Marissa took a step back once those words were uttered. Her senses were clouded earlier on, but now, she could finally see who her mate was.
"It is you," she whispered, her voice, barely audible, once she finally got a good look at the man who claimed to be her mate.
"Alpha Bryce," the man muttered as his steady gaze locked with hers.
"That is my name," he clarified, sensing her confusion.
Marissa nodded, and silence stretched in the atmosphere as it turned tense.
"Will you be rejecting me?" Marissa asked the question which bothered her, breaking the tension.
Bryce who had his head lowered previously snapped his head to look at Marissa.
"What did you just say?" He asked, his voice was more of a growl which sent a shiver down Marissa's spine.
"I was asking if you would reject me, surely, you do not want a Luna who is infamous for turning people to stone when they come in contact with her," there was logic behind Marissa's words, although each syllable she uttered were like stabs to her heart.
She had hoped she would get an insignificant mate, someone who wouldn't be bothered about her curse like an alpha would, but the Moon Goddess played a cruel joke on her by giving her an Alpha.
Alpha Bryce remained quiet, and his silence was all that Marissa needed to know, or so she thought.
"You can reject me now," Marissa appeared confident, but her wolf howled in anguish.
"I want to see your face," Alpha Bryce demanded after a few seconds of silence, taking a few steps towards her.
His demand threw Marissa off guard as she raised her head to look at him. Her veil added a sense of mystery to her, one which Bryce so badly wanted to explore.
"W-what do you mean by that?" She asked, instinctively clutching her veil.
"Why would you demand for such when you are aware of the curse?" Marissa stuttered as she took a step back with her hands firmly pressed on her veil.
"I am immune to curses, I want to see your face, and for your information, I am not rejecting you, you will be my Luna, and as your mate, I am entitled to see your face," Alpha Bryce explained to her.
Marissa, on the other hand, had a skeptical look in her eyes, and she didn't bother to hide that she doubted his words.
She could not bear for someone else to turn to stone, especially when this person was her mate, and a powerful Alpha.
"You can trust me, if I weren't immune to curses, I would have probably died a long time ago," Bryce chuckled.
Marissa searched his face hoping to see some kind of deception, but she was met with confidence and trust.
Trust.
She had spent her entire life being feared. The feeling of being accepted was foreign to her.
"I won't be responsible for what happens afterwards," with these words, Marissa slowly unclasped her veil.
The fabric skipped away from her face as she closed her eyes, bracing for the worst to happen.
But nothing happened.
Instead, she felt the weight of Bryce's stare on her, and it felt like she was the most beautiful person he had ever seen.
It was not an exaggeration. Marissa was one with distinct features. Having gotten her features from her late mother, it was an undeniable fact that Marissa was the most beautiful lady in the pack.
She possessed emerald eyes, a very rare color. She also possessed high cheekbones which graced her delicate face. Her full lips were also a sight to behold.
But what captivated Bryce the most were her emerald eyes. The world seemed to fade away as he stared straight into those beautiful eyes of hers.
"You were right," Marissa whispered seeing that Bryce did not turn to stone as expected.
"I was not lying when I said I was immune to curses," Bryce stated, his eyes not leaving Marissa's face, causing the latter to feel a little more self-aware.
"You are beautiful," Bryce compimented, and she thanked him shyly.
"Shall we go see your dad? I am not rejecting you as my mate, but rather, I want to take you as my Luna, do you agree?" Bryce asked, although he was confident she would agree to his we words.
Marissa looked at Bryce with several emotions swirling in her eyes. He was the first person apart from her father and friends who accepted her just the way she was.
"I agree," Marissa agreed with a shy smile.
A smile appeared on Bryce's lips at her words, and he stretched his hands towards her, expecting her to take it.
"I will just put on my veil first," Marissa said, and he nodded with understanding while making a mental note to find the cure to her curse.
****************
Marissa and Bryce walked into the ceremony hall, hand-in-hand, and this sight shocked everyone who laid their eyes on them.
"Isn't that the Alpha's daughter?"
"Yes, she is the one, it seems she found her mate."
"Who is the young man beside her? I have never seen him here."
"I think I saw him at the Alpha's table earlier."
"Does that mean he is also an Alpha?"
"If that is the case, then she is blessed even with the curse she has."
Marissa was visibly shaken by the whispers. For the first time, after living her life in fear of what people said about her, today was different.
She could hear their whispers, but those whispers held something different.
Awe.
Curiosity.
And perhaps, envy.
A smirk of amusement appeared on Bryce's face as he listened to the whispers.
The two finally arrived at where the other Alphas were gathered, and a smile appeared on Alpha Kain's face when he noticed Marissa, but the smile dropped when his eyes flickered over to Bryce.
His face darkened as he stared straight at Bryce who was taken aback after sensing the hostility.
"What are you doing with him?" Alpha Kain questioned. His voice was sharp and controlled, but the veins on his clenched fists betrayed his anger.
"Dad, relax, he is my mate," Marissa announced, but what she didn't expect was her father's reaction.
"What?" Alpha Kain's voice was extremely loud which caught the attention of the nearby people.
"What do you mean by that? How can he be your mate?" Alpha Kain questioned with anger in his voice.
Marissa was confused as she watched her father have an outburst.
'Why was her Father so angry? What did he know about Bryce that she didn't?' Marissa questioned herself as her eyes darted between her father and Bryce.