AGAIN MY HEART: Her Alphas Regret

WHAT'S GOING ON?

LEILANI

“Avi, Avitaj,” I called for my pup as I walked into the living room. “Avitaj?” I called again, searching through the house. His bedroom, my bedroom, the guest bedroom, the film room, the pantry, every single room I could check, and still no sign of him.

A frown settled on my face as I circled back to my bedroom. I need to be in a meeting in a few hours, and this boy is already trying to stress me out when the day has just started.

Picking up my mobile device from the bedside cabinet. I shot a quick message to my siblings asking if any of them had seen him.

Rain’s response came a few minutes later. ~He’s with me. I think he’s trying to throw a tantrum or something. What did you do to upset the little prince?~

I frowned at my brother’s response. What did I do? I helped him get dressed and told him to wait for me while I got dressed. And we planned on joining the rest of the family for breakfast in the main palace.

~Nothing I can think of. Tell him to come back.~

~He says he doesn’t want to. That you were being mean.~

I stared at the last message, facepalming because this was so typical of Avitaj. I am very convinced I have pampered him too much, and now he’s a spoilt kid, but Ma and Pa think otherwise. Sometimes I wonder if I did spoil him or if his grandparents were the ones who spoiled him.

With a sigh, I finished getting dressed, styled my hair, grabbed my bag and made my way out of the eastern wing, the eastern palace, as most of the palace servants liked to call it.

My parents had suggested I take this side of the palace a year after Eystein and I started dating because they were convinced I would need privacy or whatever. I appreciated their thoughtfulness, but Eystein and I weren’t there yet.

And I know it’s probably long overdue. We’ve been together for three years now. And he’s been so patient with more, as he's never asked if we could go a step further with our intimacy. I couldn’t have asked for a better Alpha. He was everything to me. He made me feel good about myself in ways I didn’t think were possible. And to be honest, I’ve been contemplating if it’s time I take that leap.

We might not be fated mates, but he’s the man I love, and I know he loves me too. Marriage is the next step for us, and it’s something we’ve both discussed at length, so why not take the leap?

“Avitaj,” I called as I made my way down the hallway of my brother’s suites. “Avi, are you trying to upset me?” The door to Rain’s bedroom creaked open, and Avi peeked his little head out.

“Come here, little man. I’m going to be late.” He frowned as he stepped out with a look of defiance on his face. Which would’ve been somewhat intimidating to a kid his age if not for the pout on his lips.

“Okay, what did I do to upset you? I am very sure I didn’t do anything, but we’ve established that sometimes adults can be wrong and mean without meaning to. So, tell me, Buba, how did I upset you?” I crouched down to his level as he stopped in front of me, and I met his gaze with soft eyes.

“You weren’t listening to me,” he mumbled, still pouting.

“When was that?” I asked.

“While we were getting dressed. First, I told you I didn’t want to wear this shirt, but you didn’t pay attention. And then I told you I wanted to accompany you to the office today, and you didn’t even let me finish before you said no.”

I nodded at his words and then sighed. “Alright, I see. I was wrong, so I apologise. But you should understand that Mummy was in a hurry and you were throwing a tantrum. I told you to get dressed on your own, and you ended up on your mobile device instead of doing what I asked. I can admit I was a tad frustrated with you and refused to listen when you insisted you didn’t want to wear this shirt because I thought you were just being stubborn.”

He shook his head. “I wasn’t just being stubborn…” he went silent for a minute as his frown deepened. “I’m sorry for not listening when you told me to pick what I wanted to wear. I thought I could be quick to respond to Letty, but I got carried away.”

“Apology accepted. Is there a reason why you didn’t want to wear this shirt?” I asked. Because the last thing I want to do is make him feel as though he cannot voice his opinions or that his voice cannot be heard by me.

“It’s my least favourite, and I don’t like the colour blue.”

“Okay, valid. Do you want to go back with me so we can pick out something else for you to wear?” He nodded, his expression softening.

“Great. And regarding coming to the office with me. I said no because I’ll be very busy today, and I’ll barely have time to spend with you, and that might make you feel lonely. But I was chatting with Eystein, and he said you can both go see the aquarium if you still want to.”

That lightened up his mood instantly, and he began bouncing on his feet. “The Zoo. Tell Dad I want to go to the Zoo. When is he coming to pick me up? How long do I have to wait? Will he take me to get ice cream and also that gaming board I’ve been wanting? Actually, I’ll text him. I’ll ask him myself.” His excited rambling continued all the way back to the eastern palace, and all I did was smile at every word.

**

I collapsed on the sofa in my bedroom with a drawn-out sigh. My bones ached from standing so much today. I was in a business meeting for hours, and then I had to visit the sites of our new branch, and that was more taxing than I thought it would be.

My body needed a full-on tissue-and-muscle massage and a warm bath… The sound of my device ringing pulled me out of my thoughts. I couldn’t help but groan because the device was on the bed, and that meant standing up. I would have ignored it, but the ringtone was the one I reserved for my parents.

They were supposed to be out of Xenyre. And if they were calling. I grabbed the device and answered the call.

“Nani,” Ma’s voice came in through the speaker.

“Ma, is everything okay? Where is Pa, and why are you calling? Shouldn’t you be at the federation meeting?” I asked.

“We made it back early. Are you back from the office? We were told you made plans to inspect some of the new sites today. Do you plan on working late?” Ma asked, and I could hear Pa’s voice in the background.

“Oh, I just made it back. Do you need me for something?” I asked because there was something in her voice I couldn’t quite place. Was it exhaustion? Mom often sounded more lively than this.

“Ah, I see. Take your time, perhaps when you come down for dinner.”

“Ma, what’s going on?”

“There’s something we would like to discuss with you. But there’s no hurry. Get some rest, and we’ll talk later. I thought you might still be at work.”

“Well, I’m home already, and since I’m home, I might as well just come over so we can get this over with. You’re scaring me already, and you don’t sound happy and the fact that Pa isn’t even saying a word, and I know he’s there with you. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’ll come to the main palace in a few minutes. I’m on my way.” I ended the call, threw my device on the bed and made my way out.