Chosen as the Cursed Alpha's Seventh Bride

Emilia’s POV

The hope in his voice, the pure joy on his face, it hit me. He wanted a baby so badly.

"I’m not pregnant," I admitted. "I was just... thinking ahead. Wondering if you’d want a boy or a girl."

Instead of disappointment, his smile widened. He lifted me suddenly, making me yelp as he sat down on the bed with me in his lap.

"Well," he said seriously, "if you’re that eager, maybe I haven’t been trying hard enough. Should we set up a daily schedule? Although I’ve read that too much... activity might affect sperm quality. We should probably look into the optimal frequency..."

I burst out laughing. I couldn’t help it. Here was Sebastian Simons, ruthless Alpha and business mogul, earnestly working out a procreation schedule.

"What?" He tried to look offended. "You’re the one who brought up having a baby out of nowhere. I’m just being thorough."

"You’re being ridiculous," I said, still giggling as I swatted his chest. "No wonder Tiffany thinks you’re impossible."

"Tiffany thinks I’m impossible because I won’t let Fynn date her," he corrected, his lips finding the sensitive spot behind my ear. "This is completely different."

His hands started sliding up under my shirt. "So how about we start on this baby project tonight? You know, get a head start on the research phase..."

I caught his wandering hands. "Can’t. I’m on my period."

Sebastian groaned and let his head fall back. "Your cycle has impeccable timing. Worst timing in the history of timing."

"We’ve got plenty of time," I said. "And hey, maybe we make one on the trip? That’d be special, right? Romantic?"

"Romantic," he repeated, his eyes softening. "Yeah. That would be perfect, actually. Our little Hokkaido souvenir."

"Much better than a tacky snow globe."

"Definitely cuter."

He kissed me then, slow and sweet, and I tried to ignore the guilt twisting in my stomach. Using a baby to hold our marriage together. It felt manipulative and desperate and sad.

But what choice did I have?

Winter arrived with a vengeance, bringing thick snow and biting wind. Sebastian booked our flight for Saturday morning.

"I need to stop by the office first," he told me over breakfast that day. "Just to handle a few last-minute things. Why don’t you head to the airport ahead of me? I’ll meet you there in a couple hours."

"Sure," I said, buttering my toast. "Try not to get too distracted by spreadsheets and forget about me."

"Forget about you?" He caught my hand and kissed my knuckles. "Impossible. You’re a lot more interesting than spreadsheets."

"Wow. High praise."

"I mean it." His eyes were serious now. "I’ll see you soon, okay?"

I nodded, pushing down a strange flutter of anxiety in my chest.

By the time my car reached the airport, the snow was coming down in thick, heavy flakes. I grabbed my suitcase and made a run for it, nearly slipping twice on the slick pavement.

"What kind of weather is this?" I muttered, shaking snow out of my hair once I was safely inside. "I didn’t need to fly to Hokkaido. I could’ve just stood outside for free."

I found a seat near our gate and checked my phone. No messages from Sebastian yet. That was fine. He was probably stuck in traffic or wrapping up that "last-minute" business that always took twice as long as expected.

Twenty minutes passed.

Then forty.

I tried calling. The phone rang and rang before he finally picked up.

"Hello?"

Something in his voice made my stomach drop. He sounded... heavy. Strained.

"Hey," I said, trying to keep my tone light. "You almost here? We board in thirty minutes."

There was a pause. Too long.

"Emilia, I’m sorry. We can’t go today. Something important came up."

The noise of the airport seemed to fade away. I sat there, phone pressed to my ear, feeling like someone had just dumped ice water over me.

"Something important," I repeated slowly. "More important than our trip?"

"I know, I know." He sounded miserable. "I’ll make it up to you, I swear. Fynn’s on his way to bring you home. We’ll reschedule for next weekend..."

"Don’t bother." The words came out sharper than I intended. "I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you."

"Emilia..."

I hung up.

My hands were shaking. I stared down at my phone, at the screensaver of Sebastian and me from our wedding day, the two of us forcing smiles because Mila had insisted on the photo.

"He’s hiding something," Eve growled.

"I know."

"And you know what, or who, he might be hiding."

I did know. Goddess help me, I knew.

Ten minutes later, Fynn appeared, looking harried and uncomfortable. Snow dusted his hair and his usual easy smile was nowhere to be seen.

"Luna Emilia," he said quietly. "I’m sorry about this. Let me take you home."

I followed him to the car in silence, my suitcase wheels leaving tracks in the fresh snow. The engine started with a low rumble, and we pulled out into traffic.

I pressed my forehead against the cold window, watching the city blur past. The snow was actually quite beautiful, turning everything soft and white and peaceful.

"It’s fine," I told myself. "So what if we didn’t go to Hokkaido? I can see snow right here. It’s fine. I don’t need a romantic trip. I can handle being alone."

But my reflection in the window told the truth. I looked exactly as crushed as I felt.

"Luna," Fynn said carefully, his eyes flicking to me in the rearview mirror. "It’s just postponed. You can go next weekend instead."

"Where is he now?"

"He... had to go out."

I caught it immediately. Fynn was a terrible liar.

"What did he go out for?" I asked flatly.

"I’m not sure. He didn’t say."

"Try again, Fynn. And this time, maybe try to sound convincing."

His hands tightened on the steering wheel. "Luna, I really don’t..."

"You’re the worst liar in this entire pack," I cut him off. "It’s actually impressive how bad you are at it. So let me make this simple. If you care about your Alpha, if you want what’s best for him, you’ll tell me the truth right now. Because I’m the only one who can actually help him move forward."

Fynn was quiet for a long moment. When he finally spoke, his voice was barely audible over the sound of the tires on the snowy road.

"I heard that Abigail Tanner is back."