Ruin Me, Alpha-Chapter 48: Twenty-Seven Days To Steal A Bride

DEVON

​The sound of Alpha Rowan cutting into his steak was enough to make me want to burn the building down. Scrape. Clink. Chew.

​I sat at the long mahogany table, swirling the amber liquid in my glass. I didn’t drink it. I just watched the light catch the alcohol, counting the seconds. In exactly three seconds, my father, Raymond, would clear his throat and offer Rowan more wine.

​One.

​Two.

​Three.

​"More vintage, Alpha Rowan?" Raymond asked, his voice eager, bordering on pathetic. "It’s from the southern vineyards. A spoil of war."

​"Don’t mind if I do, Raymond," Rowan chuckled, holding out his glass. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

​I closed my eyes for a brief moment. I had lived this dinner before.

​In the real timeline, I flipped the table and killed Rowan before the appetizers arrived. I sat in silence until the dessert came, bored out of my mind. Then, I walked out before the main course, in a blood-stained shirt.

​But tonight was different. Tonight, the clock in my head was ticking louder than usual.

​Twenty-seven days.

​The witch’s voice echoed in the back of my skull. Twenty-seven days to make her love you, or you stay here forever. Alone.

​I opened my eyes, the boredom replaced by a cold, simmering irritation. I didn’t have time for dinner parties. I didn’t have time for politics. I needed to be planning. I needed to be calculating every variable that would lead me to Irene.

​"Devon," Raymond said, snapping his fingers to get my attention. "Alpha Rowan was speaking to you."

​I slowly turned my head, fixing my gaze on the older wolf. Rowan was a stout man with a beard that hid a weak chin and eyes that were too close together. He thought he was a player in the Great Game. He didn’t know he was just an NPC in my personal hell.

​"I didn’t hear him," I lied, my voice flat.

​Rowan cleared his throat, his smile tight. "I was saying, boy, that the alliance between our families has been stagnant for too long. My territory borders the Ironfang lands to the East. Yours borders them to the North. If we squeeze... we crush them."

​"And?" I asked, taking a sip of the drink finally.

​"And," Rowan gestured to the double doors behind him. "It is time to solidify that bond. Not with paper. With blood."

​The doors opened.

​Andrea walked in.

​I didn’t blink. I didn’t gasp. In the real timeline, she had been the sister of my fated mate. In that timeline, I had tolerated her. In this one, she was a stranger. A pawn.

​She wore green. She wore green in the real timeline, too. She walked to the table, her chin held high, trying to project an air of royalty that she hadn’t earned.

​"Alpha Warner," she said, dipping her head slightly toward my father, then turning her gaze to me. "Devon."

​"Andrea," I acknowledged, not bothering to stand up.

​Rowan beamed, slamming his hand on the table. "Look at them, Raymond! A perfect match. My Andrea is smart, ruthless, and fertile. She is fit for a man of Devon’s stature. A marriage between them would create a coalition strong enough to rule the entire North."

​My father’s eyes lit up. He looked at me, desperate for approval. "Devon, think about it. The strategic advantage—"

​In the real timeline—the one where I let Silas live for three months—I had stayed silent here. I had let them talk. I had let them draft the contracts because I simply hadn’t cared.

​But silence was passive. And I was done being passive.

​"No," I said.

​The room went dead silent. Rowan’s fork paused halfway to his mouth. Andrea stiffened, her eyes narrowing.

​"Excuse me?" Rowan asked, his voice dropping an octave.

​"I said no," I repeated, setting my glass down. "I’m not interested."

​"Not interested?" Rowan sputtered, his face turning a shade of purple that matched the wine. "Do you have any idea what I am offering you? My daughter is—"

​"Your daughter is a business transaction I don’t need," I interrupted, my tone icy. "And frankly, Rowan, I don’t like the way you chew. It’s distracting."

​Raymond looked like he was having a heart attack. "Devon! Apologize immediately!"

​I stood up, adjusting my cufflinks. "I’m leaving. The air in here is stale."

​"You sit back down!" Rowan roared, standing up to match my height. He failed miserably. "I am an Alpha! You will show me respect!"

​"I am the man who burns Alphas for fuel," I said softly, leaning over the table. The threat hit him. He sat back down, his mouth snapping shut.

​I turned on my heel and walked toward the exit.

​"Devon!" Raymond shouted after me. "Where are you going? We aren’t finished!"

​I didn’t look back. I pushed through the heavy doors, leaving the smell of roasted meat and desperation behind me. I needed fresh air. I needed to figure out my next move with Irene. In this timeline, she hated me. In the real timeline, she hated me. But I had twenty-seven days to change the laws of physics.

​I reached the elevator bank at the end of the corridor and jabbed the button. The doors slid open immediately.

​"Wait!"

​A hand jammed between the closing doors. The sensors triggered, and the metal slid back open.

​Andrea stood there, breathless, her green dress rustling around her ankles. She stepped inside, hitting the button for the lobby before turning to face me.

​"You’re rude," she stated, crossing her arms.

​"I’m efficient," I replied, staring at the digital numbers as they ticked down. "There’s a difference. Get out, Andrea."

​"My father is an idiot," she said, ignoring my command. "He thinks he can buy you with a dowry and some land. He doesn’t understand men like you."

​I finally looked at her. "And you do?"

​"I know you don’t care about the marriage," she said, her voice sharp. "But you should care about the reason why he’s pushing it so hard tonight."

​"I assume it’s because he’s afraid of me and wants insurance," I said.

​"No," Andrea stepped closer, her perfume cloying in the small space. "He’s scared because he wants to be ahead of Alpha Theo."

​I stiffened. The name of Irene’s father always got my attention.

​"What about Theo?" I asked, my voice dropping.

​"Theo made a move this morning," Andrea said, watching my face closely. "A big one. He announced an alliance. A marriage alliance."

​My heart stopped. Then it started again, beating with a violent, possessive rhythm.

​"Who?" I demanded.

​Andrea smirked. She knew she had me. "Irene. He announced the engagement of his daughter, Irene, to King Voltage."

​King Voltage. The Lightning Alpha. The ruler of the North. In the real timeline, the engagement announcement hadn’t come until later. Why was it coming early in this loop?

​Voltage was a problem. Voltage was a variable I hadn’t accounted for.

​"When?" I asked, my hands curling into fists at my sides.

​"Early this morning," Andrea said. "My father is terrified. If Ironfang unites with Voltage’s pack, the North, they become the superpower of the continent. Their collaboration would strengthen the Ironfang Pack and make them untouchable. My father wants to stop that. He thinks the only way is by a collaboration with your Pack. With you."

​I stared at the metal doors, my mind racing at a thousand miles an hour.

​Irene with another man. Irene with Voltage.

​Rage, hot and blinding, clawed at my chest. It wasn’t just jealousy. It was an existential threat. If she married Voltage, she would be out of my reach. She would be protected by an army that could actually stand against me.

​And I had twenty-seven days.

​If she married him, I lost. The loop would reset, or worse—I’d be stuck in a timeline where she belonged to someone else.

​"Where are they?" I asked, my voice low and dangerous.

​"Who?"

​"Irene. Voltage. Where is this happening?"

​Andrea checked her watch. "Right now. They’re doing the engagement dinner tonight. The families of both Packs are meeting. It’s the final formality right before the wedding. It’s happening at the Ironfang Estate."

​I laughed. It was a dark, humorless sound.

​Of course. The universe was testing me. The loop was throwing obstacles in my path to see if I would break. It didn’t know that I didn’t break. I only conquered.

​"You want this alliance, Andrea?" I asked, not looking at her.

​"I want power," she admitted honestly. "And I want to see my father stop sweating. Yes. I want the alliance."

​"Good," I said. "Then you’ll get your chance to prove you’re useful."

​The elevator dinged. We had reached the lobby. The doors slid open, revealing the polished marble floors and the night beyond the glass walls.

​I stepped out, the air conditioning hitting my face. I felt focused. I felt alive. The boredom was gone, replaced by the thrill of the hunt.

This loop was different. She became engaged to Voltage earlier than expected. Great. I was getting bored.

​I turned to my right, heading toward the valet stand, my stride long and purposeful.

​"Where are you going?" Andrea called out, hurrying to keep up with me, her heels clicking rapidly on the floor.

​I stopped and looked back at her. I flashed a smile that was all teeth, the smile of a wolf who had just found the scent of his prey.

​"I have an engagement dinner to attend," I said.

​