His body went rigid, and for the first time since this conversation began, I saw something dark and unguarded flicker in his expression.
I had struck a nerve.
KESTER froze
The sound of that name alone was enough to curdle my blood.
Thad foolishly hoped that Kasmine wouldn’t hear about Karna. But, come on, this was an entire pack. A small world with too many months. Of course, she’d find out eventually.
Kasmine isn’t a child anymore.
Texhaled slowly, forcing my muscles to relax as I turned to face her. The anger I had been directing at her and Jaden shifted, curdling into something more volatile.
I hadn’t seen her since the day I walked her out of my office nor had I heard anything from her since then, but I wasn’t stupid enough to believe that meant she had given up.
No. She was planning something. That manipulative, poisonous bitch was always planning something And I needed to be ready.
“She is my half-sister,” I replied without mincing words,
Kasmine blinked rapidly, trying to wrap her head around what I had just said, “What? I don’t understand. What do you mean she is your half-sister?”
“She’s my father’s illegitimate child. One of my father’s numerous mistakes.” I said, doing little to hide the disgust in my tone as I strode to the armrest of the chair and picked up my shirt.
“I… I don’t understand, Kes. Dad had…’”
“Yes, baby. He had another woman aside from his mate. She was born about a year before me,” I put on my shirt, Ever wondered why my parents didn’t stay together?”
I walked over to her and caressed her cheek, “Don’t worry. Harina isn’t a threat, okay? I’ll make sure she doesn’t come anywhere near you.” I kissed her lips before turning to the door. “Get some rest. No one would bother you for the rest of the day.”
I swallowed down the drowning need to ask her why she was at Leropita Hospital. I swear to fuck, I was tempted, but I had to stop myself. I wasn’t ready to know why she was there.
For what felt like the thousandth time, I declined the call.
Again
And again.
Fuck! Can’t she take a goddamn hint?
The phone buzzed once more, vibrating like an annoying fly that refused to die. My patience, already razor-thin, snapped. I snatched it up and answered, my voice laced with venont
“Tell me how you’d like to die, Claire, because you’re certainly begging for death.” I spat into the phone, my voice rising a notch. “Because that’s the only reason I can think of for this level of stupidity.”
There was a sharp inhale on the other end.
“Alpha Kester..” She called cautiously, “What’s going on? You’ve been ignoring my calls for days now if not weeks.”
I exhaled slowly, regaining my control again. “I thought even someone with your level of intelligence would have picked up on the message by now.”
There was a pause.
“I thought we had something… I mean…” She said in a pathetic, sniffling voice.
And.. Wait.
I blinked.
Was she crying?
A scoff pushed past my lips.
Did I actually give her such an impression?
“Don’t embarrass yourself. I was polite. That’s all. You mistbok basic courtesy for something it wasn’t, and that’s your problem, not mine.”
“What about the calls, the texts, including the date… You seemed really nice to me some weeks ago, Alpha Kester.”
I took a slow sip of my whiskey, savoring the burn as I leaned back. “I called you three times, texted you twice, and bought you lunch once. That somehow translated to something more?”
“But I…”
“Claire. If you misunderstood those gestures, it’s totally on you. Nothing can ever happen between us. Purge your mind off it,” I dropped the call before she could say anything else.
A knock on the door made me shift my focus from the phone, which I was about to smash into the wall in anger.
“Who is it?” I asked, standing up from my bed.
“Who else, dumbass?”
I didn’t need anyone to tell me who it was
“Come on in,” I replied, taking lazy steps toward the door.
The door swung open, and before I could brace myself, Norlan was already striding in like he owned the damn place.
“Gods, Kes, do you ever look anything less than a fucking menace?” He grinned, shutting the door behind him.
I smirked, taking in the familiar sight of him. He was a few inches shorter than me, but he carried himself with an arrogance that made up for it. Brown hair, always slightly tousled like he didn’t give a damn, with that effortless kind of handsomeness that had always made women double-take, and a face that was just enough to make anyone look twice.
“And you? Still ugly as ever, Norlan,” I muttered with a hand on my waist.
Norlan laughed. “And you still reek of overpriced whiskey and questionable decisions. Some things never change.”
I smirked. “Neither does your inability to dress like someone with an ounce of self-respect.
Norlan glanced down at his black shirt-half unbuttoned-paired with dark pants and boots. He made a show of brushing off imaginary dist. “This? This is fashion, Kester. You wouldn’t understand. Too busy brooding in dark rooms, I imagine”
I scoffed, finally setting my glass down on the table. “Youy that like you don’t do the same damn thing”
“Ah, but I brood with style. There’s a difference,”
Norlan barked out a laugh, crossing the room in two strides before grabbing me in a tight embrace. I returned it, slapping his back once before pulling away,
“Shit, I missed you,” he admitted, his tone dropping just anotch.
“Missed you too, dumbass,” Imuttered before stepping back and studying him. “What brings you to the pack?”
“Just got back last night,” he said, flopping onto the couch, “Figured I should check on my favorite psycho before he gets into any real trouble.
I scoffed, grabbing the bottle of whiskey from the table and pouring myself another drink. “You’re late. I am already handling the trouble part without you.”
Norlan arched a brow. “Should I be worried?”
I took a slow sip, letting the burn settle before answering. “Depends. Ever heard the name Karina?”
His expression darkened for half a second before it smoothed back. “Can say I have. And even if I haven’t, as long as she’s got that look on your face, I already don’t like her.
Norlan’s smirk returned. “How about the fact that I ran into June this morning? She looked like she’d just won the fucking lottery.” He tilted his head, eyes glinting with amusement. “Still as stunning as I remember from college. man.”
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