The Wolf’s Fake Mate by Layla Silver

Chapter 12 – Hailey

I quite liked Silas’ way of convincing me of his love. He showered me with kisses and always made sure I came first in bed—often numerous times before he had his orgasm. I felt adored: and when I was this close to him, I could put the fear of him leaving me someday out of my head. With his lips on me, I couldn’t think of anything else but him. When he gazed at me lovingly, I felt I really was the perfect woman he considered me to be. I wanted to hold on to this feeling as completely as I could. I had never felt so good in my life, so complete. A part of me knew that this bliss wouldn’t last, but I wanted to enjoy it for as long as possible.

That’s why I decided that I wouldn’t mention to Silas my worries about him leaving me in the future. We weren’t in a committed relationship—sure, we were exclusive, and he loved me, but we weren’t mates; we had no plans to get married. I decided I would focus on him in the present and treasure every moment we had together. When he finally did decide to leave me, at least I would have those good memories to look back on as I returned to my everyday life as the Hailey I had been before.

We planned to spend every minute after work together, so one day after our shift I decided to go back home to grab my things. I was relieved to have a place away from my family, where I could feel safe and free—Silas’ apartment. Actually, the specific place didn’t matter—being anywhere in the general vicinity of Silas was comforting. I knew he would protect me from anything that might threaten me. That was why I hadn’t brought him with me to my house today. I didn’t want any unnecessary arguments.

I slipped in quietly. No one was in the kitchen this time around, so I made my way upstairs to my room. I was in the middle of packing my suitcase with comfy clothes when I heard a soft knock on the door. That subtle sound told me immediately that it wasn’t Aunt Evangeline or Laurene—they knocked like they demanded immediate attention. I couldn’t help but feel relieved; I genuinely didn’t want to hear what any of them had to say.

I opened the door to see the bride-to-be Gabriella standing there, an unsure smile on her face. I knew immediately that she wanted something from me and that I had a 50/50 chance of not liking it, but she would plead until I would agree anyway. That was the way it had been all our lives, and I’d learned to recognize her expressions.

“Hello, Hailey… I noticed you didn’t return home last night…” Gabriella started.

“I sent Mom a message that I wouldn’t return,” I replied, cutting short that line of conversation. “I was with my mate.”

“Ah, yes, your mate. I actually wanted you to ask your mate a favor….” Ah, so she wanted something from Silas. Somehow this ruffled my fur. “So your mate is Silas Petterson, the owner of Sun and Moon,” she stated the obvious. “Do you think… we could hold my and Tobias’ wedding at his restaurant?”

I stared at her in shock. “You already have a venue, though. And you already made a deposit on it.” Each month every working family member put a share of their money into the family fund to be used for living expenses, and lately also to help Gabriella fund her wedding.

“Yeees…” she prolonged the word. “But the venue I found is so shabby. I really don’t like it. It was just the only place that was free at that time and not overly expensive.”

“Sun and Moon is going to be a five-star restaurant soon. Silas already applied for the ranking. It’s bound to be expensive too,” I tried to reason with Gabriella.

“Yes, but it’s owned by your mate! Wouldn’t he give us a discount since he’s practically part of our family?” She stated her reasoning like it was the most obvious thing. Then she stared at me, her eyes big and pleading.

Inside I facepalmed… twice. I could follow Gabriella’s logic, however convoluted it was. If Silas and I were real mates, he would move heaven and earth to make my every wish a reality. However, we were just lovers; we weren’t really mating. This request felt like too much to ask him—to organize hosting the wedding in two weeks and to give a discount on top of that favor.

When Gabriella looked at me like that, though, I couldn’t refuse to at least promise to try. And if I gave my word, my honesty would prevent me from not going through with it. I would talk to Silas even though I would certainly embarrass myself.

A part of me was annoyed that my family always put me in such delicate situations. I hated Gabriella for a moment for always demanding things from me and giving back little but unpleasant words in return. However, being family wasn’t about equal exchanges. The family was together through good and bad. Would Gabriella come to my rescue if my life went south? Absolutely. I didn’t believe she detested me, and gradually my anger at her subsided. I would make her wedding the best one in the world—because she was my sister, my closest kin, and she deserved nothing but the best. I wasn’t entirely happy, but if I satisfied Gabriella then I would feel some satisfaction too. More than that, Mom would be overjoyed if Gabriella had a picturesque wedding. And Mom was so sad most of the time that I wanted to help her feel a bit better too.

“Alright, I’ll talk to Silas about holding your wedding at Sun and Moon,” I replied.

Gabriella squealed and embraced me. It felt a bit awkward to me and not at all how I felt when Silas hugged me. The gesture brought me no joy—the only thing I felt was the weight of my promise.

***

That night, as we lay together on Silas’ bed watching an action show on-demand, Silas looked at me more than he did at the screen. Finally, he paused it and took my chin in his hands, gazing into my eyes intensely.

“Something’s troubling you,” he noted. “I swear, if your family upsets you again, I will—”

“No, it’s not like that.” I patted his hand gently then sighed. “You know my sister Gabriella, the one who’s getting married in two weeks?”

“Yes, I’m familiar with which one of your sisters that is.” Silas nodded.

“Gabriella’s wedding venue is Izzy B’s in Boston.”

“That’s…” Silas started, then took his time trying to find the fitting description for the place. I smiled. “Quite a shithole,” he admitted in the end, which made me laugh.

“I know. But it’s the only one Gabriella could find on such short notice. And now she approached me to ask me if I could talk you into…” I paused and took a breath. “... holding the wedding at Sun and Moon. In two weeks. And with a discount.” Now that I had finally broached the subject, words started flowing out of me. “I understand that’s a very unreasonable request, but I promised her I will at least ask you—”

“It’s fine. Let’s do it.”

“—you will, of course, refuse, and I agree that’s the reasonable thing to do—wait, what did you say?” I asked, not sure if I’d heard correctly.

“I said we can hold your sister’s wedding at Sun and Moon in two weeks, and I will not take a lot of money from your family.” Silas smiled and patted my head. “Don’t worry about it, Hailey. I’ll make it the most amazing wedding she could imagine. And you will, of course, help me.”

“Yes, I will,” I answered, stunned.

“This will make you happy, right?” Now there was concern in his eyes.

“Of course!” I beamed at him, putting as much conviction into my expression as I could. I was trying to convince myself as much as him.

Silas bought my smile because he kissed me to seal the deal then turned to watch the show. I joined him, but my attention was on my sister’s wedding. Now I was even more involved in it, and it would take up most of my time as my boss would probably want me with him for planning the menu and decorations. It would be a hard two weeks, but at least I would be able to contribute to my sister’s happiness. But why was I such an evil sister that I couldn’t feel overjoyed at the chance to do anything to please her?

***

The next day after work, I laid the documents I’d gotten from Silas on the table. It was just Gabriella and I in the kitchen. “Silas agreed to hold the wedding at Sun and Moon. Here is the proposed price for the services.”

My sister squealed, delighted. She moved to my side of the table to kiss me on one cheek and then the other. “Thank you, Hailey, oh, thank you.”

Her genuine happiness removed some of the bad feelings I had towards this situation. So what if I wasn’t thrilled about being so closely involved with Gabriella’s wedding? It would only be two weeks, and it would help my family be happy which would make me happy too. I put my bad mood into the do-not-open box and closed it.

“So Silas did that for Hailey.” Laurene entered the kitchen. Her voice was as condescending as always. “Must be nice to have a mate like that. I wonder how long he’ll be able to put up with her demands before he decides it’s too much and leaves her.”

I glared at her. I felt furious at her talking about Silas and me like that.

But… wasn’t that the truth? It was inevitable that Silas would leave me eventually. Maybe some of the resentment I felt towards Gabriella came from her making me ask something unreasonable of him, which would certainly make him walk away sooner… I had felt that possibility when she had first told me her plea… but I had asked him anyway.

Laurene smiled, triumph showing on her face. She knew that when I went quiet, her unpleasantness had struck a nerve. It was a victory for her to bully me.

“You know I’m right,” my sister said. “Poor Hailey… it’s only a matter of time…”

As much as I hated to admit it, she was right. I knew the painful truth in my heart, and others seeing it too convinced me I was right in my doubts about Silas.

That night I told Silas I was tired, and when I was sure he had fallen asleep, I silently cried into the pillow to make sure he didn’t notice. I didn’t want Silas to leave me ever. But I never got what I desired, so why would this situation be any different?