Contractually Yours Alpha (Riley)

Chapter One Hundred and Twenty Three

I had known Aric all my life. I grew up with him-he was family to me. But never had I seen Aric look so scared, never had he let himself appear this vulnerable before me. In that instant, my own fears and worries were cast

aside.

"I betrayed your trust, Kaida. After everything you have done for me, I betrayed you, and I am so sorry. I was selfish and stupid; I let my feelings and desires get the best of me."

"I don't understand. What are you trying to say?"

"When I convinced you to leave Alpha Alexander out of the mission, it wasn't because I thought it was the best decision-it was because I wanted to have you alone with me. I thought that if you were far enough away from him, you would be able to-I don't know-think clearly. Finally, we were alone and far from him, just as I had always wanted, and then... I told you how I felt. I told you everything...'

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He didn't need to say more; bit by bit, the memories flooded in. The dream I had earlier was more than just a dream. I remembered that day I woke up feeling like something was missing; Aric had told me it was just stress taking its toll on me. He had lied. I felt that way because of the drugs. I also recalled how guilty he had looked the last time I saw him. When we parted, it was as if he wanted to tell me something but kept it to himself

"You... you..." I couldn't say the words; tears welled in my eyes. I had never been one to cry, but now I couldn't hold it back-I broke down. "You drugged me and raped me just because I turned you down?"

I couldn't believe it. Now it all made sense-why Alexander had been so mad at me, why Aric had stayed away all

this time.

"I didn't rape you..."

"You fucking liar!" I punched him hard and didn't stop-I hit him twice more before finally pulling away. I suddenly felt... numb.

"I am not lying, Kaida, please believe me."

"I don't know what to believe anymore; you were supposed to be my family, and yet..."

"I didn't touch you, I swear to all the gods I know. I wanted to, I thought I could, but when I got the chance, I couldn't do it."

"Alexander felt it; he felt the pain. You are the reason he hates me; it's all because of you!"

“That was a side effect of the drugs–it made him feel pain, even though nothing was happening. I didn't know about the side effects until much later. I'm so sorry, Kaida. wronged you and I had no right to do that."

"I don't believe any word you say. I thought I knew you, but I was wrong; maybe I never knew you at all. The man I knew would never do this."

"I know you have no reason to believe me, but if I did take advantage of you in your unconscious state, you would have known, right? Still, what I did is simply unforgivable; deserve whatever punishment you choose to execute. I deserve it- and so much more."

"You are right." I said to him, "You deserve much worse."

I had come out here to find some relief, to take my mind off everything that was happening; little did I know what awaited me.

I returned to the pack house. I was going to find an empty room and spend the

night there, but most of the rooms were occupied. The Nightshade pack was one

of the biggest packs in the world, and with more people came the

Chapter One Hundred and Twenty Three

rising need for accommodation.

"Luña Kaida, I'm glad I met you here. I've been looking all around for you." Sarah said.

"I am not in the mood for any conversation right now, Sarah." I said, walking past her.

"I'm so sorry, Luna. There was a mistake," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "They were the wrong test results.

I turned to her; she finally had my full attention.

"How is that even possible?"noveldrama

Yes, we all made mistakes, but such mistakes should be rare to none, she had taken my samples, how had she mixed them up?

"I've... had a lot on my mind lately. This was all my fault. I'll be taking a break to get myself together before resuming my position as a Healer-I can't afford to let mistakes like this happen again. I'm sorry."

"Stop." I hissed; the words 'I'm sorry' seemed to be thrown around a lot for the past few hours and I was getting sick of the apologies. Sarah was one of the best healers in our pack; it was unlikely for her to make such a mistake. "If that wasn't my result, then it means you were wrong about the pregnancy?" I questioned, and she nodded, afraid to speak up. I left her before she had the chance to apologize once again.

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