Chapter 264: The Fae Queen’s Secret - Sequel To Marked By Three Alphas Chapter One
The Fae Queen’s Secret - Sequel To Marked By Three Alphas Chapter One
Note; This is A Sequel To Marked By Three And It's about Selene's Love Life And How She Also Found Her Happily Ever After. This is also for Readers who appreciate Selene's support to Lyra and Wishes to see her End up with an Amazing partner.
Four Years Later
Selene’s POV
“Absolutely not.”
My mother closed her eyes and took a deep breath as if I was frustrating her, when in truth, she was the one doing so. Across the dining table, my father slowly lowered the cup of tea he had been drinking.
The silence that followed was almost impressive.
I looked at the three men sitting opposite me and sighed miserably.
Goddess, why me?
One was staring at his plate like he wanted the earth to swallow him whole, and I could only help but wonder why that was. I mean, he wasn’t the one sitting in my position. Another had been smiling at me for the better part of twenty minutes, despite the fact that I had given him absolutely no reason to. The third looked like he was mentally calculating how quickly he could escape this house without insulting my parents.
I couldn’t blame him, as I wanted to escape this torture too.
My mother cleared her throat and started. “Selene.”
“No,” I interrupted her smoothly. I was so not in the mood for all of this bullshit.
“You haven’t even—”
“I’ve seen enough,” I groaned, facepalming. Goddess, I loved my parents, but right now—and for the last few years—I wished they weren’t mine.
My father sighed and pinched his temple in frustration. “You have been sitting here for barely fifteen minutes.”
“Exactly. Fifteen minutes too long,” I retorted. “Seriously, I am tired of this.”
The man on the far left coughed into his fist, unsuccessfully hiding a laugh. My guess was that he had been forced here too by his parents.
My mother shot him a warning look, and he immediately straightened. I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms.
This was the fourth time this month, and the month wasn't even getting close to an end.
The fucking fourth.
At this point, I was beginning to suspect my parents had started collecting suitors simply to see how many they could present to me before I snapped.
“You’re being unreasonable.”
“I am being reasonable.”
“You refused all three!” my mother exclaimed exasperatedly, frustration evident in her tone. If looks could kill, I’d probably be buried six feet under.
“Well, yes?”
“You didn’t ask any of them a single question to know whether—”
“I didn’t need to,” I replied to her. “By just looking at them, I know for a fact that I am not interested in this.”
My father rubbed his forehead again. “Selene.”
I looked at him sheepishly.
He gave me the same expression he’d been giving me for years whenever he wanted me to behave like a sensible adult instead of the stubborn woman who had apparently inherited every difficult trait in the family.
“You cannot continue like this.”
My amusement disappeared.
Ah, the real conversation was finally here instead of the usual awkward dinner and parade of men my parents had decided might somehow be the solution to a problem I didn’t have.
I knew that they were worried; I just wished they would stop pretending it was about marriage.
My mother folded her hands on the table and held my arm. “You are not getting younger, darling.”
“I am aware.”
“You’re twenty—”
“I know how old I am.”
“And you have shown no interest in settling down,” she commented, using a softer, patronizing tone as she realized she wasn't going to get anywhere with me if she kept shouting or being difficult.
“I am not unsettled.”
Her face soured almost immediately. “Don’t get smart with me, Selene. You know what I mean.”
“Well, I don’t want to settle down.”
“You don’t want to settle down?” she repeated, almost incredulously. “Then what exactly do you want?”
The question caught me off guard. For one terrible second, I almost answered her honestly.
I wanted to tell her that I wanted someone who would make my heart race.
Someone who—
I shoved the thought away immediately. That someone no longer existed. “I don’t know.”
My mother studied me.
I looked down at my plate, unable to meet her eyes because of how guilty I felt. Truth was that I did know.
I had known for years… and that was exactly why no one else had ever stood a chance.
“You cannot compare every person you meet to some impossible standard that you won’t even tell us about.”
“I am not comparing them to some—”
“You do.”
“I don’t.”
“You haven’t even tried.”
I looked at the three men, disgust suddenly creeping up on me just from their faces. Honestly, I wondered why they were considered attractive in society. “I have tried.”
My mother raised an eyebrow at me disbelievingly. “When?”
“Well, today… I mean, there are three of them there, duh.”
“You haven’t even spoken to them.”
“I have observed.”
My father sighed and pinched his temple again. “Observed? Selene, observed?”
“Yes.” I gestured toward the three unfortunate men. “That one has been sweating since I sat down, so why would I want to marry someone who’s so…”
The first man’s head snapped up. “I am not.”
“You are.”
He glanced down at his hands, and they were, in fact, slightly damp.
He looked horrified, but I ignored him and just continued. “That one has smiled at me for twenty minutes. I think it’s creepy, in all honesty.”
The second man’s smile immediately disappeared.
“And him?”
“He keeps looking at the door. I don’t think he is interested in being here at all.”
He froze. “I have a family emergency… a thing to do.”
“You didn’t have one twenty minutes ago.”
“I just remembered it.”
My mother looked horrified at my behaviour. I wondered why she was; I mean, according to everyone, I had taken after her in almost every way.
“These are respectable men.”
“I never said they weren’t,” I answered her, giving her a look. Why did she always have to turn my disinterest into something it wasn't?
“You are treating them terribly, and all they have asked is for your hand.”
“I haven’t even insulted anyone, and—”
The second man cleared his throat.
“Do you have something to say?” I asked with a glare.
He immediately lowered his gaze. “Sorry.”
I bit the inside of my cheek.
My father reached for his tea again. “Perhaps we should start over. I would first of all like to apologize for my daughter's behaviour. She’s not usually like this.”
“I’ll be back later,” I said, standing up. I was done with all of this. If I stayed for any second longer, I was going to lose my mind.
“You are not leaving in the middle of dinner.”
“I am if the alternative is sitting here while you interview potential husbands.”