Alpha's One Night Bride
Alpha’s One Night Bride – Chapter 49

Jess sat in the very bed she had once sat in with her husband Regan. He was the former Alpha of Sabrebite with whom she fell in love at the young age of 18. At the time of their meeting, she was living with her mother in Ironclaw. Jess and Regan have met briefly before they fell in love; Regan’s father was good friends with Gannon, the Alpha of Ironclaw. Aka, the only father Jess ever really knew.

So, periodically Regan and his family would visit Ironclaw, and he’d have a run-in with Jess. Initially, Jess thought of him to be a conceited man. He was good-looking with his chestnut brown hair and his golden-brown eyes. He was strongly built like his father, and regardless of the territory he was in, women would fall at his feet.

The problem was, not only was he good-looking, but he knew he was good-looking. He knew the effect he had on women, and he fed off that. To Jess, it seemed as though he was a flirt. However, that was before she got to know him.

She soon realized that he was just as clueless as everyone else; he was just trying to survive in a big world and do it without any guidance. He knew he was next in line to become Alpha and that terrified him. He used women as a distraction from reality; so, he slept around town and wooed whomever he could because he didn’t want to deal with the fate, he had in front of him.

Jess proved to be different than any woman he’s ever been around. She didn’t fall at his feet like the rest of them; in fact, it was more so the opposite. It appears she wanted nothing to do with him and he had to admit, it bothered him. He thought of it as a challenge, and he made it his mission to woo her.

As he kept pursuing her, he realized that she was different. She wasn’t dipsy like the rest of them and didn’t want to just be a house luna. She had hopes, dreams, and ambitions. She was a curious young woman who wanted more out of life. She wanted to see the world and see what was out there. She wasn’t afraid to state her opinion and tell him what she wanted.

When she loved, she loved hard. She cared deeply for her friends and family. She made it known to Regan that Emlin and her family weren’t exactly her birth family, but that didn’t make them any less family.

Regan was curious about her. She was secretive about her actual birth family and didn’t talk much about her past. She talked more so about her future than anything. This was inspiring because it was clear she wasn’t moving backward, only forward.

She was a woman who knew what she wanted, and she wasn’t afraid to go and get it.

Once he realized how strong-willed she was, he no longer wanted to pursue her as a challenge. He saw more in her and wanted more of her. He began pursuing her as a luna. He pursued her as a mate.

He opened himself up to her; showed her the darkness and the fear that lingered inside of his heart. She didn’t run from him; maybe if he kept pursuing her as a normal wolf she would have run. But she knew he wasn’t doing that; she knew he was genuinely interested in what she thought of him and how she was feeling. She gave him a chance to prove himself to her.

He willingly cut ties with every woman he’s had relations with. He dedicated his time to Jess as he trained to become the next Alpha of Sabrebite.

As Jess turned 18, there was no denying their strong connection and the fact that they were mates. Jess wanted to give herself to him. Once he became Alpha, they married.

Shortly after their marriage, Jess’s mother died. It was the hardest day of her life. She spent her entire life by her mother’s side and now she was gone. She felt lost and uncertain about the future. She began doubting herself. The only thing that felt truly right to her was her new marriage to her Alpha.

But that didn’t mean she didn’t feel truly alone.

Gannon and his family mourned the death of Jess’s mother. They had a ceremony in Ironclaw where they burned her body and buried it in her the cemetery nearby Gannon’s home. That was where the fallen pack members were buried.

Burying her mother broke Jess and sent her into depression. Emlin tried hard to bring her out of that depression, being a close friend. But even Emlin had a life she needed to pursue. She was a photographer, and she was to marry the future Alpha of Ironclaw, Rock.

A few months after Jess’s mother died, she got pregnant with Jonathan. She instantly fell in love with her small bundle of joy. He resembled her mother in some ways with his brown eyes and the way he smiled.

He was also the first male to be born from the Davis bloodline in generations. Not that it mattered; she has never told anyone about her bloodline and relation to Benjamin Davis. Not even Regan. She took her promise to her mother seriously and now that her mother was no longer around, she wouldn’t dare go against her mother’s wishes.

Emlin had asked at one point during their teen years if Jess had asked her mother about their ancestry. It was Emlin who put the thought of Benjamin and Jess possibly being related in Jess’s mind. As her mother had ordered her, Jess lied to Emlin and told her that the name was just a coincidence and that there was no relation. Emlin didn’t seem like she bought the lie because Jess was known to be a terrible liar, but she didn’t ask any follow-up questions.

Emlin dropped the subject and they never spoke about it again.

It was a hard day when Gannon died; Emlin was so broken after losing her father. Emlin’s daughter, Arina, had just turned 2 years old and Jonathan had just turned 8 years old. Even then, Jess knew the little ones were supposed to be mates and knew just how much Jonathan cared for Arina.

Emlin’s husband, Rock, became the new Alpha, and then she started to see a change in Emlin. Jess noticed that Emlin was no longer herself. She was once a sister but slowly began turning into a stranger.

Emlin would only reach out to Jess and Regan periodically. Sometimes she would go an entire year without seeing Jess or speaking to her. Which broke Jess’s heart knowing it was keeping their children apart too. She didn’t want Jonathan to grow up without Arina, but at that point, it didn’t look like she had a choice.

Jess had no idea the troubles Emlin was facing until years later when Jonathan and Arina brought it to her attention. The news of Emlin’s death shocked both Jess and Regan. She had mentioned to Regan that something was going on behind closed doors. Emlin wasn’t herself; she was slowly losing her life before their eyes and faking a smile for Ironclaw to see.

She hardly allows Arina to see Jonathan and vice versa. It was breaking up the family Jess grew to love over the years. She lost her mother and the only father she’s ever known; she hated the fact that she was losing her good friend as well.

Arina was only 7 years old when she lost her mother; Jess couldn’t even imagine. If she had lost her own mother at 7 years old, she wouldn’t be where she was at that moment. She wouldn’t have come to Ironclaw and met the family she grew to love; she wouldn’t have met Regan and married him. She wouldn’t have had Jonathan. Her life would be completely different.

She makes it a point to thank the moon gods every night for the life she has and the hardships she’s had to face to gain that life. She wouldn’t change anything. Except for maybe trying harder to get Emlin to open up to her and maybe even saving her life.

Jess sees a lot of Emlin in Arina; she’s strong, brave, and capable just like her mother. She was so happy when Jonathan figured out, she was his mate; though she was worried because Arina was still so young. But seeing the two of them together in the present days, with Arina expecting a child of their own, Jess couldn’t be happier to see her once broken family, once again becoming whole.

Even if Regan, who died when Jonathan was barely 18, wasn’t there to see it.

Jess sat in her bed, holding a small golden picture frame holding a picture of a very pregnant Jess and a happy as can be Regan. He had his arms draped around her and was kissing her cheek. Her face was blushing pink, and she had a smile that she hasn’t had in a long time.

Every time she holds this image, it brings her closer to her husband. She misses him every day.

“Mom?” Jonathan’s voice went through her head.

She was always happy to hear from him; though lately, she feared it would only be bad news. From the sounds of his voice, she feared she was right.

“I’m here,” she answered his call.

“Can we meet?” He asked.

He sounded strained and she couldn’t help but worry.

“Of course. What’s wrong?” She asked as she put the picture frame down on her bedside and slid out of bed. She was ready to transform and run to him.

“It’s about Emlin,” he told her.

She stopped walking towards her bedroom door.

“What happened?” She asked again.

“Melissa was the one who killed her.”