Chapter 7: His Protection, My Lie
1064 Words
Ella’s POV
I didn’t know how long I slept.
But when I opened my eyes, sunlight was bleeding through the heavy curtains… and Xander’s arm was still around me.
Warm. Solid. Safe.
The man who had bought me — the Alpha I was supposed to fear — had become the only thing keeping me calm in a world of lies.
I hadn’t moved once during the night. Maybe because I was scared… or maybe because, deep down, I didn’t want to.
My heart thudded softly in my chest.
He was still asleep. And for the first time, I saw him without the mask.
Not the cold Alpha. Not the feared ruler.
Just a man.
Eyes closed. Chest rising slowly. Hair slightly messy.
I could almost believe he was human.
And then I felt it again.
The wave of nausea.
It hit hard this time.
I covered my mouth and slipped out of bed, rushing to the bathroom.
I barely made it to the sink.
---
Xander’s POV
She thought I didn’t hear her.
But I did.
The second she got up — the soft pad of her feet, the click of the bathroom door, and the unmistakable sound of her retching — I was wide awake.
I sat up, heart pounding for reasons I didn’t want to name.
She hadn’t eaten much last night. Or the night before. Her skin looked pale. She’d touched her stomach more than once in the past week.
And now this?
I got out of bed and moved to the door.
I didn’t knock.
I just opened it.
She was bent over the sink, breathing hard, hands gripping the edge like she was trying to stay upright.
> “Ella.”
She flinched but didn’t look at me.
> “Are you sick?”
> “No,” she whispered. Too fast. Too firm.
A lie.
> “What’s wrong?” I asked again.
> “Nothing. It’s probably just the food.”
> “You barely touched your plate.”
She straightened, wiped her mouth, and finally looked at me.
> “I said I’m fine.”
> “You’re not,” I said calmly.
> “You don’t get to decide that.”
That was the first time she’d raised her voice at me.
I should’ve been angry.
But I wasn’t.
I was… afraid.
And I hated that more than anything.
---
Ella’s POV
He kept staring at me.
Like he could see the truth written across my skin.
I wanted to lie again.
To walk past him. To escape.
But I couldn’t.
So instead, I said the only thing that would stop him from asking more questions.
> “It’s none of your business.”
His jaw tensed.
His voice dropped low.
> “Everything about you is my business, Ella.”
I brushed past him.
> “Then maybe you should’ve bought someone else.”
And then I left him standing there.
Because if I stayed one more second, I might’ve told him everything.
---
Xander’s POV
I wanted to follow her.
To shake the truth out of her.
But I didn’t.
I let her go.
Because pushing her now would only break whatever fragile trust we’d started to build.
Still… something inside me shifted that morning.
Something I hadn’t felt since I buried Hazel.
Protectiveness.
But not just the usual kind.
This was personal.
Primal.
If anyone touched her…
They wouldn’t survive it.
---
Ella’s POV
Later that day, the estate received a message from the Council.
Damon Grey would be returning in three days for “negotiation talks.”
Xander didn’t speak a word to me after breakfast.
But I could feel it in the air.
Tension.
Jealousy.
Danger.
I stayed in the garden, breathing in the quiet, touching the flowers I’d never get to own.
Yara found me just before sunset.
> “He’s called for you.”
> “Why?”
> “Training.”
I blinked.
> “Training?”
She nodded.
> “He wants you to know how to protect yourself. Especially around Damon.”
I stared at her.
> “Why now?”
> “Because you’re not a pawn anymore,” she said. “You’re starting to matter.”
---
Xander’s POV
She arrived in the training room wearing black leggings and a fitted top.
She looked fragile.
But there was something in her eyes now.
A flicker of fight.
> “You think I can defend myself against an Alpha?” she asked as I handed her a wooden staff.
> “No,” I said honestly. “But you can learn how to make the first hit count.”
She smirked.
It was the first real smile I’d seen from her.
And it knocked the breath out of me.
I showed her the basics — grip, stance, footwork.
She learned fast.
Too fast.
Like she’d been trained before.
Or like someone was helping her survive long before I came into the picture.
> “You’re a quick learner,” I said.
> “I’ve had practice,” she murmured.
But she didn’t say from what.
Or who.
---
Ella’s POV
We trained until dusk.
My arms were sore. My back ached. Sweat clung to my skin.
And yet…
It was the first time I felt strong again.
Not because of him.
Because of me.
He handed me a towel without speaking.
Then stared at me for a long, quiet moment.
> “You should eat something.”
I nodded.
> “I will.”
> “And rest.”
> “I will.”
We stood there in silence for a beat too long.
Then I whispered—
> “Thank you.”
He didn’t reply.
But his eyes softened.
And I knew.
Somewhere beneath all that stone…
Something was cracking.
---
Xander’s POV
That night, I stood outside her door again.
Not because I wanted to scare her.
But because I needed to hear her voice.
To know she was okay.
But I didn’t knock.
I just listened.
She was humming.
Softly.
To herself… or to someone else.
And then I heard her whisper something that nearly dropped me to my knees.
> “I’ll keep you safe. I swear.”
It wasn’t meant for me.
It was meant for the child I hadn’t realized was already mine.
And suddenly…
everything made sense.
- Writer
