Be Mine, Alpha

Four

Daphne's POV

"Nikolai." I knew it was a whisper, a barely audible one but I still heard it as clear as day, the sound of the owner's voice piercing through my mind and my very sense of being. "Nikolai, how… what…"

It took me a while to realize it wasn't my voice. I was speechless but the cause was still very much unknown. I was stuck between blaming my inability to form words at the fiery kiss Nikolai had just shared, or the hurt that soaked Harper's whisper. She was crying.

A glance behind me and at Harper showed my sister's eyes brimming with tears. I felt an intense pang in my chest, I couldn't remember the last time I saw her like this. The last time I saw her cry was years ago, she'd taken the fall for something I did and I was trying to console her.

There and then, we made a promise to each other to never make any of us cry. I guess that promise didn't hold water anymore.

Something buzzed across my waist and it felt like a huge part of my consciousness had been returned to me. Since I realized Harper had witnessed what just happened, I'd totally forgotten about Nikolai's grip on my waist, until now.

Like I wasn't just enjoying the tip of his fingertips on my skin, I jumped out of his embrace, the spot where he once held me burning like embers. Now that I was free of Nikolai's sexy hold, I could face Harper more clearly and think of a way to salvage the situation, but boy was I wrong.

I could see the hurt in Harper's eyes, glistening tears spilling down her cheeks. Seeing her in that state broke me but it wasn't enough to make me speak up.

For a moment, it felt like we were the only ones in the room, Harper's big blue orbs pleading with me to tell her it was a lie, or maybe perhaps she had misunderstood the whole thing, but I didn't, I couldn't. What was I supposed to say? I didn't mean for it to happen? I guess I could say that, but deep down I actually meant for this to happen.

Nikolai was my crush and kissing him had to be on top of the list of many things to do with it. As much as Harper was hurt, I honestly wasn't regretting it.

Something flickered in Harper's eyes, like she'd just heard my thoughts. I was sad that I'd hurt Harper, not because I kissed Nikolai. All it took was a shake of her head before she turned to the other direction, her room her obvious destination.

It didn't take a while before the sound of her door slamming shut reverberated across the entire room. While I was still contemplating, someone by the corner caught my eye.

"Alpha Nikolai." Conan bowed, making eye contact with me for a second before withdrawing his gaze again. "Daphne, I'll be in your room. He hadn't even taken so much as ten steps before the front swung open immediately.

"What's up, people?" Camilla burst in, her face as bright as the sun. " Daphne, I'm so sorry I…" she trailed off as she stepped further into the room.

"Alpha Nikolai." She gave a sweet small smile. " I didn't know you'd be here. Xavier didn't tell me anything."

Nikolai didn't even spare her so much as a glance, instead, his focus was on something else. No, scratch that someone else, his gaze was on me.

I felt hot all over again as his blue eyes took in every inch of my skin. Unlike Harper's, I couldn't read what he was thinking or what he had in mind. I didn't like him staring at me but somehow I couldn't tear my gaze away.

I was locked in the deep dark hues of his eyes that seemed like they could swallow me, whole too. The next sound to reach my ears was that of someone's boot stomping away.

One blink, two blinks and I realized Nikolai I had just walked out of my house and my life, for now.

"Oh, Moon goddess…" I groaned as I let myself fall onto the couch, almost crashing Camilla in the process. "What just happened?"

"Daphne?" Camila's concerned voice filled my head next. Before she could say anything else I let my hands provide a sturdy support system for my head. "Are you okay, Daphne? What's wrong?"

I couldn't answer her, where would I begin with actually? Was it the part where Nikolai kissed me and I gave into my wildest desires instantly, not thinking about anything else? Or maybe it was Harper's whisper or the fact that even after seeing my sister cry, I wasn't particularly sure I regretted my actions.

"I'm fine, Camilla." My voice was muffled but I knew she could hear me, both of them. " I'm fine…"

"No, you don't look fine." She cut in. " First, what was all that with Nikolai just now? And why does Conan look like he just saw a ghost and was asked to go catch it? Come on guys, tell me somethinggggg!"

"Daphne." I lifted my gaze the moment I felt Conan's hand on my shoulder. "I think you should go check up on your sister." His tone was soft, understanding too. "Just see how she's faring."

Before I could make sense of anything else or probably before I could talk myself out of it, I got up and bounded up the stairs two at a time. My heart broke when I got to Harper's door.

If I had thought she was crying or sobbing earlier, turned out that was just the beginning. Loud wails slipped through the corners of her door, her sniffles threatening to strangle me.

"Harper?" I knocked thrice, unsure she could hear me. Her cries came down a bit so I took that as a good sign. "Please open up, let's talk about it."

I got nothing. Instead, her wails became even louder than before.

"Harper, please open up," I begged. "I can explain. I assure you, it's really not what it looks like."

I wasn't even sure she could hear me, the sound of her crying could literally drown out the sound of my voice. Or maybe, she didn't want to talk to me.

"Harper, open up." I tried the lock of her door but it wouldn't budge. She'd locked it from the inside. "Please, open up. Let's talk. Open up so we can talk about this."

"Harper, please." I could hear my own voice break. "It's me, your best and only sister."

Maybe I shouldn't have said that but it was already too late. "f**k off!" Harper's voice was cold, icy even. "Just get out of here."

And I did. Dejectedly, I stole one last glance at her door before trudging down the stairs to meet my best friends.

"There she is." Camilla cooed immediately my head appeared at the top of the stairs. She dashed towards me and engulfed me in the biggest hug possible. "I'm so sorry."

"I take it, it didn't go well?" Conan's voice reached my ears. Just one look between us was all it took for him to get it. His hands found their way into his pockets as he murmured. "I'm sorry, Daphne."

"I don't think you'd be able to stay over tonight. I need-"

"Some time alone." Camilla finished my sentence for me. "We get it."

I couldn't even muster up any more words as Conan and Camilla filed out of my house, shutting the door behind them. I passed by Harper's room as I trudged to mine. I still didn't get why I wasn't totally upset.

To be honest, I didn't regret kissing Nikolai or giving in to his kiss. He was my mate after all. The only thing that hurt was my position with Harper. What would our relationship be like after this?

This was going to be a long night.

***

"Mr. Rogers is nothing but a prick and a pain in the neck." Conan spat out furiously, somewhere in between me, Camilla, and the other students in the cafeteria. "I really don't like him."

"For calling you out on your BS?" I heard Camilla chuckle. "I hardly think that's harsh, right Daphne?"

"What?" It took me a while to register that I was the one being spoken to. Aside from the fact that the eye bags under my eyes made me look unkempt, my mind and soul were nowhere near the school environs. I shook my head before answering. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"It's okay." Her lips curled upwards in a small smile as her hand found mine on the table. "It'll be alright. Conan and I were just saying…"

I involuntarily tuned her out as something tingled inside me. Someone's scent wafted through my nostrils and even before he appeared, I already knew who it was. Just moments after I came to that realization, I saw him walk into the cafeteria, Xavier, his beta, by his side.

The cafeteria went silent immediately, all eyes on the Alpha and his beta. The Alpha didn't seem to care for the attention, all he had on was a bored expression, like he didn't want to be here.

The moment he took his first step inside the cafeteria, our eyes locked gazes. I felt my heart thump rapidly as he walked towards me, just to walk past our table.

I blinked twice just so I could understand what had just happened but before I could make sense of anything else, he was already at Harper's side. As if the initial shock wasn't enough, I watched as Nikolai pulled Harper in by the waist and slammed his lips atop hers.

What in the world was happening?