He’s My Alpha by Cassandra M (Jake & Clair)
Chapter 32
JAKE
Two weeks had gone by in a flash, but the pain remained as if she had just left.
I had no idea how I was able to function, but somehow I did.
My Beta, Gavin, had my back on most days. I would not be able to run the pack if it were not for him. He took all the blows on my behalf and made sure no one from the pack had any idea that their Alpha was suffering, not even my Gamma.
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Now I know how it feels to be alive but dead inside.
Some days were a little better, but most days were worse. And I didn’t think it could get worse than it is right now. I’ve just learned to live with it. Day by day. Night after night.
But the nights were unbearable.
Nights were filled with dreams of her turning into a nightmare. If she did not end up dead in my arms, she would run off with some faceless guy, mocking me for falling in love with her. The cycle seemed endless, crushing me more and more every day.
“Enough! We can’t have you destroy all the bags around here, man! There is nothing left for the warriors to use, and the new ones are not coming until the end of the week!” My Beta reprimanded me as he held the punching bag out of my way.
I growled and snapped at him to let it go. “Who’s the Alpha here?”
“Come on, Jake! This is not right anymore! You’re turning exactly the way you don’t want to be! And she’s not even your f*uc*king mate!” I could sense frustration rolling off him, not that I care.
“f*uc*k off!” I shouted at him before grabbing my shirt off the bench and storming off the gym, slamming the door on my way out.
I wanted to blow up some steam and my f*uc*king Beta couldn’t understand that!
He opened the door and shouted after me. “Stop losing yourself to someone who was never yours to begin with!”
That hit me hard. It f*uc*king hurts because he was right. She was never mine.
I wanted to curse her for leaving me, but a part of me couldn’t even think of hating her. Even if I wanted to deny it, she still had me wrapped around her fingers, and I knew the moment she came back, I would welcome her back into my life in an instant.
I’m a f*uc*king loser!
“Alpha.” I stopped in my tracks and turned to face my Gamma.
“What?” I snapped at him, annoyed.
“Can we talk?” He asked, looking around to see if anyone could hear us.
“Talk now. I don’t have much time.”
“I need to go for a few days. I need to see Clair.” He added in a low voice, sweat running down his forehead.
My wolf suddenly perked up at the mention of her name as my shoulders tensed.
“What’s wrong? Is she okay?” I didn’t care anymore if he could read the desperation in my eyes. I wanted to know how she was.
“Uncle Theodore called me. She’s there and she’s not okay. Her f*uc*king mate rejected her and she hasn’t been okay ever since.” He slumped down on the floor and leaned his back on the wall, his head hanging low. “And here I thought she didn’t call because she was having the time of her life. I need to see her. I can’t focus on my duty here unless I know she’s okay.” His voice was so low, that I could barely hear him if not for my Alpha hearing.
He tilted his head to look at me. “You would understand, right? You will let me go to her?” His eyes were seeking understanding.
I was out of words. I felt my voice constricted in my throat. It took me a while before I was able to answer him.
I nodded and reached my arm to pull him up. “Go there, man. Make sure she’s okay. Take as much time as you both need, and bring her home. I’ll take care of the rest here.”
He nodded and throw me a hug as I patted his back before letting him go.
“You will not banish me if I ended up killing this guy? Would you?”
“No. I’ll stand beside you.” Or I would be the one to kill that bastard.
He smiled weakly before turning his body around and walking away while I stood frozen in my spot. I let our conversation run through my mind again, making sure I heard everything correctly.
It took a while before everything sank in and a small smile formed on my lips. My cheeks ached slightly, and I couldn’t remember the last time I smiled like this.
All I knew was she took my smile and my happiness with her the day she left.
I should be hurt and sad knowing she was suffering, but the wicked part of me rejoiced. As selfish as it appeared, I never felt more alive since she left.
She’s coming back. Mateless.
No one stands in our way now. No f*uc*king mates to mess with us. It might take some time before she gets over him. But I have time, I can wait.
My princess would always be worth the wait. And then I could finally have Chosen Luna I wanted. I would do everything in my power to make her mine. Everything.
AARON
Instead of driving for twelve hours, I decided to take the plane to Atlanta. Within two hours, I landed and didn’t waste any more time as I hurried down from the plane. My sister needed me.
I got out of the airport and saw Uncle Theodore waving at me, a hopeful smile written on his face. I gave him a quick hug before we moved to his parked car. Silence brooded over us.
We continued to drive in silence until I couldn’t hold it anymore.
“What happened? How is she?” I asked.
“I honestly don’t know how to explain. She came to us a week ago. She said she was staying in some inn for some time and just couldn’t stomach transferring from time to time, so she moved back here. We thought nothing was unusual until we noticed she wouldn’t eat as much as she used to and was just holed up in her room.” He let out a breath. I remained silent, wanting to hear the rest of his story.
“Her eyes were always puffy and she would say she had allergies. That girl spent almost five years with us and was never sick nor had any allergies. She’s a wolf, for Goddess’ sake, but I didn’t ask more. Until Laura got into her the other day and she confessed. She said her mate didn’t want her and she was just doing her best to get over it so she could move on.”
I coiled my hands into fists and tried to get hold of my wolf, Ark. He wanted to come out and create havoc. He wanted to avenge Clair.
“Our little girl is trying to be tough. But I can’t see her like this anymore. It broke my heart, so I called you. Don’t ever think I want to throw her out. She’s like a daughter to me, but I think she’ll do better when she has people around her who can understand the mate bond. And the pain of rejection from it.”
I nodded, my hands still coiled into fists. I would have punched the window if this was my car. My respect for my uncle was the only thing holding my anger right now. I wanted to blow up and snap the life out of her f*uc*king mate.
“I appreciate that you called, uncle. We thought she was happy and busy, on a high with this mate bond. We didn’t know.” I admitted it painfully.
As soon as we arrived, I jumped out of the car and went inside the house. I gave Aunt Laura a quick hug as she pointed to Clair’s room. She was inside and had no idea that I was coming.
I didn’t waste time and made my way to her door, knocking once before I heard her voice.
“I’m not hungry. I’ll eat later before I sleep. I just want to finish this book,” she replied, her voice having no life at all.
I closed my eyes and breathed deeply, lost for words when I felt a hand on my forearm. I looked down and saw Aunt Laura with a key in her hand. I mouthed a thank you and took it. She walked away before I was able to slide the key into the keyhole.
Click.
I opened the door, and the warm temperature inside her room came rushing out.
“Clair?” I called softly as my eyes searched for her. I found her sitting in a chair staring blankly at the view of the forest at the back of their house through the window.
She snapped her head back in my direction and stood up from her chair, her palm leaning on the window sill. “What are you doing here?” Her eyes widened in surprise.
I looked at her and noticed how thin she had become.
Two weeks. It only took two f*uc*king weeks for her to look like this, like the life was sucked out of her. Her eyes were hollowed, her bags under them, and her cheekbones were protruding as her face sank in, making it way smaller than it already was. There was no color to it. She looked like a walking dead.
In a few strides, I pulled my sister into my arms and hugged her tightly, letting the tears I had been holding trickle down my face. “What did you do to yourself, dairy? Why?”
She wrapped her arms around me and rested her face on my chest, her hands clutching my shirt tightly. “Why are you here? I’m okay. You don’t need to worry about me. I got this!”
I shook my head and pulled her away from my chest, my eyes begging her to look at mine. “No! You’re not okay! We’ll sort this out together. I’m here and I won’t leave you, not again.”
She pursed her lips and nodded before leaning her head back into my chest. Her shoulders started to shake as soft sobs escaped her throat. The sound of her cries was killing me. I wondered how long she had been trying to be strong on her own. I scooped her off the floor and sat on the single sofa in her room, cuddling her like I used to do when she was just a toddler. I let my little sister cry in my arms tonight until she had it all out and sleep took over.