ASYA

King, Alpha Mateo's Beta dismisses everyone from the auditorium except for me.

Dr. Penderghast stays with me, and I notice a couple standing down at the bottom of the stage. Still, my heart is pounding in my chest. I wonder what in the world is going to happen to me now.

“Well, I must say,” the Alpha King begins as soon as we are mostly alone, “when I met you earlier, I was not expecting you to be the winner.”

I can only stare at him. Believe me, I wasn’t either!

“But once Dr. Penderghast told me of your unique situation, well, how could I choose anyone else?” He...