Page 17 of The Alpha's Crimson Vow (Eternal Oath Saga #2)

Katherine

The bar is alive with a quiet kind of energy—the kind that wraps around you, makes you forget about the chaos outside its doors. The low hum of conversation, the occasional clink of ice against glass, the slow, sultry rhythm of the music—it all blends together into something soothing, something that lets me breathe just a little easier.

The air is rich with the scent of aged whiskey, muddled citrus, and the faint, lingering trace of expensive cologne from the men and women scattered around the lounge. It’s a place meant for unwinding, for losing yourself in the dim lighting and the comfortable weight of a drink in your hand.

I have been looking forward to today. Ever since Alice came into town a few days ago, I’ve been counting the minutes to when we can just have a drink and catch up.

She sits across from me now. Her presence is grounding in a way few things are these days. We haven’t seen each other in months, and yet, somehow, nothing about this feels unfamiliar. She’s always had this way of making me feel steady, even when everything else in my life is spiraling out of control.

I swirl my cocktail absently, watching as the light catches the liquid, twisting it into deep shades of amber and gold. It’s almost hypnotic, a distraction from the weight of everything I’ve just dumped at her feet.

Because I have just told her every single thing.

I told her about the car crash—the one that nearly ended my life. I told her about the video James showed me, the one that ripped open wounds I wasn’t ready to deal with, the one that made me realize a gut wrenching truth: my parents were murdered. And whoever did it isn’t done yet.

I told her how Alex isn’t who I thought he was. How he was never just some janitor who happened to be in the right place at the right time. How he was a wolf shifter. A prince. A man on a mission—a man that deceived me and left me shattered in a million pieces .

And, as if that wasn’t enough, how he swooped in at the last second, flexing his absurd wealth and influence to pull Pinnacle Group back from the brink of collapse. And how now, Lawrence and the family elders are excited about the idea of me marrying him, and that the board are hanging on his every word.

I unloaded it all. Let every word spill into the air between us, waiting for Alice’s reaction, for some kind of confirmation that what I’m feeling is valid—that this whole thing is as insane as it sounds.

She doesn’t look surprised.

Her brow lifts slightly, her expression unreadable, but there’s no shock. No wide eyed disbelief. Just… something knowing lingering in the way she studies me.

Her fingers rest lightly on the stem of her glass, and she finally speaks.

“I would have been there in a heartbeat if I’d known what was happening with the company sooner,” she says, her voice warm, sincere.

Something tight in my chest eases just a fraction. I know she means it.

“I know you would have,” I say softly, taking a sip of my drink.

She nods, her gaze thoughtful. When she speaks again, her voice dips, careful and measured. “And the video about your parents… that must have been difficult.”

I force my expression to stay neutral, but the memory still stings, a sharp, dull ache settling in my ribs. “It was.” The words are even, steady, but she must hear something in my tone, something I don’t mean to let slip.

She doesn’t push. Instead, she reaches across the table and rests her hand over mine, a small, wordless gesture that says more than anything else could.

“I’m here for you, Katherine,” she murmurs. “This has to be… a lot.”

I nod because, yeah, that’s the understatement of the century. It is a lot. And what makes it worse is that Alex is still taking up space in my mind, rattling around like some ghost that refuses to be exorcised.

“The worst has passed,” I say, trying to sound like I believe it. “The company is stable, and my private investigator is working on unraveling the truth about who killed my parents and who’s trying to get me killed.” I take a slow breath, letting the words settle. “Right now, I just need to get Alex away from me. I’ve already started drafting a plan to show the board that we don’t need him to make money.”

Alice nods, slow, deliberate, her expression as unreadable as ever. She studies me for a moment, like she’s weighing something, then she speaks.

“I knew who he was.”

I blink. My brows lift slightly. I wasn’t expecting that.

“You knew?” The words slip out almost of their own will.

She doesn’t hesitate. “The first night you told me about him, I picked up a scent on you. I could tell you had been close to a shifter.”

So that’s why she had that look on her face that day .

“A while later I ran into him at your office. The day I came to say goodbye before heading back. And I confirmed who he was. Alex Valkov, Prince of the European Wolf Kingdom.”

A beat of silence stretches between us. I twist slightly in my seat, trying to process what she just said. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Her expression softens. “Honestly? Because I thought it would have been better if he told you himself.” There’s something almost apologetic in her voice, something earnest. “It was obvious you really cared about him. And you deserved to hear it from him.”

It’s sweet. It really is. But it’s also a little bitterly funny, in a twisted kind of way. The fact that it was so obvious to everyone—including Alice—that I had feelings for him. And yet, to Alex, I was nothing but a means to an end.

I let out a quiet sigh. “Well… so much for that.” The words taste bitter in my mouth. “Now, I just want to get him away from me.”

Alice tilts her head slightly. “He’s refusing to leave you alone?”

I scoff. “He keeps saying he needs to explain himself, like there’s anything he could possibly say to make it all okay. I don’t even know what his so called mission was, and honestly?” I shake my head. “I don’t care anymore.”

She’s quiet for a moment, like she’s turning something over in her mind. Then, suddenly, something changes in her expression. An idea sparks behind her eyes.

“Maybe you should start seeing someone else.”

I blink. “What?”

She leans forward slightly. “If you were with someone else, he’d see that you’ve moved on. And it would help with your family elders too—it’d get them off your back about him.”

I let her words settle, rolling them around in my mind. She’s not wrong. Lawrence and the elders are already practically salivating over Alex. If I was with someone else, they would be receptive to the idea of me cutting him off. And if I can convince the board that we don’t need him, then maybe—just maybe—I won’t have to keep enduring his presence in my life.

There’s just one problem.

“That could work,” I admit. “But I’m not exactly spoiled for options right now. I don’t have time for dating with everything else going on.”

Alice barely hesitates before she says, “I’ll introduce you to someone.”

I arch a brow, unable to help the smirk tugging at my lips. “Since when did you start playing matchmaker, Alice?” My voice is laced with humor, the sheer absurdity of this conversation catching up with me.

Alice doesn’t even glance up. She’s already pulling out her phone, fingers flying across the screen like she’s setting up a business deal, not meddling in my love life. “His name is Jimmy,” she says matter-of-factly. “I’m giving him your number and telling him to reach out to you.”

I blink. “Wow. Not wasting any time here, are we?” There’s mock shock in my tone, but honestly, I shouldn’t be surprised. Alice has never been the type to hesitate once she’s made up her mind.

“Well,” she drawls, finally looking at me, a smirk playing at the corner of her lips. “Since you’ve developed a thing for wolf shifters, I’m an expert in the field.” There’s a teasing glint in her eyes, one that makes it impossible not to roll my own in response.

But then—just like that—the humor morphs. She looks at me, and her expression steadies, turning serious. Not heavy, exactly, but firm. Certain.

“Jimmy is second in command to my mate,” she tells me, her voice softer now, more pointed. “He’s powerful—powerful enough that Alex might actually take the hint and back off. And he’s exactly the kind of person your family elders would approve of.”

There’s something deeper in her tone, something more than just wanting Alex out of my life. Like it’s personal for her in a way I don’t fully understand.

I exhale, nodding slightly. “Thanks, Alice.” And I mean it. Even if I’m not exactly thrilled at the idea of meeting someone new, I’d rather deal with that than the constant push and pull of Alex lingering in my orbit. Anything to avoid the way Lawrence and the elders have already started circling, ready to shove me in Alex’s direction like it’s some grand arrangement.

Alice flashes me a small smile before standing, smoothing down the fabric of her dress. “I need a bathroom break. These cocktails have that effect once you’re a few drinks in.” She rolls her eyes at herself, already turning toward the restroom.

And that’s when it hits me.

A thought. A memory. Something Alex said, buried under everything else that’s been happening, but suddenly, now, in this moment, it resurfaces with startling clarity.

I don’t even think—I just speak.

“Oh, and there’s one other thing.”

Alice pauses mid stride, turning back to me, one brow lifting in question.

I meet her gaze. “Alex once told me we were… fated.” The word feels strange on my tongue, too heavy, too shrouded with something I don’t fully understand. “That we’re bound to each other somehow.”

Her expression changes instantly.

Her eyes widen, the change so immediate it makes my pulse quicken. There’s a flicker of something—recognition? Realization?—and it roots me to the spot, my breath caught somewhere in my chest.

I push forward. “It sounded like a shifter thing. Something I couldn’t understand at the time. I wanted to write it off as bullshit, something he said to manipulate me because of whatever mission he was on.” I pause, hesitating for just a second before I add, “But he mentioned a thread. A golden thread.”

Alice’s expression deepens. The playfulness from earlier is long gone, replaced with something much more serious.

“And I’ve been seeing it,” I continue, my voice a little quieter now. “Like flashes before my eyes. Some kind of vision or something. It was stronger when he was close. After he left, it stopped. But now that he’s back… it’s happening again.”

There’s a stretch of silence.

Alice just watches me. Like she’s reading something in me that I don’t even understand myself. Like she’s seeing a picture I don’t have all the pieces for yet.

I open my mouth to say something else—to ask her what exactly she’s thinking—but before I can, she exhales, tilting her head slightly.

“Hmm.” It’s a considering sound, like she’s measuring her words. And then, after a beat, she speaks. “Well… that’s his problem to worry about. He should’ve thought about that before he lied to you.”

I blink. “So… it’s real?”

She nods, slow and deliberate. “It is.” But then her expression softens, and there’s something warm in her tone when she adds, “But don’t worry. It’s not a problem for you.”

I want to press. I should press. But before I can, she gives me a small, knowing look. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

And just like that, she turns, heading for the restroom, leaving me with nothing but my drink, my thoughts, and the ghost of a golden thread lingering at the edges of my vision.

As the minutes tick by, I can’t get my head off how Alice reacted when I mentioned the thread Something about the look on her face when I mentioned the fated mate thing won’t leave me alone. She looked worried—and Alice isn’t the type to worry easily. She’s the queen of a wolf kingdom, for God’s sake. If she thinks something is serious, then it probably is.

And even though she told me it’s not something I should concern myself with, the way she spoke about it… like it’s something Alex will have to deal with… it sounded like there’s some kind of consequence. Like this whole fated bond thing isn’t just some poetic shifter nonsense, but an actual, tangible force that does something.

I sip my drink again, letting the alcohol settle in my system, willing it to steady me. I should be furious with Alex. I am furious. I shouldn’t care if something happens to him. He lied to me. Used me. Made me believe in something that was never real. I should be perfectly happy to let whatever this is be his problem.

But I’m not.

Because no matter how much I want to shut it down, there’s a part of me—a small, stubborn part—that does care. That doesn’t want something bad to happen to him.

I hate that part.

I take another sip, exhaling slowly.

Then I hear a voice from behind.

“Katherine?”

My body goes rigid before I even turn. And when I do, my eyes widen slightly in disbelief as they rest on Alex.

He’s standing there, his broad frame seeming even larger from where I sit. His presence engulfs me instantly, swallowing up the space between us without even moving.

There’s a split second where my mind scrambles to catch up—where I take in the sight of him, the way his eyes are locked on me, unreadable yet intense.

Then realization crashes over me like ice water.

Did he… follow me here?

Heat rises up my neck as my pulse picks up, my stomach twisting with irritation.

He takes a step forward, slow, cautious. “Katherine,” he says again, his voice deep and sure. “We really need to talk.”

I let out a sharp breath. “Did you follow me here?”

“Yes, I did.” His tone is infuriatingly matter-of-fact, like he’s stating something completely normal. Like people just follow other people around and it’s no big deal.

My brow furrows. “You think that’s okay?”

He exhales through his nose, his jaw tightening. “Katherine, I know you’re upset. But we have to talk.”

Something about the way he says that—that we have to talk—grates against every nerve in my body. Like I owe him this. Like I have to hear him out.

And the worst part? Some small, traitorous part of me wants to listen.

But I shove that part deep, deep down. I’m not falling for anything again.

“We don’t have to talk, Alex.” My voice is firm, my words clipped.

His expression hardens, just a little. “Katherine—”

“I don’t want to talk to you, Alex. We’ve had this conversation.”

“We haven’t,” he argues, his voice still calm but more insistent now. “Not really. And it’s important. I need to explain things to you.”

Before I can snap back, another voice cuts in.

“I think that’s enough.” Alice says.

Her voice is sharp, firm, laced with an authority that demands attention. She steps forward, inserting herself between us, her presence a brick wall between me and Alex.

Her eyes locks onto his, unwavering. “She’s made it very clear she doesn’t want to talk to you.”

Alex doesn’t flinch. But there’s a change in his expression, a flicker of something unreadable. It’s clear to me that he wasn’t expecting to see Alice here.

The moment stretches between them, thick with tension. They’re squaring up now, standing just a breath apart, locked in some silent standoff. My pulse pounds harder.

Then Alice tilts her head slightly, her voice lower, edged with something cold. “I warned you not to hurt my friend.”

Alex inhales deeply, his expression twisting—thoughtful, almost regretful. He still looks like him, still carries that unwavering confidence, but there is something else in his eyes. Something… unsettled.

Alice turns to me then, her eyes softening. “You don’t have to listen to him if you don’t want to.”

And just like that, she walks away, heading toward the exit with a calm, steady stride.

Alex watches her go, his expression unreadable.

Then his eyes turn back to me.

There’s something gentle in them now. Something earnest. But I can’t—I won’t—let myself dwell on it.

Because I remember. I remember that day in my apartment. I remember the way the truth unraveled right in front of me, how foolish I felt, how used I felt.

And I promised myself that I would never allow anything make me feel that stupid ever again.

I push up from my seat, slow, controlled, and turn to leave, walking in the same direction as Alice.

I feel his eyes on me as I go. The weight of them, the pull of them. But I don’t stop.

Maybe this thing with Jimmy—the man Alice wants me to meet—will help. Maybe it’ll give me the distance I need. Maybe, with someone else in the picture, I won’t have to keep looking into Alex’s eyes and reliving the ache of what he did to me.

Because one thing is certain—I can’t do this anymore. I won’t. I want to move on from him, to make him nothing more than a memory, a shadow in the past where he belongs.

And that’s exactly what I’ll do. Whatever it takes.