Chapter 18
Aria’s POV
I was trembling under his grip. I hadn’t expected him to be this angry.
“I wasn’t trying to go against your decision,” I said, my voice shaking. “I just wanted to tell you the truth
–
“I told you not to come downstairs,” he snapped. “You disobeyed me. You got involved in my family matters. You think pleading for Delilah’s forgiveness makes you some kind of saint? You don’t have that right, Aria.”
His words hit me like knives, sharp and brutal, and each one pierced straight into my chest.
“No, that’s not what I meant… I just thought, she’s your sister, and what she did wasn’t even that serious, so maybe she didn’t deserve such harsh punishment-
“Don’t bring your understanding of normal sibling relationships into this,” he growled. “You have no idea how complicated things are in this family.”
I took a deep breath, trying not to flinch under the weight of his fury.
I reached out and grabbed his wrist
His skin was hot–literally burning hot.
“Is it.. is your family what’s hurting you?” I whispered. “All that pressure–is that what keeps you up at night? You can tell me, I
Lightning flashed in his stormy gray eyes.
He shoved me away.
“Don’t try to understand me,” he said hoarsely. “What are you doing now? I saved you. I gave you a job. I gave you money. And now you think we are in some kind of romance show? That you’re special?”
“No! I
“You’re not. You never were.
I stopped breathing.
My eyes widened as heat burned behind them. Tears welled up, stinging from the shame and rage.
Maybe I didn’t have the right to interfere.
But everything I said meant well, I wasn’t trying to be a hero. I just cared.
I didn’t deserve to be punished for that.
One tear slipped free and landed on his hand. He flinched. Then suddenly let go of me like he’d been burned.
“Aria.”
“Do you feel better now?” I snapped, swiping at my tears. “Does hurting the one person who actually cares about you make you feel
He clenched his jaw, looking darker and angrier than before.
“This isn’t working,” he said abruptly.
“What?”
“I can’t keep someone around who doesn’t follow the rules of our contract.”
It felt like someone had dropped a ten–ton weight on my chest. My heart physically hurt.
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Chapter 18
“I didn’t break anything! There’s nothing in the contract that says-
“You know what you did,” he said coldly. Then turned to leave.
I grabbed his sleeve. “You’re punishing me when I didn’t even do anything wrong. You know it isn’t fair.”
His whole body tensed.
For a second, I thought maybe he’d hold me. That maybe he wanted to.
But the next moment, he shoved me aside roughly again.
“We need some space from each other,” he said, then walked out and slammed the door behind him.
I sank to the floor.
The moment he said he e wanted to end the contract, my
world cracked apart
The pain was unbearable. so much worse than I expected. I hadn’t realized just how much I cared. How much I needed him. How much I wanted to stay.
God, how stupid could 1 be?
I sat there for I don’t know how long, until 1–heard the sound of a roaring engine downstairs. I scrambled to the window just in time to see his car speeding off into the night,
He left.
And it was obvious he was getting away from me.
I’d really messed everything up this time.
Eventually, after sitting there in silence for what felt like hours, I wiped my face and started packing my stuff. He said it was over. He hadn’t told me to leave yet, but I figured I should be ready.
I didn’t have much. By dawn, I’d packed everything I owned into one suitcase.
A soft knock came at the door.
“Come in,” I said quietly.
The door creaked open, and Mrs. Jones appeared in the doorway.
“Miss Collins, I was wondering if you’d like some breakfast–she froze, eyes going wide as she saw the half–packed room. “What’s going on? Are you… packing?”
“Alpha Grayson said it’s over.”
Saying it out loud made the pain come rushing back all over again.
She frowned, then her voice softened. “Don’t rush anything. Would you like to come down for some food? Maybe some French toast
and hot tea?”
I could tell she was trying to comfort me. And I didn’t want to reject her kindness.
So I stood up. “Thank you, Mrs. Jones.”
We walked to the kitchen together. She personally made me a hot breakfast, and the smell of butter and sugar actually made me feel alive again.
“Don’t be so down, Miss Collins,” she said, drizzling maple syrup over my plate. “I’m sure Alpha didn’t really mean it.”
gave
a tired smile. “He said it himself. And it’s fine, really. You don’t have to do this. I’m sure tons of girls have come and gone this place. You’re probably used to it.”
She tilted her head thoughtfully. “Yes, but…”
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Chapter 18
“But!”
“Usually, when a girl angers the Alpha, she’s the one who gets to leave the house. Not the Alpha.”
I blinked, confused
She smiled gently. “What I mean is… I’ve seen a lot of women pass through here. None of them ever lasted long. And none of them–not one–ever made the Alpha smile like you did.”
Now that’s just ridiculous.
Grayson didn’t look happy. Ever.
And he literally just told me I didn’t mean anything to him.
Before I could argue, we heard footsteps coming down the stairs. We turned to see Delilah dragging herself into the kitchen, looking
like a wreck.
“I smelled waffles,” she muttered
I’ll get another plate ready,” Mrs. Jones said quickly, disappearing toward the stove.
Delilah dropped into the chair across from me, staring at me. After a moment of awkward silence, she mumbled, “Hey. Thanks for sticking up for me yesterday.”
“I haven’t forgiven you. What you did was shitty.”
She scratched her head, frustrated. “I know. I know! I was just pissed you got Jace’s job, I thought I don’t know, maybe messing with you would make me feel better. I didn’t expect the police to go that far. I mean, cuffing you to a toilet?”
“And that wasn’t even the worst part,” I said, looking her dead in the eye. “Do you even know what having an arrest record means for someone like me? I might never be able to get another job. My whole life could fall apart just like that. You didn’t think it through. Because unlike me, you never have to work for money.”
She looked like she’d just been slapped. “What the freaking hell? You want me to feel guilty?!”
“Tra just telling you the truth.”
She stared at me. Then suddenly grabbed my wrist
“Hey. Let me make it up to you!”
“By getting me arrested again?” I mocked
I
“No, no! I swear, this time’s different. I literally got whipped ten times yesterday. I won’t dare,” she said urgently. “Just come on a trip. with me. A little getaway abroad. You could use it, right?”
I just stared at her in shock.
Who offers an overseas trip like it’s a quick Target run?
“That’s insane. I have a job, remember?
And aren’t you
ou grounded?”
“I know Grayson already filed your leave. And anyway, he left Redstone Pack last night. He’s not here so who’s gonna stop me?”
She was unbelievable,
If Grayson had explicitly told me not to leave the house, I’d never dare disobey.
But with Delilah?
I never stood a chance.
Somehow, she got my passport through Mrs. Jones. Then ordered her bodyguards to drag me into the car.
Half an hour later, we were at a private airport. An entire team was waiting just for us.
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Chapter 18
The whole thing felt insane as me dragged me to the plane. “Seriously. This isn’t some weird kidnapping plan that ends with me in trouble again, right?”
“For the last time, NO!” she cried. “And I’ve got someone very special I want you to meet.”
Wait.
1 I suddenly had a bad feeling. “Delilah. Who exactly am I supposed to meet?!”
“You’ll see.” She shoved me onto the plane.
Inside the private cabin, there was only one person
And when he saw me, his expression instantly twisted into something dark and furious.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jace barked.
E
