Chapter 89

Fiona

Ethan has been in his office upstairs for a while, so I grab his plate out of the microwave and set it on the tray. I don’t know when he ate last, but if it was at lunch, that was over six hours ago. I’ll just slip in and drop the food off so he can eat while he works, then I’ll get out of his way.

I don’t want to bother him while he’s working because it’s usually important, especially if it’s something he’s bringing it home. Over the time we’ve been together, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him bring work home.

Sure, he’s stayed late at the office, but I feel like there’s a difference. Maybe this is something he didn’t want anyone to know about, which would possibly make it personal business and not business, business.

Sighing, I set the glass of water on the tray and glance at the stairs.

I didn’t miss the way his hair was mussed up, probably from him raking his fingers through it. I’ve noticed he does that more and more lately, and if Ethan did that, it means he’s stressed about something.

He doesn’t get stressed often, or at least not often enough for anyone to notice. Ethan is cool and calculated, not letting his mask slip even for a minute when he’s around other people. I still have a hard time reading him sometimes, so it’s nice to have little indications like messed up hair or a crooked tie to know he’s bothered.

Besides, being hungry and stressed at the same time is never a good thing, so I make my way up the stairs, pausing right outside his office.

He’ll be glad for food, I tell myself.

Just as I lift my hand to knock, I hear a voice from inside.

“No son of mine will mate with a human,” a man yells angrily. The harsh tone makes me jump and almost spill the food. “You should marry an Alpha female. There are several that are of marriageable age, like Angela, the Alpha daughter of the Midnight Pack. To salvage your reputation and keep your qualification to become the Lycan King, you will not marry a human.”

Angela. Does he mean Angela from work? That awful, bratty woman who likes to torment me?

The angry man’s words ring through my mind. Alpha daughter.

She’s a Lycan. Of course, she is because that’s the only thing that truly makes sense.

Ever since the first time I met her in the mall, she’s hated me. I remember her saying something about an Alpha scent and not deserving an Alpha. She could only have been talking about Ethan.

At every turn, she’s shown nothing but contempt for me and done whatever she could to get rid of me. She even partnered up with Jessica to attack me as well as hurting me through spreading lies and rumors through the company.

I didn’t know for sure back then but now I realize it must have been because I’m human and she’s Lycan. Everything she’s done, everything she’s said, has been because she thought she should be Ethan’s mate.

My mind spirals down into an endless pit questions.

Is it because she’s a Lycan like Ethan? Is that why she thinks she has some sort of claim over him? How long has Ethan known Angela? Were they friends before he met me? How long has she been trying to claim Ethan?

I try to remember anything I know about her, but it’s not much. She’s only ever really bullied me while trying to get to Ethan. Her insults were always the same, calling me a pathetic or weak human.

“You can’t force me into a marriage I do not want,” Ethan says, making me press my ear closer to the door. I shouldn’t listen in. This is clearly a personal call between Ethan, his father, and someone else close to him, but they’re talking about me.

My mind trips over more questions as they surface in my head.

Have they had calls like this before?

Do they talk about me often?

A sickening feeling churns my stomach and chases the guilt away. I press my ear to the wooden door, straining to hear the voices on the other side. If they’re talking about me, I have a right to know about it, don’t I?

“She is not worthy of becoming our Luna,” a third voice says. “No matter what you think, Alpha, she will not be able to handle the weight of being a Luna. A human is too weak even if she is a human that has been through tough times like you’ve said.”

The man’s words make me grit my teeth as an ugly, hot feeling of embarrassment rises within me. Why do they think they can talk about people like this? What gives them the right? I’m not a pawn they can move around and discard when they don’t need me.

“Do not speak about her that way,” Ethan warns, his voice dangerously low. Something in me responds to his words, and my heart squeezes as warmth fills my chest. The embarrassment lessens but my admiration for Ethan grows. He’s going against his father and someone from his pack for me.

“Angela is a family friend,” one of the men says. Ethan’s father, I think. “She is already of Alpha blood and would make an exceptional Luna. With your marriage, we could unite our packs and create an even stronger force.”

Unlike me.

It’s clear that they see humans as weak and incapable without even giving them a chance. Ethan, whether I want to admit it or not, was also kind of like that at first. He’s changed since then, but that must’ve been the reason he settled our relationship as a strictly physical one in the beginning.

If what I hear is true, Angela has known Ethan for a long time, and their families are friends. Angela must have wanted them to be mates, and now there’s someone other than Angela who wants them to be mates.

What about me, though? What kind of relationship will we have if the important people in his life push him to marry Angela?

I pause. Ethan is one of the only people I trust, so what will happen if he’s taken from my life? I’ll lose him and I’ll lose the only safe I have right now.

I don’t even know these people, but the fact that they clearly don’t want anything to do with me hurts. Why does there always seem to be someone out to get me?

“You must marry a Lycan female,” the angry voice shouts. “If not Angela, then one of the other eligible Alpha females. A human is not acceptable.”

“Alpha, you must think this over,” the calmer voice says.

Another growl sounds from Ethan, and I take a step back, not wanting to hear anymore. But I pause when Ethan’s next words reach my ears.

“I’m done with this discussion. I have a mate to eat dinner with.”

With those words ending the conversation, I decide it would be best not to be standing at the door spying when Ethan opens it. I don’t know what to feel about the conversation I heard, other than a mix of hurt and confusion, so as I pass through the kitchen, I put the tray on the counter.

Maybe it would be best to take some time to think about what I heard before I see Ethan again.