Page 49

Leo

S he played me fucking dirty and left. But despite the fucking beast she awoke within me, it was her words that really got to me. Although I’m not enough for you… If I wasn’t half as stubborn as I fucking am, I would have told her the truth that that shit ain’t true… but, that’s all there fucking is to it.

I feel lighter getting that over with, and it reminds me of the past when I at least had my father. It’s just a shame it’s too late for all of that to be back. Right? I am delaying… I know I am far past the stage of Kiara being able to help me, but I don’t think I want to hear it. Even if I already know the truth.

I push the thought away thinking back to the moment between Azura and Corrado. Corrado has only ever said ‘I love you’ to three people before now: Dad, Winona, and me. It hit hard… he has taken to her. I don’t need any more fucking signs that she is meant for me.

That hatred I felt… even the word Elites… it all seems so fucking far in the past…

I walk to the bottom of the garden of the mansion and pull out my phone. Time to ring Alejandro. I smoke my cigarette while looking down at my phone. Although I don’t want to hear his cocky comebacks right now, I can’t delay it. I find his number and hit call. He answers after a few rings.

“Leo.” His voice is level, yet it is obvious he is happy to get this damn call.

“Alejandro,” I reply.

“I’m getting lucky with all the calls. How are you?” Not so fucking good.

“Perfect.”

“Good to hear. How’s your son, or should I say, my grandson?” I frown, obviously that wasn’t going to stay a secret forever.

“Stop acting like I consider you anything close to a father,” I reply icily, refusing to answer his question. “I called for a reason.”

“You always fucking do.” Just get it over with, Leo…

“Arrange a meeting at your pack with the Alpha of the Black Storm. I need to speak to him,” I say coldly. There is a pause before I hear the sound of a cigarette being lit.

“With Rayhan… is everything okay?” He asks, concern now evident in his voice.

“Perfectly,” I reply.

“So, you’re ready to talk to him.” I do not want him thinking this shit is from me…

“I made a deal with Azura that we will both do what we don’t want to. She’ll talk to her brother, Atlas Kamdon, in return.” He lets out a low chuckle.

“You two are fucking perfect together if, in that short time, you both have gotten each other to do the two things both your families have been trying to get you to do. I’m fucking impressed.” Yeah, she got me to agree to shit I refused to for years. I know that, somehow. Even when I kept her at arm’s length...

“It is a deal, nothing to be so fucking impressed about.”

“Oh, yeah? Well, it fucking worked. I’ll get that meeting sorted. How soon are you looking?”

“How soon can he fucking do it? I’m sure he’s either fucking too busy with his hair or some other weird shit, like his singing.”

“Got to give it to him, he can sing, and that video that went fucking viral years back was courtesy of Skyla, who wanted him to be her popstar cousin. He’s quite a popular search on BlueXZ. I’m surprised you didn’t have him pulled down since you’re the owner of it.”

I hate him, and I made sure to keep an eye on all news I could get, but I wasn’t going to waste my time pulling him from the fucking net. After all, I’m the one who fucking created the search engine BlueXZ. It is accessible only to the supernatural, and something that is now beginning to be used across the continent. Alejandro knows I was the creator of it, I know that from Marcel since he used to always fucking share whatever shit I was up to. Years back, when I first created it, I had been surprised that Alejandro had verified it as safe, although he had never commented on it to me, but it is now something used frequently. I have a team that is ever-growing; to expand it, the Sangue Pack just isn’t enough, but I always refuse to branch out to other packs.

“I don’t have time to bother with the likes of him.” Until now anyway, since I’m fucking trying to set a meeting between us.

“Fair enough. That was a smart move… if you ever want to expand, let me know. There are plenty of people who would love to work for such a company…”

“Hmm.”

“You know… Azura hasn’t had the easiest life, Leo.” I frown, and although I want to tell him to fuck off, I also want to hear what he has to say. “She may have been raised in one of the most powerful packs in the country, but due to her birth, she has had a lot of negativity from many. Even at the academy, she was classed as the troubled child, and has been suspended several times for getting into fights. She’s a good kid, and she has a good heart with a tough fucking exterior, but don’t let it fucking fool you. Don’t hurt her. You already did that by rejecting her after marking her. I’m fucking surprised she’s able to stay strong after that… it’s going to take time for her and her wolf to heal. But just don’t fucking hurt her again. At least remember that she’s carrying your pup.” I know that… and I know the extent of what my rejection did to her.

“Yeah, I know. Text me the date, and we’ll be there.”

“One hundred fucking percent. Bring your pup. I want to see him,” he replies, not pushing me.

I don’t reply and hang up. I don’t want to take Corrado because, although he is an Alpha pup, Stefan was nowhere near as strong as me… I don’t want anyone to ever fucking question his birth.

I slip my phone into my pocket as I finish smoking my cigarette. I guess I’ll go get ready for this thing, and I can’t wait to see what exactly she is wearing because, according to Corrado, she is going to look ‘so so so so pretty.’ Heck, she could be covered in garbage, and I’d still think she looked fucking gorgeous. I’ll always remember the first time she caught my eye; it was before the bond snapped into place and something about that always felt perfect…

I hide my smirk, making my way back inside.

It is two hours later, and I have changed into a black pair of pants and a white shirt with my sleeves pushed up and a few buttons left open. I look in the mirror applying some cologne before I begin styling my hair. Not sure why the fuck I am putting in the effort, but… I look good.

I can hear the music being played outside; whoever is in charge of it isn’t doing so badly. The current song reminds me of Azura and me. I pause for a moment, the words resonating in my head.

“… Smoking just to forget life… We might just be dancing… dancing to forget…”

Suddenly the night doesn’t seem so bad… to spend it with my family… with her. Who knows if the chance will come again? Although I wonder what exactly Marcel has planned, it won’t stop me from at least relaxing a little.

Alejandro had replied saying he had scheduled the meeting for the day after tomorrow, but we are welcome to come earlier. Now that a date is fucking set, I’m not looking forward to it.

I have just put my shoes on, deciding to deal with some emails one of the boys have sent me on my phone, when there is a knock on the door.

“I’m coming in!” Corrado says, turning the handle and running inside without waiting for a reply. I raise an eyebrow as he stands there, hands on hips, looking me over.

“You look good, kid,” I say. He is dressed in black jeans, a white blazer, and a red shirt.

“Yes, Daddy, but I need to check if you look good, too! I saw Azura. She looks so beautiful,” he says dramatically before glancing towards the door as if someone might hear him.

“Oh, yeah?” I ask, fucking hating that my heart has to race. What the fuck am I? A damn teen?

“Yes, Daddy, but I can’t tell you what she’s wearing. It’s a surprise, so come on! We need to go down before Azura goes down!” He says, pulling at my arm.

I stand up, not knowing if I should tell him that she is expecting. I know he’ll find out sooner or later, I just don’t want him to hear it from someone else. How would I explain it to him? Life could be so damn complicated… and yeah, I fucking know half of it is my own fucking ego that’s making it harder. Too bad I ain’t fucking changing.

I leave the room, allowing Corrado to think he is pulling me along. His little legs run to keep up with my stride as we make our way downstairs…