Chapter 60: Your Obsession

Blake POV

My gaze didn't abandon my phone screen as I continuously gazed at the message Nero sent me a while back, "Call Jason. We got into an argument. I think he's going to act stupid and come get you tonight! Talk him out of it."

That's all he had to say. The toxic part of me was hoping that there would be more. But he hasn't sent anything else.

My fingertips were so close to the letters on my keyboard, but my pounding heart was making me nervous to write anything.

It took a while for me to calm my shaking hands and write back, "I talked him out of it, and he's not going to come tonight."

After pressing send, I held in my breath when I saw that he read my message.

The three little dots kept popping up and fading every second which only increased my anxiety the entire time I waited for him to reply.

But at last, the dots faded, and it was just seen underneath my message, and finally, my gaze abandoned my phone screen, focusing my attention on my dresser.

My heart abruptly skipped a beat when my phone unexpectedly made a beeping noise, and I gazed at its screen, staring at Nero's message with moist eyes, "Let's end us tonight. I will inform you when I get there."

My hands were shaking as I typed four letters, "Okay," and then sent.

The bright light from my phone suddenly appeared dim in my eyes as I watched my tears hit the screen, and all I wanted to do was scream!

I couldn't stop myself from trembling as I clapped my hands over my mouth, suppressing my voice as a cry threatened to escape my lips.

Squeezing my mouth even tighter, I felt sick to my stomach, and I tried so hard to sedate the feeling but it wasn't working.

'This is for the best,' I whispered in my head. 'You will be okay.'

That was a lie. I have been beaten and bruised a couple of times, but there was nothing more painful than this.

Grabbing the edge of my mattress, I clasped onto it as I let out a silent scream, shutting my eyelid tightly.

"Miss! Your father asked me to bring you your dress for tonight." Jessica's voice echoed into the room along with the sound of a gentle knock.

Raising my eyelids, I stared at the door, knowing that I couldn't let her see me in this state.

After tossing my phone on the sheet, I walked out of the room, headed into my bathroom, and stopped at the basin.

My reflection stared at me with puffy red eyes, and I hated looking back at her.

Hastily, I washed my face and left the sink, heading back into the room to open the door for Jessica.

Once I did, she handed over the bag to me with a smile and then walked off.

After returning to my bed, I unzipped the bag and stared at the dress within it, feeling hesitant to pick it up.

The fact that Loki was going out of his way to make me presentable for tonight was annoying, and knowing that the only reason he was putting in this much effort made me disgusted.

Slowly, I pulled out a crystal blue dress, gazing at the glamorous pattern and fiber, and I just knew that it is going to make me draw attention tonight which hated.

My guess wasn't wrong because at seven-fifteen when I got done dressing, I stood before the mirror and froze.

The gown was breathtaking, and styling it with a straight plain braid and silver heel just made the entire look perfect.

"Blake?" Loki called out from the other side of my door, and I grew stiff, glaring at my reflection.

After taking a moment to compose myself, I turned away from the mirror and walked over to the door, opening it to see Loki grinning at me.

Widening his smile, he dragged his gaze from my face, down to my heels, and then announced, "You look perfect!"

Looks are truly deceiving because I felt like crap. But I returned a smile and said, "Thanks."

"You have your mother's eyes, and her beauty," Loki said, looking solely at my face.

One look at him, and I knew that that was not a compliment, but a reminder of what is at stake tonight.

"Why did you leave her for Loretta?" I mumbled beneath my breath, hoping for an answer I knew that I was never going to get.

"The guests have started arriving. We should head to the grand hall." Loki said, forsaking looking at me.

As he turned to leave, I clenched my phone and asked, "You are going to stay true to your promise, right?"

"It's up to you, Blake, to make me an honest man, so watch what you do tonight," Loki said, walking off.

Drawing a breath, I looked after him for a brief while before following him, convincing myself with every step that I was doing the right thing.

When we got to the grand hall, I forced my lips into a smile, walking into the room.

Almost the entire pack was there, and it felt overwhelming to have caught their attention the moment I stepped into the room.

Following closely behind Loki, he led me towards Mr. and Mrs. Noble, and I felt a bit reluctant when Karen and my eyes locked.

The calmness on her face couldn't mask the look of hate in her eyes as Loki and I stopped in front of the Nobles.

"You look gorgeous, darling." Mrs. Noble softly uttered as she pulled me in for a cheek kiss.

It felt weird to be in her arms, but I endured it and was glad when she finally let me go.

Slapping Killain gently on his back,  Mr. Noble let out a laugh and announced, "You made a wise choice, son!"

Within a split second, Loki joined him in giggling, and it was just infuriating to see the look of pride on both of their faces.

"Excuse me," I mumbled, turning away to leave.

"Where are you going?" Loki suddenly asked.

When I looked back at him, he had this troubled look on his face almost as though he was scared of his jailbird running off.

Frustrated, I didn't think my words through and said in annoyance, "To use the bathroom. Will that be a problem?"

"The ceremony will soon start. Your sister assured me that Nero is almost here, so you should hurry back." Loki said as his brows slightly furrowed.

Not replying, I walked off, and once I was safely inside the bathroom upstairs, I rested my palms on the basin and let out a long breath to calm myself.

Suddenly, the bathroom door opened, and I hastily looked to my right, staring at Karen as she walked inside.

"Ain't you afraid to be alone and in close space with me?" I mocked, annoyed by the scowl on her face.

The silence was all I got from her for a couple of seconds before she hardened her face and mumbled, "Why are you suddenly with my brother?"

"What?" I uttered, thrown off by her question.

"I know why Killain is with you, but why him?"

"I don't owe you an explanation for my choices in life."

Staring solely into my eyes, Karen scoffed and then mumbled, "I really had my bet on Mr. Fang, and you."

"Well, too bad because the romantic relationship between us only exists in your imagination," I told her boldly, but it felt as though I had stabbed myself with my own words.

"Are you saying that now because you were stupid enough to let Luna have him even though he doesn't belong to her?"

"Did I hit you so hard that you have lost your sanity?"

Giving me a hard stare, Karen didn't speak, and I was about to walk past her when she blurted out, "The day you become one of us, Nobles, will be a day that I am dead, and that's why I am even bothering to tell you any of this."

The seriousness in her expression had me hesitating about my decision to walk out and leave her to her madness.

"Luna is Killian's mate, and to be honest, I would rather her be with my brother than a psychopath like you!" Karen uttered calmly. "So, I don't know what game you are playing here, but I need you to stay the hell away from my brother and my family."

"Luna and Killain…" I whispered, trying to make sense of her words.

"My brother is only with you for your body and because of his sense of duty to our family. But to be honest, I don't get what he sees in you. You are not that eye-catching!"

"Did you say Luna is Killain mate?"

"When did I start speaking another language!"

What insanity is fate playing at right now! This is not the time for me to start having second thoughts or feeling something other than what I had programmed myself to feel for tonight.

"I should get back downstairs," I mumbled, trying to walk past her

But Karen stepped in my way and said, "You think I am lying? Fine! I will show you proof, so you can stop your obsession and get away from my brother."