Chosen as the Cursed Alpha's Seventh Bride

Emilia’s POV

The next morning, I descended the stairs to find Mila and Tiffany exchanging glances that screamed guilt.

"Emilia, I’ve ordered the kitchen to make you a bowl of hangover soup. Drink it while it’s hot," Mila said, her voice overly sweet.

"Thanks." I picked up the bowl and stole a glance at Sebastian beside me. He looked perfectly fine. Relief washed over me. At least I hadn’t completely embarrassed myself while drunk.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I glanced at the screen and hesitated. Getting up, I said, "Excuse me, I need to take this call."

When I returned, Mila asked, "Who was it?"

"My sister."

"Oh, what did she want?"

"Nothing serious. My parents missed me and asked me to come back for dinner," I lied.

Alpha Titus looked up from his newspaper. "Then let Sebastian accompany you. You haven’t been back in quite some time."

"I have a social engagement tonight," Sebastian refused immediately.

"No need. I can go alone. I may spend the night there," I said quickly.

Mila nodded. "No problem. Since you haven’t been back for a while, you must have a lot to catch up on with your mother."

Sebastian snorted—soft, but I heard it. My jaw tightened, but I kept my expression calm. I finished my breakfast quickly and headed out.

The morning air was crisp as I walked toward the bus stop. Suddenly, a black car pulled up beside me. The window rolled down, revealing Sebastian’s infuriatingly smug face.

"Your parents missed you?" He drawled, his green eyes glinting with mockery. "Will your parents actually miss you? You made that up, didn’t you?"

Before I could respond, he drove off with a satisfied smirk.

I stood there, frozen. We’d just shared drinks together last night, and now he was back to ridiculing me? Was he bipolar?

Whatever. I had bigger problems.

Since marrying Sebastian, I’d only returned to The Frostridge pack’s territory twice. This was my third visit, and I already regretted it.

The moment I stepped into the living room, I spotted Dorothy stroking her snow-white Persian cat. When she saw me, she looked surprised for a split second before scowling.

*"Look who’s decided to grace us with her presence,"* her thoughts dripped with venom. *"Little Miss High-and-Mighty, married into the Silver Moon Pack and suddenly too good for us."*

Out loud, she said with fake sweetness, "My, what brings you here today? Our noble young Luna, married into such a prestigious pack, honors us with a visit."

I kept my face calm. "Linda said you all wanted me to come back."

"Oh, we didn’t ask you to come back," Dorothy said airily. "Even if we wanted to, we wouldn’t dare disturb someone of your status now."

*"Ungrateful little witch,"* her thoughts snarled.

So Linda had lied. Not surprising. No one in this house genuinely wanted me here.

"Where’s Linda?" I asked bluntly.

"Upstairs," Dorothy replied, her tone clipped.

I turned and headed up immediately.

I knocked on Linda’s door. "Come in," came her imperious voice.

I pushed the door open. "Why did you ask me to come back?"

"Oh, Sister! I missed you so much!" Linda’s face lit up with a fake smile.

"Cut the crap. There’s no one else here," I said flatly.

Linda’s smile faltered, her face flushing.

*"Arrogant bitch. Just wait until I get what I want."*

Out loud, she recovered quickly. "Sister, don’t be so cold. We may have different mothers, but we share the same blood. How can we be so distant?"

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. "What do you want? I’m leaving if you don’t spit it out."

"Wait, wait! I’ll tell you." Linda grabbed my arm. "Sister, I... I need to tell you something. Brandon and I... we’ve called off the engagement."

I raised an eyebrow. "Congratulations?"

"He hit me!" She touched her cheek. "He slapped me, Emilia. After everything..."

*"Serve him right for thinking he could control me,"* her thoughts hissed. *"But I need to play this right..."*

"I’m so sorry," Linda continued, her voice breaking. "I know what happened between Brandon and me was wrong. What we did to you was unforgivable. But you have to understand—he seduced me. He forced me into it. I couldn’t help myself."

I stared at her for a long moment, then let out a laugh. "Really? A trained pack warrior forced the Alpha’s most beloved daughter? Wow. He must have enormous balls to try that."

Linda’s eyes widened at my sarcasm, but she pressed on. *"Ignore it. Just get what you need."*

"The engagement is off, and I’m heartbroken. Being in this environment, with all the memories... it’s too much. I was thinking..." She paused. "Maybe I could stay at the Silver Moon Pack for a while? Just to clear my head?"

"No."

"Sister, please—"

"I said no."

Linda’s sweet expression cracked. *"Fine. Time for plan B."*

"Don’t blame me for what happens if you refuse," she said, her voice hardening.

"Is that a threat?"

"Not a threat. A promise." Linda crossed her arms. "I’m going to the Silver Moon Pack one way or another. If you don’t take me, I’ll go myself. And when I’m there, who knows what I might say? Maybe I’ll mention how you stole Brandon from me first. Or perhaps I’ll share some other interesting family stories with your new in-laws."

*"And once I’m there, I’ll make Sebastian notice me,"* her thoughts purred. *"He’s so much better than Brandon ever was. Rich, powerful, gorgeous... If I play my cards right, I could be the one wearing that Luna title. Emilia’s just a placeholder anyway—no wolf, no real standing. He’ll see what a real Alpha’s daughter looks like."*

I bit back a laugh. She actually thought she could seduce Sebastian? The man who could barely stand to be in the same room with most women?

This was going to be entertaining.

"Well?" Linda pressed, mistaking my silence for hesitation. "What’s it going to be?"

I pretended to consider. Actually, I was already planning how this would backfire spectacularly on her.

"Fine," I said finally. "Since you’re so desperate to visit, come along."

"Really?" Linda’s face lit up. *"Perfect. Just perfect."*

"That’s more like it. One should know when to be flexible..." She grabbed her phone. "When do we leave? I need to pack—"

"Well, since you want to go so badly, then go." I said, turning toward the door.

"Wait for me!" Linda called out.