~Celine~
After I woke up, I cleaned myself up and headed out of the bedroom to say Hi to Ethan. Getting to the living room, I looked over to the couch where I had left him the previous night, and I saw he wasn’t there.
“Ethan?” I called as I walked slowly to the kitchen, to know maybe he was in there. But when I got to the kitchen, there was no trace of him either.
It wasn’t as if anyone had even been in the kitchen. ‘Where is he?’ I wondered, making my way to the living room again.
“Ethan?!” I called the second time, and I got nothing but an awkward silence as a response.
Suddenly, my heart began to thump very fast. “Ethan?!” My love shivered in terror. I twirled severally, hoping to hear him answer from any angle of the house, but I heard nothing.
Tears heated my eyes in realization, and I almost fell to the ground.
“He left, Kiara. He left. I told you he hates me. Why would he want to help? I’m alone now.” I mumbled, holding onto the couch for support.
“But why would he just disappear overnight?”
“What do you think, hun?! I broke his heart and left him for another man without saying a word, I’m pregnant and I expect him to protect and care for me. Would you do it if it were you? I knew this was a bad idea.”
Sitting on the couch, more tears rolled down my eyes. I knew I wasn’t supposed to be mad at him for leaving me because I hurt him, but… ‘I really want and need him around.’
‘He should have at least told me he didn’t want to be here. He didn’t have to let me stay here all by myself.’
With my hands between my legs and my head buried in tears, I heard a sound at the door. I hastily looked up and I watched the door open.
Surprisingly, I saw Ethan walk into the house with two large grocery bags in his hands, hugged firmly to his sides.
“Ethan?!” I called as I sprang to my feet and ran to him. “I thought you left me.” She mumbled tearily, wrapping her arms around his neck and embracing him.
“Left you? Why would I do that?… and why are you crying? You really thought I left?” He asked as I broke the hug and he saw my face.
“Yes. When I stepped out, I looked everywhere for you and couldn’t find you. I thought you had gone.” I responded, cleaning off my tears with the back of my hand.
“I wouldn’t just leave you, Celine. I left a note on the Kitchen fridge, but I bet you even saw it.” He responded, making his way to the kitchen.
Following behind him, I walked into the kitchen too, and just as he said, the sticky note was right there, attached to the top of the fridge.
“Oh… I didn’t see it.” I muttered, walking to the fridge. I got the sticky note off it and read the note.
“I’m off to get groceries and other stuff. I may stay a little longer because the mall is super far from here. Ethan.”
After reading it, I raised my head to look at him and I saw he was busy offloading all that was in the bag on the cabinet.
He had gotten carrots, broccoli, parsley, potatoes, pasta, onions, garlic, and so many more useful and yummy things. I was so moved by his kindness towards me, that I was unsure what to say or how to react.
He was just so sweet.
When he reached for the other bag, he turned his head to look at me. “I got some toiletries too.” He uttered, and I nodded.
“Come over here.” He said, and immediately I moved towards him.
“So here, I got toilet paper, toothbrush and paste, bathing soap, and many others. You should get them into the bathroom in your room.” He said, and as he spoke, I stared at his face only.
He looked up and saw I wasn’t even looking at the items he was showing me at all.
“Thank you so much, Ethan. I know I don’t deserve any of these.” I uttered, and he heaved a loud sigh and looked away from my face.
He gulped and moved away from the cabinet, heading out of the kitchen.
“For Alpha Marcus, it would take quite some time for him to get to us here, but we can’t just underestimate his crazy tracking skills. So, I already reached out to my Alpha.”
“Alpha Joven?” My eyes popped wide open as I followed behind him to the living room.
“Yeah.” He settled on the couch and I sat next to him, paying rapt attention to him.
“I told him I would be needing the help of the pack to go against Alpha Marcus.”
I raised my eyebrows as I thought well about it. Though I knew not so much about Ethan’s Alpha and Pack because Ethan preferred to talk about us and nothing more all the time, I knew one thing for sure.
Alpha Joven never liked trouble. He’s also one of the powerful Alphas in New Orleans, but he really respects my father and wouldn’t dare go against him.
“When I told him more details, that he is after you, he promised to help us scare him off.” Ethan further explained.
“Really? But wouldn’t that be a lot of trouble? Going against Alpha Marcus is like going against my dad. He’s pretty powerful too.” I answered.
“Are you saying we are weak and incapable?” He asked with a frown, and I hastily shook my head in regret.
“No. No. I’m sorry if it came off like that, but that wasn’t what I meant.” I waved my hands in the air, trying to defend myself.
“They are all Alpha’s. Though Alpha Darius is untouchable in New Orleans, Marcus is just like his dog. We as a pack can handle him. We have never failed when it comes to fighting, and that’s why we don’t get into fights often. It isn’t always good.”
As he further explained, I nodded in agreement with everything he said.
Though Alpha Marcus seems scary, he only has more power because of my father, but it looks like Ethan and his pack don't care about this either.
‘But why is he going out of his way to help me? Even involving his Alpha?’ I wondered, staring blankly at him.
“My Alpha decided to help us because, as a Beta, I have been so honest and loyal to him, and… he kind of knows you are my girlfriend. However, that is not true anymore. He’s doing this because he doesn’t want me to lose my mate to a nuisance, so he’s ready to fight with me.” He further explained, and I nodded.
“So in the meantime, until all the drama with Alpha Marcus is over, we have to put on an act that we’re still together, as this is the only reason I’m getting help from Alpha Joven.”
“Oh…” I muttered.
“Yes. When there’s another message from Alpha Marcus, I’ll reach out to the pack, and they’ll come down here to stay with us until this is over. For those times, we have to act as a couple.” He added.
“Sure. That shouldn’t be a problem.” I responded, giving another nod. ‘I mean, all I have to do is act in his whole plan to protect me, I’ll definitely do it.’
“One more thing. He cannot know you’re pregnant.” He added, and I nodded slowly.
“It’s still the very early stage, it shouldn’t be that obvious, should it?” I asked, lowering my head to look at my tummy. I got no response from him and in curiosity, I raised my head to see him staring at me.
He stretched out his hand, and I looked at it in confusion.
“Give me your phone.”
“What?”
“Give me your phone. I need to make sure you won’t do anything stupid like texting the man who rejected you while we are in hiding.”
“But I won’t…”
“Your phone, Celine. We’ll be doing things my way, okay? Type in your password too. I’ll be getting rid of that.”
Hearing this, I swallowed hard and reluctantly nodded. I reached for my phone in the pocket of my pants, unlocked it, and gave it to him.
He took it from me and put it in his pocket. “I’ll let you know when Alpha Marcus texts. And I’ll return it to you after my work is done here.” He uttered.
Staring at him speechlessly, I stood up from the couch and headed towards the kitchen.
“I’m going to make breakfast.” He said, and I bobbed.
“Are we really going to do things his way? Or Is he joking?” Kiara asked, and I rolled my eyes at her.
“What do you think? Does it look like he’s joking?” I answered, letting out a deep sigh and resting my back on the couch.
“Isn’t he being too hard though?” Kiara further asked.
“Well, I think it’s good he got that phone away from me. I was planning on texting Alpha Kilhan to tell him that I’m pregnant since I didn’t get the chance to do that physically.”
“What?! Are you crazy?!” Kiara yelled.
“What? Why? Is it a crime for me to want him back? I’m still madly in love with him, Kiara. I think about him all the time.”
“I don’t care! You can’t have two things on your hands at the same time! And the most important thing is keeping you safe.” Kiara answered, rendering me speechless.
While I thought about the amazing moments I had spent with Kilhan, I heard Ethan walk out of the kitchen. I raised my head and turned to look at him.
“He is your rejected mate?” Ethan raised my phone in the air and I saw a picture of Kilhan on the screen.
“Why are you going through my photos, Ethan?” I asked and sprang to my feet. I walked up to him and wanted to snatch the phone from him but he moved it away.
“When you got rejected, did you finish the rejection ritual?” He further asked, making me crease my brows.
“What do you mean?” I asked, pretending not to understand.
“Did you reject him too?”
“No, I…”
“You have to.” He answered with a firm tone, keeping the phone away again.
“What?! Why?” I asked in shock.
“If you want me to help you, put my life and the pack’s at risk, I need to know you’re not still connected to some kind of nuisance.”
“But…”
“Reject him, Celine. Or I’ll leave right now and leave you to your fate.” He butted in, letting out a frown.
I became speechless and stared at him unbelievably. ‘Is he really going to let me do that?’ I thought while we stared at each other.
“I’m waiting.” He responded, folding his arms on his chest.
“Right now?!”
“Right now. I want to hear you say it.”
“Oh gracious moon, I think I hate him,” Kiara muttered.
“Fine. I’ll do it.”