Chapter 83
KESTER.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” The disgust in my voice was thick enough to cut through steel. My grip on the door tightened as 1 stared at her–the absolute last person I wanted to see.
June had the audacity to smile, tilting her head like I’d just asked her to move in. “I’m happy to see you too, Kester,” she teased, then reached down to grab her suitcase stepping forward like she belonged here.
I blocked the entrance. “How the fuck did you get this address?” My tone was colder than the ocean breeze.
June rolled her eyes, all mock innocence. “Your father gave it to me. He also gave me the go–ahead, actually. Thought you might need some… company.” She exhaled, “What’s the big idea? It’s just you and your sister. Another presence – your soon–to–be wife won’t kill.”
My jaw clenched. That old man was pressing too many fucking buttons, and at this rate, he wouldn’t live long enough to keep doing it.
June, oblivious–or maybe just too smug to care–shrugged past me and into the living room, spinning slowly as she took it all in. “Wow,” she breathed, her fingers trailing over the edge of a sleek glass table. “This place is magnificent. I love it, Kester.”
I stared at her with nothing but contempt. “Yeah? Shame it doesn’t love you back.”
She smirked, unbothered, before dropping onto the couch like she owned the damn thing. “By the way,” she continued, crossing one leg over the other, “your father told me about the Belinzo & Valor Lante collaboration. He said you needed help… and comfort.” Her grin widened. “So, here I am–ready to give you both.” She said with utmost delight.
***
After exchanging numerous emails with my father, it was confirmed that June was staying for the remaining days of our vacation.
In his words: “She was just a necessary inconvenience.”
That manipulating bastard of a father.
I was tempted to walk over to June and rip out her heart with my bare hands. She was a fucking parasite, leeching off my patience and pushing herself into my space.
I dialed Norlan’s line, and it rang. Thankfully, the fucker answered the phone. He wasn’t fucking a random girl at the moment. Shocking.
“I thought you’d be balls deep in a random girl. Didn’t expect you to answer the call,” I said, leaning against the balcony railing, the cool breeze doing little to settle my irritation.
“And I expected you to be drowning in pleasure by now,” Norlan shot back. “Two women with you over there? Come on, Kes, what are you doing?”
“Trying not to kill one of them.” My voice was ice.
He chuckled, “Kester…”
“Fuck. I want to end this, Norlan. I don’t want to kill her. She’s already pushing me to the brink,” I said, an didn’t need me to say who I was talking about. He already knew.
Norlan sighed. “I get it, man. But you can’t just throw her off a cliff–no matter how tempting it is. Your company
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#1
needs this alliance. Belinzo isn’t a bear you want clawing at your back. You have to think this through,” He said. Alpha Kes wanted one thing your stepsister. And since he couldn’t have her because you said no to him. He’d do anything and everything possible to bring you to the ground. You know him already. And you know how this game
works.”
That fucker. I’d rather burn myself alive than let him anywhere near Kasmine.
“Why not play along? Besides, this thing you have with your sister…”
“She’s not my sister, Norlan!” I cut him off sharply.
“Fine. Fine. Sorry.” He said in surrender, “This thing you have with Kasmine might not go past this… It will always remain a secret. Play the game.”
“It’s not a game.” I shot back.
“It will be soon.” He said.
“Not when she’d be carrying my child soon,” I said casually watching the moonlight stretch over the endless waves below.
Norlan went dead silent. Then, with slow realization, he spoke.
“What the fuck do you mean?” He laughed, but it was uneasy. “Kasmine would never let that happen. You know she’s careful. She’s probably on birth control right now.”
“Good thing I swapped her birth control for vitamins.”
“You what?” Norlan almost yelled over the phone, “That’s some next–level insanity! Dude, you are taking this too far.”
“I plan to take it even farther. You have no idea,” I said. “Kasmine is my life. And I can’t imagine a life without her. Quit trying to make me.”
The silence that followed was charged. I could almost hear the gears in Norlan’s mind turning.
“So, you mean to tell me,” he finally said, dragging out the words like he was still processing, “that you’ve been fucking your sis… I mean… Kasmine, raw this whole time while she thinks she’s protected?” A beat of silence.” She’s gonna kill you when she finds out, Kes.” he sighed in resignation.
“By then, it’d be too late,” I replied.
Norlan let out a low whistle. “You do realize she’s meeting her mate in five weeks, right? What’s your plan? Let her waltz into another man’s arms while she’s pregnant with your kid?” He asked such a stupid question.
The very idea made my blood fucking boil, and my anger rose to a feverish degree.
I had to take a second to swallow down the burning rage so could form a coherent sentence. “Fuck, Norlan. I’ll erase that man who is that unfortunate to be called her mate.” My hand clenched around the phone. “I’d kill any man stupid enough to think he has a claim on her. I’d kill him before he even had the chance to breathe near her.”
I always tried to keep that thought aside for my sanity. But Norlan sure knew how to make me lose it sometimes.
“Okay. Okay. You don’t have to snap. It’s fine,” He said, and I imagined him pinching the bridge of his forehead and rubbing his palm on his skin–cut hair, “Whatever you choose, you know I’m always with you. But at the same time, I won’t hesitate to tell you the truth.”
I was quiet, taking in a deep breath to calm myself.
Norlan clicked his tongue, thinking. “If you really want to win this game, the sensible thing to do is simple-
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marry June.
I froze.
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“Marry June, Kes,” he repeated. “That way, you still keep Kasmine. You still have her. And when June’s father finally hands you the crown of Alpha King, you can throw her to the fucking wolves and take what’s yours.”
“I can’t stand that woman,” I said after a long silence.
“You don’t have to stand her, Kes. You just have to try–at least long enough to survive this,” Norlan replied smoothly. “Treat her right enough to keep her happy for the time being. A little effort won’t kill you.”
I scoffed. “She might.”
Norlan chuckled. “Come on, you can handle two women. You always do. Besides, Kasmine hasn’t shown any signs of jealousy… yet. She won’t care if you throw June a bone now and then. Play your cards right, and she won’t mind you spending a minute or two with your lovely little fiancée”
Fuck. I hated this.
I wanted every second, every breath, every heartbeat of mine on this vacation to belong to Kasmine.
I wanted to spend every millisecond with her. Not sharing the few hours we have to be here with that pest
Speaking of Kasmine… I hadn’t seen or felt her around the house for almost an hour. She hadn’t even come out of the kitchen to see June.
A slow, cold realization crept up my spine. I’d been too caught up dealing with my father’s bullshit, too consumed by my own rage, to notice earlier.
I paid attention, listening to all the conversations and voices from as far as my wolf’s hearing ability would go, but I couldn’t hear her voice. Not even her breathing.
My blood turned ice–cold.
Fuck. She wasn’t in this house.
