*Selena*
“Where have you been, baby?” he whispered, his eyes reflecting the pain. “I missed you so much.” He leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose. My heart skipped a beat.
His words seemed to wrap around me like a spell, making me feel weak in the knees. Part of me wanted to surrender to him, to believe every word he spoke. But I knew I couldn’t. Not after everything that had happened. The memories of our past, our love, and the hurt came rushing back, conflicting emotions tearing at my heart. As if I snapped out of the trance, I panicked.
“I have to go,” I mumbled, trying to break free from his grasp.
I pushed him with all my strength, but he held on firmly, refusing to let go. Our eyes locked, and I saw a flicker of frustration in his gaze.
“Let me go,” I demanded more firmly, trying to regain my composure.
Zander sighed heavily, the struggle evident in his expression, before he rolled aside and got off me, finally releasing me from his tight grasp.
“So you’re running away again,” he taunted, his voice laced with bitterness as I began gathering my clothes scattered across the room.
My hands trembled slightly as I tried to focus on the clothes in my hand, blocking out the memories that threatened to overwhelm me.
“I don’t have any reason to stay,” I replied sternly, my voice tinged with a mix of sadness and anger.
The hurt was still there, buried deep beneath the surface, but I couldn’t let it consume me.
“Right, no reason!” he muttered under his breath, his frustration seeping through his words like venom.
I looked over my shoulder, throwing a slanting glance at him. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, his chest heaving loudly. I wore my panties and clasped my bra.
“What just happened between us means nothing to you?!” he asked, his voice rising with annoyance, and for a moment, I almost faltered.
“What happened between us, Alpha?!” I asked innocently, wearing my dress.
“What do you want, Selena?” his voice again turned cold and void of any emotions. “What is your purpose for coming back?”
I turned and looked into his eyes, finding him becoming that emotionless Alpha again. How good he was at pretending.
I shook my head and laughed breathily. “Oh, so this was the reason the mighty Alpha King served me in bed, but you won’t get anything, Alpha, because the truth is I am here to pay off my education loan,” I replied with a smug smile on my lips.
“You are lying,” he gritted out.
“Huh! Why would I lie?!” I shrugged, casting a challenging stare at him as I smoothed my hair, trying to make my appearance good.
I looked around and spotted my heels that I didn’t remember removing. Both of them lay in different directions. I slid my feet into the footwear, and I was ready to leave.
“You don’t have any education loan, Selena, because I paid the whole amount myself,” he revealed, taking me off guard.
No. Why would he pay my loan? Was it his another trick to get the truth from me?
I was shocked, but I masked my expression and fought back.
“And you want me to believe you?!” I sneered.
“So tell me, Alpha King, who should I believe?! Because you are saying my loan was paid already, and your fiancee was saying I had a huge amount left,” I snapped angrily.
He had ignited the rage within me. I knew the loan must be deducted from the amount in my account. He was lying.
“Selena, I know who has messed with the bank system and changed information,” he accused, narrowing his intense blue eyes with a hint of red anger around them.
Of course, it’s me! I did it to get entry into this pack. But he would never know about it.
“I told you so many things are going on in your pack, but you didn’t pay attention to me. Look at this! Your bank system was tampered with. But how do you know about those things? Because you have no time from expanding your pack’s territory,” I mocked, snorting.
“What do you mean?!” Zander glared.
“It’s not a secret. We know how greedy you are for power and land. It’s your hobby to finish a whole pack, and kill their members if they refuse to submit and surrender,” I spat out with disgust as I remembered how he demolished my pack and killed all its members.
“Do you have any idea what you are saying?” he growled furiously.
“I know what I am saying , Alpha, because I have heard your Beta and some warriors talking about increasing your pack’s boundary, expanding your kingdom,” I retorted fiercely, my voice laced with anger. “I can’t believe the whole world is on the verge of a big war. The entire werewolf community could be wiped out, and you don’t seem to care about it,” I shook my head, taunting him with my disbelief. “Alpha King!”
“You know nothing,” he gritted out, his expression tight with controlled frustration.
“Yeah?!” I snorted, refusing to be intimidated. “So correct me if I am wrong,” I demanded, my eyes boring into his.
“Would you be honest to tell me everything if I tell you everything?” he made a proposition, his voice almost calculating.
For him, everything seemed like a business transaction: give and take, just like our marriage had been.
“I don’t bargain,” I said, raising my chin with pride.
“I have expected this from you, Selena. You are still as stubborn as you have always been,” he frowned, squinting his eyes at me as if scrutinizing my whole being.
How dare he judge me?
“I can also say you know nothing about me,” I shook my head, challenging him.
“Goodbye, Alpha King,” I said, my voice firm, and I turned on my heel, slamming the door shut behind me.
“Fuck!” I heard him cursing loudly.
I was done with this conceited Alpha. He couldn’t deceive me with his good looks and fake sweet gestures, unlike our first meeting when he had managed to trick me.