Chapter 4: A Beta's Heart

"Paul… He’s an Alpha."

"And you’re my mate. I will die trying."

She raised her gaze at me and her eyes started to water. "You left me. And I tried looking for you, but I didn't find you. So I moved on."

"Will you let me explain why? It might be a shitty reason, but hear me out first."

"I love him, Paul. And what I feel for you right now, might just be the pull of the mate bond. So I don’t know…"

"Four months. I have four months. Give me a chance. And if by then you still want him, I will let you go."

She was biting her bottom lip so hard. 

"Alba…"

She nodded her head and offered me a forced smile. "Okay. But I don’t want you to expect anything…"

I smiled at her, my hand raised to cup her cheek, letting my thumb brush her soft skin as sparks traveled everywhere in my body. "No. Finding you tonight was something beyond my expectations. I’m not going to expect anything, but I will not let you go without a fight."

She raised both her hands and grasped my hand on her face, pressing it more to her cheek, something I wasn’t expecting her to do after what she just told me. "Thank you. I wish you hadn’t left that day. Maybe things could have turned out differently."

"You’re not going to avoid me, right? You will agree to see me so we can talk and I can explain?"

She nodded her head, her eyes still closed as she reveled in the feel of my hand on her cheek. "But I will tell him about you. He deserves to know."

"Who is he?" I asked, preparing my heart to hear the name of the man she loved.

She took a deep breath before she opened her eyes and guided my hand away from her face. "Alpha Marco’s son. The next Alpha of the Midnight Pack."

My jaw tightened as my hands coiled into tight fists.

Alpha Marco is the head of the council. Their fathers were both high-ranking members of the council, so it was no surprise that they were together. And with the whole council behind him, I felt like a fucking ant in a massive forest. 

I closed my eyes and steadied my breathing.

"Lucas. The young Alpha Lucas." I mumbled his name. I knew fully well that he was a good man. I couldn’t find any reason to loathe him aside from the reality that he holds my Alba’s heart.

"But… but.. Paul." She was stuttering, and my eyes immediately fluttered open. "You’re not backing down, right? You will still try? We will try?"

Despite the pain coursing through my body, my mouth twitched into a wide smile the moment I heard 'we' leave her lips. I have a chance. 

"I will try to win you over, mate. And I will win." I told her cockily before flicking her perfectly shaped nose gently with my finger.

I was trying to sound brave. I needed to man up, make up for being a coward three years ago.

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms against her chest, but she was smiling. "So cocky! We will see. I’m not easily impressed."

"I can tell that. Can I kiss you?" I blurted out the last part before I could think about it. I knew I was pushing my luck too much.

Her eyes widened as she stepped back away from me. Her eyes darted to the unconscious Alpha on his bed before she looked at me, her eyes narrowing. "I have a boyfriend."

I scratched my head and smiled at her awkwardly, hiding the feeling of embarrassment about being turned down. "I know, I just thought I could try. I guess I have exhausted all my luck already."

She looked at me confused, with her eyebrow hiking up, but I didn’t clarify more.

I knew I had a long shot of winning her over, but the fact that she was giving me a chance was enough. I was expecting her to bolt out in my presence, but she did the exact opposite tonight.

"I have to go now. We have a lot of things to do. But I hope I can see you before Alpha Riley is transported back to his territory."

Her face dropped, and it might have been because of Alpha Riley’s condition. I didn't want to have high hopes.

My heart ached as I raised my hand, curled my finger, and brushed her soft cheek again. "It was nice to finally meet you, Alba. Axel was happy to see you, perhaps next time we can meet your wolf as well?"

I didn’t wait for her to answer. I turned around the moment I stopped talking because my eyes were starting to water. I didn’t want her to see me at my weakest.

I dragged my feet towards the door and as I was about to reach for the handle.

She spoke. It was almost inaudible, but my werewolf hearing allowed me to hear everything clearly.

"If we kissed, you’re not going to tell anyone that we did? Will you?"

It was all the push I needed to hear. 

In seconds, I was already back in front of her, my hand coiled on her nape, and before she could say anything more, I crushed my too eager lips into hers, pressing her back against the cold wall.