Chapter 99 BREWING
WILLA’S POV
Elodie didn’t walk.
She glided, waltzing into the room and towards us like a graceful swan moving on water. The sight of her vividly reminded me of Miss Banfey, and I couldn’t help but think that they were likely cut from the same cloth.
“So pretty,” Gillian whispered in uncontained awe.
‘She is,’ my mind supplied in agreement while my gaze remained firmly trained on Elodie.
She was really quite the sight. Her beautiful hair was pinned on one side, cascading down in soft curls and contrasting strikingly against the fabric of her castleton green dress. Her perfectly shaped face, which boasted beautifully sculpted features, wore a barely-there smile that could only be read as genial and coy.
And Gallahan?
Gallahan couldn’t take his unblinking eyes off of Elodie.
I bit my lower lip as my stare flickered to and fro between him and Elodie, who was fast approaching with my brother.
Did Gallahan regret it? Letting go of such a wonderful woman?
Did seeing her holding another man’s arm, looking breathtakingly gorgeous and oh so painfully perfect, put things into perspective? That he might’ve let a great woman like Elodie slip through his fingers like an idiot?
Was he angry that it was William who stood beside her now?
I looked down, shaking my head slightly to dispel such thoughts from my head.
I was Gallahan’s fated mate. No one else was better suited for him than me: the one the moon goddess herself picked and the stars aligned for.
Right?
Right.
Besides, the Elodie I once knew had always been kind. Ambitious to a fault, yes. But never ill-spirited and deceiving.
On top of that, she was clearly with my brother. She was going to be his chosen mate. There wasn’t some sort of situation that put friction between us. The traitorous part of my mind was just spouting poisonous and baseless thoughts. Nothing more.
So I really shouldn’t be dwelling on such follies.
“Willa?” William called, shaking me out of my thoughts.
“Uh, yes?”
I blinked, realizing they were all looking at me with varying degrees of concern. After all, it seemed like I had been lost in my head long enough for greetings and introductions to be over.
A frown marred Gallahan’s face, to which I responded with an assuring smile.
“Care to be present with us?” William asked with a thinly veiled impatience in his voice.
I wasn’t quite certain if he was upset with my accidental impudence or if he was simply miffed by Gallahan’s attendance at tonight's dinner.
“I apologize,” I said with an easy smile plastered on my face. “I suppose Miss Drummond’s beauty had simply left me a bit dazed.”
Elodie chuckled, airy and so bloody beautiful. “Didn’t you say the same when we first met, Willa?”
I laughed. It was short, breathy and sounded more like strangled choking compared to Elodie’s. “Did I? Then isn’t it just a testament to your beauty, Miss Drummond?”
“Oh, Willa. Don’t be such a stranger. We may have parted ways on a sour note, but we were friends once, weren’t we? With the war no longer a divide, surely we could rekindle that friendship.”
I smiled, keeping my eyes on Elodie even when Gallahan’s stare was drilling on me with so much intensity I could almost melt. “Of course.”
After that, dinner went by in a flurry of more pleasantries, good food, discussion of succession of the Alpha seat for Wolverham, more pleasantries, great wine and a whole lot of sweet chatter.
And as promised, Gallahan was on his best behavior the entire time. He had managed to bite back his tongue, even when William kept throwing expertly hidden verbal jabs at him.
He kept his mouth sealed for the most part of the dinner, and he only spoke when spoken to.
I also did the same. Not because I wasn’t interested about the matter nor unwilling to get myself involved.
I just felt a little off-kilter about everything.
Not because of Elodie. Though she could also be a very small factor for that. As she had said, we had parted ways on a sour note.
But it was mainly because of William.
It had been completely silent between the two of us since the fight between him and Gallahan. Neither of us had reached out to one another, and this was the longest time we had ever gone on without talking.
So to suddenly learn about his relationship with Elodie, which had gone on for a couple of years already, was… surprising.
And… It was very evident from our few stilted exchanges that the fight between him and Gallahan had really put a strain on our relationship.
The mere knowledge of it left me unable to enjoy all of the courses served before me.
Thankfully, Gallahan and I had the twins as a ticket to leave as soon as dinner was through, and we couldn’t have gotten home much faster than we did.
“Let’s not do that ever again,” Gallahan said as he emerged from behind the dressing partition, all ready for bed.
“Can’t promise you anything,” I replied with a sigh, getting myself comfortable seated on the bed with my legs outstretched beneath the cosy warmth of the duvet. “They’re family.”
“Not mine,” he grumbled, running his fingers through his mussed up hair. “Fuck that asshole brother of yours. I’m sure he was the one who told Elodie all about you and I. She knew I was fated and bonded to you, which was really fucking odd because I met her not long after we nested!”
I couldn’t help but arch my brow at him. “You’re still mad she outsmarted you?”
“She didn’t outsmart me. She-”
“Well, she had the brain to gather information in her arsenal before meeting you, while you didn’t. So I’d say she actually outsmarted you.”
A scowl etched itself on Gallahan’s face as he stood near the foot of the bed, his arms crossed against his chest. “It was underhanded!”
I rolled my eyes. Hard. “No, it wasn’t.”
But Gallahan plowed through, as if he didn’t hear me. “Besides, I’m also sure William put her up to it.”
The claim had me looking at him in utter confusion. “Huh?”
“William likely asked her to monopolize my time and work me to the bone so I couldn’t return home to you and our pups.”
A disbelieving puff of breath escaped my lips. “Alright. You’re just jumping to conclusions.”
“Am I?” He challenged in an icy tone, making it apparent how he was getting all riled up “Willa, your brother hates my guts.”
“So?” I retorted, unwilling to back down. “You hate him too.”
“Yes!” The volume of his voice was dangerously getting louder, making me half concerned that our brewing argument might wake the kids up. But I couldn’t really interject and ask Gallahan to tone it down, because he went on, saying, “But I wasn’t the one who told an innocent and impressionable child that her father is evil!”
I rubbed a hand against my forehead, before dragging it down my face. Then I replied, “Gillian asked a question, and he just answered.”
“Oh? Because it’s his place to answer?” Gallahan shot back angrily, his eyes flashing golden.
“Alright, alright,” I said, letting my tone verge on placating. “He overstepped. But that’s all water under the bridge now, right? Gillian is warming up to you now.”
“Sure,” he agreed with a shrug that came across as angry and bitter. “But my point still stands. Your brother loathes me, and I wouldn’t put it past him to sabotage us because he doesn’t accept me as your mate.”
I bit back the exasperated groan that threatened to rumble out of me. Quietly, with a lilt that could almost be taken as pleading, I said, “Why are you getting so worked up about this? Let it go.”
“NO!” Gallahan boomed, making me wince. “Because your lot always expects the worst from me, Willa. And I am certain that your brother is out to ruin me. Ruin us, and I swear that if he-”
My patience had run thin, and it had been quite a long night. So I didn’t want to deal with the bullshit anymore.
“He’s not. Okay?” I cut in rudely, my annoyance palpable. “You’re overthinking the matter and making hasty conclusions. You’re just stressing on a problem that doesn’t even exist.”
“Well, I suppose it’s a talent I share with you.”
I went slightly slack-jawed as soon as the remark was thrown harshly to my face.
While any other time I would’ve brushed it off as a teasing jab, his vitriol for William had bled into it, painting the words and his voice with malice.
It was clearly said to cut me.
And it did. Quite deeply.
Deep enough to cut through all the layers of explanations and assurances he had generously wrapped me to negate my assumptions, my fears and my insecurities.
But even if instincts told me to throw back as good as what he had dished out for me, I bit back my tongue and simply shifted on the bed to lay on my side with my back turned towards his side of the bed. Then I said, “Good night, Gallahan.”
“Willa, I didn’t mean-”
“I said good night.”
He groaned, frustrated and upset. But in the end, he ended up saying, “Good night, Willa.”