Reclaimed by the Alpha I forgot

Part 8

Married. The word rang in my ears, the only thing echoing as it cut through the chaos in the room. Sebastian De Luca—my mate and my husband married someone else. Betrayal spread through my body, leaving me hollow and empty.

I tried to keep my composure, staring at Oliver with a blank look.

You wanted him to leave you alone. A voice rang in my head. I was trying to get away from the Alpha from day one, run away from the past I had no idea of. Not like this. Never like this.

He was married to Nora. That’s what the Pack Alpha said. It’s the name I heard him utter at four in the morning as he spoke to her over the phone. Of course that’s who he had been talking to—his wife.

Does he also have pups with her? A strange question ran through my mind. Maybe he already started a family of his own. There was no way I was going to intrude on that with Arlo.

Breath knocked out of my chest, a low punch in the gut as I remembered the dream I had. His eyes, so honest and raw, as they stared at me. As he kissed me all over and whispered those sweet words.

For someone who promised to love no one else, he moved on quickly.

“Lily…”

“I am fine!” I said sharply, garnering a few raised brows my way before letting out an airy laugh. “I mean…whatever. It’s for the best. We don’t have to talk about this now, Oliver.”

“Please.” I added while looking around. The last thing I wanted was to draw attention to my name. They already knew the drama surrounding the new Alpha anyway. I didn’t want to add to it.

Oliver appeared conflicted, opening and closing his mouth before he settled for a nod. He patted my shoulder before turning on his feet and disappearing into the living room.

Staring at the food on my plate, I felt my stomach lurch. Suddenly I was no longer hungry. I covered the plate, labelled it with my name, and threw it in the fridge.

Pushing open the doors, I rushed out of the pack house. Whatever warmth early spring had brought in evaporated completely by midday, the sun shielded by clouds, grey and bloated with a storm. I could feel the shift even in the sweltering temperature, as if mirroring my exact mood.

A short whimper slipped past my lips. If the members walking past heard it, they didn't say anything. They didn't comment on the teary gloss of my eyes or the hard press of my jaw that flexed the longer I held back tears.

I stayed out for as long as I could, briskly walking until my feet ached, lungs screamed, and my throat went raw with swallowing back all the tears.

***

I knocked on the door, impatiently tapping my feet against the pavement. That afternoon, I got a call from Renee again, but I outright refused to cover her shift. Not until he was gone from the inn. The thought of going back there and facing Sebastian made my chest tight.

I snapped my sight up, meeting a soft smile, eyes crinkled at the edges.

“Lily! Hi! Come on in.”

"Hello," I echoed. Carter stepped back, allowing me through.

The beta watched Hanny and Arlo as his sister, and her husband had to see the pack doctor. Hopefully it wasn’t anything serious.

“They stopped running around ten minutes ago and are doing puzzles in the den.”

I hummed, not looking at him directly, but I could feel the change in his composure, worry stretching over him like a blanket of shadow.

“Lily, did something happen?”

I shook my head.

Carter didn’t look away. Instead, he studied my face, his gaze slipping lower to the bob of my throat, like he could read what I was hiding. The action only made me purse my lips.

“I need to go.” My temple throbbed with the echo of my earlier headache. I ground my teeth together, hoping the migraine wouldn’t start again.

I exhaled and spoke again, though everything in me screamed not to, urged to leave, stop this conversation.

“Sebastian is married.”

Carter's face twisted at that. “How did you—”

“You know too?”

“I just found out this morning. I swear I was going to tell you.”

“Oliver told me. It’s fine! Probably for the best, right?” I said, rushing, frozen on the spot. “I don’t know why I am telling you—” My voice faltered.

The beta stopped and turned to face me fully.

At the intense gaze boring into my face, I groaned and buried my face between my hands.

“I feel so stupid. I don’t know what I was thinking,” I muttered, the words muffled. My cheeks felt hot, my body awkwardly leaning in the middle of the hallway.

“Lily…hey…I am not going to judge you. Please look at me.” The beta slowly pulled my hands away. “You can talk to me about it. I don’t mind. I am here for you, okay?”

Relief sank in my bones. The beta had always been understanding and supportive. I timidly nodded, motioning towards the couch.

“I don’t know…” My fingers wrung together in my lap. “I guess I thought I would talk to him? This pack has given me everything I could ask for and more, but I have always been curious about my past. It’s like a huge part of me has gone, and I don’t have any other means of knowing who I was before.”

“You could still talk to him.” Carter cleared his throat. “I understand it is a bit difficult after the first meeting. He didn’t leave a good impression.”

My lips twitched at that. I realised that Carter had no idea that I had checked him and his beta in the inn. He fully believed I hadn't seen Sebastian after the first encounter.

I nervously laughed. “Yeah, he did not.”

“Lily, you don’t have to tell him about Arlo if you don’t want to. But I don’t think there is any harm in knowing about your past.”

“I guess. I’ll think about it. I don’t know why I am upset about this.”

“Uhh…”

“It’s okay, Carter. I need some time; I’ll be fine. Thank you for listening.”

“Anytime.”

***

By the time I stepped inside the comfort of my home, Arlo dozed off in my arms. He was tired after running around with Hanny and making a mess of their den with puzzles and toys. I offered to stay back and help Carter, but he insisted on doing it by himself.

Placing a wet kiss on his forehead, I tucked him in before rushing downstairs. Oliver had given me a family home as soon as Arlo turned a year old. Even though it was only the two of us, he wanted us to have the same amenities as the rest of the members with family.

I was about to start dinner when a knock from down the hall made me jump. I rounded the kitchen corner and stared at the front door.

No one was supposed to be coming over.

I carefully padded toward the door and lined my eye up with the peephole. As soon as my eye adjusted to the lens, I nearly had a heart attack when I saw who was on the other side.

Alpha Sebastian De Luca.

***