Chapter 46: Chapter 46

Vincent roared and launched toward Aaron but he luckily got out of the way before he could attack him. It made Vincent for irritated. Aaron was on his four feet, ready to fight despite knowing Vincent was perceptibly going to take him down.

“You disobey me. You disrespect me. You break my rules and you want to live?” His eyes seethe with rage as he shifts back to his human form.

Aaron did the same and they were now two men facing each other and breathing weightily into each other’s face.

“I told you I am still working on it. She barely picks my calls. She’s clearly not even interested in me anymore. Can’t you just find another way to destroy the pack? You could abduct her mother or something.”

“No!” Vincent growled, turning around to pace and forth. “She is the easy target. She’s the one that’d get to him the most. And the Luna is as powerful as Alpha Fredrick. We might not succeed through her. Alice is perfect for my plan because we can get to her father and her mate, Dominic.” The thought of having her in captive gives him joy. He couldn’t wait to see the look on Fredrick and Dominic when he kills her right in front of them, just after he gets what he wants.

He wants everything they possess. He wants both the pack wiped away. He doesn’t want Fredrick and Dominic to be the strongest Alphas anymore. He wants to be the talk of every pack but those two Alphas are getting in the way of his shine.

“Well, it’s a little too late because I don’t think she’s ever coming back to Alaska,” he said, taking off the remainders of his ripped shirt. It’s one of the reasons why he hates shifting. He always ends up ruining his good shirts. “You fucking owe me set of shirts.”

“Get me the girl and you’ll get what I promised. You’ll leave the town and go to pathetic new girlfriend. Just bring me the Alpha’s daughter.”

Vincent brought out a paper from his back pocket and hands it to Aaron. “This is everything you need to know about her whereabouts in New York. Book a Goddamn flight and bring her home to me.”

Aaron’s mouth part in awe as he stares at the piece of paper Vincent shoved in his hand. He doesn’t have to question how he got Alice’s information. Vincent is beyond what people think of him. And he could do anything in order to get what he wants. Alice is what he wants and he had done everything he could to find everything about her.

“But… what if she doesn’t come home with me? What if she doesn’t want to?” Aaron asked, still staring down at the paper in his hand.

“Fuck that…” Vincent cursed, marching back and forth. “You’ll be dead if she doesn’t follow you back here. Fucking find a way to lure her back here. Use the lies and charms you used to make her fall in love with you. Show her that you really mean it. Show her that you’re ready to be with her, you’re ready to marry her…”

“I’m not going to do that,” Aaron cuts in, furrowing his brows.

Vincent growled and charged toward him. He grabbed his neck. “Just bring her to me. I don’t fucking care what it takes to do that,” he bawled and pushed Aaron until he was on the hard ground.

He groaned and winced. If not because his life was on the edge. If not because Vincent would find him wherever he was hiding, he would’ve left. He would’ve gone to his lover. He would’ve forgotten about Alice and moved on.

Aaron got to his feet and looks at Vincent. “Fine… but I won’t make any promises.” He turns around and leave.

He made his way out of the woods and climbed into Tyler’s car. He still couldn’t afford to get his own. He can barely even move about. He was still wanted by his parents but he doesn’t trust that they just wanted to talk things through. He believes that they were going to turn him in to the authority because they came looking for him in Tyler’s apartment but luckily, he wasn’t there at the time. He was always cautious whenever he was outside.

He grabs the spare shirt he had and wore it together with the baseball hat and zoned out of the place.

Dominic watched as Vincent made his way back to his pack. He had heard everything they’ve discussed. And his guts were right all along. Aaron wasn’t up to any good. He had told her before but she wasn’t ready to listen to him. Now Aaron was going to be on a plane in a day or two to bring her to her death.

He doesn’t know if he should go back to New York or just send her a warning text. She’d not like any of that, because she has made things clear between them. She had told him that she doesn’t want him anywhere near her. She has moved on and he’s no longer needed.

Texting her about this would be a great mistake because she’d hate him more and she’d still think he’s lying and also the bad guy. All of that happened because he was trying to protect her.

He isn’t going to judge her based on her choices, though. He will still protect her even if she doesn’t want him to. He had promised her father to do that and it feels like that’s the only task he has at hand, to protect her.

**

“Would you rather date your crush or date a celebrity,” Brooke asked as she folds her legs.

Alice smirked, thinking of her answer. It was so easy because she’s not into social media that much and she can’t say she has any crush on a celebrity. “I mean if it were my favourite book male character, I’d go with that because they’re so perfect. So, I’m going to go with my crush.”

Brooke’s mouth gaped as she gasped faintly. “You don’t have a celebrity crush? Like you don’t have any celebrity you dream of crushing your lips on theirs?”

Alice tilts her head as though she was rethinking it. “Not that I remember, no.”

Brooke dramatically falls back. “No! No way Alice doesn’t have a celebrity crush.” She sits upright and grabbed her phone off Max’s coffee table. “We are changing that tonight,” she said scrolling through her phone.

Seconds later, she shoves her phone screen in front of Alice. “Check him out.”

Alice takes the phone away to examine him. He isn’t as huge as Dominic was but he’s physically fit. Dominic has a more pointed nose than he does. He doesn’t look like she’d depend on him for protection. “He’s hot,” Alice commented. “But not my type.” She hands the phone back to Brooke.

Brooke pursed her lips as she snatched her phone away. “I’ll show you another one.”

Alice wanted to tell her if he doesn’t look anything like Dominic, she wasn’t interested but it would look as though she was still clinging onto him which she is but would never admit it. She compares him to every single guy she comes across that she may find attractive but instantly change her mind when she compares them with him.

“Look Brooke, I honestly don’t find any guy attractive,” she said, rubbing her hand against her arm.

But raises her head from her phone and locked eyes with Alice. She narrows her eyes and tilts her head. “You like girls now?” She asked jokingly and Alice made a gagging face.

“No… what the hell? I just don’t find any of your guys attractive like…” she stopped and pressed her lips together. She almost just sold herself out. She smacked her lips with her palm.

Brooke tilts her head more. “Hmm… You only find Ryan attractive? Or is Dominic? Or Max? Or that jerk…”

Alice rolled her eyes with a sigh. “No…”

If she knew this was how their girl’s night would occur, she would’ve spent the weekend by herself. Max was out of town for the weekend and she invited Brooke to stay with her for the two days he’d be absent.

“Dominic,” she blurts out. Brooke was giving this intense stare that she didn’t know when she called out his name. Her stare was powerful and Alice hates that it works on her.

“Let me get this straight,” Brooke started, scratching her chin. “You’re clearly obsessed with this guy and he wants you—you know that he wants you. You want him and you know that. But you don’t want to be with him?”

Alice peers at her for a couple of seconds before nodding. Brooke tilts her head, her mouth gaping. “Girl!” She shakes her head. “You are insane… I swear you are,” Brooke said, getting up to her feet. Max’s living room was somehow too small for her to pace back and forth but she manages to do so.

“You want this guy, right? But you don’t want to admit it because?” Brooke halts to hear Alice’s reason.

She lowers her head to think. She kind of doesn’t even know why she’s still angry with Dominic. Maybe she was hoping he’d come to her again and she’d forgive him. “I honestly don’t know. I mean… I don’t even know how I feel about him yet…”

“You love this guy! More than the other dude that left you… God if I’d see him right now, I’d kill him right on this spot.” Brooke groaned, pacing back and forth. She doesn’t even know why she was angry. It obviously has to do with Alice not setting her mind straight and causing confusion to her life.

“Aaron apologized,” she said defending him and Brooke threw her head back laughing.

“Oh yes he did, and he also made things official between you two.”

Alice furrowed her eyebrows and pursed her lips. She was slightly offended by Brooke statement because it was true. “But I haven’t given him the permission to.”

“So, you don’t want him?” She asked and it caused more confusion to Alice. “Or do you want Dominic? Or Ryan? Who is it going to be?”

Alice got off the carpet and settle down on the sofa. She heaved a sigh, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her knees. If anyone was right between the two of them, it’s Brooke. Because it was high time she set things straight. Hiding in New York won’t solve her problem. Ignoring them all won’t bring any solutions but more complications.

“Imagine Dominic moves on and ends up with another girl. Would you like that? Would you like that to happen? What if they all decide to get over you and move on? Do you think about that because they’re obviously going to get tired of your games and move on.”

Alice latched on to that words and try to digest it because she has to. Brooke is right yet again. If she doesn’t make up her mind, she’s going to lose all of them. “But…” she sighs, rubbing her eyes. “What if I mess up? What if I don’t make the right choice?” It always crosses her mind whenever she tries to decide. What if the one she chooses isn’t the one for her.

“You can’t make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen, Alice. Just follow your heart because it knows. It knows what’s best when it comes to love. There’s no explaining it. You can only trust it.”

Alice darts her head to her toes. She doesn’t say anything for a while. Brooke was standing before her and staring down at her. Everyone thinks it’s as easy and it looks. Just choose anyone amongst them as though they were some objects. It sometimes made her regret giving any of them the chance to come into her life.

A knock on the door interrupted her reverie and she looks up at Brooke. “You’re expecting someone?”

Brooke shakes her head and makes way to check who it was. She peeps through the peeping whole but she couldn’t tell who it was. “It’s a guy,” she says, trying to unlock the door.

“Wait,” Alice shouts, rushing to the door. She blocks the door and lean against it, facing Brooke “Are you insane? Why would you just open the door to a stranger?” She whispered, her heart beating fast from the jump and run she just did.

Brooke rolled her eyes. “I was going to remove the lock chain after I open it,” she said sensitively as she folds her arms over her chest.

“Just, let me do it. Let me handle the door.” She gently pushed Brooke backwards and turned around. Brooke grunts and made her way to the kitchen to grab a cup of water while Alice gets the door.

She cautiously unlocks it with a shaky hand even though she doesn’t even have a reason to be scared. What if it’s Ryan and he needs to borrow salt from them? What if he’s just visiting? What if it’s ben or another neighbour?

She disregards the thoughts and open the door. Her heart catch in her throat or maybe it was a lump but it was definitely beating in her throat and congesting her airway.

“Hey,” he said, chuckling anxiously. Who is he to be nervous? She’s the one that’s supposed to be nervous not him. She never expected him to be here especially when she was about to decide who she want to be with. He has no right to be uneasy because he made the decision to take a six-hour flight to come see her.

“Is this a bad timing?” He asked because she was still staring at him and saying nothing.

“No… it’s… not…” she stuttered as she clenched her fist and hold it to her chest. The erratic beat of her heart and rapid expansion of her lungs to make room for more air are the only two things she could focus on right now.

“Can I?” He said, peeping inside.

She nods and opened the door wide enough for him to walking. He enters the living room just as Brooke comes back into the room. She gives a nippy wary look. “Who’s this?”

Alice had never showed her any of their pictures. She literally knows everything about them except how they look. The paranoid look on Alice’s face must’ve made her to feel curious and distrustful around him.

“I’m Aaron, Alice’s…” he halts and look at Alice. She snapped her head toward him with gaped eyes.

She knew Brooke was either going to make a scene right now and kill him like she just said couple of minutes ago or she’s going to hunt him in his dream.

“Oh.” She smiles at him but it was obviously a malicious type of smile. She sips her cup of water as she quietly judged him, making him feel uneasy. Maybe he should’ve told her he was coming so she wouldn’t have her evil friend around. He’s very sure Alice had told her everything because she just threatened him before leaving.

“Sleep with one eye open,” she told him with a smile and it was the scariest thing he’d ever seen.

“Ignore her,” Alice said and dragged him to her bedroom.

They were standing outside in the balcony. She stood before him, waiting to hear his usual and ridiculous excuse. She has her arms folded over her chest not only because of the cold, but because he attempted to hug her and it was the last thing she’d want him to do.

“Alice,” he calls out and sighed. He scratched the back of his head and shoved his hand in his pocket. His eyes leave her face and wander toward the city view. One side of his mouth curved and she hates that he’s smiling because he’s clearly adoring the view. It’s her favourite thing to do and now he has ruin it because whenever she comes out after this, she’d remember him and how he stood by the ledge and enjoy one of the few things that bring amity to her mind.

“Why did you come here after I told you not to?” She asked him. All she could think of was what Brooke was doing right now. Probably sharpening a knife or out to buy a gun.

His eyes don’t turn to her immediately but he wasn’t smiling anymore. She’s glad he isn’t pleased anymore because she just ruined the moment for him.

“You’re not returning any of my calls or texts,” he said and she immediately laughed it out.

“Yeah, right.”

“Listen, Alice.” He moves closer and placed both his hands on her elbow and draw her close. She looks down at the small gap he left between them. His closeness was suffocating her and with each passing second, she felt like passing out.

“It should’ve given you a hint that I don’t wanna talk to you.” She doesn’t regret what she just said even when he closed his eyes and sighed. Whatever she says to him would never be quarter of what he made her go through.

“Why did you stop loving me?”

“Because you never started.”

“But…”

She waves his hands away and shifted back. She can’t stand being too close to him because if she let him keep holding her, she’d regret it. Everything he’s about to tell her, her heart would immediately believe it and overweigh every single doubt she has toward him.

“But… that’s not true. I love you, Alice. Please you have to believe me, I do. You’re the only thing that matters to me right now,” he said in a soothing and comforting tone but she’s not about to roll around in it and wrap herself up in that untruthful voice.

“You’ve hurt me so much, Aaron. And I shouldn’t have let you come back into my life after what you’ve done. Do you even know what you did?” Anger burned in her like a pilot light and now it was flaring hot.

“You really don’t see it, do you?” Her heart was racing in her chest so fast that she feels like it was going to burst through her ribcage. She’s not about to give him chance to ruin her again.

“I said I’m sorry for everything I’ve done to you. I shouldn’t have left you without any explanation but believe me, it was better that way because were both in danger…”

“I thought you said you were going to be by my side no matter the chaos, no matter the circumstances? I thought you said nothing could possibly come between us? I thought you said you wanted me to be your forever? What happened to all those promises? Or lies?”

He inhales a huge breath, slowly darting his face down and shoving his hands in his pockets again. She watched him gulp hard as he lifts his eyes back to hers.

“I had to sit and wait for you despite knowing you didn’t want me anymore. I had to shut my eyes and ears from my friends and family just because of you. I risk my Goddamn life to look for you but what did you do? You shut me out.” Her throat was burning her because of the way she was holding back the painful tears. She’s not about to let them fall. She’s never going to let them fall, especially not in front of him.

He sucks in a quick gasp after seeing the absolute fury in her eyes. He shakes his head and walk toward her because this isn’t how he imagined things to go. He never thought she’d be this annoyed about his presence.

“What do you want?” He asked her. She doesn’t move away when he got closer. He’s standing just inches away from her.

She sucks in a huge breath and exhaled it. She looks up to blink back the tears.

“I’m trying to show you much I love you and how much you mean everything to me. I love you…”

“Well, maybe it’s time to stop trying. Maybe it’s not meant to be like I thought it would. You know what? I want you to leave, Aaron. I don’t want to ever see you here.” It was at the time her mind clicked. How did he even know where she lived? She can’t imagine Max giving him access to come here. She knows how Max hates Aaron and how he’d do anything to get rid of him.

“You want me to leave?”

“Yes, Aaron. That’s exactly what I want you to do. And don’t ever show up.”

He was taken aback by her words as his disappointment clearly showed on his face. He looks at the view for two solid minutes. Her eyes were firmly on him as she waits for him to leave. He returned his gaze back to her with a tight lip.

“I don’t think I’ll ever give up on us, Alice.” It was the last thing he said before walking away.

She drops her palms on her knees with a heavy sigh. She’s been holding it since he came. She could feel a searing pain in her heart. But it wasn’t even because of Aaron.

She places both her palms on her face now as the tears gush out her eyes. Her face was terribly wet within seconds, as though she was standing in a blowing gale.

Everything hurts, her head, her eyes, her hands, her heart…

Everything was hurting her because she doesn’t know what to do next. One time she’s craving for a person and the next thing, she hates them the moment they show up to do the right thing.

‘Think, Alice! You have to decide before it’s too late.’