CHAPTER 9

**Nadine’s First Life: Engagement**
Her coming out at eighteen was a success. In the morning, she received tons of marriage proposals from various gentlemen, however, she wasn’t happy about it. She didn’t like anyone except for Marcus Caldwell.
She just wanted to stay in bed but her father requested her to join him at breakfast. Groaning, she rolled over until her feet touched the hardwood flooring. She let out a yawn and stretched her arms before going to the bathroom to take a quick shower.
She had been awake for a couple of hours. In fact, she was already reading some of the marriage proposals while in bed, but her father called and demanded she should join him at breakfast. Inwardly, she became nervous about her father’s request because it was unusual for Alpha Frederick to demand her presence early in the morning.
“Good morning, Daddy!” She immediately greeted him but his expression warned her to be careful with her words.
“What's good in the morning, Nadine? Someone reported to me about your escapade with Marcus last night. So what happened? I thought we had a clear discussion about this matter!”
Nadine took a deep breath before responding to her father. He was furious, and he kept on raising his voice! “I want him, Daddy,” she declared.
“My god, Nadine! Have you lost your mind? He doesn’t love you, girl. If he is in love with you, then he should come forward and ask me for your hand,” Frederick stated a fact.
“What can I do, Daddy? He’s the only one I want for my husband. I refuse to become anyone else’s wife!”
“Nadine! Have you gone mad? Marcus Caldwell is the only heir of White Pride! Do you believe his parents will allow someone like to become the Luna?”
“Why not, Daddy? I am qualified to become his Luna! You are also an Alpha and I am your only daughter!”
“Yes, you are right. I might be an Alpha but our pack isn’t as strong as White Pride. For sure, they want a pack with the same reputation as theirs!”
“Nonsense! He is my mate, and Marcus is aware of it,” she argued.
“Nadine, please be reasonable about this! You’re only asking for trouble!”
“Relax, Daddy. I can handle my own affair, don’t worry,” she assured him, but deep inside, she was really worried. There might be another reason why he delayed asking for her hand. Then, she sighed deeply.

“I just don't want you to get hurt, Nadine!” Frederick explained.
Nadine understood her father but she couldn’t allow him to hinder her plan. She planned to propose to Marcus if he wouldn’t do it. “I still want him, though,” she replied. “You should be the one to talk to Mommy about this,” she suggested.
“No negotiations, please.” Frederick stubbornly listened to Nadine's reasoning.
“Dad, this is really the last. Please, just let me have him,” she begged her father.
“Marcus already has a girlfriend, my dear. Please, have mercy on that man!” When it comes to Marcus Caldwell, Nadine was obsessed. “He’s engaged to someone else,” he added.
“What about me, Dad? Don't you feel sorry for me? Besides being my mate, he already kissed me!”
“Stop this nonsense, Nadine!” Frederick slapped the table again to get his daughter’s attention but she was so stubborn for goodness’ sake! “So, the rumor was true?”
“Last night -” she wanted to tell her Daddy how she felt last night when Marcus kissed her but someone came. It was her mother, and her expressions told her she shouldn’t continue in blabbering nonsense.
“Last night was all about lust. Marcus was gone for too long without a woman, Nadine. And you were there, probably tempting him!” Frederick pointed out the underlying fact to Nadine, and yet his stubborn daughter refused to hear him!
“Your father is right, Nadine. That kiss didn’t mean anything!”
Nadine wanted to argue with her mother, Diana, but she knew she was powerless when it comes to her mother. Diana Smith was a lioness, and Frederick was under her control. “He is my mate, Mommy.”
“You don’t have to marry your mate, darling. I married your father even though he’s not my mate,” Diana reasoned.
“No! You married him because you love him! I love Marcus and being his mate is just a bonus,” she continued to argue. Both of her parents rolled their eyes at her.
“Stop this nonsense, Nadine! Sit down and eat,” Frederick commanded.
“Okay, Daddy. By the way, I have to go somewhere in the afternoon,” she informed him.
“Where are you going?”
“I will visit Marcus,” she replied and her father almost fall from his seat. Was it a shocking news to him?
“No, you can’t visit him later. You should just stay at home,” he said.
“If you won’t allow me to visit Marcus, then I think I will have to marry the son of Alpha Julius,” she stated, and as expected, her father wasn’t pleased about her statement.
“You will never do that!” He raised his voice at her.
Alpha Julius was a known suitor of her mother when she was young. The man was her father’s rival in asking for Diana’s hands in marriage. “So, can I visit Marcus later?”
Frederick sighed and replied, “Okay. Just bring Kate with you.”
“Sure,” Nadine responded but she lied about agreeing to take Kate later. She wanted to go alone. A few minutes later, Kate served her favorite breakfast. It was garlic rice, bacon, and sunny-side-up eggs. “Thank you, Kate!” She wanted to invite Kate to eat with her but it wasn’t allowed in their household. Servants should eat separately, together with their other servants.
After breakfast, she informed Kate about her plan to visit Marcus Caldwell.
“A horse? Why would you ride a horse? You have several cars in the garage!”
“I know but I want to take the shortcut. I miss him so much,” she whispered but her father probably heard her because he cleared his throat.
Nadine just smiled at her parents who couldn’t do anything to stop her from seeing Marcus despite the nasty rumor going around. Then, she frowned and wonder who started the rumors. She was in the garden with Marcus and it was a private! No guest was allowed to enter it!
While getting ready to meet him, she sent him a message. She didn’t care if he would reply to his message because it wouldn’t change the fact that she was going to see him. She changed into blue denim shorts and a black blouse. Then, she braided her long, silver hair before applying lip gloss to her red lips.
Contrary to her father’s wishes, she didn’t bring Kate with her. She went alone, and she was confident that everything would be alright. However, a group of rogue werewolves stopped her on the way to the pack of White Pride.
She was torn between going back to her home and to proceed to her destination. She was already far from home but Marcus’ home was also far. She didn’t know any of the men who blocked her way. She narrowed her eyes at the man in front of his band and glared at him.
Nadine has heard a lot of rumors about a group of bandits or rogue werewolves but she never had the chance to encounter them. They looked dangerous, especially their leader, but she remained on top of her horse and never cowered before him.
As soon as she noticed that he was about to inch forward, she didn’t hesitate in urging her horse to run as fast as it could toward the opposite direction. She didn’t wait for them to have a chance to get closer to her.
Her chest heaved high and low as she managed to escape from the rogues and even from a distance, she could hear them laughing while chasing her. They were getting closer and closer and she wondered why their horses ran so fast. How did they own some purebred horses? Did they steal those horses?
Her fear intensified as she entered a dense forest. Fortunately, she had been in the forest before. Once upon a time, Marcus brought her to the forest to look for wild mushrooms. He was fond of mushrooms and wildflowers. Inwardly, she prayed they would stop chasing her in the woods!
When she suddenly heard a gunshot, the horse jumped up and fell to the ground. Her horse was shot dead! Nadine’s eyes widened in fear as she stared into the horse’s dying eyes. She wanted to comfort her favorite horse but she had no time for that. The rogues were getting closer!
A bullet nearly grazed her cheeks if she didn’t lower her head to say goodbye to her horse. For a second, she almost believed that a bullet hit her! Slowly, she crawled away from the scene and prayed so hard for her safety!
She was almost at the safest place in the forest when it suddenly rained so hard. For a second, she closed her eyes, then she mustered all the courage to get away from danger. She was drenched when she reached the cave. Then, she sighed with relief. It’s a secret place that only she and Marcus was aware of!
Carefully, she went inside to the deeper part of the cave where she could ensure her safety. Nadine was alert and she was vigilant while waiting for the rain to stop. However, the silence inside the dark cave was terrifying! Then, she was worried it would be late before her father could track her down.
Nadine bit her bottom lip as she regretted her action of leaving home alone. She should have brought Kate with her! While alone and stranded in the cave, Nadine bargained with the Moon Goddess to help her and she promised to be a good girl! She was scared of the dark and she was also afraid of snakes!
Suddenly, she felt that someone was watching her from afar. She felt goosebumps on her skin while waiting for a demon to show up. Out of fear, she just closed her eyes. The silence was deafening, so she opened her eyes, and behold! There was a man in front of her!
“W-who are you?”