CHAPTER 10
As I watched Harper drag Landon inside the packhouse, I could hear them both yelling at each
other until a door slammed shut. I assumed they were in his office, as it was the closest soundproof room in the house.
“Oh s**t. Oh s**t, what have I done?” I asked, starting to panic.
“Nothing. Arabella, you didn’t do this. Those two fight like this all the time,” Hayden said.
“After what Harper saw this morning, she was really angry. I told her it would be better if I just
stayed here, but she didn’t want that,” I replied. Kai walked over to comfort me as best as he
could.
I noticed Hayden looking at him oddly, but I tried not to focus on it.
“Hey, don’t worry about them. Harper can definitely hold her own against Landon. They’ve
been fighting like this since they were kids. They’ll exchange a few blows and then go back to
normal,” Kai assured me.
“Really?” I asked.
“Yeah. Come on, let’s go inside. Are you hungry?” Kai replied.
“A little,” I said.
“Dinner is being served now,” he added.
Kai took me inside to the dining hall, where we always sat at the main table. However, as Kai
sat next to me, I noticed Hayden eyeing him suspiciously from the other side.
I looked around and saw many warriors and a few women in the dining room, but the woman
from this morning was nowhere to be found.
“Don’t worry about that woman from this morning. She’s gone and won’t be back. He’ll have
another one soon,” Kai said,
“Great,” I replied sarcastically. Just then, Hayden reached behind me and hit Kai on the back of
the head.
“What the hell was that for?” Kai exclaimed.
“How about you learn when to shut the f**k up?” Hayden growled.
“Am I missing something here?” I asked, feeling confused.
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< CHAPTER 10
“It’s not important,” Hayden said dismissively.
+8 Points >
The atmosphere in the dining room felt really uncomfortable with these two guys sitting so
close to me. As they exchanged glares, I tried to focus on the plate in front of me.
I realized I wasn’t really hungry since Harper was arguing with Landon because of me.
Before long, they both entered the dining room, and Landon took his usual seat. To my
surprise, Harper also sat at the table. She insisted that Kai move so she could sit next to me
and immediately started digging into her food.
“So, what are we going to do tomorrow?” Harper asked, looking directly at me.
I blinked in surprise and then glanced at Landon, who looked like he could kill her with just
one glare.
“I don’t know. I hadn’t really thought about it,” I replied.
“Well, we had a lot of fun today, and doesn’t she look great, fellas? Better than jeans and a
leather jacket,” Harper remarked.
”
“How did you get that scar on your ankle? It looks pretty severe, Hayden asked.
“Oh, that? I fell out of a tree when I was a kid. I was only a couple of years old and I broke my
ankle,” I explained.
“That sounds serious,” he said.
“Yeah, it was,” I confirmed.
“Well, I think I’m going to take Arabella shopping tomorrow. She should see the town and get
to know where everything is,” Harper declared, staring straight at Landon as if daring him to
argue with her.
I discovered that Harper was 20 years old and quite brave for standing up to Landon, who had
a reputation for being ruthless. However, as his sister, she didn’t believe he would ever do
anything to hurt her.
After dinner, Harper hugged me goodbye, and I quickly headed to my room. I grabbed what I
needed and went into the bathroom. I took a shower to wash all the saltwater out of
my hair. Once I finished, I dried myself off and tried to tame my hair a bit with a straightener and some moisturizer. Then, I put on my usual dressing gown.
I took a pill from the bottle and swallowed it with a glass of water. When I walked into my
room, I nearly jumped out of my skin upon seeing Kai standing there, looking at my 45mm digital camera.
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< CHAPTER 10
“Hi,” I said, surprised.
“Hi. This is a pretty serious piece of machinery,” he remarked, referring to my camera.
“Yeah, I like taking photos, though I can’t really do it around here,” I replied.
“Do you have any photos that you’ve taken?” he asked.
+8 Points >
“Yeah,” I said. I hung my towel on the hook outside the bathroom and grabbed a scrapbook from my wardrobe.
I handed the photos to him, and he sat at my desk, beginning to look through them.
“Wow, these are really good,” he said.
“Thanks,” I replied.
Noticing Kai shivering a little, I grabbed some firewood, placed it in the fireplace, and started
the fire.
“I really should have done that for you,” Kai remarked.
“Why?” I asked, confused.
“It’s the gentlemanly thing to do,” he explained.
“It’s alright; I know how to start a fire,” I replied.
“I can see that. I didn’t realize how cold it gets here at night. Being right next to the ocean, you must get all that awful breeze, Kai said.
“I don’t mind,” I said, sitting on the bed. Kai continued to examine the photos I had taken.
“These wolves–are they from Vincent’s pack?” he asked.
“Yeah. The one in the middle is the head warrior, and the other two were on patrol with him that day. Connor saw me out with my camera, and they just stopped. I couldn’t help it; I thought it was a great photo,” I explained.
“It really is,” he replied.
“Can I ask you something?” I said, feeling nervous and looking down.
“Sure,” he answered:
“Why are you suddenly so interested in me?” I asked.
“Is that not allowed?” he questioned.
“I just didn’t think someone like you would be interested in someone like me, especially since
< CHAPTER 10
your Alpha thinks I’m a spy,” I said.
“Landon is suspicious of everyone he doesn’t know,” Kai replied.
+8 Points >
“Well, he must know all the women in this pack really well, then,” I scoffed. Kai looked up at
me, giving me a look similar to the one Hayden always gives.
“Do you like Landon?” he asked.
“No, not in that way. But he doesn’t show me any respect. In fact, he doesn’t even try to hide it.
If anything, he wants me to see it,” I said.
“Yeah, I’ve noticed that. He’s just acting like he always has. I guess he didn’t think having a
contract marriage would change his behavior,” Kai explained.
“All I want is a little respect. I’m not as bad as he thinks I am,” I admitted, still avoiding his
gaze.
I knew Kai could sense that Landon’s treatment of me was starting to get to me. But there
was nothing either of us could do about it. No matter how much we tried, we both understood
it was pointless. We didn’t talk about it anymore; it was clear he wasn’t interested in how I felt.
I just had to live my life according to his rules until one day, hopefully, I could escape this pack and not be sent back to Vincent’s. I just needed to fake it until I made it out of here.
“Hey, come with me. I want to show you something,” Kai said.
“What?” I asked, feeling confused.
“You’ll see. Come on,” he replied, extending his hand toward me. I hesitated for a moment, but eventually I took his hand, and he led me out of my room.
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