Chapter 58 - His Replica Mate

“Oh, I kind of get it,” I say, even though I’m really confused. But I don’t have the time for that now. When we get back, I can ask her my questions.

“Yes, the dress. I bought it, but it didn’t fit me quite well. It was just too pretty to return, so I kept it,” she says, rummaging through her closet. She comes back with a very sheer black dress.

“Hmmm, is that all of it?” I ask, and she bursts out laughing.

“You’re funny. Don’t worry, it covers all the necessary bits, trust me. You’ll look amazing in this, and I have just the shoes to go with it,” she says, handing me the dress as she goes off to find the shoes.

“Freya, I don’t think I can wear this,” I tell her when she comes back with the shoes.

“Why not?” she asks, genuinely confused.

“I don’t know, because I’m a mom,” I tell her.

“Oh, sweetie, I forgot. You had them so early. Have you ever gone clubbing before?” she asks me.

“Just once, with Zoey,” I tell her.

“Well, tonight the kids aren’t here. So you’re going to let your hair down and have some fun. Go put on that dress, trust me,” she says as she hands me the shoes.

I take them from her and walk to my room. I take a quick shower and towel myself dry. I put on the dress, which stops at my thighs. It’s skin-tight and hugs all my curves. I look at myself in the mirror, and Zoey was right-it covers all the necessary bits, but my cleavage is exposed, though not too much. I think I look good.

I remove my hair from the ponytail and let my natural curls fall. I do simple makeup: red lipstick, blush, and smoky eyeshadow. I haven’t put on heels just yet because, one, I hate heels, and those heels look like a very deadly contraption.

I take a small purse, put my phone and lipstick inside in case I need a touch-up, and I’m ready. I look really good and feel really good. I’ve gotten so used to wearing work clothes and stay-at-home clothes.

I step out of my room, and at the same time, Leo steps out of his room. The moment he sees me, his eyes rove over me, then turn gold, and he growls. “MINE.”

Lena’s POV

“Leo, are you okay?” I ask him, pretending I didn’t hear what I just heard. His eyes are gold, like he’s about to transform, and his breathing has quickened.

He doesn’t say anything. He just walks closer to me and growls. I haven’t seen him like this before, and it ignites my flight instinct, so I take a few steps back. That seems to snap him out of whatever trance he’s in. He blinks, and when he opens his eyes again, they’re back to their normal color, and his breathing is slowly returning to normal.

“Are you okay?” I ask again.

“Yeah, I am,” he says, though he looks confused.

“Are you sure? What happened back there?” I ask him.

“I don’t know. It was my wolf. The moment I saw you, he took over, and I had no control. I’m sorry I scared you, Lena,” he apologizes.

I step forward and place my hand on his shoulder. “It’s fine. No need to apologize. Nothing happened,” I tell him.

“Yeah, that’s true,” he says, seeming to be back to his normal self. Then he looks at me-really looks at me-and I see his pupils dilate. I can smell something in the air. He’s both angry, but I can’t identify what the other feeling is.

“Please tell me this isn’t the dress that Freya gave you?” he asks me.

“Actually, it is. Is there something wrong with it?” I ask him. For the first time in a long time, I actually feel like myself. I feel sexy, I feel like a woman, and he’s not going to rain on my parade.

“If I were your brother, I would think long and hard about how you answer that question,” I hear Freya say from the other end of the hallway. She just stepped out of her room, and she looks amazing. She’s wearing a skintight black leather jumpsuit, her hair is in a high ponytail, and she’s wearing minimal makeup, but bold red lipstick on her lips.

“I was going to say you look amazing, Lena,” Leo finally says, but I’m pretty sure that wasn’t going to be his first response.

“Thank you, Leo. I feel amazing too,” I tell him, tapping him on the shoulder. Just as I walk past him, I catch that scent again, and it clicks in my head what it is-he’s…

I don’t try looking back at him because I’m pretty sure he’ll see it on my face that I know. I just continue walking straight until I reach the kitchen, where Freya has three glass cups on the counter and a bottle of bourbon.

“You know we aren’t actually going to the club to party, right?” I ask her.

“I know, but one glass won’t hurt anybody,” she tells me with a sly smile as she pours the bourbon into the three glasses.

Leo walks into the kitchen and takes a seat on the barstool next to me.

“Thank you for joining us, brother,” Freya says, and Leo growls at her.

“Okay, someone’s on their period,” Freya says, and I almost burst out laughing, but I hold it in.

“Really, Freya?” Leo asks her.

“Okay, I’m sorry, but I had to get you to talk. Here, have a drink,” Freya tells him as she slides one of the glasses over to him.

Leo takes it and gulps everything down in one go. Then he takes the bottle from Freya and pours himself another glass.

“Well, I guess it pays to be a werewolf. That high metabolism, the alcohol burns faster,” Freya snaps at Leo, and he just smirks at her.

“Okay, that’s enough with the both of you. So, Freya, you said you had a plan for us to get to Merlin. What is it?” I ask her.

“Well, first of all, Merlin is human. He’s not supernatural. How he started dealing with supernatural clients, no one knows. But he quickly rose. He usually has guards-sometimes witches, sometimes werewolves, or even vampires. Some days, he can be guarded by all three. So, we have to assume that he’s going to have guards with him at the club,” she explains.

“So, how do we get to him?” I ask her, and she gets this sly look on her face. She turns to look at Leo first, then back to me.

“Well, it’s no secret what Merlin likes. It actually turns my stomach just thinking about it. Merlin isn’t attracted to his own kind-male or female. He’s into female werewolves, brown-haired female werewolves, to be specific,” she says. And the next thing I hear before my mind can even process what she just said is Leo growling.

“No, no way. We are not going to use Lena as bait. That’s out of the question,” he growls.

“Hey! I’m the one who has to do it, so shouldn’t it be my decision?” I tell him.

“No, you can’t do it. I’m your…” I cut him off before he can even complete his sentence.

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