Alpha's Regret After Her Rebirth

"It's... actually not a bad idea," he finally said.

I blinked, caught off guard. "What?"

"The picnic thing." His broad shoulders lifted in an indifferent shrug. "Could be a good way to get people engaged and interested ahead of time, yeah." Relief washed over me, quickly followed by surprise-and then a flicker of Indignation. Noah was never the type to accept my-or anyone's-ideas so easily, "But you should have told me sooner," he added.

There it is.

"Like you would have listened," I retorted, folding my arms across my chest. "You've never shown any interest in what I do as your Luna. Why start now?" Noah sighed. "You only started acting like a Luna, like, yesterday. And even that's a stretch."

"So if I had done more sooner, you're saying you would have listened to me?"RêAd lat𝙚St chapters at Novel(D)ra/ma.Org Only

A muscle ticked in Noah's chiseled jaw at that, but he didn't argue-either because he knew I was right or it wasn't worth arguing over.

After an awkward stretch of silence, I shook my head and sighed heavily. "Anyway... why did you come barging in here in the first place?" I asked wearily. "I doubt it was just to critique my party-planning skills."

Noah's expression darkened. Without a word, he tossed his phone onto my desk with the screen open to a camera roll folder. "Look at this," he said, jerking his head toward his phone.

I stared at the phone for a moment, apprehension coiling low in my belly, before gingerly picking it up. As the first image on the screen registered, I felt my heart plummet into my stomach.

It was... me. With Drake. Wrapped around him on his motorcycle, our bodies intertwined in a way that was entirely too intimate for public viewing. The next few shots only drove the point home further-me reaching out to caress his shoulder, a soft smile on my face. "What is this?" I whispered.

"I had to pay off an entire goddamn paparazzi agency to keep those from leaking." Noah growled. "Six figures, Hannah. All to keep the Luna of my pack-and myself-from becoming a laughing stock because she can't keep her hands off of another man." My cheeks burned with shame and anger, the phone falling from my trembling hands as I met Noah's hard glare. It's not like that with Drake and I," I said.

"Then what is it?" Noah demanded, leaning forward to brace his hands on my desk as he towered over me. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks an awful lot like you're being reckless. Selfish. Putting this pack at risk with your idiotic displays of-"

"I don't see how this is any worse than the things you've done with Zoe in public," I snarled, rising from my chair. "Holding her while she cries. Matching outfits with her at a gala. Showing up to welcome-home parties for her..."

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Noah clenched his jaw. "So is that what this is? Revenge? And how many times do I have to tell you, nothing ever happened between me and Zoe?"

"It's not about revenge." I sighed, turning my head so I didn't have to look at him. "Drake and I are just friends. I'm sorry I wasn't more careful, but.... I'd never cheat. We're still married."

Noah stared at me for a long, heavy moment, his expression unreadable. Then, finally, he gave a curt nod. "Whatever." "Whatever?" I scoffed.

He shrugged. "Yeah. Whatever." He paused then, sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Let's just

host this picnic thing of yours this weekend," he said gruffly. "Be there, bright and early to make sure it all goes according to your plans."

With that

With that, he straightened and turned on his heel, striding out of my office without another word.