Just a week before our wedding, Beta Ashton, my stern and naturally cold mate, got a name inscribed on his forearm.
'My Bella'
'Bella', a name given to me by him. My loving efforts had paid off and to know that I could have a place in my mate's heart whom I loved for so long made me tear up. I could see him opening his heart to me in the future and maybe loving me as much as I did.
But before I could live the false dream any longer, I got a call from the packhouse from our gamma who asked me to hurry up for my mate, and among all the chaos, I saw Ashton standing before a beautiful woman, holding onto her tightly with loving eyes as he chanted her name.
"Bella, please come back to me."
His words was filled with anticipation and I couldn’t take another step forward.
Since I was not the one he wants to spend his life with, I might as well let them have this wedding!
But after I ran away, he searching the world for me!
***
“For you... Even if I hate tattoos, I can do anything for you, Bella.”
I looked at the scene in front of me in horror as my mate gently took the woman's finger and placed it against his arm.
“Isabella, don’t mind Ashton. Ugh, well, he is a fool when he drinks a lot. He cannot recognize one face from another." Even his friend that tried to ease the atmosphere shut his mouth when he saw the kind of gaze Ashton directed at the woman beside him.
“Hey, Ashton. Your fiancée is here.”
Ashton did not even seem to notice my presence at all and just looked around with hazy disinterested irises. A low growl vibrated across the packhouse as he warned others who came to separate him from the woman.
How ironic it was that the times when he was sober were all lies, and this time, when he was so drunk, only then he spoke the truth.
The girl he called Bella so affectionately had golden locks flowing down to her waist with an oval face that glowed like moon. She was wearing an exquisite blue dress and had her own unique charm. I recognized her face from Ashton’s yearbook that he had preserved till now.
My lips trembled as I barely held in the sobs.
That tattoo wasn’t for me, that ‘Bella’ was never me and Ashton never once loved me.
I was a substitute bride.
Seeing me frozen on spot, Arabella came forward and slowly took off a golden pendant dangling from her neck, making me widen my eyes.
It was a necklace that Ashton’s mother gave me when she accepted me as her daughter-in-law. It was a relic passed down generations and given to the new bride.
“Isabella, right? Don’t mind Ashton, he really likes to spoil me with gifts. He accidently gave this to me. Well, you can keep it though.”
Her tone was sarcastic almost as if she was giving me charity. I didn’t speak a word and took the necklace clutching it tightly.
At this moment, Ashton looked at me as if watching me here for the first time and I had a small glimmer of hope. The man I loved, my mate would never hurt me like this, to make me suffer this kind of humiliation as a substitute bride.
“How dare you try to take Bella’s necklace?!”
As if someone had poured cold water over me, my mate held my arm in a painful grasp as he cruelly tried to snatch the pendant from my hand glaring fiercely.
“Ashton, you are hurting her.” A mutual friend tried to stop him but was pushed away.
“How dare you accept the necklace? Give it back to Arabella!”
“No.” I mumbled incoherently. It took me a lot to make my mother-in-law to like me.
At first, she didn’t like me, and to make her happy, I had to get up early to take care of the entire household’s cleaning and cooking, sometimes even going as far as to drop my studies to take out time for their family.
After all that suffering, I was finally accepted and given the pendant.
Ashton's pupils turned dark as his claws pried my fist open making scratches and cuts cover my palm as he caught hold of the necklace and took it furiously.
His feet without any fail moved towards Arabella and he held both her shoulders gently.
“Bella, I have been waiting for you all this time, not once I have ever loved anyone else. Please be my mate, marry me, Bella.”
The people looked at the duo momentarily stunned while tears dribbled down my eyes.
This scene made me deeply heartbroken and even angry. I have been in love with him for so many years, but I never expected that just when we were about to hold our wedding, the truth would be revealed to me--I was just a substitute and he definitely didn't love me.
I gritted my teeth and turned around, wishing to leave the place right this instance but before I could do so my so-called mate lost his senses and fell.
People waited for me to go and get him up, but I stood and watched him lying on the ground without moving an inch.
Arabella called out to me, “He is your fiancé, are you going to make him suffer for something he did when he wasn’t in his senses?”
She looked at me with a smir. “Ashton did give me an invitation to your ‘dream’ wedding. I will be sure to come.”
Other friends hurriedly took Ashton outside settling in my car, whereas, I stood where I was looking at this woman who seemed to be sweet and innocent on the surface but had a mocking smile full of malice.
She continued to mock me, “Your marriage is nothing but a joke. His heart has always been mine, but I won’t blame you, you did a good job being my replacement and that’s all you can be.”
Chapter 2I kept seeing the image of Ashton protectively embracing Arabella as he proposed to her, so different from the times he had looked at me like he was seeing past my image at someone else and calling me ‘Bella.’
The way he proposed to me now came striking in my mind.
A year ago, a rogue spy had infiltrated the pack and befriended Ashton. At night when assailants entered our home knowing that Ashton was unconscious and wounded by a fight, I hid him in the secret cell and refused to tell them his location.
In return, the angry rogues stabbed me multiple times and left me to die.
If only Alpha Xavier from Blood Moon Pack hadn’t arrived with our Alpha at that time and saved my life, I would have been dead. Later, Ashton came with flowers and fruits to visit me at the pack healer’s cave.
“Bella,” he for the first time had looked at me with a kind smile and kissed my forehead.
“You have saved my life. In return, please let me repay you. Please be my chosen mate and marry me.”
I remembered being so full of emotion at that moment that I could not speak at all and just nodded as he embraced me. We laughed happily as I imagined our future together.
As I thought back on our five years together, a wave of nausea hit me. The memories that once felt warm and like a true bond now seemed like a sick joke.
I drove, resisting the urge to stop the car and let my ‘mate’ in the backseat lie on the pavement. Being with Ashton for three long years now seemed like a thing I regretted and marrying him was not possible any longer.
I looked at the phone lying beside me and picked it up checking the inbox for any messages.
In all the years we’d been together, I had never checked his phone, always respecting his privacy. But now, curiosity and the need for answers drove me to see what was on the screen which was devoid of any password because I never was the suspicious type.
Guess I was a fool all along.
A long series of conversation was titled: My love
I couldn’t help but open the messages to see how long Ashton was seeing Arabella behind my back.
[Arabella: Our friends used to say we would surely end up together. Now look at you getting married to another woman.]
[Ashton: We could still be together, Bella.]
[Arabella: You sure know how to joke, your wedding is just a week from now on.]
[Ashton: Just say you are mine and I will handle everything else.]
[Arabella: What about that woman?]
[Ashton: She is not special; she once saved my life, so I had to repay her. She can at most be a mistress.]
My entire being felt as if dipped in tar, he was thinking of taking me as a mistress when he accepted me as his mate?
I stopped the car as I could no longer control the tears turning my eyes blurry.
As I read the messages a painful mix of hatred and anger bubbled up inside me. I realized that this empty relationship was one I was better off leaving.
[Arabella: Mistress, you want me to be your wife by keeping a mistress?]
[Ashton: I am kidding, I can’t make Isabella a mistress. After all, she once saved my life.
Furthermore, I don’t want to wrong you ever.]
Arabella’s smirk stayed in my mind as I drove away, her cruel words echoing clearly. It felt like my mind went blank, struggling to grasp the harsh reality of what had just happened.
No he wasn’t joking at all, he took me as a prostitute who would please him whenever he would like, a maid who would stupidly cook and clean for him and nothing but a replacement that he could discard when his wishes were fulfilled.
I couldn’t decide whether the pain or the anger was stronger.
Never ever had I imagined that I would discard the future I had so long dreamt of because everything was such a terrible lie.
While Ashton was still asleep, I booked a flight to Italy on the same day when our wedding was decided to take place. I called one of my closest friends and she agreed and supported my decision strongly and helped me arrange for everything in the foreign land.
The next morning when I woke up, everything seemed to have changed. Even when I heard Ashton frantically talking to someone, trying to soothe them down, I didn’t care at all.
“Bella, don’t cry, please. I know you don’t want to hurt Isabella even when she took me away from you. You are so kind to everyone, Bella. What would I do with you?”
“The person I love will always be you. If you say you love me, I’d do anything for you.”
“But... the Alpha considers Isabella a friend and has invited many important people from different packs. If I back out now, he would be furious.”
I felt like throwing up as I heard his elated laughter that followed next and he said excitedly, “Yes, even if I marry her, I would take vows with both our names. And during the oath taking ceremony, I will bribe the pack priest. No one can break us apart.”
Even though I had decided to end things, I was stunned with how cruel he was.
Werewolves chose their mates and took an oath sealing the bond, the children born only then were given the legitimate status.
As Beta’s mate only when I gave birth to his legitimate children would I be given the title of Beta female.
He never wished to let me hold on to that title.
It was as if I had been humiliated enough the words made me grit my teeth. What a fool I had been in such a blind love. After that, Ashton quickly disconnected the call and entered my room, thinking I was still fast asleep.
When he saw me sitting straight, staring right into his soul, he was stunned.
Chapter 3“Bella, when did you get up?” Ashton asked, his eyes not meeting mine as if plagued by guilt and shame.
I didn’t speak a word and got up, going straight outside the room, disgusted even with his presence.
Seeing me not speaking anything, Ashton sighed feeling content that his plans were still good for I had not overheard him.
But then feeling my eyes watching him, he said, "Please don’t be angry, Bella. I wasn’t in my right state of mind yesterday.”
I didn’t speak a word resisting the urge to punch him in the face.
He waited for a reply and when I refused to answer he looked at me coldly.
“How long do you plan to throw a tantrum? Our wedding is in a week, and you need to be the perfect bride, so stop with this. Also, I have some things to do today, so don’t wait for me tonight.”
I hummed in reply to which he eyed me suspiciously.
“Arabella was crying too much. She was feeling terrible for what happened yesterday even when I explained to her that you would not mind.”
“You speak too much. Whether I mind or not is not your business so just leave already, you are ruining my mood.” Unable to decipher that I would ever speak such harsh words to him, he could not speak a word and was frozen in his place.
“Arabella wants to be your bridesmaid, and I am leaving with her to help her out.” He spoke those words to bring out a reaction out of me only for me to look at him in disinterest
“Then why are you still here?” Stunned by my response he added to pacify me.
“While we are at it, why don’t I help you pick your bridal gown in the evening?”
“Ugh, whatever.” I could not hear him say another word or wait to look at his surprised form any longer. Thus, before he moved, I got up and left.
Later that afternoon, I hired a cab and went to the dress shop not to book my bridal dress but rather to cancel the ones I have picked earlier.
The duo when I made an entrance were already in an intimate moment, seemingly not aware of my presence. I observed Arabella’s neck had several hickeys which were Ashton’s doing.
As soon as Arabella saw me, she hurriedly clutched Ashton’s arm and hid behind him as if acting that she was too pure and fragile for the world.
“Isabella, here you are-“ I pretended not to notice them and walked past to go to the sales person.
“Isabella!” Arabella called to which I turned around and looked the two looking at me.
“Ashton, is Isabella not fine with me being here? I can leave if it makes her uncomfortable.”
“No need, I am already done with my dress,” I said casually.
“What? Arabella has been acquainted with a foreign designer and knows a lot about dresses. Look here, she chose one for you.”
I saw it and truly it was stunning. With the bridesmaid wearing white and I the bride wearing a black long gown, it was surely suitable for a funeral.
“Its is so pretty that it suits Arabella more than me,” I replied to which Arabella pretended to tear up.
“It's not the norm but black is the new fashion sense.”
Ashton’s seemed to sense the beauty crying, thus he came to her rescue. “Isabella why are you taking out your frustrations on Arabella? She wants the best for you.”
“Then you can just give it to her!”
I had had enough. Without saying another word, I turned and walked away.
Ashton’s shouted behind me in frustration.
“You are so conceited, Isabella!"
Arabella went out of her way. "Do you want to make a joke out of our wedding?! It's better not to take any photos of us together!”
Arabella then gently nudged him and said in a sweet tone, “ Ashton, I already took you away from her, stop being so mean.”
“It was her who came in between us, why are you blaming yourself?”
They spoke in hushed whispers not wishing to come out as cheaters before the marriage was successfully done and when they could blame everything on me being incompetent.
Yet with my advanced werewolf hearing that had been better than others since childhood, I could hear each word that only gave me pain.
Soon a photo of Ashton with an arm around Arabella’s waist and her leaning on him in the white dress which was more like a bride was posted on Instagram and people assumed that the wedding they had been invited to was for Arabella and Ashton.
[Omg! I know you both from school days are you two still together? Wow!]
[I heard you were getting married! OMG, congratulations]
Some of our close friends didn’t comment at all for they knew the reality and felt quite disturbed with how Ashton being a beta was behaving with his mate.
Since these days Ashton was never home, three of my friends that were now aware that the marriage would not proceed came to help me pack and bid me farewell.
“Isabella, that man is a monster to do such a dirty thing.”
“That woman Arabella is not simple, I heard some rumors that she was chasing Alpha Xavier for so long, but the Alpha of Blood Moon is really a fine wolf and hated her.”
“Now I can see why he detested her;she snatched someone else’s mate and then behaves like a sweet fake woman.”
“Isabella,we support your decision to escape the wedding.I’d love to see what a wedding without a bride looks like—Arabella showing up to steal the wedding will be a huge joke!”
I listened to them and was quite surprised with the new information,but I didn’t care at the end.
I said my final goodbye to them,“Thank you so much for being there for me.I will keep in touch with you guys after I leave.All best of luck.”
The night I left for Italy was just the night before my wedding,I went to the wedding venue first.
Gigantic posters had magnified every trace of photo-editing on the wedding pictures.
I had pulled out a pair of scissors,cut out my youthful,radiant face and then took a cab to the airport.
When the flight attendant reminded me to turn off my phone, Ashton’s calls had started flooding in.