The Alpha King’s Human Mate

The Alpha King’s Human Mate

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10) Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10)

“At the end of the day, it isn’t where I came from. Maybe home is somewhere I’m going and never have been.”

Warsan Shire

Aria had always thought the most beautiful place in the world was Liam’s pack and home. However, from the moment

she stepped into Sebastian’s pack, she realized just how wrong she’d been

Liam’s pack was a bleak comparison to the vibrant beauty of Sebastian’s home. After a short plane ride, where she’d

somehow managed to fall asleep on Sebastian’s shoulder, a car and a driver had been waiting for them at the airport.

The driver had stared at her curiously, but he didn’t ask who she was – and a single look from Sebastian, and the driver

didn’t look at her for the rest of the ride

Sebastian made small talk with her most of the way, pointing out cool landmarks or places he’d been to. His voice filled

the empty space of the car, and Aria found it soothing

A welcome distraction from the fact that she was, once again, leaving

behind everything she’d known to go somewhere new

Except this time, it was no one’s choice but her own

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10)

Her parents weren’t forcing her, Liam wasn’t ordering her to leave. She was in the driver’s seat — metaphorically, of

course

The ride itself had been long, and Aria couldn’t help but notice how different Washington looked than Texas, where herConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

family lived

In Texas, everything was flat and spread out with a dry heat that never seemed to go away, even in the dead of winter

Washington was refreshing

For once, she didn’t have the constant reminder of the sun beating down on her. Here, it was tucked behind a heavy layer

of clouds and thick trees. And as they drove, civilization became scarcer, the roads got narrower, and the trees got larger

Eventually, the driver turned onto a dirt road cloaked by large pine trees, and Aria caught sight of what she assumed to

be a few pack members on patrol. They were in the tree line, in their wolf forms, and one of them nodded at their car as

they passed through

They drove further in, the gravel of the road crunching under the tires of their SUV, until the trees cleared and –

There it was

Sebastian’s pack

It was much bigger than she’d expected, bigger than her parents’ pack

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10)

and even Liam’s

There were large residential wooden cabins as far as she could see as well as more commercial buildings: a convenience

store, a large infirmary, and even a building that looked like a school in the distance

People walked along the road or the sidewalk, mothers held the hands

of their children as they crossed the street, teenagers gathered in small groups to gossip

“Woah,” she couldn’t help but mutter

Sebastian, who’d already been staring at her, raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

She swallowed. If she strained, she could hear bits and pieces of their conversations — the teenagers laughing about

their crushes or the parent asking their child what candy they wanted from the story

“The people…” she started

“What? Your pack didn’t have people?” Sebastian asked, his voice teasing

“It’s not that,” she said, “It’s just…everyone seems so happy here.”

She didn’t need to look at him to know he was looking at her like she was a pitiful puppy who’d been caught shivering in

the rain

It didn’t change the truth of what she’d said

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10)

When she’d lived with her parents or Liam, nob*dy had ever seemed truly happy or relaxed. Both her father and Liam

had enforced stringent rules on their packs, but especially on the women. How to dress, how to talk, how to please their mates

And while she might’ve been eager for Liam’s approval, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d ever been relaxed like

these people were, content to just go about her business

She tried to shake off these depressing thoughts before her mood took a nosedive for the rest of the day. This was

supposed to be the start of something new and exciting, of her and Sebastian’s life together

With that in mind, she grabbed Sebastian’s hand and forced the biggest smile she could. “Your home is lovely,” she said,

“Where to first?”

He didn’t look completely convinced by her sudden shift in mood, but he seemed to realize it wasn’t something she wanted to dwell on. So, he replied, “Well, I was thinking we could stop by my family’s home first

You could meet my parents.”

“Your parents?” She echoed

“Yeah, they know you’re coming,” he said, and he must’ve read the panic on her face because he was quick to add, “They

know all about you, and I promise they’re excited to meet you. My mom’s thrilled honestly — she’s been waiting for me

to meet my mate since the day I turned sixteen.”

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It was hard for Aria to believe that Sebastian’s parents would truly be excited to meet her, knowing her background, but

he seemed genuine

“Really?” She asked

“Really,” he smiled, and squeezed her hand, “My mom is just going to be excited to have another girl in the family,

especially with my sisters living in other places now.”

As he said it, Aria noticed that the car turned onto a private drive, even more gravel crunching under the tires

The house they arrived in was large, probably the largest house she’d seen so far. It must’ve easily been three floors,

although she shouldn’t have been surprised. Sebastian’s father was the Alpha, of course he’d have the biggest house in

the pack

“Here we are,” the driver told them, the first thing he’d said the entire drive

Sebastian nodded, opened his door and then gestured for Aria to follow him out. She took his hand without question,

but as they walked up the drive, she couldn’t help but say, “Wait.”

Sebastian stopped in his tracks immediately. “What’s wrong?”

“lm not…” She gestured down to her plain cotton pajamas, the same clothes she’d left the castle in. “I’m not dressed in

the right attire for meeting your parents.”

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The worst part was that she didn’t have anything to change into. She’d entered the castle with nothing but the clothes

on her back, and left that way

“That’s okay,” Sebastian said, “My parents won’t mind. If anything, my mom will want to share her entire wardrobe with

you.”

Aria nodded, but her stomach still continued to twist in knots as they came closer to the door. She inched closer to her mate as he opened the

door, and – “WELCOME HOME!”

Aria nearly lept out of her skin when she realized that it wasn’t just Sebastian’s parents standing in the foyer of the home,

but what must’ve been at least thirty people, crammed into every inch of the hallway

Aria curled into Sebastian’s back immediately, and he straightened up, stepping in front of her to hide her from view

A large man broke away from the crowd, and Aria identified him as Sebastian’s father, Alpha Bellevue, immediately: he

was just an inch shorter than her mate and with blonde hair, but their eyes were the same piercing blue. He had a large

grin on his face, and Aria’s assumption was only confirmed when he pulled Sebastian in for a hug, slapping him on the

back. “Welcome home, son.”

Sebastian was not smiling

Bonus Chapter – Aria & Sebastian (10)

“Dad, what is this? Why is everyone here?” More quietly, he added, “I thought I told you that I wanted just you and mom

here.”

Sebastian’s father shrugged. “Well, yeah, but everyone knew you were coming back. Everyone was worried about you,

you know. Going off to battle for your sister…you’re lucky the entire pack wasn’t waiting on your doorstep.”

Before he could reply, a smaller woman sidled up next his father and pulled Sebastian into a close hug. No doubt his mother, Luna Grace — they shared the same rich brown hair color

“Oh, my baby,” she breathed, “You have no idea how worried I was about you.”

They embraced for a moment longer before Sebastian pulled away, and Aria could make out unshed tears in Luna

Grace’s eyes

That was only the start of the reunion

One by one, every pack member crammed into the house took their turn welcoming Sebastian back, some armed with

questions about the castle or the King or Queen Clark:

So…our little human is really the Queen then? And she’s still human? She didn’t have some sort of dormant wolf?

Is it true that she ran from the King after she found out she was meant to be Queen? What was she so scared for? She’s

lived around us for most of

her life, we practically raised that girl!

Sebastian answered every question to the best of his ability, but Aria could see that the comments grated on him. Queen

or not, he was still clearly protective of his little sister.)

Aria was so focused on Sebastian’s conversations and blending into the background that she hadn’t noticed Alpha

Bellevue approach her. He stood next to her, arms crossed and with a look she couldn’t quite read as he said, “So, my son

tells me you’re to be the future Luna of this pack. Aria Thomas, I presume?”

She’d never wanted to melt into the wallpaper more