Alpha Knight’s Cursed Mate

KNIGHT

After lunch, Nirvana had to stay at the restaurant with her grandpa until the afternoon. Kailin and I went to the hotel suite she booked for herself. At the same time, Zarah told me to talk to me later before she left Italy.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Kailin figured it out as I expected and wouldn’t let it go.

“Why didn’t you tell me her grandfather is a werewolf with ancient blood?”

“It’s not my secret to tell, Alpha. Besides, I already told you I promised not to tell anyone.”

“Even to me, your cousin and your alpha.” I was both offended and admired her commitment.

“Don’t change the subject. I’m dying to know here.” She was already grinning.

“Shut that grin off. I need a nap.” I took off my jacket and put it on the chair.

“This is my suite, Knight. Go and find your own.”

I ignored her as I went to bed and shut my eyes, hoping Nirvana’s face wouldn’t appear in my sleep. Not that I was complaining, but I had been sleeping terribly since meeting her.

“Let me guess, you kicked her out and offered a ticket to get home.” I felt her searing gaze on me. “Hence, the note.”

“Yes.”

“Why in the hell did you do that? Most werewolves would be throwing a party to have a-”

“Don’t. Don’t start.” I pointed a finger at her, even with my eyes closed. “You’ve been naughty and minding my personal life lately, and it starts to piss me off.”

“Then just reject her. What are you waiting for? She’d be happier with humans than with you. You’re too obsessed with getting rich, and your money starts to get into your head. You’re so selfish. All you care about is yourself.”

“I already did.”

“What the hell? Why?” Dead serious now, she asked me through gritted teeth.

I opened my eyes and looked at her. “Mind the pack business and your job, Kailin, but stay out of my personal life.”

“Yes, I will, Alpha. From now on, I won’t interfere with your life!” She picked up her bag and left the room, slamming the door behind her.

The door suddenly opened again. This time, she walked in with Zarah.

“Zarah, I thought you would call.”

“Sorry, but I have to leave for Italy right now.”

“How did you get here so fast?” Kailin asked.

“I used portal.”

“Portal?” we asked in unison as we looked at each other.

“Wow. That’s cool,” Kailin gushed.

Zarah didn’t look impressed. “You need to take Nirvana with you.”

“That’s not happening, Zarah. He rejected her-”

“Partially,” I corrected her, defending myself.

“He kicked her out of the vineyards and made sure he wanted nothing from her.”

I looked away because that was precisely what I did.

“We talked, and I told him not to reject her. Or maybe she’s better off without your arrogant alpha.”

“I’m standing right here.” My chest clenched in anger, guilt, and pain.

“See? I was right. You love nothing but yourself.”

I turned to Kailin. “I don’t want to drag her into my dark, hostile world. That’s before I found out she wasn’t human. Because if she does, you know how dangerous our world is. How many times had packs been attacked in the last few months? As much as I want to have a mate, I can’t put her in any harm’s way.”

“Because she’s weak? Goddess, cousin. You have us. You have the entire pack to protect her. You have allies. I’m sure Zarah can help us shield her from something. Right, Zarah?”

“She has been protected since she was born. I saw the small pendant she was wearing. It’s amethyst with a protection spell. It came from me.”

“I see.”

“But it can be broken. She doesn’t know the purpose of that necklace. All she knows is she thought it was her mother’s. Now that she met you, she would dream more often.”

“What I’m missing here?” Kailin asked.

“She saw Gage shift from wolf to human in the vineyards. That was after I told her to leave.”

“Oh, my God! She must have been so terrified.” Her anger was about to detonate inside her.

“She’s a strong soul. She hasn’t had a nervous breakdown, but don’t wait until it will happen, Knight. You must decide to keep or reject or stay away from her for good.”

I glared at Zarah. I knew what I wanted. I wanted her even the first time our eyes met. I knew she was mine, and I knew without a doubt that I would protect her with my life- but she was also human, so I thought I did what was rational at that time.

Yeah, I wasn’t ready to have a mate, didn’t know how to deal with her, and wasn’t near ready to meet her too soon. And things got out of hand, but she was mine and mine alone.

“Knight, please?” Kailin pulled me back to reality. “We have to protect her. I don’t know how to convince her to come with us, but I’m the only hope you have. She trusts me. I will help you break the news. And maybe she will believe me if we show her the truth about us.”

“Just don’t drop the bomb all at once,” Zarah warned us.

“She hates me.”

“And who’s fault is that?” my cousin blamed me.

I chuckled sadly. “I never wanted to reject her. I don’t know how to handle the situation, and the pull drives me crazy.”

“You’ve never been in love. I got that, Alpha, but go easy on her and loosen up. Not the aggressive and controlling alpha you always are. I can see that she likes you but stop being a condescending asshole.”

I ignored Kailin calling me an asshole. Perhaps I deserved it. “What am I dealing with here, Zarah? What kind of werewolf is she?”

“First, how do we break the curse?”

Zarah looked at Kailin. “I told you I don’t know. When Shadow lost her wolf and gift, she was willing to go through purification, but in her case, she was stronger. She’s half lycan. In Nirvana’s case, she’s human since she was born because of magic. Think of it as if she doesn’t have a werewolf blood. She’s never shifted in her life. In fact, she doesn’t even know her grandfather and her parents are supernatural beings.”

“There must be something we could do.” I understood Kailin. She wanted to help her best friend, but how?

“I have a theory.”

“What is it?” I asked excitedly.

“How did Snow White wake up?”

Kailin laughed. “That’s it? A kiss?” She then turned to me. “Easy peasy. Just kiss her.”

“No, silly. One true love’s kiss wakes her up, and it’s just a theory. She may never become a werewolf,” I told Kailin.

“Hey. There’s always a solution to a problem. I’ll ask around the coven. And maybe Alexander has heard something about it.”

“Who’s Alexander?”

“Sebastien’s father,” I replied. “Sebastien is the Lycan King. Califf’s father-in-law and her boyfriend.”

“Got it.” She tried hard to hide her smile.

“But you must keep her with you so she is protected.”

“Why is that?”

“Are you kidding me?” Zarah widened her eyes at Kailin. “Do you know how valuable she is? Werewolves, Lycans, vampires, witches, and faes would kill to have someone like her. And if they knew she existed, they would find a way to break that curse and use her to their advantage. Now that she has met you and seen someone transform, she will ask around, and her life will change forever and always be in danger. And you are an alpha, Knight. Whether you like it or not, you already sucked her into your orbit and dragged her into your dangerous world.”

“You haven’t answered my question, Zarah.”

“What is she?” Kailin and I had been asking the same question.

“Her grandfather came from a long line of an ancient werewolf, and her grandmother is a witch, a sibyl. Do the math.”

“She’s a half oracle?”

“She came from a long line of an ancient werewolf and powerful ancient warlocks, and women from her bloodline were gifted seers.”

“That makes her a half-werewolf and a seer? So she can see someone’s past, present, and future? And that makes her a what?”

“Nirvana’s werewolf blood and witch side are given. All we have to do is break the curse.”

“Whoa. I know Nirvana is special. I don’t know. I just felt her positive energy when we first met.” Kailin nudged me as I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that my mate was not an ordinary human after all. “Let’s go kidnap my best friend.”