(Lauren’s Pov).
“You have to be my wife.”
I gasped when I heard him firmly state that he wanted me as his wife. I couldn't understand why a strange man would suddenly ask me to marry him just because he saw me, who he said was perfect to be his wife.
"We don't know each other yet, sir. Sorry, I can't because—"
"Don't reject me!" his hand suddenly grasped my wrist tightly enough for me to grimace at his hand.
He immediately loosened his grip without taking his eyes off mine. "No rejection. That's the rule."
I swallowed hard because I was confused about what to do. How was I supposed to ask him something if the expression on his face showed that he wasn't messing with his words?
"I'll let go of your hand but you can't leave here. You have time to ask the questions that make you want to know who I am," he said, firmly.
My heart was pounding and I felt scared. But I finally nodded because it seemed like I had to obey him as long as he didn't hurt me.
"Who are you? What's your name? And what do you mean by asking me to be your wife all of a sudden? It seems like we've only met twice now. The first time we didn't even talk," I asked him.
The man approached me after letting go of my hand and he sighed. "I'm Ace. I know you know some werewolves around here. And I'm the Alpha for Black Shadows, which is the name of my pack."
I was surprised to hear him introduce himself so easily without fearing that I would tell everyone that he was a werewolf. No wonder he looked so stern and scary because he was an Alpha.
"I know everything you do in a day, Lauren. So, you don't need to tell me about who you are. Because what matters to me before I marry you is that you are a virgin."
My eyes widened as he dared to mention that I was a virgin, a secret I had been keeping to myself because otherwise I would have been scorned.
"You ... I can't marry you," I said, softly. "I can't marry the man I don't love."
"I can make you love me. Even you will be crazy about me."
My whole body felt completely limp hearing him confidently speak like that. What should I do? Running away? That's impossible and it seemed very silly because I saw that two guards in front of the restaurant door were probably his servants.
I was silent for a while because if I got married suddenly then my family would ask all sorts of questions, especially since werewolf marriage isn't easy, right? I knew it was like that when my werewolf friends told me.
I licked my lips as a sign of nervousness because I was still considering his invitation to marry me.
"Whether you answer or not, the fact is that I'm going to marry you," Ace said.
"What ... What would you do if we got married? I mean ... are there mating rituals and such? I'm ... I'm not your mate, right?" I asked, nervous.
Ace nodded. "Right, you're not my mate. I rejected my mate because when I found out she was my enemy. Later you'll find out why I married you as a virgin."
I hated hearing that part as if I heard someone mocking me by saying that I was a virgin.
"Getting married was never in my dictionary," I said, weakly.
"Knowing me will change your dictionary, Lauren."
I sighed because this Alpha was forcing me into a state that I couldn't resist. My whole body even felt so hot just from this conversation.
During the few moments of silence, he continued to stare at me while I tried to look the other way in turn. It felt so strange to be stared at that deeply by a man. I don't know what my life would be like after marrying him. It's bound to change completely, isn't it?
Suddenly he stood up and extended his hand to me. "Come on, I'll take you to my house so you can learn to recognize and get used to it."
As if bewitched by him, I silently held his hand and we walked out of the restaurant with his two servants behind us.
The car that took me to his house looked luxurious. I didn't know an Alpha would have such luxury. I wonder what his real job was besides being the Alpha of his pack.
"Are there any questions still bothering you?" he asked while we were still in the car.
"How many times have you had sex with women?" I asked, suddenly.
I was honestly quite nervous about asking such a question. But I also needed to know how many times this man who was going to be my husband had been out there having sex with women because he also got me in my virgin state, so I thought it was only fair.
"Twice. I'm too busy to do that because of my job."
"And what is your job?"
He didn't answer and kept quiet, making me curious about his job. Did he do it on purpose so that I could get to know his surroundings first?
The car stopped in front of a big-looking house with a big yard. I mean, one big house while surrounding it were several smaller houses that I guess were his members' houses.
I got out of the car and Ace took my hand to go inside, which turned out to be his mansion.
"This house is the one you'll live in after we get married," he said, telling me.
I remained silent as he led me further inside and stopped in front of a large-looking room. There was a king-size bed in there with dimly lit shades that added to the sexy vibe.
"This is my room and yours. Here ... we'll do the mating ritual."
I didn't realize until I heard his voice in my ear when I felt him behind me. He even had my hair to the side and his hand was gently tickling my neck.
"So, we're getting married in two weeks, Lauren. Get ready to be the wife of the Alpha."