Chapter 18

BELLA'S POV If Dad hadn’t chosen such a dumb excuse, I wouldn’t be struggling to keep Alexander by my side now. Since Dad had told everyone that lame lie, I had no choice but to go with it after I returned. I had carefully capitalized on it and told it to Alexander at every chance I got. He pitied me, and he had been loving and kind, always coming at my every beck and call to hold me in his arms and assure me that everything would be fine and he would always be there for me. But now… I reflected on the past few days and hissed again. Now the lie was barely effective, especially with Sydney more involved. Or maybe my acts weren’t believable enough? Perhaps I should meet up with a pack’ doctor and make him lie, then I would get Alexander to go with me and… I hissed and threw the ideas out the window. It was enough that Sydney knew about it. I didn’t want more ears to hear. What if the pack’ doctor later decided to betray me? I hissed again. If Dad hadn’t chosen this excuse for my absence, I would have been able to come up with a firmer excuse. Now I was stuck with a nonexistent werewolf gene defect disease. I hissed as I sipped the tasteless drink in the cup. Sandra cleared her throat noisily.?"Are you even here?" I turned to her, a brow raised.?"I’m sitting right here, and you’re still asking me that?" She shook her head.?"What’s bothering you? Your body’s here, but your mind isn’t. You don’t want to be here, do you?" I sat up and dropped my wineglass.?"I’m—" "When you knew you weren’t interested, you could have just said so, right?"?Her perfectly arched brow went up her hairline.?"Why waste our time?" I pouted as I peered at her.?"I’m sorry."?I let out a long breath, and my shoulders fell.?"I just can’t get it off my mind." Sandra rolled her eyes and looked away for a few seconds. When she looked my way again, her gaze was filled with concern. That was one thing about Sandra; she was always quick to get angry and, at the same time, quick to forgive. I didn’t want to make her mad; I never wanted to. She’s the one who has always been there for me all this while. She took my hand that rested resignedly on my lap.?"You’re still worried about yesterday, aren’t you?" I felt my brows crease as I answered her.?"Shouldn’t I be? I’m losing him, Sandra. My eyes are wide open, and he’s slipping out of my fingers." She drew back and squinted her eyes.?"Is this still about you wanting to be the Luna of an Alpha or you’re falling for him?" I frowned.?"I don’t know."?I didn’t even want to think about it… love… I doubted if I ever wanted to feel it again. I doubted I could even ever feel it again.?"I just want to be an Alpha’s mate. And I want to be the only one. I want to make him love me so much that he’d worship the ground I step on. He should love me so much he’d do anything for me." "He would,"?she said softly, her hands squeezing mine. I snatched my hands from hers.?"No, he won’t! You saw it yourself. You saw how he threw her over his shoulder yesterday." "He was simply angry at her announcement." I turned to face her.?"Now why should he be? If he wants to be with me, he wouldn’t be mad that she wants to break the bond. His attention is increasingly being taken by her." Sandra sat back and sipped leisurely from her cup.?"Yeah, I’ve noticed,"?she admitted quite maliciously.?"That she-wolf, I just—"?She paused for a while, then she shrugged abruptly.?"I just really hate how she behaves, how she acts as if she’s everything." I smirked.?"You don’t need to say it,"?I gestured in front of her face.?"It’s all over your face." She giggled, then suddenly sobered up. She turned to me, her eyes wide.?"I have an idea." "Let’s hear it,"?I leaned closer, and she mirrored my movement. "Get pregnant." My heart skipped a quick beat when some memories flooded in. I closed my eyes and shook my head.?Focus on the present, Bella,?I reprimanded myself. "What do you mean I should get pregnant?" She blinked at me.?"Come on, girl. You know what I mean. Sleep with Alexander without protection and make sure he impregnates you." "Do you realize what it means to carry an Alpha’s pup ?"?Sandra’s voice dropped to a low, conspiratorial whisper, her eyes gleaming with a mix of excitement and cunning. "It’s not just a pup—it’s the next heir to the Nightscar pack. The future Alpha. Do you understand the power that comes with that?" "Oh,"?I murmured dismally and sat back. "You can’t do it?"?Her sharp voice pulled me out of my thoughts. "What? No, yeah, I can,"?I spluttered. I sat straighter in the chair.?"I will. Anything to get him to be fully mine." "Good,"?she smiled.?"Because there’s no surer way to own an Alpha than to carry his heir in your belly." I nodded, already working a plan in my head.?"Why haven’t I thought of this before?"?My subconscious mocked me as I asked; I ignored it. "I’m surprised myself. You’ll see that when you get pregnant with his pup, he’ll be forced to break the bond with Sydney."?She shrugged.?"After all, you’re carrying his heir, so why shouldn’t he devote his life to keeping you happy?" I sprang out of the chair, my lips stretched in a wide grin.?"Oh, Sandra. Thank you, thank you,"?I pecked her continuously on each cheek in excitement. She playfully pushed me off her, and I sat back in my chair, thrumming with excitement. I was so sure that this one would work. But apart from that, I knew he wanted me. I was confident enough that I would easily get him to sleep with me. "Come on, what are friends for if we don’t hatch plans to destroy someone we mutually hate." "Yas, girl,"?I chirped and raised my cup in the air. She did the same, and our cups met clumsily in the air as our hands shook from our laughter. Later, Sandra and I ordered a meal each and ate to our fill, chatting and laughing as we did. Then we left the restaurant and visited a mall; we giggled like schoolgirls as we picked a lingerie set for me. I was hatching my plan tonight. No time to waste. In the evening, we parted ways. It was an unexpectedly fun-filled day for me. On my way home, I dialed Alexander. "Bella…"?His deep voice filled the speaker of my phone, and I closed my eyes in bliss, imagining him murmuring sweet nothings in my ear as he— "Bella, are you there?" My eyes flew open.?"Yes!"?The pitch of my voice was too high, so I took a deep breath.?"Of course, I’m not fine. I’ve missed you." I heard him sigh.?"I’ve missed you too, babe. It’s just w—" "Yeah, pack duties. I know,"?I interrupted him, feeling slightly irritated that I had planned.?"I might be dying, and you’d still choose pack duties. It’s fine. Go back to work. I just called to ask if you’d like to come over for dinner, but apparently, you’re busy. Bye, have a good working night,"?I bit out and hung up. I bit my lip as I stared at my phone. I really hoped he would call back. Because if he doesn’t, I wo— My phone vibrated in my palm. A mischievous grin spread across my face as I looked at the caller’s ID. I did a hasty countdown from ten before I picked up. He let out a relieved breath.?"I was scared you weren’t going to pick up." "What do you want?" "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to use pack duties as an excuse. I’ll come for dinner if you want me to. What time?" "A couple of hours from now,"?I grinned. I washed myself with my best-scented body wash and donned myself in the heavenly smell of my body spray, then I put on the lingerie and let my hair fall around my shoulders. *** "You know,"?I started, a few minutes into the second course of our meal. Alexander was already digging in after complimenting my cooking skills nonstop.?"Not having you around always reminds me of my days overseas." Alexander’s fork froze in the air, then he dropped it and picked up the bottle of alcohol and poured some into his wineglass. He took a big gulp.?"I’m sorry." My eyes lowered as I poked the food on my plate.?"Don’t be. It’s not your fault that I got diagnosed with a werewolf gene defect disease a few days before my mating ceremony." I heard him sigh deeply, then he exhausted the content in his glass, and I smirked inwardly. Just a few more acts. "Mom and Dad couldn’t come, and I was all alone throughout the whole process. There was no one to turn to whenever I was haunted by those… nightmares." I looked up at him; my eyes felt wet with tears.?"It was hell, Alexander. I wished you were there then. I wished you were there to hold me in your arms like you do now and tell me that they were just meaningless dreams…"?I trailed off, and a tear rolled down my cheeks. "Come on, Bella,"?Alexander roughly pushed his chair back and quickly got on his feet. He came around the table and held me by my shoulders. He wiped the lone tear with his thumb, the feel of his arms around me and his thumb on my cheek sent shivers down my back.?"It’s in the past now,"?he gave me a peck on my forehead.?"Don’t think about it." I sniffed and nodded, my grip on the sides of his shirt. "Now let’s not let this sumptuous meal go to waste,"?he smiled softly and playfully pulled at my cheeks. He fed me as we ate, and I, in turn, poured more alcohol for him as I told him another made-up story about my sick and sad days abroad. After eating, we cleared the dishes together. All the while, Alexander took short intermittent breaks by taking a quick swig from the bottle of alcohol he clung to. Then he’d mutter, smiling drunkenly,?"It’s just so good. You should try it."?He’d stretch his arm toward me, and I’d push it back.?"It’s all yours, Alexander,"?I’d whisper back and accompany it with a sloppy kiss. A few more kisses, and we couldn’t get our hands off each other, Alexander especially. I took us upstairs and took off the robe I had over the lingerie. Alexander’s eyes lit up as he took it in. His lips ever so slowly curled into a lopsided smile. He pulled me to him and murmured huskily,?"I love what you have on." "You do, don’t you?"?I giggled and connected our lips in a searing kiss. I unbuttoned his shirt and pressed my body to his. His groan filled the room, and he roughly pushed me to the bed. I had barely caught my breath before he climbed on top of me and straddled me. His lips brushed against mine teasingly before he pulled my lips into his. The kiss quickly became rough. Alexander’s lips left mine and traveled downward. He took his time as he kissed my neck; his lips slightly hovered above my collarbone before his teeth grazed it. I squirmed beneath him, my fingers tangling in his hair and my legs tangled with his as his big hands palmed my breasts, then he was sliding the light material over my breast, his hot breath making my nipples get even harder. I tipped my head up when he suddenly stopped. The look on his face was unfathomable as he stared at my breasts. "Alexander,"?I called softly, and with my hands in his hair, I tipped his head back so he could look at me.?"What’s wrong, babe?" "I can’t do this,"?he muttered, his eyes filled with confusion. "What?"?I frowned. "I have to go home,"?I flinched as he suddenly pulled away, taking the warmth of his body with him.?"Sydney is waiting for me." I sprang up from the bed at his last sentence. My eyes pricked with tears.?"Alexander, what are you saying? I’m the one waiting. Look at me,"?I reached for him, but he scrambled off the bed. "She’ll leave. She’ll go to the bar guy. I have to go." He looked like he was in a trance.?"What bar guy?!"?I erupted, and my loud voice only seemed to knock him to his senses more. I quickly softened my voice, reached for him, and he didn’t move away.?"You can’t go like this, Alexander."?I brushed my lips against his ear.?"You’ve been drinking. You can’t drive in this state. Just stay here for the night." He jerkily shrugged me off his shoulders and got on his feet.?"I can. I can drive… I just have to go home…"?he trailed off and staggered out the door. And just like that, he was gone. I collapsed on the bed, tears brimming in my eyes as loneliness cocooned me into its depressing embrace. My chest rose and fell as I breathed heavily, my hatred for Sydney intensifying.