Chapter 225
Zara
Quietly, I left, and Alpha emerged from the bathroom at the same moment. Wrapped only in a towel that sat low on his narrow waist, his damp hair obscured his infinitely dark yet captivating eyes.
I swallowed, stopping in my tracks. Drops of water trickled down the hard, narrow lines of his torso.
Involuntarily, I stared at him.
Before my gaze dropped to where his towel lay, I came to my senses and looked away. “Could you please stop wandering around like that until I get back?” I hissed, hoping my cheeks didn’t flush.
He froze; his hungry gaze, reminiscent of a hungry panther’s, never left me as he replied in his deep, husky voice.
“You were in the closet; I didn’t want to disturb you.” His gaze slid to my chest, and I quickly grabbed my robe and buttoned it. He was right, though.
Giving me another angry glare, he walked to the closet and closed the door behind him. I sighed with relief and turned to his enormous bed.
It was luxurious and gigantic, and now it would all be mine. The thought made me smile. After he broke my heart like that, all he could do was sleep on the couch.
I hope he gets a good night’s sleep. I jumped onto his waterbed and soon found myself nestled between the soft pillows and warm blanket. What a blessing after a tiring day. I closed my eyes and tried to rest.
Suddenly, the thought flashed through my mind that I was alone in this room with him, and yet I felt no fear.
Maybe it was emotional trauma, feigned emotion, or something else, I don’t know. But somehow, I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. He’d just break my heart, which he already had, so there was nothing left.
And I had already decided that I wasn’t going to cry or lose sleep over him, so I just closed my eyes and let sleep wash over me.
Kane
Coming out of the dressing room, I found her sleeping peacefully in my bed, covered with my blanket and surrounded by pillows. She had claimed all my pillows for herself.
I approached her, my greedy eyes simply staring at her peacefully sleeping face. Her mouth was slightly open, she was snoring softly, which meant she was terribly tired.
Her hair spilled across the white pillowcase, like molten lava flowing over snow. I wanted to reach out and touch it, feel its softness with my fingertips, but I had lost that right.
So I just stood there and looked at her for a few minutes, soaking up her innocence, because my treacherous heart wanted her and only her. The pain echoed around me, as if it had become a permanent limb that ached incessantly.
’Why the hell did it hurt so much?’ my wolf was angry.
’Why couldn’t I just hold her and let her tenderness soothe this pain?’ I ignored my wolf’s anger.
Smoking, I needed a cigarette to numb this agony that was tearing me apart. Opening the balcony door, I stepped out into the piercing December cold. I was wearing only sweatpants and a black shirt, but I welcomed the cold; anything to numb this suffering.
Lighting a cigarette, I gazed at the endless expanse of the garden, numbing my melancholy with smoking. I never thought a woman would penetrate my soul and make me so miserable.
I couldn’t possess her, and yet I didn’t want to let her go.
’What kind of hypocrite are you?’ my wolf growled.
She deserved better. Once she was safe and I caught shadows, I would have to let her go. She deserved the queen title and more love from someone who wasn’t as cold and vicious as me.
What kind of man could do such a thing? And I could imagine who was behind such a scheme.
But who?
A shadow from her demon father’ past, or perhaps her own? Someone she recognized could be interfering in her life.
I could only speculate and investigate. But, having exhausted all my resources, I was still far from catching this person.
Taking another deep drag from my cigarette, I inhaled the bloody smoke. This would be my undoing, but I didn’t care. The shorter my life, the better.
But then I caught a glimpse of her happy face. I turned to look at her through the glass door. She slept carefree, still trusting me after all I’d done for her.
Perhaps part of her knew I wouldn’t cross the line. Somewhere in her mind, there must have remained a fine line of trust between us.
Fate had bound us in ways I couldn’t understand.
I smiled when she stirred and pulled the blanket up higher to keep her warm. I took a final drag before studding my cigarette on the railing. My arms and legs were numb from the cold; it was time to go inside.
Once inside, I called Olfi to bring me an extra blanket and pillow. She could keep all my pillows; I was more than happy to share them.
Olfi arrived soon after, and I went outside to collect them from him. “Don’t forget to check the perimeter again and all the cameras p>
He nodded quickly and left.
Returning to the room, I was about to crawl under the covers when I heard Zara’s scream, muffled at first, then louder.
My heart sank, and without thinking, I rushed to her. She was struggling under the covers, her eyes closed, her face contorted in pain, trying to escape the nightmare she found herself in.
Terror gripped me, I grabbed the blanket and ripped it from her trembling body. Quickly hugging her, I lifted her from the bed.
“Zara!” I lightly tapped her cheeks to wake her. Her frightened eyes widened, she screamed again, and grabbed my shirt.
Breathing raggedly, I saw sweat stick to her forehead and temples. Calmly and soothingly, I touched her face with my thumb. Her cheeks burned, tears flowed from her eyes like pearls, falling onto my finger. Like molten metal, they seared my skin and pierced my heart, like a red-hot iron rod piercing my chest.
“Hush! Don’t cry… it was just a nightmare p>
I wiped away her tears with the tip of my thumb as she buried her face in my chest and sobbed quietly. With my other hand, I stroked her back, trying to soothe her. Her body trembled like a rabbit caught in a trap.
Finally, her sobs subsided, and she raised her head to look at me with a mixture of alarm and regret. Her hands pushed me away, and she tried to jump away from me as if I were a bomb about to explode.
The mask of indifference cracked on my face, and no matter how hard I tried to hide my emotions, some of them still flickered, and she saw them clearly.
The truth in her voice was heavy and suffocating, as if I were being drowned with a boulder tied to my ankle. It plunged me deep into an ocean of pain.
Stupidly, I blinked, my arms empty as she curled up on the other corner of the bed, her face buried between her legs, sobbing softly.
I wanted to run to her, hug her, and comfort her, but I knew she hated me now. That would only anger her even more.
I quietly stood up and left the room without saying a word. I didn’t know what to say without hurting her, and I had already hurt her enough.
Zara
My heart was pounding as I woke up drenched in sweat.
A nightmare, a bloody nightmare.
Shadows was chasing me on a tail, trying to catch me and my baby. My stomach felt so heavy that when I tried to run, I clutched it tightly, and then stumbled and fell.
A deafening pain erupted in my stomach, and blood began to seep between my legs, forming a puddle around me.
I screamed, screamed so loudly that I woke up in someone’s comforting arms. Without thinking, I grabbed everything I could and began to sob, clutching my chest.
Soothing fingers, the gentle touch of skin against mine, and the soft caresses of my back and arm.
The feeling was all too familiar, and it brought me back to consciousness when I realized it was Alpha holding me.
I immediately let go of him and hurried away. I had no desire to be consoled by the man who had so blatantly shattered my heart into so many pieces that I couldn’t put them back together.
So many emotions were splashed across his face as I pulled away from him and burst into tears of pain.