Chapter 3

Rhys looped his arm through mine and led me to the steps. A deep growl jerked my gaze up from where I was watching my feet. I was kind of clumsy and I didn't want to face-plant in front of my future Husband. 

Alpha Cross watched me with glittering eyes. My pulse thrummed in my throat as I met his golden gaze evenly. He glared at where Rhys held my arm. 

"You forget yourself, Beta." His voice sent a shiver down my spine. It was dark, husky, and held an edge of danger. Rhys dropped my arm, hastily stepping away from me. 

"Sorry boss. I didn't mean to offend." He threw his hands up and backed away. "I'll just go park the car." He shot me a wink as he turned away. 

I felt bad for being such a brat to him. He had tried to make me comfortable. Poor guy. It wasn't his fault I was selected for the Bride program. 

"Madison…" I turned my eyes back to the Alpha. "I've waited so long for you." 

I stood at the bottom step, my hands clenched together in front of me to keep them from shaking. I wanted to run. To be anywhere but here. I wanted my mom. 

Tears burnt the back of my eyes, but I refused to cry. I wouldn't be weak in front of this wolf. I couldn't. Weakness would only make me a target in the eyes of the pack. I stared into his eyes, refusing to blink. It was an open challenge. 

I knew enough of the Weres to know you didn't meet the gaze of the Alpha. But, honestly, he could get bent. Even if he was beautiful, forcing someone to marry you was a prick maneuver. 

His growl sounded again, but this time it was darker. "You smell amazing." He ground out the words like he was in pain. A muscle ticked in his jaw. 

I shrugged. "I bathe regularly. I would hope I smell okay." 

I still held his gaze. I'm sure he was hoping I'd bow to his will. No such luck asshole. I'm here because I have to be. He better not have wanted a docile Bride. I had too much bitter resentment in me to be anything but rebellious. 

He slunk down the steps. He was lethally graceful, a predator stalking their prey. Something tickled my nose and I inhaled automatically. 

Woodsmoke and cinnamon buns sounds like an odd combination. But it was amazing. Crap, he smelled like home. Like my parents' house on a cold Sunday morning. I swayed toward him, drawn in by that scent. I wanted to bury my nose in his neck and just breathe him in. 

Was this normal? Was my husband supposed to smell so freaking good? I wished more was known about the Brides after they left their homes. Was I being enchanted somehow?

He stopped in front of me and I was forced to crane my head back so I could still meet his gaze. He was so flipping tall! I felt dwarfed. It was wholly unnecessary to be so broad, so tall, so beautiful and be my captor. It was official. I hated him. Even if he did smell like heaven. 

"Welcome to Wild Hearth pack, Madison."

"Wild Hearth?" My voice was too breathy. Shitballs. 

"Yes, we take our name seriously. Hearth and home. Kith and kin. We are all one." He leaned into me, his nostrils flaring. "Welcome home."

"Home?" I blinked sluggishly. My brain was fried by his golden eyes and bronze skin. He was overwhelming in the best way possible, and my panties were damp from more than the lube Doctor Smith used on me that morning. 

The thought of Doctor Smith coated me in ice. I let myself forget, for a moment, why I was here. I took a step back, putting space in between us. I couldn't think with him looming over me like the world's sexiest skyscraper. 

"This isn't my home." I injected as much venom into my voice as I could. "My home was in my house, with my parents. Both of which I haven't seen in over two years."

"Two years?" He blinked in confusion, his gaze turning stony. "Why haven't you been with your family?" 

"Because of the Bride protocols!" I flung a hand out, gesturing to him. "Because of you! Brides must cut all ties with their loved ones to better integrate into the world of their Husbands." 

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his tailored pants. The person that constructed them knew what they were doing. He had to be a headache to clothe properly. All bulging muscles and sharp angles. Focus Maddie. 

"I didn't ask for you to be separated from your family. Family and pack is everything to the Wolves." 

"You didn't have to. It's written into the bylaws of the Accords. My life before was forfeit once I qualified for the Bride program." 

My voice raised with every word until I was shouting. All the anger and frustration I had packed away and tamped down for the last two years reared its ugly head. 

I stalked forward, roughly poking him in the chest. "You Supes just had to save the freaking world, and destroy mine with your ridiculous demands!" 

He let me poke him, his gaze wounded. "Then I shall have you escorted to your rooms. I'll take my leave." He backed away from me, turning. His posture was hunched, and his body vibrated dangerously. 

His clothes exploded from his body, the perfectly tailored suit raining to the ground in tatters. 

A huge, shaggy wolf loped off across the grounds. For a moment, it turned its eyes back to me. I was struck by the sadness in its gaze. My heart twisted painfully in my chest as it disappeared into the surrounding woods. 

"You're kind of a bitch, you know that?" Someone chuckled behind me and I whirled. Beta Rhys stood behind me, an unreadable look on his face. His lips hiked up in a sardonic smile. "I'm not going to lie, it's a little hot." 

"Should you be speaking of your Alpha's Bride that way?" I glared at him. 

"You have so much to learn of the pack lifestyle, Madison Timms." He shrugged easily. "Let's get you settled. I don't think you'll be seeing the Alpha again today."