KEIRA:"Dad," Lennox started, trying to make his father understand. "I've been absent from the company for quite some time."Would Alpha John understand?I doubted it from the expression he was giving right now. A glare. A deep scowl. And lips pressed in a thin line. Definitely the reaction I was expecting. "Do you think I care about your company, Lennox? I never wanted that company to begin with," Alpha John roared. It was because Tate had been the one leading the pack for quite some time when the alpha was absent. To me, he muttered, "Why would you work with him, Rei? Don't you know Lennox is one of the most workaholic people? He almost forgot he had a family and packed with him when he started working with the company."Refusing to be bothered by the old man's statements, I smiled instead. "That's the purpose, Dad. When I am with Lennox, I will be constantly reminding him to take a break every now and then. To eat his lunch, breakfast, and dinner. Snacks in between. Just, please
KEIRA:“I want a child, love,” Alpha Lennox said in the most tender tone. “Who wouldn’t want a child? I am not getting younger. My busy schedule won’t allow me to be with my wife always. I did not want her to be lonely so a child while I was away would be the best thing.”We were thinking the same. If I had a child…no. If we had a child, the emptiness while Alpha Lennox was nowhere around would lessen.A child bearing his face and habits?Something kicked my chest.Oh, my goodness. That would be a dream come true.Still…the villain side of me was telling me that it was too good to be true and when that happened, then it was not true. Please tell me you are joking, I pleaded in my mind. Please tell me you are only playing a prank so that I won't be getting my hopes high. Please. Just please. But again, he did not say anything.Wait. Was this real?If that is too good to be true, then that is not true, my mind repeated. I must ask him. "W-what are you trying to say, Lennox?" I ask
KEIRA:The alpha allowed me to cry which I was thankful for. He did not touch me nor patted my back to console me.He just stood there. Like a robot.Sometimes, I want him to touch me, to feel his embrace. To feel his warmth. To feel that he also cared for me, but another part of me wanted none of that.It would only break me more.I did not know if I could handle my emotions well if he touched me. When my emotions subsided…When I was done, my eyes were puffy and red. Snots were in and out of my nostrils. There was nothing beautiful about me right now. Unlike the other women out there who still looked beautiful despite everything. I continued sniffing while refusing to look Lennox in the eyes given my current face.I promised myself that this would be the last time I would be crying because of him. I already cried a lot of buckets of tears. "L-Love? A-are you okay now?" Alpha Lennox inquired softly. I nodded. “S-sorry for sobbing like that. D-did I make you feel awkward? I promise
KEIRA:"Doll, we cannot know for sure, okay? If Alpha Lennox will only open his eyes, he will know for sure what an amazing woman you have become. You became stronger."Drank talk. Those sweet words were nothing but the result of the alcohol in his system. "Just..continue drinking, Tate. Do not give me false hope. I don't need any of that."What I wanted was a dose of another taste of reality. An overdose would be good to awaken me from this stupidity.Tate's eyebrows crumpled, he stood, grabbed my hand, and heaved me up until I sat beside him. He snaked his arms around my shoulders bringing me closer to his body while his free hand snatched another beer. "Here. Let's forget about the alpha and focus on you. I am rooting for your happiness, doll and if you want someone who wanted to divert your attention, I can—""Don't you dare treat me like a slut and offer me your friends, Tate. The moment you do that, I will cut off their dicks and feed them to the beasts," I hissed, cutting off
ALPHA LENNOX:'What are you waiting for? Charge!' the beast demanded while growling inside. He was going in circles, as if he was ready any minute to kill my beta. 'Kill anyone who dared to touch our Luna!'My fist trembled. The anger emitted by the beast was so raw that it felt like poison in my throat.I wanted the beta's blood. I wanted to kill him.'Kill him, Lennox! How long will you keep on staring at the two? Your traitor beta is coveting your wife! Will you only look at them?'Darkness started to swallow me.The beast started to take over my body.However, the rational part of me wanted something else. Stop. That is your beta. Tate and Keira were best friends even before. You know that. The beta was consoling the Luna.Still…I stepped forward and halted. This was wrong.No! 'What use do I have with a beta who has a missing hand? What use will I have with a beta who is no longer breathing at all?' I inhaled deeply while taking a step backward. I must control my emotions
KEIRA:What the...My head became light-headed as Tate continued kissing me. I was too stunned to push him away or I would respond to his kiss. Respond? No! Why would I? Tate was a friend and friends never kissed each other. My eyes widened when he nibbled my lower lips and that was it. It felt like a bucket of cold water was thrown at me. I swung my fist and hit Tate's face.He staggered at my punch and looked at it with wide eyes while touching his painful jaw."Tate?" I asked in disbelief. My hand went to my parted lips. "What have you done?""I did kiss you, doll," he answered matter of factly. He was never even guilty about it. I stepped back from him while trying to calm my racing heart. Looking around, I was glad that no one was around. Even if this was only a fake marriage, I should never taint Lennox's family. And Alpha John. What would he say if he discovered that the beta and I kissed?Oh, gods. That should never happen!"You are not even sorry about it?” I slapped m
KEIRA:Before I could answer Alpha Lennox, he was already facing me. His gaze darted to my lips despite the dim something that flashed in his eyes before it was gone.What was that? What does it mean?“What? You cannot think of an alibi or an excuse?” he taunted. Speak, Keira! Why are you allowing yourself to get intimidated by this man, huh? So what if Tate kissed you? It was not you kissing him back. If this bastard was indeed looking, he would see that you punched the beta."Alpha Lennox, have you seen everything?"If he did, how did he do that? I looked around earlier. But never saw him or caught his scent.I did not have a headache from drinking, but I think I will have now.There was no way he was lying to me since he saw Tate kissing me.“Yes.”A lie or not?However, I found myself declaring, “You haven’t.”Alpha Lennox’s eyes narrowed. “I did, Keira.”“If you did, you would know what I did after Tate kissed me. I punched him in the jaw.”What the heck? Why was I explaining to
ALPHA LENNOX:The paintings on the wall rattled after the door slammed shut.Keira was furious.That was the first time I saw her give me the middle finger. She was naturally patient and kind. However, these past few days, I had been angering her.I yanked my hair in frustration.I messed up. Again. I knew it. The words had been uttered and I could no longer take it back. I punched the wall on the window.Fuck.My mind and the beast inside me were telling me to go after her. To ask for forgiveness, but my heart refused to.Zoe.Right.I had already promised someone. Inhale. Exhale.Pull yourself together, Lennox. No one has the right to confuse your emotions. Not Keira. Not anyone else. Why would I go after Keira when I could not even contact my own girlfriend?'You hurt our mate!' the beast roared inside. He growled at me and threw poisonous glares in my direction. 'Go after her, Lennox.''She is your mate. Not mine. I rejected her. So no. I won't run to her.'I have Zoe. She was
KEIRA:I was taken aback by Lennox’s honesty. He rarely showed his emotions to me. And when he did, it was the most tender expression I witnessed.My heart fell for him.I was about to console him when hurried footsteps were heard.The back of my hair stood as if it could sense an enemy. "Alpha Lennox!" It was Alpha Bryan together with his daughter beside him. His eyes darted at our joined hands. "What is the meaning of this?"Lennox put me on his back, protecting me from Alpha Bryan's murderous look."It is what it is, Alpha Bryan."His eyes narrowed into thin slits. "Are you forgetting what we had agreed? The wedding will happen next week!""The wedding won't happen. My apologies, Carmela."The woman secretly sighed in relief without her father knowing. Wait. She did not like Lennox? Why?Do you have to know? Not all women liked an alpha like him. It's good for you, Keira. Less competition in yourself. You can focus on the problem at hand— Alpha Bryan. "You know what will happen
KEIRA:I knew it would be difficult for Lennox to answer my call for help. So it was no longer a surprise when he said, “I cannot.”Right then, I realized he no longer cared about me. His words and actions no longer matched. I gave up. Letting go was much easier than clinging to him. ‘Okay. I understand your decision, Lennox.’Did I? I could not.But what choice did I have? I had to return my focus to Ace. My eyes went back to the fight when the crowd cheered. The fight had already begun and I didn't even notice it. It was only a few minutes of talking to Lennox but Ace was already losing. He was bloody and beaten to a pulp by his brother Kent. “You said you trained him!” I cried out.“I did, Miss Keira. But Kent is stronger than his brother. He had already trained since he was a child. Among the sons, Alpha Bryan had high regard for him,” he growled. I covered my mouth to stop the sob from escaping my mouth.I cannot watch Ace like this. He was only a boy who was forced to honor
KEIRA:My heart was pounding loudly against my ribcage as I waited for the match to start. The rest of the batches had already started and winners were already declared. Except for Ace. His name wasn’t called yet. I squeezed my sweaty palm now and then. It felt like I was also part of the match. I did not know what I should be feeling right now.I wanted to stop the match while Ace was not yet in the arena. But how? That man had already made up his mind. We were in the oval-shaped arena and the crowd was already thick. It was a ten-minute break before the next match. Was Ace okay there? The guards did not allow us to see him for the last time. No matter how much we tried to change his mind, he would not escape. Until I gave up and turned my attention to looking for Lennox. But I failed to find him. Was it only me or he was evading my presence?Why? He was not yet prepared to face me? He looked like he was indeed guilty. Solomon tried to look for him, but he could not find him. O
KEIRA:Ace automatically hides me on his back, protecting me from his father. He snarled at him as if he would fight the alpha if worse came to worst. Solomon was on high alert as if he would fight hand in hand with Ace. "Son!"Solomon was now beside me. "Are you two starting to fight against me?"The tension escalated, swallowing me whole. The air was so thick that breathing was hard. Peeping in front of me, I can verify that Ace was a photocopy of his father. Their eyes. Mouth. Nose. And everything looked alike. They could pass as twins if not for the fine lines on the alpha’s forehead and around his eyes. Aside from that, they looked like they were sewn in the same cloth. “You!" he started, pointing his hands at me. "How did that woman enter my territory?” the alpha growled, snarling. The two guards behind him shifted their weight from foot to foot. The blood on their faces drained while their knees trembled in fear. All of us will die here if nothing is done. "Solomon!""Yes
KEIRA:The tension inside the room thickened. Ace's jealousy was like poison, making me gag. This was supposed to be a normal reunion. But after those baseless allegations of coming here because of Lennox which I didn't even know he was here was low.Lennox will deal accordingly. Not now. I will find him later. And also his woman. I will ask him if he wants her or not. I wanted to ask him where I belonged in his heart. Did he still love me or not?“That’s so mature, Ace,” I commented. “Did I look like the only person that mattered to me was Lennox? You think lowly of me.”There was a slight sting in my chest. I thought Ace would be happy that we were trying our best to save him. But because of Lennox, everything was turning in the opposite direction. I badly wanted to ask him about Lennox. But asking it right now will only make things worse. That can wait. I felt Solomon's gaze burning a hole in my forehead as well as Ace's. He was silent. Maybe waiting for the right opportunity
KEIRA:I think I will die of boredom. A few hours had already passed since Solomon left me. But he had not returned yet. I already asked the staff of the resort if they had seen him, but they shook their heads and said Solomon would return even if it would take him long hours to. It was not new, but they put their trust in the man and the man never failed them. First, it was Ace. Now, it was Solomon.I bit my fingernails. What if he was hit by a truck while he was in his wolf form? Or what if someone shot him a tranquilizer thinking he was some wild beast?Now, I was already worried for two people. I paced back and forth, barefoot. I stayed at the swimming pool area, hoping the water would clear my mind at the moment, but it did not. The pacing did not help free my mind from worrying about the two. Damn it.I felt hopeless and felt like I was a damsel in distress waiting for her knight-in-shining armor.I glanced at the clock on one of the cottages.Past six o’clock in the even
ACE:A backhanded slap with the alpha wearing his ring and bony hands was one of the worst punishments he could give. I felt his ring slicing my skin, sniffing the blood from it. My ears felt like it was ringing, after the alpha's slap. It was more humiliating because that's how he slapped his wife and mistresses. I shook off the feeling of dizziness. "I don't have a coward son! Don't you dare run with tails behind your legs, son. Do not bring any more disgrace in my name."Raw anger emerged like a roaring lion as I tasted the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. Spitting on the floor, and staring him in the eyes, I exclaimed, "Why don't you appoint your eldest son as the alpha? That's how it works, Dad. Aren't you even worried your son will die because of that match?"He pushed me off the wall and cornered me. Pointing his fingers on my chest, he whispered, "The weak should die. I don't feel any sorry if they die during the competition. As long as they did not cower in fear."
ACE:My heart pounded like crazy. After a few years of evading this place, I was able to return to Blackriver Pack, the place where I was born. All the alpha's women gave birth here. It was one of the laws of the alpha to his pregnant women before he would sign the certificates signifying he was the father of the children. The pack were looking at me with a weird expression on their faces. Bastard or the bitch's child. The illegitimate child. The kept woman's child and a lot more to tell. The people became imaginative as I grew up. That was the name they called us. Without the alpha's knowing. My stomach knotted. My legs trembled, but I tried to act calm, especially with the guards beside me. They would laugh at me, thinking how could a powerful alpha like Alpha Bryan have a cowardly son. And then they would add, "It's because he is the son of the mistress. Illegitimate children are all weak. Why did the alpha acknowledge them?"In this pack, only the legal sons and daughters o
KEIRA:The sun had already risen when I woke up. Rubbing my eyes, I looked at the clock on the bedside table. Ten o'clock in the morning. Damn.I overslept because I was too comfortable at this place. Maybe it was also because of the ambiance of the place and the sounds of the waves lulling me to sleep.My stomach growled. I need to eat. Ace. Where was that man?I looked for my shoes only to remember that I was barefooted when I checked who had entered my apartment.Checking if there were some spare slippers, I found them under the bed. Sprinting towards the door and looking for Ace, I found him on the beach, sitting on the sand facing the shore while sipping the juice of a coconut.Sensing my presence, he glanced over his shoulder and saw me, leaving the coconut on the sand, and sauntered towards me. "Hey. Did you sleep well? I asked someone to check if you already woke up, but the helper said you’re sleeping soundly."Surprisingly, I did. Maybe it was because I dreamed about L