Chapter 37 Chapter 0037
•CASSANDRA•
\[ELEVEN YEARS AGO\]
"You are going to marry Mason Steele to end the war that has been ongoing for over two hundred years between Silvercrest and Goldenmane Court," my mother — Aunt Crystal, said as she brushed my hair in front of the mirror in my room.
My throat tightened. "But what if I don't love him? Will I be forced to marry someone I don't see myself with?"
"Love grows, Cass," she whispered as she sat beside me and held my hand. "Your uncle and I were not in love when we met. But now, he's the love of my life and I'd go crazy without him near me for too long."
"Were you forced to marry him?"
She didn't answer. She couldn't. Not when she knew the truth that she and her husband were mates, and knew they would be happy together.
Not every married couple in the pack experienced the joy of a mate bond, so they were among the lucky ones.
"Your father and—"
"You weren't forced on him like I am being forced on Mason," I interrupted her as I stood up from the chair. "How will I love a man I didn't choose to love myself?"
"Mason is a good man, Cassandra," she replied, leaning toward me. "He will take care of you and your children. You will be the Luna beside him as Alpha. And though you may not love him now, as time goes on, you will love him. Because love grows when you’re taken care of."
I looked at her and wondered if she knew what this meant for Dante and me. We had been together for as long as I could remember.
Though my brother always advised me against being with him because he was an orphan who had been brought in by a medic after his entire pack was ambushed, I loved him.
I loved him even though no one knew where he was from. He was good to me, and even without a mate bond. I grew to love him as if we had one.
He was the one I wished to marry.
"You speak so easily, Mom, because this marriage is supposed to end the war between the two packs," I scoffed. "No one cares about me or what I want. No one has asked me if I am in a relationship with someone yet. Not even you."
"I understand—"
"You understand nothing but what this pack wants!" I snapped, cutting her off. "No one cares about what I want." My voice cracked as tears burned the corners of my eyes. "It's funny that I also can't say no to the arranged marriage. Even when Mason and I feel nothing for each other, I will be forced to endure for the sake of the pack."
"Cassandra—"
"You weren't forced to marry the man whose pack killed your parents," I sneered. "Silvercrest killed my parents. How do you expect me to go there and be the future Luna of our enemy pack?"
"Our duty to the pack is always misunderstood, but that doesn't mean we should dwell in the past," she replied. "What Silvercrest did to our pack is unforgivable, but it wasn't their Alpha. People rebelled against their Alpha and attacked our pack, which is why they were banished after the war."
"Silvercrest has always been at war with us before their pack members rebelled and almost wiped us out," I huffed. "So, am I supposed to let that go to help the pack grow?"
"We are doing this for peace, Cassandra."
"If you want peace with Silvercrest, why are you making me the sacrifice?" I asked, my voice breaking. "Why am I the one who has to marry Mason?"
"This is not as—"
"I will find my brother so he will accompany me to meet the future Alpha of Silvercrest," I said as I walked to the door. "Hopefully, he will be pleased with me."
After closing the door behind me, I looked in both directions in the hallway before walking down the stairs to see Dante.
His house was a few miles from the pack house, and when I got there, he was returning from his morning hunt.
He was the most handsome man I had ever seen in Goldenmane Court. He was right over 6-feet-5-inches, while I stood beside him at 5-feet-5-inches.
I knew we would be happy together even when he had never shifted before.
The only thing that mattered to me was his humility and heart.
"Cassandra," he gasped when he saw me, placing his hunt on the ground. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk," I said, leaning toward him. "It's my parents."
"Did they hurt you?" he asked with panic laced in his tone, and it warmed my heart every time he didn't hesitate to ensure I was okay.
"No, but—" I paused. "But you shouldn't worry about this because I'm not planning on staying with the person. I want to be with you, Dante, and I will do everything in my power to be with you. So, please, you must trust me in this," I said, panicking and talking fast.
Dante grabbed my hands and kissed them before he lifted his head and looked at me. "I trust you. But can you tell me what's happening?"
"My parents are marrying me off to Mason Steele," I blurted, and it broke my heart when his facial expression changed. "But I won't stay! I will run away to be with you."
I was eighteen when I made that promise. But before Dante could respond, the pack house guards had already found me.
I left him that day, standing there, hopeful in his heart that I would come back to him. But I didn't.
When I walked down the courtyard where the marriage ceremony was, and saw Mason, everything changed.
Lyra whispered he was our mate, and I felt his wolf responding with the same enthusiasm. He was mine, and the mate bond was nothing I had ever felt.
It was consuming, and my heart raced every time I looked at him.
But when we returned home together, I realized I might have made a mistake. I had broken my promise to Dante, and so I couldn't go back.