Daniel's POV:
I was shocked.I couldn't believe my father wanted me to be the next Alpha.
All my life, I had always thought that my older brother would take that position.
He was the eldest son of my parents, and he was resourceful.
I was certain that he too was expecting he'd inherit the position.
Because of this, I was worried he would think that I was robbing him of what was rightfully his.
On the other hand, however, I wanted to live up to my father's expectations.
"I will do my best to deal with the pack affairs, Dad.I won't let you down."
When my brother expressed his support, I felt relieved.
"Good.Daniel, I have faith in your abilities.Well, I'm tired now, so you may all go.Don't worry about
me.I'm in good hands."
My father's voice was weak.When he was done speaking, he closed his eyes as though he was
exhausted.
"You must be tired, too.Go get some rest," my mother said to me gently.
As she spoke, she tucked my father in carefully.
I nodded.
My father needed to rest, so we all filed out of his room.
But before closing the door behind us, Helen bowed to my parents.
"Please take care of yourselves.Call me and Daniel if you need anything."
Then, Helen hugged my mother.
"Luna Betty, we will do everything we can to help Alpha Marlon get through this."
"Helen, you are such a good girl.Daniel's lucky to have you."
My father finally cracked a smile.
"I will pass on my position to Daniel on your wedding day.He will become the Alpha, while you will
become his Luna.Make the necessary preparations as soon as possible."
Helen's cheeks turned red as a tomato.
I could see that she was at a loss for words, so I quickly took her hand and thanked my father for her.
Then, I led her out of the room quietly.
Just as we were about to head to my room, Devin blocked our path.
"Hey, Daniel," he called in an accusatory tone.
"Why do you steal my position? I'm supposed to become the Alpha!"
Devin stood in front of me menacingly, whereas Grace stood to the side, smiling awkwardly.
"I didn't, Devin." I frowned.
What on earth did he mean?
"Devin, it was Alpha Marlon who chose Daniel to be the next Alpha.You saw yourself.Daniel didn't
make the decision himself.Why are you saying otherwise?"
Helen stepped in between Devin and me protectively.
"Humph!"
Devin snorted unhappily, shooting Helen a contemptuous glare.
I quickly pulled Helen to my side, worried that Devin would do something rash.
Thankfully, he simply sneered and turned on his heel to leave.
"You'll see, Daniel.I'm not going to let this slide."
As he walked away, Devin didn't even bother to look back.
Helen's POV:
When I first met Daniel's elder brother, I was surprised at how different he was from Daniel.
It also looked like he resented his little brother.
He opposed Daniel all the time.
But what I said was true; it was Marlon's decision to let Daniel take over the position of Alpha.
So why was Devin so angry with Daniel? When we got back to Daniel's room, I pondered over what
had happened today and couldn't help but feel worried.
"Daniel, your father is more seriously ill than I thought.How could this have happened? It's just too
sad!"
I held Daniel's hands and sighed.
"Helen, don't worry about it."
Daniel slipped his arms around me, gently stroking the back of my head.
"Plus, your brother doesn't seem to like you,"
I added, pursing my lips unhappily.
"What he said just now left a bad taste in my mouth.I'm worried that, because he hates you so much,
he will set you up for doom after you become the Alpha."
Daniel seemed to realize just how serious I was because he cupped my face and locked eyes with me.
"Our relationship wasn't always this bad.When we were children, we used to play with each other.But
as we grew older, our personalities became like fire and water.I tried to improve my relationship with
him, but nothing I did worked.Honey, thank you for warning me.I'll be vigilant around him, I promise."
Daniel leaned forward to plant a kiss on my forehead.
"Don't worry.I'll take care of everything.Just be my bride, okay?"
I buried my head in Daniel's arms.
I couldn't suppress the joy in my heart at the thought of getting married.
"Oh, my God, Daniel!"
I looked up at him excitedly.
"We're getting married soon.Everything's moving so fast.Am I dreaming? It feels like we just met
yesterday!”
"Aren't you happy to marry me, Helen?"
Daniel whispered, pressing his lips against mine.
"Of course I'm happy.But everything feels so unreal, like it's just too good to be true." I kissed him back.
"I promise I will be a diligent Alpha.I'll do everything to protect our pack.I also know that you, Helen, will
be a deeply loved Luna," Daniel declared.
His words of encouragement were like a wave of warmth that enveloped me.
I hugged him tightly, sincerely hoping that our future would be as bright ashe made it out to be.
Just then, we heard a knock at the door.
Perplexed, the two of us went to open it.
Mandy stood outside the door.
"Mandy? What are you doing here?" Daniel frowned at the sight of her.
"Oh, come on now.Is that how you greet an old friend?" Mandy smiled sweetly, waving at us.
"I came here to apologize."
"Apologize?" I cocked my head to the side in confusion.
"Yes.I'm sorry for calling you when I was drunk the other day.I shouldn't have done that.I'm sorry if I
bothered you."
Mandy shook her head guiltily, placing her hand on her chest.
"I've thought it through and I realized I shouldn't have tried to interfere in your relationship.Daniel
doesn't belong to me.I'm sorry, Helen."
I looked at Mandy with surprise.Did I hear her right?
"I want nothing but happiness for the both of you,"
Mandy continued, smiling sincerely.
"Well then, thank you, Mandy."
Daniel breathed a sigh of relief.
"If you're not too busy, why not come to our wedding next Tuesday?"
"Daniel is right.Let bygones be bygones."
I still couldn't believe my ears, but I tried my best to pretend to be calm.
"Helen, thank you for your understanding.I won't take up any more of your time."
Mandy smiled and said goodbye seeing that we accepted her apology.
"Shouldn't we tell Jennifer and the others about the wedding?"
Daniel said once he closed the door.
It suddenly occurred to me that I had completely forgotten to share the good news with my friends.
"You're right.I'll call Jennifer right away."
As I spoke, I took out my phone and dialed her number.A few rings later, the call connected.
"Hey, Helen! What's up?" Jennifer greeted brightly.
"Jennifer, Daniel and I are getting married next Tuesday.Daniel's father wanted us to get married as
soon as possible, so we decided to hold the wedding ceremony ahead of schedule," I told Jennifer.
"Oh, my God!" Jennifer sighed sadly.
"Alas, we probably won't make it to your wedding.Since Anthony is still plagued with the Love Curse,
we were planning to leave for the snow mountain tomorrow to find the magic flower that will lift the
curse.I'm so sorry."
"Oh, Jennifer, don't worry about it.Mr.Jones' health should be your priority.We can always get together
when you come back."
I sensed that Jennifer was quite depressed, so I tried to comfort her.
"Thank you, Helen.You are so considerate,"
Jennifer said in a relieved voice.
"Anyway, congratulations, you two! When we come back, we'll give you and Daniel a huge gift!"
"Okay, I'll hold you to your word!" I joked.
After the call, I threw myself into Daniel's arms, smiling from ear to ear.
I was looking forward to our upcoming wedding.I couldn't believe I was going to be his bride.
But then I recalled what Daniel's brother had said, as well as Mandy's unusual behavior.
I couldn't help but have a bad feeling about it.
Worried sick, I sincerely hoped I was just overthinking things.
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