him she would shift in no time, perhaps faster than he expected. With many years of practice and training, he had more control over his wolf more control than she did over hers. After over twenty minutes of running nonstop, Xavier stopped.

He turned to stare at her. Her eyes were glowing yellow, and he knew her shift had begun. "You need to take that off," he said, pointing to her gown.

"What?"

"The moon is almost setting. Do it!" he grabbed his long red robe and shrugged it off, leaving him in the long sleeve.

She unfasten the gown and soon worked it loose. She couldn't believe she would shift in the middle of nowhere now, having to trust the man she hated three months ago.

The gown dropped, and all she had on was a shorter white gown that kept nothing to the imagination. This was what he wanted to see. He got her the gown.

She didn't feel ashamed that he watched her. She wanted him to; more than anything, she wanted him to see her.

There was a snap in her back and she dropped on her hands and knees, a painful groan leaving her mouth. Once the pain departs, she placed her leg on the ground and tried to rise to her feet but dropped once again. This time when her hand touch the grass- covered ground, they had transformed into a blue hairy paw.

Her transformation didn't take long. Not as long or as painful as he did until he became alpha king. All his shifts had been painful torture. That was his punishment for taking a life. She was a pure breed, and her shift was easier. What surprised him was the unusual colour of her wolf fur, which was white with the touch of royal blue on its tips.

Now he understood why she had stated him changing his mind once he saw her transform. She was a white wolf with a touch of blue, unusual. He didn't know why she had the colours, but he feared this could have been the reason her father confined her. The fear of being judged, hunted, and even killed could have been the reason. He must have seen the hell she went through for being different as a human and realised she wouldn't survive as a werewolf.

The glowing yellow eyes of the wolf stared up at him. He had seen something; it had to be the fur and he had seen her and now he would run. She was a blue wolf. Most maidens had white fur and other grey and brown, but none had blue fur, except her. Her father told her she wasn't the only wolf like this in the kingdom and someday she would meet one like herself. She already had a hard time being reckoned with because of her look, she feared what people would do if they realised she was a freak in wolf form as well. Luckily, the full moon happened every twenty-nine days, and she didn't have to worry every single day.

She waited for him to flee and then tomorrow treat her like a plague. But he didn't. He just stared down at her with a curious but understanding look.

What the hell did he understand? There was nothing to understand.

He said nothing, he just stared at her and after a minute of having his intense gaze on her, she became uncomfortable.

She moved back, unsure of his next reaction, but stopped when he dropped to his hands and knees.

His wolf emerged. An enormous wolf with black fur, long sharp claws under a second, and his red eyes glowed in the night. There was so much dominance in his eyes that scared her a little. She fears for her safety; she told herself he wouldn't hurt her. He needed her; he needed her to exact his dominance throughout the kingdom.

He placed his head over hers when he got to where she was, sending a calming feeling through her raging being. She felt she could trust him at that moment. She felt she could be fine with it. It had never happened before, but she felt a connection much stronger than ever for him.

He couldn't explain it, but something about her against him numbed his senses. His minds almost wander to where it shouldn't when he pulled away and he nudge her head with his so she turned and her eyes locked in his.

"Do you trust me now?" she heard his voice in her head and she stared at him with wide eyes.

"Yes," she replied, without a doubt.

.

"Good, then follow me." he turned around and raced through the woods, his speed almost like that of lightning and Mia keeping up only by picking his scent and tracing it. Together they howled at the moon and ran nonstop, up different high grounds, howling on every turn. Xavier sped at a faster pace. He, however, waited every time for Mia to catch up.

She never felt more alive.

They got to the door of Mia's room and she stopped and entwined her arms from around Xavier and took a step back, heaving a deep breath.

"This is where you leave?" she said, but her voice almost gave up her want for him to stay.

He nodded, unwrapping his hand from around her, but didn't step back from her. "Thank you for today."

"I did nothing." She denied it before she could even think it through.

He rolled his eyes. "Still, with Elliott, you had my back. It's been a while since I last had that and it felt good," he confessed with a small chuckle.

Mia wanted to pause the moment, confirm its authenticity before going along with it. His words felt genuine, and she didn't know how to respond to them. The memory of earlier when he tried kissing her flashed all into her head, but even then they were in public and so his affectionate act could have easily been dismissed as a show. Here now was something completely different. She didn't want to do or say anything that would leave her in a vulnerable place or complicated situation, so she opted to nod her head. She shook her head. "I did what I thought was right."

A smile came to his face, and his hand lifted to move the strand of her red hair on her face behind her ear. His fingertips grazed her hair in the process and the spark surged through her at his touch were waves of energy. His hand lingered on her face after tucking the strand away, and the warm touch soon turned hot. She swore she saw a flicker of red in his eyes and for the first time since being matted to her; he had desire flickering in his eyes as he stared at her.

His thumb ran over her full bottom lips, sending shivers down her spine and jolts of needs all around her. Her nipples harden against the fabric of the material and her breath became ragged when he slid his thumb over her upper lips and onto her mouth. She gasped, the desire that had built up in the last few minutes taking her by storm and she wanted the man before her.

He had the power of seduction and he knew how to use this power to his advantage and the manipulation of her.

"I shouldn't," he said, retracting his hands, and it took all of her strength to not reach for him. "Get rest, my queen. It has been a long night." He bowed his head a little and fumbled with her doorknob and pushed it open.

She disappeared into her room in seconds and slammed the door, resting her head against the door, her eyes fluttering. Her heart slammed against her chest and sweat broke out on her skin. She needed control. She needed a way out of this because the idea of falling into his hands felt like a trap.