32

32
“Why’re you dallying?” the Alpha’s voice startled Bellatrix, who was about to give in to the temptation of downing one first.
“S-sorry, sir. I-I’ll bring it over right now,” she hurriedly said, gently shutting the fridge’s door after she had taken a bottle of water. Then, holding it with both hands, like it was a sacred artefact, she made a beeline for her mate’s desk. “Here, sir,” she meekly said upon reaching her destination.

He tapped the space beside him on the desk, “Place it here, then, fetch me a glass,” he ordered.
She obeyed after setting the plastic bottle upright on the desk. Upon her return with the spotless glass, she took the initiative to unscrew the cap of the bottle and proceeded to fill the glass past the halfway mark, all without any prompting.

“Alright, you can go get some water,” the Alpha said, “…only if you’re sure you can hold your pee quite well.”
The first part of his words almost made her jump up for joy. She was damn thirsty, even more now. But the latter part of his words quickly dampened her joy. 
He was indirectly telling her not to drink water. She might as well faint for him to see.

Seeing her miserable look, Killian resisted the urge to titter. His mate was really good to tease. But he didn’t want her crying, not when the training hadn’t even begun. “I’m done with you for now. Go out and play.”
Bellatrix’s expression lit up a little.
“Be back before 1 pm, though, or else your days of training will be extended to a month,” he warned her.

She looked at the peacock-shaped clock hanging on the wall opposite her. It was currently 12:30!
“Sir, please, forgive my curiosity. How long was I to be trained for?” she asked, her tone barely hiding her irritation.
“You’re sure you want to know?” he asked, adjusting his glasses. 

Though she sensed butterflies starting to converge in her gut, she still braved herself to answer positively, even adding a fake smile.
The Alpha took his gaze off her.
“Three weeks,” he eventually answered, eyes focused on the book page he’d just flipped to. “…and eight days,”

“…” She was left speechless.
What was the difference?
She might as well disobey and return by 2 pm at the earliest.
“If you return later than 1:05 pm, you’ll be kneeling at the pack square until midnight without food or water.”
Those words successfully made her shudder.

“Noted, sir. I’ll surely be back on time. I'll take my leave," With a respectful bow, she started toward the door.
"Bellatrix, come back." His unanticipated call stopped her in her tracks; she was about to cross the threshold.
Though disgruntled, she still turned to face him, trying her best to maintain a submissive look as she headed back to him, ultimately stopping a little distance away from his desk. “Here I am, Sir. What do you need me to do?”

“Weren’t you thirsty? Drink some water before you leave,” Alpha Killian offered, pointing in the fridge’s direction.
She looked at him incredulously. Would he be that kind?
But…it wasn’t deniable— she was indeed parched.
“Thank you, Sir,” she smilingly told him before heading to the fridge.

The moment she opened its second door, he unexpectedly told her, just as his phone started vibrating. “Since you’re here, help me answer this call; I don’t want to talk to this person. He gives me the creeps.” 
“….” She was tongue-tied.

What did he mean by this? Who was she? How could she answer the Alpha’s phone call? What if the person on the other end was also an Alpha? How could she explain when the other party questioned her on why she was answering the Alpha’s call?
And what if this was her mate’s trap? There’s no Alpha out there that’s a saint, even if they have a baby face.

“Sir, I can’t,” she quickly disagreed.
“I want you to answer it, and that’s final. Get your ass here right now,” he ordered, seeming a little impatient.
“T-then, can I…finish this water first?” she meekly asked.
“Sure, take all the time you need,” he said, rising from his seat with the cyan book in hand.
He walked over to the shelf to return it to its original place and then made his way towards her. Seeing this, she quickly downed the water in the bottle in one big gulp.

Patting her chest to prevent burping, she hurried to the desk. The phone had stopped ringing by the time she reached it. She looked behind her and saw the Alpha taking out another bottle of water from the fridge.
“Do you want another?” he asked, already twisting open the lid.
She vigorously shook her head.
She wasn’t thirsty anymore. Even if she still was, how could she let an Alpha bring her water?

The phone started vibrating again as the screen turned on. The caller was saved as ‘Annoying He-goat’.
She didn’t have any idea who this person was. But one thing was sure: this person must definitely be an Alpha and Killian’s foe at that.
“What are you waiting for?” Killian asked as he screwed back the lid and made his way over with the bottle in his right hand.
“I…I…”

“Finish it then. You’ll obtain all the courage you need,” he proposed, extending the half-finished bottle of water towards her.
She stared at the other half-finished one on the desk. Even the glass wasn’t downright empty. Did her mate love to waste things?
“When I drink water, I finish two bottles in one go,” he revealed, as if he had read her mind.
Since he could drink directly from the bottle, why then did he ask her to even fetch a glass?

The rack wasn’t even situated where she could easily reach. It was a miracle she didn’t knock down any other glassware.
Bellatrix wanted to facepalm at this point. The so-called warm-up was to test her level of endurance. “Sir, I’m free to leave after I answer this call, right?”
He nodded and gestured for her to pick up the phone.

Internally hyping herself up, she took the phone with both hands and answered it. However, she didn’t expect to hear that person’s voice.