Caught In Between The Lycan Heirs

A great day turned sour

Riya's POV

"Please, forgive me. Please ma'am. I'll never say such terrible words about you ever again." The girl's entire body trembled with fear and I shifted a little uncomfortably on my seat. The attention of everyone in the restaurant was on us.

"It's…it's fine. Please, get up." I got a hold of myself and gulped nervously before answering. She did not get up as I told her to. Instead, she shifted her gaze to Hiram as if waiting for a confirmation from him to obey my words.

"You heard her." His voice was low and dark as he spoke to her and his eyes deepened dangerously. "Get up."

With shaky feet, she rose up from the ground and hurried to her table. In a splint of a second, she and her friend picked their bags and hurried out of the restaurant. Hiram joined me at our table again.

"Sorry about that." He said, straighten the collars of his tuxedo again. "Let's eat, shall we?"

I stared at him with furrowed brows as he signaled for the waiter to come back and take our orders. It surprised me greatly that he would act casual and nonchalant after what had happened barely a minute ago. Was this why everyone feared him and called him a dangerous man? Because he never batted an eyelid even after doing something terrible?

Should I be wary of him too? How much danger was I causing for myself by being this close to him?

…………….

Shortly after we were done with lunch at the restaurant, we drove next to Crescent Pack Elite College. As we walked into the grandeur of the prestigious building, I was awestruck and impressed by its magnificence and the power and wealth it represented. I felt so eager and anxious to explore the institution and discover the knowledge it harbored, that everyone always talked about. Who would have ever thought I'd someday be a student at this school?

I followed Hiram into the chancellor's office and then to the academic advisor's office where I was registered and informed that I would be starting classes the next week. I couldn't believe my ears. This was really happening. In just a space of two weeks, I had become the wife of Hiram Jax, the CEO of a fashion house, and a student of the prestigious Crescent Pack Elite College. What more could I possibly ask for?

"Mr. Jax." I called his attention as we walked out of the academic advisor's office and down the hallway.

"Yes?" His eyes were glued to his phone and he barely paid me any attention. But I didn't care about his nonchalance.

"Pinch me."

This time, he raised his head away from his phone and gave me a ridiculous look as though I had just gone crazy.

"Wait, what?"

"Pinch me."

"Why? Have you gone crazy?"

"Maybe. That's why I want you to pinch me. I want to confirm if I am truly crazy and just imagining things or if all of the things that had happened today really did happen."

He rolled his eyes at me again. I laughed lightly and pointed at his face.

"There you go with the eyes rolling again. You cannot deny it this time."

"You are only imagining things." He lied and feigned ignorance again. I laughed at his childish behavior but my laugh froze on my lips as my eyes caught the sight of unwelcome presences headed towards our direction. Casper and Laurie. They had smiles on their faces, with arms wrapped around each other's bodies. Their smiles slipped as soon as they saw Hiram and I. I suddenly felt uneasy and badly wished we could take another path, to avoid exchanging words with them.

For the hundredth time, the memories of Casper's betrayal hit me hard and my heart clenched tightly inside my chest. I set my jaw as another wave of fresh anger brewed inside of me. I wish I could hurt him so badly for what he did to me. I wish I could make him pay this instant and not have to wait for so long.

"Hiram? Riya?" Casper called our name as if he was surprised to see us. I bet he was. "What are you two doing here?"

"Hello, brother." Hiram sent him one of those rare smiles that looked like sarcastic smirks. "Riya's here with me for her registration into the college."

"The college…as in, this college?" Laurie rephrased Hiram's words for clarity. If she was surprised by Hiram's announcement, she didn't show it. She was good at hiding her true expressions, it seemed.

"Yes." Hiram replied, shoving his hands into his pocket. "She'll be starting by next week. Do you have any problem with that?"

Casper scoffed in disbelief and his eyes narrowed at Hiram as though he had done the most absurd thing in the whole world. It irked me that he wasn't satisfied with just breaking my heart. He still didn't want me to have a good life.

"Are you kidding me?" He asked Hiram. "You know what? Come with me for a minute. I need to have a word with you. Privately."

"Sure. But not more than a minute." Hiram reluctantly followed Casper, leaving Laurie and I alone. I averted my eyes from her and kept them fixed to the hallway, waiting for Hiram to be done and come back soon.

"You know, you definitely are the luckiest girl in the whole Crescent pack." Laurie's words caught my attention and my eyes moved back to her. She had a small smile playing on her straight face.

"Not everyone is privileged to attend this school. Only those from the wealthiest families in the pack are able to afford this school. Tell me, if it isn't luck, what then is it?"

I fought to keep my emotions in check as she spoke. She was clearly throwing shades at me but I would never let her poke fingers into my eyes. Not ever.

"It wasn't a privilege. I was destined to be here."

"Destiny." She tasted the word in her lips and laughed as though it sounded silly. "Maybe it is the gods who decided to compensate you for losing your longtime boyfriend to me. Trading a boyfriend for a slot in a prestigious school sounds fair enough. I didn't know you were such a smart girl, Riya."

Her words cut deep into my heart and I felt bittered. I wanted her to have a taste of her poison so badly.

"Take a good look at this, Laurie." I raised my hand midair for her to see and I wringled my fingers before her eyes, showing off my wedding ring. "I am sure you are not blind. As you can see, that is my wedding ring. You know what this means?"

She seemed to hold her breath as she eyed my wedding ring and waited for me to continue talking. I took a step closer to her and a smirk played on my lips.

"I am mated to Hiram Jax. The possible heir of the Lycan king. I cannot regret being with a prince when I have a soon-to-be king by my side. Now tell me, Laurie…what is there to be compensated for?"

Laurie paled visibly at my words and just when I was about to congratulate myself in the head for my savage comeback, her eyes looked behind me and I turned my head to see Hiram and Casper standing behind us. The hardened, unsmiling look on their face was enough to tell me that they had heard the things I had said. Casper looked devastated, as if my words had broken him completely. Even though I should be celebrating for succeeding in hurting Casper like I had always imagined, I felt nothing but shame and embarrassment to be caught red-handed, degrading one cousin and uplifting the other.

"Wow." Casper forced a bittered laugh. "Who would've ever thought the girl I'd dated for several years had such a sharp tongue. It's funny how time reveals it all."

"I…." I opened my mind to clear myself but he didn't want to hear another word from me.

"Forget it, Riya. There's no need to apologize. You've already said what you've always wanted to stay, anyway." He took Laurie's hands into his. "Let's go, honey."

And then, they were gone, leaving Hiram and I alone again. I turned my eyes to Hiram and my heart fell at the look of disappointment he held in his eyes.

"Hiram, I…"

"That's enough, Ms. Warren. I don't want to hear another word from you. Let's go home already." He shut me up and brushed past me, walking down the hallway.

And just like that, I had succeeded in ruining a great day all because of that damned b***h, Laurie.