The Beta’s Killer Bride

Chapter 6: Jace’s POV

I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her. Since I saw her drive away, I’ve been counting the hours until I saw Carol again.

The mate bond worked that way. It was funny, really. I barely know her, but I know she is the right woman for me. Not only is the pull strong, but I enjoy talking to her. I know she is hiding something from me; I can tell she uses a mask to cover her true emotions.

I wish I had Mom’s power to read people’s thoughts, but unfortunately, I don’t, which is why I asked her to come to the company. She knew I had met my mate and was happy to help me.

Because I couldn’t sleep, I decided to train some more when I felt my twin's presence.

“Kase?” I called his name. He had been gone for years and from the look on his face…

“Yeah,” he replied, making me instantly stop what I was doing. He looked heartbroken.

“What’s wrong?”

“She… I hate the mate bond,” he growled. Oh no… this isn’t good. “I tried, Jace, I really tried, but she…” he stopped again. “I don’t understand why I was paired up with her.”

“The Moon Goddess works in strange ways,” or at least that was what I believed.

“Don’t give me that crap; I don’t get why she can’t give us a mate that will love and cherish us at first sight. Why must we suffer?”

“I don’t know, bro, but it has always worked out in the end,” I tried to put my hand over his shoulder, but he was so angry that he shoved my hand off.

“Has it? Killian and Jennifer had to be apart for years, and they knew they were mates since she was born; Hope was kidnapped and tortured by her first mate, and the only ones who have decent bonds are Ian and Lillian, and that is because their mates aren’t stupid,” he exclaimed, making me shiver.

Nothing will happen with Carol, right?

“What happened?” I asked if my brother was so shaken it must not be good.

“She cheated on me,” his voice broke. “After all I did, she f*****g cheated on me.”

His words hit me like a sucker punch. I knew his mate bond wasn't the best one so far; we hadn't even met her, but I had never imagined it was this bad. Kase was better at handling situations; he could handle his emotions way better because his wolf wasn't as dominant as mine. I was stronger physically, but he was stronger mentally and emotionally. I thought everything would turn out fine in the end, but it seems I was wrong. The man that stood before me looked broken, and it was comprehensible: your mate is your other half, and if they cheat on you...

I didn’t know what to say. What could I say? “I’m sorry” felt hollow, and trying to rationalize it would only piss him off. So, I stayed silent, letting the weight of his pain settle in the room between us.

“I gave her everything,” he continued, pacing back and forth, his fists clenched so tightly I thought he might draw blood. “I was patient. I listened. I did everything the bond demanded of me. And it still wasn’t enough; she doesn't want me because I am not an Alpha or Beta; she wants to be Luna, and I can't give her that, so what did she do?” It was a rhetorical question, so I didn't answer. "She f***s some Alpha to become his Luna," his chuckle was hollow, showing how much this affected him.

“Kase,” I finally spoke, my voice low, trying to calm the storm brewing inside him. “She doesn’t deserve you.”

“Don’t give me that,” he snapped, his anger flaring. “That’s not how the bond works, Jace, and you know it. I wished I could tell her to f**k off, but I can’t just walk away from her. Every damn fiber of my being needs her, even after what she did. And I hate it. I hate her. I hate the Moon Goddess for doing this to me.”

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. This was exactly the kind of thing I was afraid of. The mate bond wasn’t always the blessing people made it out to be. It was complicated, painful, and, in some cases, downright cruel. And now, seeing my brother like this made me question everything.

“What are you going to do?” I asked carefully.

“I don’t know,” he admitted, his voice quieter now but no less tormented. “Part of me wants to reject her and move on. But the other part…” He stopped, his eyes locking with mine. “The other part is terrified I’ll never be whole again if I do; you know how hard it is to find a second chance mate.”

I stepped closer, gripping his shoulder firmly despite his earlier resistance. “You don’t have to decide right now. Give yourself time to think. To heal. Whatever you choose, Kase, you’ll have me—and the rest of the family—behind you.”

He didn’t say anything, but the tension in his body eased slightly. We stood there in silence for a moment, the weight of his pain settling over both of us.

But a seed of doubt had been planted in the back of my mind. If the mate bond could cause this much pain, what would happen if things went wrong with Carol? Could I end up like Kase—broken, angry, and questioning everything I believed in?

I clenched my fists, determination settling in my chest. No. I wouldn’t let that happen. Carol was different. She had to be. But I couldn’t ignore the thought whispering at the edge of my mind:

What if she wasn’t? She was hiding something from me; she was human, meaning I had a long way to go.

"Carol is not like that," Ajax snarled, and I wished, with all my heart, that he was right.

After my talk with Kase, we both went to our rooms, but I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking and wondering how my mate was. Could she be in a relationship? I should have asked her that, but I didn't even consider it at the moment.

"Mate is not in a relationship," Ajax growled and howled.

"And how do you know, genius?" I taunted, Ajax was having a hard time controlling his impulses, and keeping him at bay was exhausting.

"She doesn't have a male scent over her," He pointed out. Goddess, I don't know what I would do if I smelled a male scent all over her.

"We should ask her; still, we almost lost our s**t when we saw her father's name on her phone," I mumbled while I remembered how possessive and jealous I felt. When I heard her call that man Dad, I calmed down, but Ajax was still on edge.

I still asked her why she had saved her father's contact with his name, and the reason she gave me was weird, but who am I to judge?

I saw how the sun rose. I didn't sleep one bit, but I wasn't tired; I was excited because I would see her again. I dressed quickly in a deep navy suit and went straight to the office. I considered buying her flowers but then decided against it because it could freak her out.

My Mom called me while I was driving and informed me she would be at the company at three, so she suggested I ask Carol to be there. When I reached the office, I was informed that Carol was already in the building. Ajax howled happily, but I reminded him he had to keep calm if he didn't want to scare her. When I entered, Carol was sitting in the waiting area outside my office, her legs crossed and her eyes scanning some documents. She looked effortlessly beautiful; she wore light makeup, green trousers, and a beige coat. I loved how the green made her skin look.

I forgot how to breathe when her light brown eyes met mine.

“Good morning,” I greeted, forcing my voice to stay steady.

“Morning,” she replied, her tone soft but guarded. “I hope it’s okay that I came in early. I figured it would be better to try to catch up with everything."

“No, it’s perfect,” I said, gesturing toward my office. “Come in. I’d like to talk before we get started.”

Carol stood and followed me.

After a few hours, I taught her everything I could. Carol was a quick learner, but something was nagging me. I read her curriculum yesterday, and she was supposed to have experience. However, it didn't seem that way to me. I have had many secretaries. I can tell when someone is new to the job, and Carol definitely is a newbie.

"You worked with other companies before, right?" I asked as she finished updating my schedule.

"Yes, I started working when I was eighteen; during the day, I worked in Nexora Innovations," which was a small startup company. "During the night, I studied but never finished, which is why I am still job hunting."

Her tone made it seem like she was reading me a script, which didn't sit right with me.

"So all you have done is work and study?" I asked, wishing she would take the hint that I wanted to know more about her love life.

"Yes, I help my Dad with the expenses, so I have to work."

"And your Mom?" I asked while I thought if I should investigate her.

"She died when I was a kid; my Dad was the one who took care of me all my life," she had a sad face, but something wasn't adding up.

"Do you have siblings?"

"No, I don't," she shook her head. "But I think I should get to work. Do you need something else, Mr. Hills?" she said with a professional tone.

Now, I needed my Mom to be here more than ever.

"Yes, prepare the meeting room for the evening. My Mom is coming along with some investors, and I need you to be there to take some notes," I explained; she tensed up immediately, which made me even more suspicious.

Who are you, Carol? What are you hiding?

"Is there a problem?" I asked, trying to see what she would reveal next.

"No, not at all," she said; there was a slight shift in her scent, something I didn't smell before.

I didn't stop her when she left the office because I had to think. She was hiding something from me, and I would find out what it was.