chapter twenty-one

**POV: Alpha Xavier**

“Well… then you should be thanking me for arriving on time,” I responded, leaning against the table, hands in my pockets, my voice filled with frustration. “She could have killed you! And this isn’t the first time I’ve saved you, but you don’t even thank me!” I huffed, indignant. How could someone be so ungrateful?

“How can I thank you,” Cassandra shot back, her gaze burning with fire, “when you’re the one who brought me to this place? You’re the one who put me in the hands of that crazy woman! Why don’t you just tell her you don’t want her as your mate? Why don’t you send her away from this pack, back to her parents?” She growled, her anger evident in every word.

I felt the heat rise in my chest, but I forced myself to keep my voice cold and distant. “I can’t hurt her feelings!” I responded curtly, trying to appear indifferent, even though each word felt like a blade.

“Why? Why can’t you just reject her?” Cassandra raged, her frustration clear in her voice. It w