chapter five

 Ethan’s POV

Breakfast was normally a time of the day I enjoyed but today for some reason, I just wasn’t feeling it, perhaps it was because my annoying brother was seated beside me looking very languid as though he had not a single care in the world.

“Do you always scowl this much during breakfast baby brother?” he said all of a sudden and I snapped.

“Can you just shut up and eat your food Alexander?” I said angrily.

A smirk spread across his face and he popped a piece of toast into his mouth “You are even grouchier than I remember but that is understandable, I am sure it could not have been easy living with just dad, it tends to put a strain on the mind” he said.

“What right do you have to call him dad? You tried to kill him after all” I said, it was annoying how calm and relaxed he looked in this house after all we had been through because of him.

“I have every right to call him what I want because as much as you all try to deny or hate it, the fact remains that I am a fucking Dupree and that lowlife was my father” he said, the smirk had vanished from his face and he was looking at me with a hard look in his eyes.

A scoff passed my lips “You and I both know who the lowlife is, you are just an ungrateful son of a whore and my father was a good man and an even better leader” I said.

This time, it was his turn to scoff “It must be nice to remember him like that, I wonder why I remember him differently”

“You have always been quite the trouble maker, you have caused nothing but trouble for this family, you have no right to complain” I said.

“Keep believing the fantasy you believe, keep believing the lies you were told, after all, you were always the perfect son and I was always the bad son” he said with a smirk on his face that made me so mad.

I was going to say something when Maria walked in, she had her usual cheerful smile on her face as she took her seat beside me.

“Sorry I am late, what did I miss?” she said with a smile on her pretty face.

“Absolutely nothing your highness” Alexander replied and stood up from the table and walked away.

I muttered a curse underneath my breath.

“Did you two fight?” Maria asked.

“He just drives me so mad, how on earth can he be so calm and nonchalant about the whole thing, he tried to kill my father on the day he ran away from home, he had always been the troublemaker in the family and he sits there acting like he was wronged, like I owe him some sort of apology” I said angrily.

I felt Maria’s warm hands on mine, I turned to look at her and she had a smile on her face “He is your brother, you should not be so angry at him” she said.

“But you do not understand, you do not know him, he is ungrateful and vain, he cares about no one but himself” I said.

She was quiet for a while before she said “Just give him a chance, everyone deserves a chance to be better and I am sure Alexander can be better as well”

I was going to protest and tell her that there was no way Alexander could change but she said “Let me try talking to him, everyone knows I have great convincing skills” a smile on her face.

I could have argued with her but it was hard to when she was looking at me with those eyes of hers, it was really hard to refuse her when she was looking at me like that.

So I nodded and said “I do not think you can find any good in Alexander but if you manage to convince him to apologize and get his life on track then I am willing to listen to him, he is family after all”

She gave me another smile and said “Thank you, I am sure I can do it”

I said nothing, it was Alexander we were talking about so I was not going to get my hopes up for any reason.

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Maria’s POV

I found Alexander in the garden, exactly where we had stood last night, he was staring into the water and his jaw was set firmly and his eyes looked like they were staring at some unseen thing far away from here.

I took a few minutes to really look at him, his black hair that framed his face neatly, his strong features, his sharp jawline and long powerful nose, he was a tall man, with lean muscles all over his body, when I had stood before last night, I realized that I had not come up to his shoulders. He was a very pleasing man to look at.

“Is there a particular reason you are ogling me from a distance sister in law?” he said all a sudden and I was startled.

He turned his body so that we were facing each other, his beautiful eyes fixed on mine, he made me nervous and I had no idea why, I had never felt this intimidated by anyone in my life before.

When he folded his arms across his chest, I realized that I had been standing here staring at him like some tongue tied fool.

I cleared my throat and said “Actually, I wanted to speak to you about something”

He said nothing and just simply raised an eyebrow indicating that I should continue.

“I wanted to speak to you about you and Ethan” I said as I took a step toward him.

“And what about Ethan and I?” he asked, his tone sounded annoyed as though the entire discussion bored the hell out of him.

“I was wondering if perhaps you two could try to get along, you are brothers after all” I said as I sat on a stone bench not far from where he stood.

A small laugh escaped his lips and then he said “It seems like you are not aware of our family history, I don’t remember a time when we got along at all and I don’t think now will be a good time for that either”

“But you could at least try” I said.

“Look princess, I am sure you have a supposed kingdom to ruin, leave me alone to deal with my family problems and I am sure my baby brother is not big on reconciliation as well, so if you will excuse me, I have things to do” he said and made to walk away.

Anger sparked to life deep inside me “Can you not be a dick for one single second of your life?” I said angrily and stood up to look him directly in the eye.

He looked surprised for a while then a smile curved his lips “So there really is a wolf lurking inside you, I thought it was all princess and fluffy pink bunnies”

“You will do well to remember that I am your Luna before I am your sister in law, so you will do well to remember that I am not as frail as I look” I said and made to walk away from him.

I was a few steps away from him when I heard him say from behind him “Why do you keep appearing in my dreams?”

I froze, I had not gotten over the shock of those words when he came over and stood before me, his eyes hooked on mine and then I felt it again, the crackling tension and longing I felt when ever he was close by.

“I see you in my dreams, you call my name with a smile on your face, you speak to me as though you love and care for me and I see myself going mad with a single touch from you, why do I keep seeing you” he said, his voice was deep and sensual and it making my body react in the most treacherous of ways.

I wanted to fall into his scent and let it envelope me completely, he had no idea how much his nearness was intoxicating to me, I had never felt this way, not even when I was with Ethan.

Then reality came rushing back, Ethan, I stepped back quickly, my heart racing in my chest, what was I doing here with my husband’s brother?

“I have no idea about whatever your dreams are, and that is all they are, dreams and nothing more” I said and quickly walked past him.

It did bother me that I felt something for Alexander but what bothered me the most was that, I knew the moment the words left about his dreams just being dreams, I had known it was a lie and nothing more.