Page 30

Leo

I am ready to hit the gym with Emmet once I have Corrado fed. I am already dressed in grey sweatpants, a white tank top, and sneakers. He is still giving me those sad looks, and I wonder if he is just being stubborn or actually missing Azura. What’s to miss anyway?

An image of her, comes to my mind.

Pretty much a lot.

Fuck, that.

“Want to have breakfast with Azura today?” I ask as I flip the crepes over in the pan. His eyes widen in excitement, and he nods.

“Is she back? Yes! Let’s go!” He says, jumping off the worktop.

“Hold up, fast guy, we need to get your breakfast made.”

“Oh, yes, Azura can’t cook. We must make her breakfast too, Daddy.” I frown.

“She must have food at her place.”

“But you said I’ll have breakfast with her…”

“I only cook for you,” I mutter, glancing down at him, only to see the sadness in his eyes.

“But this is for me.” Fuck, this kid is good at emotional blackmail.

“Fine.” I frown, and he smiles happily, as if he hadn’t just been near tears a few seconds ago.

“Yes! Azura will love your crepes, Daddy!”

“You get crepes for her on one condition. You don’t tell her that I made them, deal?”

“Deal!” He says very fast as he runs to get a tray.

Great now I am cooking for her.

Once the two plates of crepes are done, complete with Nutella and strawberries, I place two glasses on the tray and am about to take the milk carton and a juice bottle out when Corrado grabs the milk carton from me.

“Daddy no juice, Azura likes milk,” he says this while hurrying to the tray and placing the milk on it. I’m sure she fucking does.

I grab the tray, frowning down at it. They sure look fucking good. Guess I’m a better cook than her. Not that I’ve eaten anything she’s made, but then again, it would be better not to because who knows what she’d put into it. At least she tasted fucking good.

Reaching Azura’s door, I knock and pass the tray to Corrado; I don’t want to be seen carrying it. I hope she gets here quickly before he drops it, too. I watch him. Seeing the excited smile on his face as he watches the door with avid anticipation makes me smile slightly. I’d do anything for him.

The door opens to a sleepy Azura. Her hair is as smooth as ever, but you can tell she has just woken up from the strands that fall in front of her face. Her eyes are half open, her plump lips set in a pout. The oversize shirt she had pulled on last night is hanging off her shoulder, barely covering those thighs of hers… totally fuckable. Her eyes widen when she looks us both over before she smiles brightly at Corrado.

“Hi, Azura! Daddy said I could have breakfast with you today.”

“Corrado! Oh, that would be amazing! And pancakes with Nutella. Yummy!” She crouches down slightly and takes the tray from him. My gaze dips to her ass as she turns and takes the tray to the table, Corrado following her excitedly. I realise the shirt is inside out, meaning she had pulled it on before getting the door. An image of her in nothing but her lingerie returns to me, and I have to force myself to look away from her ass.

“No, Azura, we call these crepes! Daddy made them, but he said I can’t tell you,” he declares, and I raise my eyebrow. Well, he sure doesn’t know how to keep a damn secret.

“Oh…” Azura for once seems to not know what to say. She turns to look at me, and I raise an eyebrow.

“I’ll pick him up in an hour and a half… after training,” I say emotionlessly, trying to keep my eyes locked on hers and not over that body of hers.

“Sure,” she replies with a nod. Her gaze rakes over me, and I feel something inside when her eyes linger on the front of my pants before she bites her lip and turns her back on me smoothly. Fuck. We shouldn’t be in a room together.

I cross the room to Corrado, who is already waiting with his fork and knife in hand, and ruffle his hair.

“I’ll see you soon kid.”

“Take your time, Daddy. I’m okay with Azura,” he says, giving me another bright smile. I look into his hazel eyes. Someone he can live with, without me…

I push the thought away and turn. My eyes meet hers as I walk past her, brushing my arm against hers. The tingles of pleasure spread through my arm at the slight contact.

I leave her apartment, mind-linking Emmet to come out. The door to his place opens, and I see him, Jackie, and Nikki. Our eyes meet, and hers fill with hurt before I look away. Jackie gives her a gentle smile. I guess she knows, which means so does Emmet.

“Morning, bro,” Emmet says, fist-bumping me. I entertain him, but the urge to crush his fist is tempting. I glance over at the women, smoothly observing Jackie’s face. She is wearing a shirt with her collar buttoned, so I can’t see her neck, but if it happened last night, those bruises would be gone just like Azura’s had.

“Hey, Leo,” Nikki says softly. Is it bad that not once has she crossed my mind since we broke up? Sure, she’s messaged a few times, but I haven’t bothered with them. We are done.

“Hey,” I reply before glancing at Emmet. “Shall we get going?” He nods, and we both leave, leaving the women behind.

It is twenty minutes later, and we are now sparring after warming up and an intense twenty minutes of cardio. Both of us are exchanging blows, and I know Emmet will bring it up any minute now…

“So, that chick Azura, when is she going back, man? She’s fucking trouble,” he says shaking his head.

“Yeah?” I ask, blocking and aiming a punch at his shoulder. He steps back before aiming another punch.

“Yeah. Last night we had a bit of a run-in, and she was acting like she was this thing above the rest of us.” He shakes his head as he throws a punch, and I block, throwing an uppercut at him. Weird. Emmet is acting completely normal…

Acting. It is almost as if I have already made up my mind that Azura is telling the truth, and Emmet is probably hiding a lot of shit from me.

“Is she? She doesn’t really seem the type to get into other’s business,” I reply.

Emmet is a friend, one I trust with almost everything. The only thing I have kept from him is Azura being my mate and what was between Jackie and me… I know the reason I didn’t tell him about Azura being my mate is because, just like me, he hates the Elite. Emmet and Eric’s father was killed by Rayhan Rossi for the crimes committed against Delsanra under Endora’s reign. In turn, their mother passed away less than six months later, leaving two more orphans in a pack that was created from broken families.

Rogues. Although we are all just rogues gathered together, there are many different reasons we had become rogues. Some of our ancestors were thrown from their packs for different reasons. Some were for disrespect or betraying their Alphas, and there were many who didn’t deserve to be thrown out. Then, there were some who left for their own safety from abusive leaders. I remember there was one old man back in the cavern who was kicked out of his pack because his mate was the woman the Alpha wanted and saw him as a threat. He was killed when I was around eight.

Emmet’s hatred runs as deep as mine, and what we often hoped would become a better place… never did. We were the happiest duo when we learnt we were going to be a real pack… until that was all taken away, and the fear that we would never truly be safe if we opened up became embedded deep within us. Deep down, I wish there was a misunderstanding about all of this… but I can’t see how.

“Nah, she was getting a bit iffy. It’s obvious her mate doesn’t want her, bro. Send her packing.”

“You seem in a rush to get her out of the picture. I heard what went down from Eric. Really curious why would she fucking accuse you of hurting Jackie though,” I remark, knocking his fist aside and catching his jaw. He swears and frowns, stepping back.

“You played dirty.”

“Hm, did I?” I ask, running my fingers through my sweat-soaked hair. Our eyes meet, and he shakes his head.

“You know I don’t hide anything from you, man… I lost my cool over some shit, and she was trying to calm me down. In my anger, I grabbed her neck. I left the apartment to calm down,” he says, looking disappointed in himself.

I am good at reading people, but right now, I don’t know if he is telling the truth or lying. Although I’m not officially Alpha, I could still use my Alpha command, but I hate using it, pushing people to do something by force. If I end up being wrong, I’m the one who will have fucked up and would only create that hostility within my people. However, I also know Emmet knows me well, and he knows how my brain works. He will have been ready for this questioning…

I’ll ask Jackie, she is far easier to read.

“So you hurt her,” I say instead. He looks disgusted with himself as he nods.

“Yeah… I messed up, but you know how it can get sometimes, right? When you lose control?”

I frown, feeling a sliver of guilt wash through me. I had hurt Azura when I lost it over Corrado. Shit, now I feel like a fucking hypocrite.

“Make sure it never fucking happens again,” I warn him seriously. My eyes flash. “And never hurt her again. You’re meant to be her protector, not her fucking abuser.” He looks surprised at the aura that is raging around me, but that anger is half directed towards myself. I had hurt Azura, too.

“Got it,” he says curtly. I nod, and we continue sparring in silence until Emmet speaks up, “You dumped Nikki.”

“Yeah.” He lets out a whistle.

“That’s some crazy shit. She’s hot. Come on, she got you. Plus, she’s smart, mature, and a good match. Why, man?”

“She just doesn’t do it for me anymore. Did she tell you herself, or Jackie?” I ask, wondering what Nikki had said. I was certain she wouldn’t mention Azura, but still… if she had, I’m sure Emmet would have mentioned it.

“Nah, Jackie told me. She said she was really upset. Jackie felt super bad for her, too. She gave you her all, you know?”

“It was over weeks before I ended it,” I reply with finality, and he doesn’t push it.

I couldn’t get into it after meeting Azura, no matter how much I had fucking tried. Sure, we fucked, but it was to get it out of my system, and it began to leave a bitter taste in my mouth after it was over with.

We end our training session. Usually, we head back to shower and stuff, but I planned to stop to see Jackie at the hospital. I told him I’d be going for a jog.

I have just knocked on Jackie’s office door when she calls me in. I step inside, shutting the door behind me. That distinct hospital smell lingers, despite the lavender air freshener.

“Leo.” She sounds surprised as she stands up, looking nervous. That’s new. Jackie never gets nervous if I show up. “You just finished your training session… with Emmet.”

“I do hope you aren’t mind-linking him right now, Jackie,” I reply, walking over to the desk. She shakes her head, her heart racing as I look her square in the eyes.

“No, of course not. Why would I?”

“Good. I have a question or two, and I do hope you answer them correctly. “She nods.

“Emmet told me what happened last night. So did Eric. I want you to answer my questions with a simple yes or no. Did Emmet hurt you last night?” Her heart is thumping, and she nods hesitantly.

“Yes, but it wasn’t -”

I raise my finger in warning, and she falls silent. That is a truth. I brace my hands on her desk, leaning closer. My eyes meet hers that now hold fear. What’s to be afraid of if you have nothing to hide? Emmet must have told her our conversation, and they would stick to the same story.

“Is this the first time it has happened?”

“Yes.”

That was a lie. She is nowhere as good at lying as Emmet… which means Emmet is abusing her… I nod.

“L-Leo, he just, it was just a one-off, he didn’t mean to hurt me.”

“If it happens again, you are to tell me immediately,” I state, my voice overlayed with my wolf’s, my Alpha command resonating through my words. Fear fills her eyes, and it fucking irritates me that this is someone I thought could share anything with me. “I’m still the Leo you grew up with, Jackie. You can share your problems with me. I may not be the official Alpha… but I will have your back,” I reply quietly. She nods, looking away, and I turn and leave the office.

The moment I leave the hospital, I break into a run, my mind a storm of emotions and thoughts. Emmet will be removed from his position as Delta until I see how things go. Even if he said it was a one-time thing, that would have been enough to remove him from a position of power…

The wind rushes through my hair as I speed up, pushing myself to my limits, moving faster and faster. The urge to shift is intense, but I refuse.

I thought I was doing a good job, and I had always remained approachable to the pack members. Is this it? Does no one see me as someone they can confide in? Why has it taken someone who has only been here for a mere few days to point this out to me? Had Nikki never seen the signs? Had I never seen them? Will this pack continue to support one another when I am no longer around?

Sharp pains rip through my stomach, and I grit my teeth, pushing onwards. I see black spots blur my vision, but I’m not going to let it get to me. I can taste blood in my mouth and swear internally.

What will happen to this pack when I’m gone?

What about Corrado?

I keep going, hearing my heart pounding, the rush of my blood loud in my ears as my body screams with the flaring pain that now rushes through it. Endora’s torture has left me with unhealable internal damage… and it is catching up to me…

I know I don’t have much time left.