Alpha's Secret Bride

The silence lingered between them.

Scarlet stared at her hands. She had told him everything she had spent winters trying to bury. Now he knew the truth. Surely, that would be enough for him to stop looking her way. It was better that he saw her for who she believed she was than keep holding on to false hope.

She waited for him to get up and leave.

Instead, he asked, "When was the last time you talked to her?"

Scarlet’s gaze dropped to the floor.

"I’ve only called her once since I came to this country."

"Why?"

Her fingers tightened around each other.

"I don’t want to bother her anymore."

Greg held her gaze.

"Did she ever tell you that you were bothering her?"

Scarlet gave a small shake of her head.

"No." She swallowed. "But after everything I did to her, I can’t keep calling her and asking for favors. I’m too ashamed."

Greg turned and walked over to her. He gently brushed the tears from her cheeks.

"It’s okay," he said quietly.

Scarlet gave a small nod and lightly moved his hand away from her face.

"I want you to call your sibling," he said. "Tell her you’re sorry you haven’t called in a while. She deserves to know you’re okay."

"I’ll call her later," she murmured.

Greg studied her for a moment before speaking again.

"When you fight the wrong battle, you end up losing for no reason. Don’t let the battle you lost decide the rest of your life."

He leaned back against the bed.

"Eira is one of my domestic staff. She had no right to tell you to resign from your job. I understand why you did it. You wanted to avoid more trouble, and I respect that. But this wasn’t a battle you needed to walk away from."

He paused, choosing his words carefully.

"Eira isn’t my fiancee, and neither are you. You’re both my moonallies."

A faint smile crossed his face.

"She’s worked for me for five winters. She knows when I’m having a difficult day, and she always seems to know exactly what to say to make me laugh. When I travel, she looks after the house. Sometimes she travels with me and stays in a separate chamber in case I need a woman I trust nearby."

He shook his head with a quiet chuckle.

"She’s helped me through a lot. Some of my moonallies think we’re together, but they’re wrong. We’ve never dated."

His expression softened.

"She’s more like an older sibling to me."

"Has she been mated?" Scarlet asked.

"No. Why do you ask?"

"I just wanted to know if she had her bond severed."

"No, she hasn’t been mated." Gregory shook his head. "She’s a good woman, and I respect her. I almost died from depression after I lost my mate. If it hadn’t been for her, I don’t know where I’d be. She stayed by my side through all of it, but kindness isn’t something you repay with a matebond or sex."

He gave a small shrug and walked her back to the bed.

"Would you go back to Amaris’s?" he asked.

Scarlet shook her head. "No. I want to look for another job."

"There’s an opening at my company. The salary is good, and it comes with accommodation and other benefits. Are you interested?"

"No."

"The interior manager at my house got mated last week, so I need a woman to replace him. The weekly salary is very attractive."

Scarlet shook her head again.

Working as his interior manager meant seeing Eira every day. She desperately needed a job. Her savings were disappearing faster than she wanted to admit, but that was one offer she couldn’t bring herself to accept.

"Come on, Scarlet," Greg said, his voice gentle.

She looked down at her hands.

"I just want to live a life where no one points a finger at me. I want a life without constant struggles."

Greg didn’t answer right away. He simply watched her, his brows drawing together, as though he couldn’t make sense of what she had just said.

"Life is full of battles and challenges," he said. "The more you run from them, the harder they chase you. Face each one as it comes, and make sure you’re walking the right path."

He reached for a bag on the bed, pulled out a small box, and held it out to her.

"We had a car promotion last week. We gave away ten of our newest cars, and your name was on my list. Out of those ten winners, my company will choose four brand ambassadors."

He placed the box in her hands.

Scarlet opened it carefully. The car key inside caught the light, and for the first time that day, a smile touched her face.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Gregory smiled, then got to his feet.

"I’m heading to my duty chamber," he said as he straightened his suit jacket. "And today, you’re my chauffeur."

Scarlet stood with him, still staring at the key resting in her palm. She turned it over slowly, almost as if she couldn’t believe it belonged to her.

They rode the elevator down in silence.

A minute later, they stepped outside the building. Parked at the curb was a sleek black Rider, its polished body gleaming under the high moon.

Scarlet stopped in her tracks. Her breath caught, and she swallowed before another quiet, "Thank you," slipped from her lips.

"You’re welcome." Gregory walked to the passenger side and opened the door. "Come on. Let’s get going."

She nodded and started toward the driver’s side.

Then she froze.

A few feet away stood Eira.

She didn’t say a word. She simply watched them, her eyes locked on Scarlet, her face tight with anger.

Scarlet’s fingers curled around the key.

For a moment, she wanted to walk over and tell Eira everything. She wanted to explain how she had tried to leave Gregory’s house, how every apartment she found had somehow slipped through her fingers, and how none of this was what it looked like.

But Gregory’s words echoed in her mind.

Face each battle as it comes.

She drew in a slow breath, opened the driver’s door, and climbed into the car.

Greg entered the destination, and the navigation display lit up. A route appeared on the screen, guiding the way.

"Just follow the directions," he said.

She nodded, shifted the car into drive, and pulled onto the road.

For a while, neither of them spoke. The soft voice from the navigation filled the silence.

"In five hundred yards, turn right."

She followed every instruction without missing a turn.

A few minutes later, she drove through the gates of Darkmore Auto Group’s manufacturing headquarters in Dublin. The navigation directed her down a ramp into the underground parking garage.

"Park anywhere," Greg said. "The reserved spots are farther in, but this is fine."

She eased the car into an empty space and switched off the engine.

"We’re here," she said quietly.

Greg unbuckled his seat belt. "Come on."

She stepped out after him. Cool moonrise air brushed against her face.

She looked up.

Darkmore Tower stretched high into the late moonrise, its glass walls reflecting the moonlight. Near the entrance stood a massive rotunda with DARKMORE AUTO GROUP carved across the front in bold letters.

She let out a slow breath.

"This place..." she murmured. "It’s even bigger than I imagined."

Greg glanced at the building before looking back at her.

"You haven’t seen anything yet," he said with a small smile. "Wait until you get inside."

She was still taking it all in when a hand tapped her shoulder.

She turned and found Gregory smiling at her.

"Since you’re already here," he said, reaching for her hand, "why not take the job?"

Heads turned as they walked through the mansion.

Employees slowed their steps and greeted Gregory, but their eyes kept drifting to Scarlet. A few whispered to one another after they passed.

"Who’s she?"

"I’ve never seen the boss bring a woman around before."

"She must be important."

Scarlet kept her eyes ahead and pretended not to hear them.

He led her toward the elevators.

The elevator doors slid open.

She stopped without realizing it.

The lobby stretched farther than she had expected. Moonlight poured through floor-to-ceiling glass walls, making the polished marble floor gleam like still water. A row of luxury vehicles sat on raised platforms, each one lit by soft white spotlights as if it belonged in an art gallery instead of a workplace.

She slowly turned her head.

Massive digital screens covered one wall, displaying car designs, assembly lines, and test tracks where newly built vehicles sped around sharp corners. Employees in tailored suits and engineers in dark uniforms moved through the lobby with tablets in their hands, greeting one another as they passed.

"Wow..." she whispered before she could stop herself.

Greg smiled.

"First time?"

She nodded. "I’ve never seen anything like this."

"This is only the lobby."

Her eyes widened.

The receptionist welcomed Greg the moment she saw him.

"Moonrise, Mr. Darkmore."

He returned the greeting with a nod and continued walking.

Scarlet hurried after him.

Beyond the lobby, a wide hallway opened into an airy workspace separated by glass walls. Designers studied holographic car models that rotated above sleek conference tables. Engineers discussed blueprints displayed on transparent touchscreens. Farther down, she caught a glimpse of a luxury lounge where clients sipped coffee while looking out through a glass wall at the production floor below.

She slowed again.

Below them, robotic arms moved in perfect rhythm, welding, lifting, and assembling vehicles with such precision that it almost looked like a carefully choreographed dance.

"You can see the factory from here?" she asked.

Greg looked down through the glass.

"I wanted people to remember what we built. No matter where they are in this building, they can see the heart of the company."

Scarlet stood there, watching another car roll down the assembly line.

For the first time since she came to Dublin, she could picture herself working somewhere like this.

She wanted the job.

More than she wanted to admit.

She had already told herself no.

Now she wasn’t so sure anymore.

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