Mated To The Cursed Alpha

Olivia POV

As I watched the man sleeping beside me, a wave of quiet fulfillment washed over me.

We've endured heartbreak, betrayal, and wounds inflicted by those we once trusted, yet through every storm, we stood together.

I couldn't have asked for a better mate.

He's mine. My devil.

My Alpha.

FLASHBACK *****

My bones were breaking.

I let out another throat-itching scream as my right ankle twisted painfully into itself, the pull bringing me down to my knees. My hands were chained to the ground with a padlock at either corner of the dark room, the only light coming in being the bright glow of the full moon.

The fucking full moon; yet another one.

I hated it and I was using 'hate' very mildly. I dreaded the changes that came with it, one of which being how I chained myself to the ground in the underground basement Penny had built a couple of years ago to avoid going on a rampage and killing some innocent human.

My fangs pulled out painfully and I yelled out in pain, knowing it was coming. The resilient urge to free myself picked at me and my vision blurred with a red image. Sweat dripped down my naked skin as heat engulfed me and my throat was dry from all the screaming I was doing.

My chest ached. Hell, everywhere ached. Before I knew it, I began to cry. Every single time a bone broke or twisted painfully, I let out a loud cry.

Being only half-werewolf, I wasn't like the rest of the werewolf world. I didn't belong to a pack. One would say I was a lone ranger and not of lack of want. Nobody wanted me. I was as good as useless. Tainted with human blood, I was what werewolves referred to as impure.

In a way, I wasn't exactly unhappy about it. I didn't even want to be a werewolf. It was a curse, otherwise I wouldn't be chained underground with every single bone in my body breaking every full moon. It was a fucked up way to live and I wanted no part of it.

Once a werewolf turned eighteen, they gained the power to transform. As time went on, depending on one's lineage and capabilities, one begins to develop unique powers.

I was twenty- three and I had no powers. I didn't even have a mate and most found theirs before they're twenty.

I had given up. Maybe I wasn't meant to be a werewolf, which was why for the past three years, I'd devoted my life to finding a cure.

Why would I want to live this way if there was a way out there to cure myself? Why did I have to have painful transformations? Why must I feel so incomplete without a mate?

Unfortunately, I was having no luck getting anywhere, but I wasn't going to stop; three years of my life was not going to be a waste.

My atlas twisted. The pain knocked the breath out of me and I almost passed out. When it seemed like I was really going to pass out, the crunchy sound of my tailbone breaking jerked me awake as I bellowed.

"Not a very nice way to spend your night, huh?"

A voice asked from the darkness. I didn't have to look up; it was Jennifer, my adopted mother. Since the full moon heightened my senses, I'd heard her footsteps the second she left the house.

"No." I scoffed, out of breath as saliva dripped from my parted lips to the ground. "Not really."

This was how it always was. Because I was half- human and half-wolf, it was hard for me to transform. Pure wolves could transform at will but I couldn't. Because I was impure. Fucking stupid shit. If I didn't want so much out of life, I'd have bitten myself to death. It certainly would've been less painful than transforming.

"You know how this goes. You just have to wait it out." Her soft voice carried and I hated that she was right. There was nothing I could do.

"I hate this so much." My jaw trembled in frustration. I needed to find a cure and I needed to find it fast. Anna, my winch mentor, kept telling me it was a fool's errand but I refused to listen.

There had to be something. "Why can't I just live a normal life?"

"Normal is boring. I know you prefer-"

The last of my bones broke and then I changed.

My wolf wasn't huge but with white fur and bright yellow eyes, she was a beauty.

Thank fuck, because she put me through so much hell. I loved her and hoped for the day she'd finally be whole. The loneliness she felt seeped into me, especially now that she was in full form.

Jennifer's face spotted the look of awe she always had whenever she saw my wolf and a part of me felt proud.

"You're so beautiful." She murmured.

My vision was sharper than that of my human form as well as my senses. I could smell the cold airy wind of the night and hear the crickets chirping somewhere in the distance.

It might have been too much to wish for but as a tear ran down her cheek, I hoped to find completion someday and who knows? Maybe a mate. He didn't have to be handsome or large. I wasn't desperate but at this point, I'd settle for anything.

Olivia POV

"Have you seen this?"

I leaned forward to look into Anna's phone.

Aside from the cute picture of a green-eyed cat pouting on what looked like a very soft pillow, I didn't see anything worth gasping. "What? I don't see anything."

She scoffed, shoving the phone closer to my face. "Look well. There's a ball."

"Ball?" I asked disbelievingly. It was the twenty-

first century. Balls weren't a thing anymore. "Be for real."

But even as I looked, I could see she wasn't bluffing.

"Alpha Liam James has announced he would be hosting a ball at his Villa to formally celebrate his reign as Alpha, and he has stated he would be picking a bride too." Anna read out loud.

"Holy shit. He has just released a shitstorm, and he doesn't even know it."

I was lost. I didn't want to seem like I'd been living under a rock since I was born, but the question begged to be asked.

"Who the hell is Liam James?"

The silence was deafening. After a few beats, Anna moaned. "You've got to be kidding me."

I chuckled helplessly, but something weighed at the back of my mind.

There was a picture of the man in the newsletter. His blue eyes were like the morning sky after it rained, and as I stared into them, it felt like he was looking back at me. For some reason, his eyes picked at me, and I didn't like it.

"You haven't heard of The Devil Alpha?" Anna asked.

"Nope. Not once." I replied, my eyes scanning the contents of my latest lycanthropy book. I hadn't relented in my search, instead had somehow found new zeal to continue.

"Why is he popular?"

When she didn't respond, I raised my head to look at her. "Don't look at me like that, or I'll burst out laughing."

She sighed, leaning back. "You've got to get your head out of those books and face the world out there."

I went back to my reading. "The world out there is a massive clusterfuck as we know it, so no thanks. Besides, Devil Alpha?" I scoffed. "What a ridiculous name."

"Only Olivia Charlie would call the scariest name in the werewolf world ridiculous. I really envy you. If I went through life as nonchalantly as you do, I'd be on the Panel of Witches by now."

The Panel of Witches were the highest-ranked witches in the world. They oversaw the actions of every witch, enforced rules that shouldn't be broken, punished evil doers, and ensured that the witch world ran smoothly.

From what I knew, the Panel of Witches were grumpy old ladies, and Anna would do terribly there.

"He's looking for a bride," Anna said out loud. "I think you should attend."

My head snapped up, my heartbeat picking up rate strangely. "Why would you say that?"

She shrugged a shoulder, staring up at the ceiling. "Every person who matters in this world will be present. You might find your mate."

My heartbeat slowed. "Who says I want to find a mate?"

She met my eyes. "You don't want to?"

"Of course not." Did I?

I mean, it would be nice to know that I wasn't

entirely an outcast. Maybe by finding a mate, I'd find a pack. But I'd still have painful transformations. No matter what I did or who I

married, I was still tainted with human blood.

Even if I managed to marry an Alpha which was highly improbable, it wouldn't change anything.

I was desperate to change the topic as those blue eyes of the man gnawed at me again.

What was it about him that troubled me so?

I cleared my throat, swallowing. "Do you know about Jack Williams?"

She nodded. "He was the only witch that came close to finding a cure for lycanthropes. Why?"

I gestured to the book in my hands. "I'm reading about him. He fascinates me."

"Keywords, Anna. Came close. He only managed a brew to prevent painful transformations on the full moon. He married an Impure, so he threw his entire life into his work. My grandmother told me it worked, but I don't know."

My skin prickled. "It worked?"

It wasn't a cure, but it was something. I could find it and modify it. I had witchcraft and science at my disposal. Jack hadn't.

"Do you know the ingredients?"

She shook her head. "I don't. Legend says it died with him. Though I did hear somewhere that he passed it on to his daughter but that was over two hundred years ago. It's long gone."

The ray of hope that had sparked immediately died with her words.

Why hadn't he documented it? What sane person didn't document their research? How on earth was I supposed to begin?

I sighed exasperatedly, throwing my head back on the sofa I was curled up in, annoyed at the realization that I was back at square one.

****

"Sweetie, I'm attending an event in two weeks. Would you like to come with me?"

I wiped the corners of my mouth with a napkin, leaning back to look at Jennifer.

"Uh... I don't think so." I didn't like attending events. Unlike my adopted mother, I was not a social butterfly. "But what's it about?"

"Liam James celebration ball."

I almost choked on my spit.

"Ava, are you okay?"

Ever since I saw his picture earlier, I couldn't get his face out of my mind. Those eyes. It was like they were following me everywhere.

"I'm fine," I murmured, clearing my throat.

Jennifer eyed me uncertainty before nodding.

"Alright. I know you don't like crowded spaces, but I'd love it if you came with me just this once. Liam's father was a good friend of mine, and I wanted to offer my condolences and my congratulations as well."

"Yes, he's Alpha now."

"Do you know of him?"

I wasn't entirely sure I wanted my mother to know that I hadn't been able to stop thinking of him since this afternoon. And she had no idea I was friends with a witch, and I wanted to keep it that way. "Saw it on the news."

"Think about it. You might end up enjoying the experience."

"I doubt that," I murmured, getting up. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight, mom." I kissed her cheek

before leaving the dining room.

I had things to do. If there was a possibility of finding any of Jack Williams descendants, I needed to know. Other than his wife, there wasn't much about any of his other family members.

Whoever had written the book obviously hadn't known much about the man or anything about his family except how much he loved his wife and what he was willing to do for her.

I was going to have to check for family names to see if I could find anything.

One good thing about being a scientist, I had access to a lot of information a normal person wouldn't.

I stood in front of the full-length mirror in my room, now naked. I had about two weeks until the next full moon. Two weeks until I had to chain myself up like an animal.

Surprisingly, there were no scars on my body. I didn't know why but I healed pretty fast. Given how much pain was inflicted on my body during the full moon, I was thankful I didn't have the scars to show for it.

I didn't forget the ball in two weeks. Whenever I closed my eyes, just like now, those blue eyes were there, mocking me.

My wolf stirred, and I could feel her agitation at the image. Even she was roused at the thought of him.

No one had ever made me feel so... out of sorts.

A part of me wanted to meet the man so I could better understand what it was about him that made me so apprehensive, but another part of me, the more sensible part, knew I probably shouldn't.

I mean, if he made me so on edge and I hadn't even met him, what would happen when I did meet him?

Liam POV

I looked down around the large ballroom again and took a sip from the glass of wine in my hand as I leaned against the wall at one corner of the landing, wishing I was somewhere else.

There were probably over two hundred women present, and I didn't find one even remotely attractive.

From where I was standing, no one from below could see me.

The room had been built for occasions such as this as my father had liked to throw parties and organize soirees just for the heck of it.

Not for the first or second time, I cursed my father in his grave. The man had never liked me doing anything fun when he was alive, and I didn't want to think about how impressive it was that he still somehow managed to find a way to get under my skin even now that he was dead.

"That is not the face of a man enjoying his evening."

I turned to see Amelia walking towards me with a sneer on her lips.

"That is probably because I am not," I replied wryly, emptying the glass and then immediately regretting it. I needed something stronger.

"Why not?" She gasped dramatically, holding one hand to her chest. "With all these women groveling for your attention?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't even want to get married. This is a complete waste of time."

"You could always let Oliver take over."

"Over my fucking dead body." The thought of it alone infuriated me. I'd die first before I let him take anything that was mine.

"Then plaster a smile on your face and let's go down. You're the fucking Alpha; heavy is the head and all that shit. Suck it up."

I hated the words but they were spot on. Like a coward, I was hiding from my problems instead of doing what I should be doing; finding a wife.

None of them pleased me. Even as I looked around the scenery, I still didn't-

I froze. "Who the hell is that?"

Amelia leaned forward to meet the line of my gaze. "Who?"

"The lady in red."

Immediately I said the words, I heard my wolf growl and mutter one word.

"Her."

*******

Olivia POV

There had to be over three hundred people here. It was unlike any event I'd attended. How the hell would anyone be able to form a coherent thought in this crowd?

It was a large room, the largest room I'd ever been in. I tried to keep up with Jennifer as she walked around the room greeting acquaintances and introducing me to very young men.

I was beginning to think she had ulterior motives for bringing me here.

My research on Jack Williams had not yielded any substantial results and it almost felt like I was going in circles.

Anna's assurance that she'd try to find something on her end made me feel slightly less alone, and I was grateful for it, even though I also felt guilty that I had come to the ball without telling her. She would've liked to attend.

Though I wouldn't admit it to anyone, I was looking forward to meeting the man with blue eyes. It was the only reason I'd come.

I wanted to know if the effect his picture had on me had been real.

Would he bring me to my knees or would he further convince me that I was just overthinking it? I wanted to find out.

"Sweetheart, don't dally. There's someone I want you to meet."

I sighed, knowing I couldn't get out of it. It was the same line she'd used before she introduced me to not less than ten good-looking young men, a few of which were Alphas in their respective packs. I wasn't bothered; she was wasting her time.

Nothing was going to make me give any of them the time of day, not when I had a cure to find. Something that spoke against the very core of their being.

But this time was different.

Those blue eyes were staring down at me like they were seeing into my soul. I stood transfixed as my skin prickled and my heart raced. I wanted to speak, to say something, anything, but for some reason, my mouth refused to open.

It was him. The man with blue eyes from the picture.

Alpha Liam James.

I felt my wolf stir restlessly and I knew she approved. It hadn't been fake. Whatever that image of him had done to me, seeing him in person was ten times worse.

"Jennifer." His deep voice started, though his gaze never left mine. "Thank you for coming. It's a pleasure having you here."

The double entendre of his words didn't escape me.

My lower stomach upended and I swallowed. I could've sworn butterflies had somehow found their way into my stomach and they were fluttering their stupid wings inside me.

"It's an honor to be here, Liam. I offer my deepest condolences at the demise of your father and I celebrate your reign as Alpha."

"Thank you."

I didn't even know they were close enough to be on a first-name basis with each other. It occurred to me then that there were things about Jennifer I didn't know.

She turned to face me, cutting off my thoughts.

"This is my daughter Olivia."

All the while they had been speaking, his gaze had only left mine once. They rested on me again, this time, darkening.

"Olivia." He rolled the name over his tongue like it was hot chocolate on a cold winter morning and my knee buckled. "I don't think we've met."

Of course, we hadn't. He wasn't the forgettable sort. I forced my mouth to open and my eyes to concentrate on his eyes and not his extremely delectable-looking lips.

"That's because we haven't." I extended my hand, surprised that I hadn't stuttered. "Olivia Charlie."

He took my hand slowly, rubbing his palm against mine.

I got the feeling that the soft gesture meant he wanted to rub other places and I felt my cheeks color.

"Liam James, Alpha of the Moon pack."

I half-expected him to say Devil Alpha but thankfully he didn't, because I probably would've burst out laughing at the ridiculous name.

Anna had said he was known for his brutality but looking at those blue eyes and a straight nose, his full lips and chiseled jaw that could plausibly cut through glass, I concluded that the only thing he was a danger to was the female species.

"Jennifer, I had no idea you had a daughter, much less one as beautiful and elegant as Miss Olivia here."

I heard my mother chuckle, then touch my shoulder briefly. "She's not a social butterfly and that's the reason you haven't met her. An introvert, if you ask me. I wish she was more involved in my business but she's a scientist and so she spends all her time trying to discover new ways to help mankind."

I almost rolled my eyes at the more than abundant information. Seriously, that was my whole life in just a few lines. It couldn't have been more obvious what she was trying to do.

"Mom."

"A werewolf who's a scientist. Odd." His hand still held mine in a firm lock and I didn't think I would be able to let go even if I wanted to. "Do you want to go somewhere quiet where we can talk, Olivia?"

And be alone. As much as I savored the way he said my name, warning bells rang at the back of my head. Going with him would be like giving grass to a goat. Something told me Jennifer wouldn't object so I didn't bother asking. My wolf on the other hand knew what I was about to do and almost growled. Down, girl, I was in charge.

"It's been my pleasure, Mr. James, but I'd like to stay here and mingle with the rest of the room. I'm sure you understand."

******

Liam POV

I'd never been turned down by a woman before.

If it hadn't been so funny, I would've been pissed.

The thing was, I was sure I'd assessed every woman present at the ball, and yet none of them struck me as fiercely as she did. She was like an enigma, one I absolutely had to decode.

Olivia. I couldn't think of any name more fitting for her.

I wanted her; my wolf wanted her. All the while I was conversing with her, he had been there, wanting, needing. As I watched her walk away from me, I fought the resilient urge to walk up to her, haul her up against a shoulder and walk off.

The possessiveness I felt toward her was alarming. It irked me to think of her smiling up at another man the way she'd done to me. I'd kill him.

Nothing else mattered but getting her. Nothing.

I sighted who I was looking for and strode towards her, purpose in my step. "Amelia, I need you. Now."

She was talking with a couple of people I had seen once or twice but didn't know.

She nodded, taking leave from the conversation and walking with me to a corner that was less crowded. "What's up?"

Her face crossed my mind again. I'd never wanted to possess anything, to unravel anything like I wanted to do with her.

"I need a love potion. And quick."