Chapter 139

Cecilia “I’ll front it,” Alpha Sebastian said, his voice low and smooth—like he was offering me a deal, not a disaster. I froze mid-spoonful, pasta halfway to my mouth. “Absolutely not. I can’t pay you back.” He leaned in, that maddening half-smile playing on his lips. “I’ll put you on a payment plan.” I stared at him, fingers tightening around my spoon like it might turn into a weapon. For one traitorous second, my heart fluttered like a Disney sidekick. Then reality dropkicked me in the back of the head. What was I doing? This man was not a bank. This was not a rom-com montage. This was my actual life. I stirred my clam chowder aimlessly, trying to shovel my dignity back into my chest. “So, uh… what’s in this soup?” I asked, grasping at the world’s weakest conversational lifeline. “It tastes like… secrets and regret.” Alpha Sebastian actually laughed. Like, full-on laughed. Which was rude, frankly. Then, without ceremony, he reached over and dumped the rest of his chowder into my bow