Chapter 181: New laws

The sudden realization that my backless wedding dress would reveal almost every inch of me—along with all these vivid, crimson tracks of our wild passion—came far too late. It vanished completely when Magnus, unable to bear my hesitation any longer, thrust his hips upward, impaling me to the very root.

Warm water splashed noisily over the edges of the porcelain tub, where we went on making love no less fiercely, no less greedily than on the crumpled sheets of our bed. My fractured moans and his low, guttural growls rebounded off the tiled walls, blending into the perfect melody of our shared madness.

A few hours later, standing before the full-length mirror as I pulled on a high-necked sweater and jeans, I carefully inspected my reflection, frowning. My body had shifted, though not drastically. The curve of my hips had broadened slightly, taking on a softer, more feminine swell that made my waist appear even smaller by contrast. My breasts were fuller, too, heavier.

Otherwise, I looked much the same. My face had undergone a subtle transformation too, though I couldn’t pin down what had changed. Perhaps my lips were a bit plumper from endless, bruised kisses, and my eyes held a new, luminous depth.

My hair, however, had transformed dramatically. Its natural shade had lifted a tone lighter, and the strands had grown at a terrifying speed over those three days. As I brushed through the thick waves, I looked like a princess out of an old fairytale, with dark hair cascading past my hips. It felt strange, yet I loved that I hadn’t lost my individuality even as I embraced these changes.

Matthias and Adam had already returned home. My Alpha, after pressing a swift, parting kiss to my lips, had rushed off to an emergency pack council meeting—a gathering he had postponed to spend every second locked in the bedroom with me.

Our wedding had been rescheduled for tomorrow. Now, I needed to hurry to the bridal salon so they could alter the dress directly on me, as well as pick up my shoes and jewelry. Matthias, who had missed me terribly over those days, was accompanying me, with Adam coming along as our guard.

Just this morning, an excited Annie had called, declaring in no uncertain terms that she hadn’t bought her outfit yet. She insisted on seeing my gown first so she could be the ultimate maid of honor and ensure their styles complemented each other seamlessly.

I had laughed out loud at Magnus’s bewildered expression as he walked past, catching my friend’s loud lamentations over the receiver about how deeply grieved she was that we hadn’t had a traditional bachelorette party complete with hot male strippers.

Truth be told, even if I had gotten a proper bachelorette party, I doubt any strippers would have dared to show up knowing whose bride I was. More than likely, we would have just spent a quiet evening at a spa salon before tucking into a cozy café.

Besides, both of us already had men who—if asked nicely—could put on an evening show no professional dancer could ever dream of matching. A performance that inevitably bled into far more interesting, scorching territory.

As our tinted SUV cut through the streets toward the city center, Matthias refused to unstick himself from my side for even a second. He kept hugging me, repeating over and over how much he’d missed me and pointing out that I smelled extra sweet today.

He used to have a sweet habit of climbing onto my lap and burying his head against my chest, but today felt different. My son simply sat beside me, resting his small, warm palm over my belly, stroking it with a strangely thoughtful look on his face.

Deep inside, that innocent gesture sparked a fragile, wild hope: what if those fiery three days hadn’t been in vain? What if, in just a few weeks, I’d discover I was carrying a child beneath my heart? What a surprise that would be for my Alpha...

We were just pulling into the upper city center when the heavy vehicle screeched to a sudden, violent halt. Sitting behind the wheel, Jake cursed filthily under his breath through clenched teeth.

The wide avenues were eerily packed. Dense crowds of aggressive protesters swarmed the pavement, waving banners and chanting in unison. I had never seen such widespread unrest in my entire life.

"What’s happening?" I asked, pulling Matthias closer to my side as my pulse spiked.

"Protests. For two days straight, humans and even some werewolves have been rioting, furiously demanding the return of the old law," Jake muttered, eyes glued to the crowd as his fingers drummed a tense rhythm against the steering wheel.

"What law? Did something happen?" I scanned the agitated mob outside the dark glass, trying to decipher the jagged writing on cardboard signs as they blurred past.

"Plenty are outraged over the sudden repeal of the Breeder Guardianship Act," Jake replied evenly. He jerked the wheel, ducking into a narrow alleyway to bypass the thickest mass of protesters.

"What are you talking about?" I blinked, unable to digest what I was hearing.

"Breeders were finally handed full legal autonomy," Adam’s deep voice echoed from the front seat as we slowly pulled up to the salon’s entrance. "No one has the right to dictate a breeder’s life once she reaches adulthood anymore. A breeder is no longer the silent property of her parents or her Alpha husband. To put it simply, the government officially banned institutions from denying breeders entry into fields that were previously reserved strictly for higher wolves and humans."

I sat frozen, the words drying up in my throat. Laws had always been harsh and unyielding toward us, denying us a voice from the day we were born. Even though we lived in an advanced, technologically flourishing society, in reality, we were treated like prized possessions—expensive, speaking furniture whose words carried no weight if no one in power cared to listen.