- Titus -

The minute I turned to face the woman who would become my wife tonight my entire world stopped.

I had to take hold of the mantle so as not to fall onto the floor.

There she stood, the very likeness of my Maggie.

Only, she was somehow different.

'MATE'

I couldn't look away, this girl, she was so much like her and yet there was something off. She was gorgeous for sure but perhaps she was too gorgeous.

"MATE'

The girl was confusing even my wolf by her sheer likeness to Maggie.

Maggie was my mate and I had felt it the minute I laid eyes on her. And amongst the many things I loved about her were her many flaws and imperfections.

"Leave us." I finally got out as I tore my eyes away from this ghostly beauty.

I looked into the fire as if searching for answers, who was this demon sent here to haunt me? And how was she able to affect my wolf like this. So much so that I had honestly never experience my wolf in a frenzy such as now...I had to do everything to not let him out.

Once I heard the door click shut I knew I was fully alone with this girl.

I looked at her once more, "p-please, have a seat." I stumbled over my words.

She nodded before carefully taking a seat on the long leather sofa.

"Could I get you anything?"

I she held her hand up and shook her head politely in protest.

I nodded before sitting on the opposite end of the sofa but angled my body so I would be facing her.

"Please...if you would tell me a little about yourself."

She licked her lips and messed with her hands before she spoke, but it was the small movement of her tongue over her lips that drew out the first difference.

This girl had fuller lips than Maggie did.

"My name is Everest Kirkshaw, I just turned 22, I am proudly from the south, Springwell Pack to be exact, I have two older brothers, two slightly older sisters and one younger brother...and I guess that's it." She smiled a little nervously as she ran a hand through her curly locks.

The second difference: while Maggie had pretty brown hair that went down her back in waves Everest had more wild hair, it was fuller, curlier, longer.

I nodded.

"And what about yourself?" She asked.

I figured I would have to tell her about myself but I hadn't expected her to ask. "Oh, well as you know, my name is Titus Graystone, son of the Alpha Supreme Clifton Graystone, and Alpha of the Northern Stone Pack."

"Like you said" she replied with a small smile, "things I already know."

It had taken me buy surprise.

"Well what else is there?" I asked.

"Age, favorite color, Do you want to do this, marry me?"

I looked right at her, "I'm 27, Navy Blue...and do you want to go through with this?"

"I don't have a choice." She whispered.

"Neither do I." I admitted. "But like it or not, we've been arranged and therefore we go through with this Union."

She gave me a hard stare, "I'm not a virgin, I'm not pure."

I smirked at her sass, "neither am I" I admitted, "and love I'm far from pure."

Her breath hitched and her large eyes widened even more before she stood up and moved about the room.

I took in her outfit of choice, even the clothing was similar to Maggie's style, I couldn't help but shake my head.

"Were you hoping to dissuade me from marrying you this evening..." Then something hit me. "You said you're you just turned 22...so am I to take it you haven't found your mate then?"

At this she hesitated before shaking her head.

"Look, we're getting married...and you seem like a decent girl worth marrying. But before we do I don't want there to be any surprises tonight."

"Well I don't have a penis if that's what you're inquiring."

I laughed. "Sit down Everest...we need to talk seriously now."

She did so a little begrudgingly.

"What do you know about the Union Ceremony?"

She suddenly looked like a deer caught in front of headlights.

"Uh, well the man and the woman are approved by the council, and then before their parents and members of the council they say the vows and then perform the mating."

I nodded, "that is essentially it, except you've forgotten one very important part of it."

She remained silent so I continued.

"There is also the revealing."

"What is that?"

I could see she truly had no idea what I was talking about.

"One of the main reasons that the union ceremony takes a full day, other than us performing our various traditions apart in preparation for the evening...we perform what is known as the revealing." I said. "Simply put, the alpha supreme orders us to reveal our deepest secrets that could ruin a marriage."

I could hear her heart beating furiously in her chest and I knew now that she was definitely withholding something from me.

I had this urge to comfort her but resisted the urge.

"So you see when I said earlier that I wish to enter this marriage with no secrets I meant it."

She nodded.

"Like it or not you will be my wife pretty soon, and I will be your husband and by the end of the night we will know everything there is to know about each other, but I would rather you tell me because you want to, not because you are forced to."

Once more she licked her bottom lip and cast her eyes down before meeting my gaze with her own. Her warm brown eyes looked into my own nearly black ones before she finally spoke.

"The truth is, I have found my mate...we've been together once, but...unfortunately that was the end of it."

I nodded. "I know all too well how it feels to not be with your mate, I wish things could be different for the both of us, but to make things easier for you, you'll have to do something."

With saddened eyes she slowly nodded.

"You're going to have to reject him."