Chapter 5
Her voice was honey–sweet, but her eyes were locked on Brandon, completely ignoring
the room full of women.
The nightgown wasn’t exactly indecent, but in this setting, with a house full of guests,
it screamed of calculated intimacy.
Brandon clearly hadn’t expected her. But after a glance at her attire, his throat moved
as he swallowed. He stepped aside to let her in.
“Of course, the more the merrier.”
My friends‘ expressions instantly soured. Brandon rushed to explain, “Everyone, this is our neighbor, Fiona. She’s here for Sophia’s birthday, too.”
A chill crawled over my skin.
Fiona, as if blind to the collective side–eye, squeezed herself onto the sofa next to
Brandon with practiced ease. She pushed the fruit plate toward him.
“Alpha, I cut this specially for you. Tell me if it’s sweet.”
Brandon shot me an awkward glance. Seeing I wasn’t reacting, he picked up a piece of
apple and ate it.
“Mhm, it’s sweet.”
“Hehe, I knew you’d like it.”
Fiona giggled, her body swaying subtly closer to his. “Oh, it’s so cold in here. I’m freezing. Alpha, could you get me a blanket?”
Without a word, Brandon got up and went to the bedroom. He returned with my favorite
cashmere throw and draped it over her shoulders.
In that moment, I heard one of my friends mutter under her breath, “What a pair of
assholes.”
The knife in my hand, poised over the cake, hesitated for a fraction of a second before
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continuing its smooth path.
“Here, have some cake.”
I handed the first slice to my friend, utterly ignoring the little drama unfolding beside
- me.
Just then, Fiona’s phone rang.
She answered, and her face immediately drained of color. A panicked, tearful wail
followed.
“What?! Really? That’s so scary! Waaah… Alpha! My apartment’s circuit breaker tripped! It’s pitch black, and I heard a weird noise… I’m so scared!”
She hung up, turning watery, pleading eyes on Brandon, one hand clutching his sleeve
desperately.
“Alpha, could you please come check for me? I’m too scared to go back alone…”
Brandon stood up immediately, concern plastered on his face.
“Don’t be scared, don’t be scared. I’ll go take a look right now. Probably just a blown fuse, easy fix.”
He turned to me, his tone utterly matter–of–fact.
“Sophia, Fiona’s having an electrical problem. I’m going to go help her fix it. I’ll be right back. You all go ahead and eat, don’t wait for me.”
I looked at him, the cake knife still in my hand.
Red frosting clung to the blade, stark as blood.
“Brandon,” I said, my voice unnervingly calm. “Today is my birthday.”
“I know, I know! But I can’t just leave her like this, can I? Neighbors help each other! I’ll be back soon, okay? Be good.”
Without waiting for a response, he wrapped an arm around Fiona’s shoulders and
steered her toward the door.
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ack at me over her shoulder.
Her eyes held nothing but pure, gloating triumph.
Thud.
The door closed.
A tomb–like silence descended on the room.
My friend slammed her fork down. “Sophia! How can you stand this?! She’s a grade–A schemer, and he’s a blind idiot!”
I set the knife down… “What can I do? You can’t stop someone who’s determined to make a fool of themselves.”
I walked to the front door, turned the deadbolt, and slid the security chain into place.
“Let’s eat. Don’t let irrelevant people ruin the mood.”
Brandon didn’t come home that night.
My phone buzzed with dozens of his messages.
[Sophia, the wiring here is complicated. Still working on it.]
[Fiona’s really shaken up; she won’t stop crying. I need to calm her down.]
[Might not make it back tonight. You should get some sleep.]
I didn’t reply to a single one.
I tossed the phone aside and drank with my friends until dawn.
The next morning, I was jolted awake by a flurry of notifications from our neighborhood group chat,
