Chosen as the Cursed Alpha's Seventh Bride

Emilia’s POV

I walked back into the booth. The dice had been replaced by cards. Chips were scattered across the table like candy. The game was already on.

I didn’t sit down. I found a spot in the corner, pulled out my phone, and opened my inbox. Scott had sent three emails about the Hanson Group’s new project. Deadlines. Budget approvals. The usual chaos. I started typing a reply.

"Emilia, you’re not drinking? Don’t be shy."

I didn’t look up. "I’m working."

"Working? At a time like this? Alpha Sebastian, your wife is a workaholic."

Marcus laughed. "Look at her. Sitting there like a queen. She doesn’t even glance at us."

"Maybe she’s too good for us poor boys," Jeremy added, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "But then again... are you really going to let a woman like that be gambled away tonight? What a waste."

I kept typing. My fingers moved faster.

"Alpha Sebastian, if I win, you won’t really hand her over, will you?"

"Her eyes are beautiful. If she stays with me tonight, I’ll treat her well."

I heard every word. I just didn’t care. Men like this? They talked big because they had nothing better to do.

I hit send on the email. Then I switched to messages.

Me: Are you enjoying losing? Does it turn you on?

Sebastian: Seeing you sit there like a statue while men discuss what to do with you? That turns me on.

Me: You’re the one losing. I’m just here watching you embarrass yourself.

Sebastian: I’m not the one who’ll be staying here tonight.

I looked up. He was staring at his cards, not at me. But the corner of his mouth was twitching. The bastard.

Me: You know, for a man who hates cuckolds, you’re working really hard to become one.

Sebastian: So, for the sake of your innocence and my reputation, you should leave, instead of sitting here waiting to die.

We kept texting each other, neither willing to give in.

Sarcasm doesn’t work on everyone. At least, it didn’t work on me.

I switched back to my work email and began replying seriously.

Seeing that I didn’t text back, Sebastian took the initiative to send me a message.

"Maybe I’ve left you too lonely, and you secretly hope to have a chance to satisfy your desires."

When I saw that message, my face flushed with anger. This sharp-tongued man always acts as if he would lose himself if he didn’t mock others. I really wish his tongue would rot off someday.

Me: You bastard! You’d better say something nice!

I gritted my teeth.

The dealer flipped another card. Jeremy whistled. "Alpha Sebastian, you’re losing again. That’s... what, the fifth hand in a row?"

"Unlucky night," Sebastian said flatly.

"Or maybe you want to lose," Caleb said, grinning at me. "Maybe you’re trying to get rid of the missus."

Everyone laughed.

I put my phone down.

This was getting stupid. He was throwing the game. On purpose. Just to humiliate me in front of these clowns.

I stood up.

"Move."

Sebastian looked up. "Excuse me?"

"I said move. I’m playing."

The table went quiet. The four of them looked at him. Waiting.

Sebastian leaned back. That smile crept across his face again. The dangerous one.

"You know how to play?"

"Does it matter?"

He laughed. Actually laughed. Then he stood up and gestured to his seat. "Be my guest."

I sat down. The chair was still warm from him. I pushed the chips in front of me. Not many. He’d already lost most of them.

Jeremy raised an eyebrow. "Mrs. Simons, are you sure? This isn’t Monopoly."

"I know what it is. Deal the cards."

The dealer looked at Sebastian. Sebastian nodded.

The cards came. Two each. I didn’t look at mine. I just pushed all my chips to the center.

"All in."

Silence.

Marcus blinked. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. All in."

Caleb laughed nervously. "You haven’t even looked at your cards."

"I don’t need to."

"This is insane," Jeremy muttered.

But he matched my bet. So did the others. One by one, they folded. Until it was just me and Jeremy.

Jeremy stared at me. I stared back.

"You’re bluffing," he said.

"Maybe. Maybe not."

"You don’t even know what you have."

"I know I have more nerve than you."

He laughed. But it was tight. Forced. "What else can you bet? You’ve pushed everything in."

I reached into my bag. My fingers found a small velvet pouch. I pulled it out and emptied it onto the table.

The necklace caught the light. Crystals. Hand-cut. Unique.

"Is that...?"

Jeremy’s date gasped. "That’s the limited edition ’Flowing Light’! There are only ten in the world! I want it. Jeremy, I want it!"

Jeremy’s eyes widened. He looked at the necklace. Then at me. Then at Sebastian.

Sebastian’s face had changed. He wasn’t smiling anymore. He was staring at that necklace like he recognized it. Like it meant something.

"You’re betting that?" Jeremy asked.

"It’s just a necklace."

"Bullshit. That’s worth more than everything on this table combined."

"So? Are you in or are you out?"

Jeremy licked his lips. He looked at his cards. Looked at the pile of chips. Looked at the necklace. Then he grabbed his glass and took a long drink.

"Fold."

"What?!" his date shrieked.

"I said fold!"

He threw his cards down. Caleb reached over and flipped mine.

Two and five. Different suits. The worst hand you could have.

The table erupted.

"She bluffed the whole thing!"

"Jeremy, you coward, she had nothing!"

"Unbelievable!"

I stood up.

"The farce is over, isn’t it? Time to leave."

I reached for the necklace.

A hand stopped me.

Sebastian.

"What?"

He picked up his coat. "You’re staying."

I stared at him. "What did you just say?"

"Before you took over, I lost a lot. This one hand? It’s not enough to cover what I owe."

"That’s not my problem. You’re the one who lost."

"Doesn’t matter. The bet was on my name. You were just my proxy." He turned to the others. "She stays. Decide among yourselves who gets her tonight."

"You son of a—"

He ignored me. Walked toward the door.

"By the way, Jeremy? Settle the bill."

The door closed behind him.

I stood there. Fuming. The necklace still in my hand. The men at the table looking at me like I was a piece of meat.

That bastard. That absolute bastard.