The Alpha King’s Human Mate

The Alpha King’s Human Mate

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11) Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11)

“There will never be anything as nerve-wracking as meeting your partner’s parents for the first time.”

Unknown

It took Aria at least ten seconds to overcome the sheer panic that was coming face-to-face with Sebastian’s father for the

first time. She whipped her head around to find Sebastian, and her stomach sank when she caught sight of him,

completely engaged in conversation with one of his pack’s elders

It didn’t look like he was coming to save her anytime soon

So, with a lump in her throat, she mustered up every bit of courage she could to look Alpha Bellevue in the eye and say,

“Yes, I’m Aria.”

He looked her up and down, his arms crossed. It wasn’t a lecherous look like she was used to getting from men, but he

certainly was assessing her. Sizing her up like she was a cut of meat, and he was trying to figure out if she was good

enough. Or good enough for his son, that is

“T’m not too familiar with your father,” Alpha Bellevue said, “I can’t remember our paths crossing.”

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11)

“They probably didn’t,” she replied, “My father liked to…” It took her a moment to find the words before she settled on,

“Keep to himself.” What she wanted to say was: my father isolated himself and our pack from anyone else who didn’t

share his traditionalist views, which is why your paths never crossed

Still, Alpha Bellevue seemed to pick up on the subtext just fine

“Sebastian has told me about you and your family,” he said, and his eyes narrowed, “I know your father was aContent (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

traditionalist, but do you share his views?”

The question felt like a slap to the face. Not a harsh blow, but definitely

a question she hadn’t been expecting

However, before she could even think of a response, he continued, “Traditionalists breed weak, oppressed women, which

is not what my pack needs.” He leveled her with a stare. “It’s not what my son needs

either.” (3 Now, that felt like a harsh blow

Aria wasn’t sure what to say. What could she say to that? Alpha Bellevue’s gaze felt suffocating, and fiddled with her shirt

collar nervously. There were too many people crammed into this room, too many bodies, too many –

“T think that’s enough,” Sebastian’s voice cut through her stifling thoughts, and his immediate presence was like a weight off her chest

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11)

She could breathe again

His hand found its way to the small of her back, and she couldn’t help but lean into his warmth

Alpha Bellevue’s eyes cut to his son

“Aria isn’t weak,” Sebastian said, and suddenly raised his voice so the entire room can hear, “I know some of you are

curious about my mate, but I ask that you show her the same respect you’ve always shown me

She’s still adjusting, but…” Sebastian glanced at his father. “She will be your future Luna.”

There were murmurs of agreement and nods throughout the crowd, and even Alpha Bellevue turned away to disappear

into another conversation

“Are you okay?” Sebastian asked, peering down at her with worried eyes. “I know you weren’t expecting to deal with all

these people, and honestly, I wasn’t either. I thought it was just gonna be my parents.”

“I’m fine,” she replied, even if she didn’t feel that way. She took another look around the room. The pack was mingling

amongst themselves, but she could see the way that some of them were peeking at Sebastian, eager for their future

Alpha’s attention

But he was too busy making sure she wasn’t crumbling under the pressure

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“You know what?” She said, “I don’t want to be rude, but I’m exhausted from all the traveling. Do you think there’s

somewhere I could take a nap?” It wasn’t a complete lie. She was tired from all the traveling, but it was mostly an excuse

for her to get out of Sebastian’s way. She could tell she was the odd one out, and as long as she was down here,

Sebastian wouldn’t truly get to enjoy time with his pack

“Of course,” he answered immediately, “My mom already set up one of the guest rooms for you, and I can help you get

settled in too, send these people home -”

“No, it’s okay,” she cut him off, placing a hand on his arm, “If you point me in the right direction, I’m sure I can find it.

You should stay down here, and catch up with your friends and family. They’ve missed you, and they’ll want to hear

about your sister too.”

Sebastian didn’t look particularly happy about that. “Are you sure? I have all the time in the world to catch up with my

friends, but I want to make sure you’re okay.”

“T’m okay,” she repeated, a little more forcefully, “Really.”

He stared at her for a moment, and although he didn’t seem convinced by her explanation, he eventually let up. “It’s up

the stairs, the second bedroom on the right.”

Aria nodded, and just as she made to walk away, he placed a hand on her shoulder. “If you need anything, you’!! call for

me, right?”

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11)

She smiled, “Of course.”

With that, she followed Sebastian’s directions — up the stairs, second bedroom on the right. She didn’t miss the

wandering eyes that stared at her curiously as she passed by, but she wasn’t brave enough to greet any of them. She wanted to be though

As she walked up the stairs, creaky and worn from years of use, her eyes were drawn to the photos on the wall. More

specifically, the baby photos of Sebastian. Sprinkled between framed photos of what had to be his sister, Lily, were

snapshots of his childhood: him as a chubby- faced baby, him as a toddler running through the woods, him receiving

some certificate at school, and him in what looked like graduation photos

There was something so endearing about seeing her mate in each stage of life, and it took everything in her not to linger

in the hallway for hours

Eventually, she made her way to the second bedroom on the right, and when she flicked on the light, she stopped in her

tracks

Was this the bedroom Sebastian meant? Surely, it couldn’t be..

She poked her head out into the hallway, and counted again. This was, in fact, the second bedroom on the right

But it wasn’t a bare guest bedroom like she’d been expecting

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This room, if the scent and framed photos were any indication, belonged to his younger sister

This was Clark’s bedroom

More accurately, her Queen’s childhood bedroom

It was more modest than she could’ve imagined. The room was relatively small with a full-sized b*d, a plain comforter,

and only a sparse amount of photos and decorations. The open closet had a few hanging outfits in it, but they looked like

jeansm and t-shirts. No fancy dresses or ballgowns

It felt wrong to be standing in this room

Not only because this room used to belong to the Queen, but also because of her history with Clark

She didn’t deserve to be in this room

But Sebastian said the second bedroom on the right

She supposed that it made sense they’d offer her this bedroom. She knew Sebastian well enough to know he’d never

push to sleep in the same b*d, and this was a vacant room. She doubted the Queen would be returning anytime soon

But as she stared at the photos lining the desk, her stomach began twisting into knots. Clark didn’t look particularly

happy in any of the

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (11)

framed photos she had in here, even the ones where she was smiling

There was a photo of Clark standing next to her parents and siblings, but her smile looked forced. In another photo, she was seated next to

werewolf classmates, and she was frowning,

She looked miserable

And Aria recognized that look — she’d seen it on Clark’s plenty of times in that cell

Her skin started to crawl

She really didn’t want to be in here

She didn’t deserve to be in here

Without another thought, she scurried out of the room, shut the door

behind her, and ventured further down the hall

All she could think about, all she could see was her Queen’s grimy, frowning face stuck in that cell

She was so stuck on that image that she didn’t even realize when she

found her way into another bedroom down the hall

She wasn’t sure when she collapsed on the king-sized b*d in the unfamiliar room or when she dozed off, buried under

covers that smelled exactly like her mate