The Ice Alpha’s Mate (Aria and Ryder) novel Chapter 47

Chapter 47

ARIA

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A moment of silence falls upon us as the gravity of the situation inks deep into my bones, instilling a fear in me that’s so damn crippling.

How will I walk around now normally like I’m not a Nocturn? How can I live?

I don’t know if I can recover from this.

I’m devastated in more ways than one.

I’m still holding my mother’s photo to my chest and I don’t have the courage to look at it. For so long, I’ve led my life like she wasn’t a part of it. Now, she’s all around me.

Uncle Barty…he has risked himself so much for me. I had no idea.

“Who’s they?” I hear myself ask. It feels important to know. But even before he speaks, I know who it is, and it makes me feel so damn ashamed.

“The Alpha. The Beta. The leaders of the pack.”

Ryder’s father.

He was responsible for my mother’s death.

I feel sick to my stomach. Does Ryder know this story the way Nadia does? Is that why he wouldn’t leave me alone?

But even as I ask myself this, I know it’s not true. No. What exists between us is something else. Something that we both couldn’t fight.

We’re mates.

Goddess…just how cruel is fate? Why would I be fated to the one person who could destroy my life in a heartbeat?

I’ve never been this scared.

I have to make a plan. Now that I don’t have school, what’s next?

What do I do with myself? Goddess, no wonder my uncle was always so paranoid about me drawing attention to myself.

And I disregarded all his warnings.

I meet his gaze. He’s looking at me with pity in his eyes. “What do I do now, Unc? Where do I go? If they find out—”

He shakes his head and I fall silent. “The worst has already happened. You’re safe now. You can’t go anywhere, as it’ll only raise their suspicions.”

“But-”

“If they suspected that you were a Nocturn, you would’ve been captured a long time ago. Now, Alpha Drexel is a man who prides himself on being…different. Open-minded. Not in the see that he accepts Nocturns, but he doesn’t hold us accountable for your mother’s mistakes, and when I presented the report to him, he was convinced that we didn’t have anything to do with Nocturns. You’re safe. But…”

I have a feeling that I know what he’ll ask, and I contemplate telling him before he has to ask, but I don’t have the courage.

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17 22 Sat, Feb 21 EWEA

Chapter 47

“Aria.”

My insides twist, and I find it harder to breathe.

“You and the Alpha’s son…tell me. What’s going on there? And don’t lie to me. Are you in danger?”

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Tears fill my eyes but I don’t let them trail down my cheeks. I’m feeling emotional because of everything that’s happening to me, so I don’t want him to think that I’m particularly aggrieved by my situation with Ryder, even though I am.

“I don’t know if I’m in danger,” I state. Seeing his reaction immediately makes me correct what I just said. “At least, I don’t think so. He and I…we’re fated mates.”

Uncle Barty has never looked this shocked. His eyes are wide and he’s peering at me like he can’t believe what I just told

him.

I stare down at my hands while he looks like he’s trying to process what I just told him.

“When did you find out? It’s impossible that you would’ve-”

“Today,” I state. “But we’ve been feeling this strange pull toward each other…please don’t look at me like that, Unc. I can’t bear it.”

He stands up and places his hand over mine. His eyes never leave my face and they have a serious look in them. “Aria… I hope you understand that anything you’d ever want to undertake with that young man would never work.”

Though I’m aware of this, for some reason, it really stings. “Yes, know. We never wanted anything from each other. It was just hard to understand…”

I can’t finish the sentence. I look away from him and he steps back, too. Sighing, he asks me, “Do you want anything? I might stop by the house to bring you some clothes for tomorrow morning.”

“No. I don’t need anything. Thanks, Unc.” I meet his gaze, and add in a softer voice, “I truly appreciate everything you’ve done for me. Everything.”

“You never have to thank me.”

He walks away, and I lean against the massive pillow behind me. Once he’s gone and I’m alone with my thoughts, I allow myself to think about everything that’s been haunting me since this whole transformation happened.

I’m terrified. Will I always be afraid? It’s the one thing that bothers me more than anything else. Dammit, I’d like to know what it feels like to wake up in the morning and not have to worry about my safety.

It’s so haunting.

I try to close my eyes for a bit, but my wolf is restless. It’s incredible how even thinking about rejecting him makes me want to tear my own eyes out. Our bodies-or maybe our souls-want each other.

Who would’ve guessed? The Alpha heir. The Ice Alpha, as he’s called in the rink. The most arrogant playboy this pack has ever seen…is my mate. Me. Someone who’s always been invisible and wanted peace.

Someone so different from him…

I try to push him from my thoughts, and I succeed, but then I smell something in the air that makes me so alert I sit up.

What’s that smell?

I know it’s Ryder before his face peeks through the curtains and he walks into the cubicle, staring at me with an expression that breaks my heart.

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17.22 Sat, Feb 21 THEA

Chapter 47

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“Aria,” he says my name softly.

For a moment, it feels like my strength has left my body and I’m at his complete mercy. He could strangle me. Stab me. Touch me. Kill me.

And I wouldn’t be able to lift a finger to help myself.

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