Chapter 1 - My Mate Thinks That My Beta And I Are Gay

Jackson’s POV I am Jackson King, the powerful and ruthless Alpha King. For five years, I have known that I would die, cursed by a fate I cannot escape. I thought I had nothing to lose—reputation, status, and power are things I have already conquered. But there is one thing I must accomplish before I die—having my heir. So, I began searching for my mate. Now, I have finally found her. But the Moon Goddess must be playing a cruel joke on me— My mate is a human. No strength. No beast. Not even a wolf. Jesus! However, I suppose it doesn’t matter. All I need is a child born of my mate. I just need her to lie in my bed and give me a child. “I’ll get straight to the point. I need you to have my baby.” Her eyes widened as she looked between me and Dylan. “I’m sorry, I didn’t get that. I thought you said you needed me to have your baby,” she chuckled. I could sense her unease the same way I could smell her arousal. She was drenched. Even without a wolf to tell her she was mine, her body knew it. And I disliked that. I disliked that I had to fight my beast to stop it from claiming what was rightfully mine. I disliked that I had to resort to this. She was half-human. Why would the Moon Goddess curse me like this? I’d caught her scent even before I walked into the hotel days ago, and now it filled the entire suite, taunting me, reminding me just how everything was. “I did,” I confirmed. “I need a surrogate, and I will pay you handsomely.” “Um… I just walked into this room to clean. You don’t know me; you don't even know my name,” she said. “Layla Carlisle.” She looked down at the name tag on her uniform, covering it briefly before realizing it was late and lowering her hand. As if I needed a name tag to know who she was. “Twenty-one years old. High school dropout. You live in a trailer with your father and sister.” Her eyes widened further, and for a moment, I saw her anger flare. “Have you been stalking me?” she hissed. Dylan snickered. I shot him a look that shut him up before turning back to Layla. “No, I haven’t been stalking you,” I said, though I could already tell I had lost the momentum. Her anger was growing, eclipsing even the sweet scent of her arousal. She stood and smoothed her uniform, then lifted her head and met my gaze head-on. My beast unfurled inside me, rippling with excitement at the challenge. “I don’t know why you two need to ask a stranger to have your baby, but my job doesn’t include being a surrogate for a gay man. I wish you all the best, though,” she said, voice firm. It took me a moment to realize what she meant as she walked over to her cleaning cart and started pulling it out of the room. This was the problem with humans. If she had a wolf, she would have felt the pull of our bond. It wouldn’t have been an issue. I would have marked her the moment I found her, and she would already be carrying my pup. “Miss Carlisle, can we talk about this? You haven’t even heard what I’m willing to pay.” “It doesn’t matter. I don’t want to be your surrogate,” she answered without hesitation. “I’ll return later to clean your suite.” As she closed the door, I heard her mutter under her breath. “It’s always the handsome ones.” She thought I lost my mind. And maybe she was right. I lost more of my mind every day I went without a child. Every day my time ran out. “She thinks we’re gay, Jax,” Dylan pointed out as he sank into the spot Layla had just vacated. “I got that,” I growled. “I don’t think she’s going to change her mind,” Dylan said. “I don’t understand why you can’t just pick someone from the pack and be done with it.” If only it were that easy. Goddess knew I had tried. But Fate had ensured only one woman could carry my child. Only one woman could save us all. My mate. “I told you why.” At least, as much as I could. Dylan wasn’t just my Beta; he was also my only friend. But keeping the truth from him was essential. Keeping it from everyone was crucial. It was bad enough they would have to accept my heir from a woman as lowly as a human, but I could handle that better than the panic that the truth would cause. I had no time to soothe anyone or deal with the packs that would circle my territory like vultures when they realized I was dying. As the Alpha King, the repercussions would be astronomical. “I doubt anyone in our pack would assume they’re Queen just because they have your child. They can do a oath—” “Dylan, please,” I sighed, standing up and walking toward the drinks cabinet. It was still morning, but I needed something to calm myself. To stop myself from going after Layla. To stop myself from pinning her down and marking her while I buried myself deep inside her body. I closed my eyes, trying not to imagine what that would feel like, but it was all my wolf wanted. All I could see. Every wolf dreamed of meeting their fated mate. But I couldn’t understand why anyone thought it was a blessing. It was torture. “Okay. Then pick another one if that girl doesn’t want to do it,” Dylan said. Cain growled in my head, furious at the suggestion, but I shoved him back and focused on my drink. And just like that, my mind went to a place I didn’t want it to be. I didn’t want to think about touching Layla or tasting her. I didn’t want to remember the scent of her arousal. It had been four days since I first caught Layla’s scent, and already I was acting like a lunatic. The first day had felt like a gift from the Goddess. I was almost out of time, and finding my mate had given me hope. And then I saw her. Half-human. A hotel maid. It had felt like a punch to the gut. Like a cruel joke. She was not worthy to carry my child. She was not worthy to be the one who saved us all. But there was no other choice. “Jax—” “Get more information on her. She’s human. You’ll find many weaknesses I can use,” I ordered. “She’s the one I’ve picked, so she’s the one I’ll have.” Layla would have my child one way or another. And then, finally, I could have some peace. Dylan felt the command in my words and stood to carry out my order. When I sensed he was far enough away, I picked up my glass and threw it against the wall, watching it shatter into pieces. If I told Dylan the truth, he would tie the girl up and serve her to me on a silver platter. But then my child would be a product of force. And I refused to let that happen. My child would be my legacy. The only thing left of me on this earth. They would carry my heir. I couldn’t taint them before they had even been conceived. My child would be the best part of me. Layla would change her mind. Humans loved money, and this one, in particular, was drowning in debt. Why hadn’t she even wanted to know how much I was offering her? I could solve all her problems in a day if she took my offer. Dylan would find something else I could use. Something she couldn’t refuse. Cain growled louder in my head, showing his displeasure. But I was in charge here. Not him. We would do things my way. And at the end of it all, Layla could go back to her life, because there was no future for us. Even if she wasn’t a half-human. ‘Find her. Mark her,’ Cain growled.