Chapter 67
ETHAN’S POV
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I stood right in front of the pool where I had been with Charlotte just minutes earlier, taking a long drag of my cigarette. I don’t smoke often, but after everything that happened tonight, I needed it. The smoke didn’t help much, but I kept inhaling anyway.
Charlotte’s words kept replaying in my head. “No.”
I had bared my heart to her, laid everything out, and all she could give me was no.
“I only see you as a friend, nothing beyond that. I was momentarily confused and everything happened too fast, but I wouldn’t have let you kiss me.”
Her eyes were steady when she said it. She didn’t hesitate. And that was the part that hurt the most. It meant she was sure.
“You like the Alpha,” I said. A part of me hoped she would say no. Even a small denial would have made this hurt less.
“It’s not because of the Alpha.” She said it softly, but she wouldn’t look me in the eyes. That alone told me more than her words ever could. My chest caved in, my heart crashing hard.
“You like the Alpha,” I said again. This time, she nodded.
I didn’t know how to react to that truth. I felt small, like I had been standing in the wrong place all along, hoping for something that was never meant to be mine.
I had been worried after I heard about the attack at her house. She had also moved out without telling me or anyone. If she had spoken to her dad, I would have known, but she didn’t. Charlotte wasn’t picking up my calls, and the only person who could tell me where she was was Les. It took a while before Les finally told me.
I had liked Charlotte from the first time I saw her, she had just woken up. I had just returned from intense military training a little over six years ago. As the future beta, my training had been brutal. I was being prepared to stand as the second in command of the pack. At the time, there was no certainty about who the future Alpha would be. Alpha Graves had lost his family years ago, and the pack was still adjusting to that loss.
I was in shock when my father told me that Alpha Graves had brought home a young pregnant girl and wanted me to see her after she woke up. “The young girl doesn’t remember who she is or anything from her past,” my father told me that night. “She doesn’t even know her name. The only thing we found was the name written on the necklace around her neck, and we believe her name is Charlotte. She might end up becoming the new Alpha, and if that happens, you’ll need to take care of her and help train her. She looks weak and fragile.”
Like
anyone
The next morning, I rushed to the pack hospital only to hear that she had finally woken up.
who had been asleep for months, she looked lost. Her eyes moved around the room like she was searching for something familiar. When she couldn’t remember her name and the doctors told her she was pregnant, terror settled on her face.
I didn’t realize how much she affected me at first, but I found myself going back to her room every evening
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Chapter 67
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after I was done with my duties at the pack. I would stand outside sometimes, telling myself I was just checking in. One evening, I finally gathered the courage to step inside. She looked surprised to see someone other than the Alpha, my father, or the doctors.
“Who are you?” she asked, blinking rapidly, like she wasn’t sure if I was real.
I lifted my hands in the air, half amused, half nervous. “Harmless,” I said. “I’m the beta’s son. I just came to check on you. You can call the nurses or the doctors to confirm.”
“What do you want, Harmless?” she asked, her gaze slowly moving over me. And just like that, without trying to, she had my full attention.
I chuckled at her choice of words. “My name is not Harmless, it’s Ethan.” She nodded slowly, then pulled her legs closer to her chest, a clear sign that I shouldn’t come any nearer.
“My name is Charlotte,” she muttered softly, almost like she was testing the name on her tongue.
I took the chance to really look at her then. She was very thin, like she hadn’t been eating well for a long time. She had this scared look in her eyes. I noticed a round mark on her face and the moment she realized I was looking at it, she tried to hide it with her arm. She might not remember her past, but the way she curled into herself told me enough. It was the posture of someone who had learned to protect herself.
“Why are you hiding your birthmark?” I asked, genuinely confused.
She shook her head quickly. “Nothing.” She buried her face deeper into her folded arms, hiding it even more.
“You’re very pretty, Charlotte, and the birthmark doesn’t take that away. I want you to always remember that.” She tried to hide the blush creeping up her face, but the small grin still slipped out.
She was very guarded and not one to open up easily. Still, I spent time with her almost every day, sitting with her and talking about little things, sometimes just keeping her company. Slowly, she started relaxing around me and, without realizing it, we became friends. To both our surprises, the birthmark on her face began to fade with time. She was close to her due date when she healed a boy with a strange illness. After that, it was like a door opened. Little by little, she started healing different kinds of sicknesses. Alpha Graves decided it was best to enroll her in medical school.
After she gave birth, we grew even closer. Growing up, I never really wanted children. I always thought kids were too much work. But the day I held Liam’s tiny body in my arms at the hospital, everything changed. I fell in love instantly. He was so small and beautiful, and at that moment, I wanted to be his father. I took care of him whenever Charlotte went for her classes, and being there for both of them started to feel natural.
I normally took her to training after her classes, and one day she decided to come along with her new friend, Leslie. One night, I was already home when Charlotte called me, panicking. She said Les was in trouble and begged me to go help her. Charlotte couldn’t leave because Liam wasn’t feeling well, so Les had gone alone to their course mate’s birthday party. Les got drunk, and some men started playing games with her, touching and saying things she didn’t like.
When I got there, I saw a group of human boys hanging around her. The moment they noticed me, they ran off. I helped Les to the car and strapped her into the passenger seat. I was about to drive off when she suddenly grabbed my face and pressed a hard kiss to my lips. Her grip was strong, and she wouldn’t let me pull away.
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Chapter 67
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“Why aren’t you kissing me back?” she asked in a small, shaky voice. “Don’t you like me? Am I not pretty enough for you?” She tugged my face again, a little too rough, and I winced. “You have the most beautiful face I’ve ever seen on a man,” she added, staring at me. “Too beautiful to belong to a man. I want you to kiss me back.”
She fixed her gaze on me, not looking drunk anymore. “I came here to save you from boys trying to take advantage of you,” I said quietly, “and now you want me to do the exact same thing they were trying to do?”
She leaned in to kiss me again, but I stepped back. She frowned. “They were trying to force their way, but you’re not,” she said. “I’m giving myself to you freely, on a platter.”
“And why would you do that?” I asked, holding my ground.
“Because I like you.” She paused, her voice dropping. “But you like my friend.” She let out a short laugh, not fully drunk, but not sober either. And I wasn’t about to take advantage of her.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I lied.
“You do,” she said softly. “I see the way you look at her. You pamper her like a baby, you care for her son like he’s yours. If Charlotte didn’t tell me otherwise, I would have believed you both were mates.” Her voice wavered. “You look so good together… So why am I feeling this way?” She hiccupped. “I like you,” she went on. “My heart beats so loud whenever you come to pick us up. You’re kind without trying, and I’m very attracted to you.” She swallowed. “This might be wrong, but I want you tonight. Even if you don’t want me tomorrow, just… let me have you tonight.” Her words sounded desperate, but her body was bold, moving closer.
She climbed onto me, grinding against my thigh. I should have pushed her off immediately. I was in love with her friend. I wasn’t innocent, I had been with plenty of women in the past, but I hadn’t been with any woman since I met Charlotte. And if I was ever going to cross that line again, it wouldn’t be with her best friend.
“I can’t do this,” I said, placing my hands on her shoulders and pushing her back into her seat. She didn’t give up. She climbed again, wrapping her legs around me like she was afraid I’d disappear.
“Please,” she whispered. “Just this once. I’m still a virgin, and I want my first time to be with you.”
“You want to give up your virginity to someone who isn’t your mate?” I asked, my control hanging by a thread as she kept grinding against me. My body had already betrayed me, hard and aching.
She crashed her lips onto mine again and that was it. I snapped. I grabbed her and kissed her back, pouring out everything I had held in for over a year, all the frustration of not touching anyone. It happened right there in the car. It wasn’t gentle or loving. I was rough, careless, and I hated myself for it almost immediately. I didn’t give her the patience she deserved as it was her first time, I didn’t slow down when I should have.
I took her to my hotel after that. What happened there only made things worse. I took her again and again, driven more by need than sense. I didn’t regret being with her, but I regretted how it happened and what it
meant.
The next day, I started avoiding her. She tried to talk to me, tried to understand, but I shut her out. I made it clear it was a one–night thing and it would never happen again. I was still in love with her best friend, and that truth sat heavy in my chest.
I had wanted to tell Charlotte how I felt, but after what I did with her friend, I couldn’t bring myself to face her So I ran. I started traveling, thinking distance would fix it. It didn’t. Every time I saw Les after that, guilt.
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Chapter 67
followed me like a shadow.
Hearing Charlotte say no to me that night after I had gathered the courage to confess my feelings for her, felt like karma and punishment for what I had done to Leslie.
I took another drag of my cigarette, pulling the smoke in the air. I felt a presence behind me.
田
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
