BIRTHDAY BETRAYAL

“It's time.” I squealed with excitement as I settled into the ride that would take me to The Exclusive Club, TEC. 

Before I knew it, we arrived, and the steamy music, dazzling lights, friendly chatter, and clinking glasses enveloped me, sweeping me off my feet into a whirlwind of excitement and ecstasy. 

Suddenly, the bright lights dimmed, and a spotlight shone on me. I felt a muscular arm wrap around my waist, and I tilted my head to find Alpha Raymond staring intensely into my eyes. 

His warm breath sent a thrilling shiver down my collarbone as he kissed my bare shoulders due to the long V-neckline of my dress. 

“Happy birthday, my love,” he whispered, his eyes burning with adoration for me as I viewed myself in his pupils as the crowd erupted with cheers. 

My best friend, Sophie, appeared beside me with a bright smile plastered on her face, holding two champagne flutes. “Cheers to another year of life, bestie!”

We raised our glasses in a toast, but a sudden force pushed me from behind as we were about to take a sip. My glass shattered, spilling its contents on the floor. 

“My…my a…apologies ma'am.” The waiter stammered in fear and kept his head low. “I…I was trying to serve the drinks to the guest...I…I didn't…” He trailed off, trying to explain. 

I smiled faintly at his kind gestures. “It’s alright. I'll have another one.” I said, and he quickly replaced my drink and cleaned up the frails of broken glass pieces. 

Just then, a lady in a black silk dress walked up, twirling an Arnold Palmer in her fingers. “May this year bring you love, laughter and all your heart's desires, sister.”

My step-sister, Lucinda? What was she doing here? I don't remember inviting her, but I managed to force a smile on her. 

“Surprised to see me? Or am I not welcome at my own sister's birthday?” She chuckled, her eyes sparkling with mischief that I overlooked, but she seemed to have caught the shock I was experiencing. 

I felt unease steadily creeping over me but brushed off the unwanted feeling. 

As the night wore on, I began to feel a burning sensation within my body. Feeling uncomfortable, I rubbed my neck, trying to ease the discomfort, but it only intensified. 

Sophie dragged me to the dancefloor, losing ourselves in the rhythm. But as the music intensified, my dizziness worsened, as if a greater force had taken over my body. 

“Raymond…” My voice was barely audible as I stumbled through the crowded club, my vision blurry from the drinks. Raymond had promised to make tonight special, my 21st birthday. 

I scanned the room, looking for his familiar figure, but found no clue of him. A familiar laugh caught my attention as I searched for Raymond through the VIP rooms. 

My heart skipped a beat, and it felt like my world had stood still. That sounded like…Lucinda. No, it can be her. 

Raymond had booked the entire Exclusive Club (TEC) for tonight, known as a gathering place for the elite, powerful, and wealthy, and as the Alpha's girlfriend and soon-to-be Luna, I could leverage his power. 

Also, the degree of orderliness would not permit non-invites into the VIP session, except for those with my birthday invitation card. 

Then, I heard the sounds of moans and skin slapping. Curiosity crept into my thoughts, but then, I pushed through the sea of bodies, my heels clicking on the floor towards the direction the sounds were coming from. 

That's when I saw them. Raymond and Lucinda lie in each other's arms without a single piece of clothing. Their faces were inches apart, and Lucinda's hand rested on his thigh, her fingers tracing patterns. 

My smile froze as I witnessed the unthinkable. The hairs on my body rose as goosebumps engulfed my skin. Was this the surprise he had planned to give me when we texted earlier this morning?

My heart felt like a burden in my chest, sinking deeply into the ocean, leaving my soul to wander in a foreign environment of no return. 

The creased sheets and scattered rose petals were all the evidence I needed. They had done more than cheat in the room he had booked for our special night. 

A night that was meant for him and me only, but anxiety wrapped around me, squeezing the breath from my lungs, as I watched Lucinda, my step-sister and sworn enemy, call out Raymond's name in ecstasy. 

“Mm..Ray Ray…You're so big. Aahhh…I can't get enough of you.”

“No worries, baby, I will take you to cloud eleven.” He smirked, slamming his palm against her ass while he kept thrusting inside her. 

Their sweet words ignited a fire within me, and my eyes blazed with an unnatural darkness as tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. 

How could I have been so blind? The man I loved and sacrificed everything for and was willing to sacrifice more turned out to be a womaniser and with Lucinda, of all people!

I felt a wave of nausea wash over me as Lucinda spoke, her voice dripping with poison. “Ray Ray?”

“Yes, baby?”

“When are you going to break up with her?”

“Oh, that bitch Natalie?” He sneered and added, “She's just a plaything. You're the one that I love, Lucy.”

His words pierced my heart like a dagger, and I felt my world shattering around me. 

Break up? A plaything? Does he love her? I stood there, frozen, as my reality crumbled. The man I thought I knew was a stranger, and my step-sister was the one he truly desired. 

“Raymond?” I called out, my voice trembling as I shook my head in despair.

Raymond's head snapped towards me, and a mixture of guilt and annoyance flashed across his face. “Natalie, baby, I–”

“Don't call me that!” My voice rose, with tears heating up at the corners of my eyelids. “You're cheating on me with my sister Raymond.”

Lucinda hissed, her eyes gleaming with malice. “Tsk tsk tsk. Poor thing, You're just so gullible. Do you know we've been playing you for months?” She laughed with sarcasm dripping as he kissed her lips, disregarding that I was standing before them, ignoring the bond we once shared. 

Raymond stood, his cold gaze focused on me as he remained unbothered. “So? What if I am?” He groaned. 

“How could you?” I sobbed, my heart pounding without a sign of calming down. “You promised to love me, to pro–”

“You were just a convenient companion, Natalie.” He shrugged, cutting me off. “Someone to pass the time until I found my true mate.”

Mates?!!” I shuddered in disbelief. 

“And my soon-to-be Luna.” He added, without an ounce of hesitation or guilt and winked at me with a sly smile. 

“Ray…Raymond?” My voice ached with unimaginable pain, which made me feel like a knife with a sharp edge was piercing through my skin. 

“Why…why are you doing all of this?” I sobbed. 

Lucinda leaned in, her voice venomous. “You're just a weak, woofless omega. No Alpha would ever want you.”

Before I could speak, Raymond's voice came in. “I'm done playing games, Natalie. You're not worthy of me.” His eyes hardened. 

“We had sworn to reject our mates!” I reminded him and grabbed the collar of his T-shirt. “You'll have to reject Lucinda; that's what you owe me.” I pleaded with watery eyes without blinking an eyelid. 

“Or else?” He asked, with a raised brow. He threw my hands off his shirt and dusted his shoulders like I was some filthy rag that had just rubbed dirt on him. 

The next moment, he forcefully cornered me and covered my nose with a handkerchief, and I blacked out. 

“Sweet dreams, dear sis! Welcome to your worst nightmare.” I faintly heard her sinister voice in my unconscious state.