His Difficult Orders

Doomed To Fail

From the onset, the forced relationship between Lucia and Brian was doomed to fail. This is because neither of them was interested in the mate bond thing.

They both knew it was forced union. that they were not mated to one another despite Alpha Norman's publicly stated belief that it could have been arranged by the moon goddess.

Brian didn't pretend that he really did not want her around him. He didn't pretend that he was only tolerating her because his father has always been optimistic about the bond. He wouldn't speak to her for an entire day at times, preferring to always keep to himself by reading any of his favorite books. He loved reading and that's one thing she got to know very well about him. It was one trait that he used very effectively to distance himself from her and make things more unbearable for her.

Intimacy was entirely out of the question. Though they laid side by side on the bed every day and night, each of them turned their backs on one another. It went on like that for months and Lucia was gradually getting to the limit of her endurance. She knew a time would come that she wouldn't take it any longer.

Even though she had never actually believed in the union from the start, Lucia tried everything in her power to make it work. She believed that they could somehow find a way to make it a lot real, but all her efforts were twarted by Brian's extremely cold attitude. Hệ didnt want her and there was nó pretense about it.

She decided that rather than always join him in his coldness, she should voice out her concerns. Who knows? Her words could make him change.

"Brian, it's been a long time since we really spoke anything meaningful to one another. I have tried to make this whole thing work, but you seem to be so disinterested that you don't care if everything crumbles, even right now. You seem not to be on the same page with the Alpha who sees something good in all of this, do you?" she asked.

He looked at her with the corner of his eyes without betraying any emotion. Then he scratched his jaw with his right hand.

"You may not be entirely right, Lucia," he replied standing up from the bed and thrusting his two hands into his pockets. "I am actually commited to this mate bond in accordance with my father's optimism. But I have been facing some inner turmoil which has absolutely nothing to do with our relationship. So, it is what has been causing me not to think and act straight in recent times. But, I know I'll get over it. Just give me some time, ok?"

He sounded convincing, but she knew he was not telling the truth. It was just an excuse to justify his behavior.

His cold attitude continued despite his assurances that things will change for the better. A silver lining seemed to have appeared one morning, when he drew her close to himself on the bed, patted her gently on her shoulders and planted a kiss on her forehead. She was highly elated, inwardly pleased within herself. He had not done anything close to this in the last two months or more. She only hoped it wasn't a temporary mood swing. She very much hoped it was something that would last for a long time.

He followed it up the next day by bringing a letter which had arrived in his post office box for her. Upon opening it, it turned out to be her acceptance letter into college.

She had been accepted to study advertising and public relations. Exactly what she had applied for.

Brian made insinuations about the fact he would be missing her, but she knew it was all a ruse. She knew better than to believe him.

She knew very well that Brian would want her out of the way as much as possible, so her going to college would offer him a good excuse to spend time with other she wolves who had always admired him and wanted a part of him.

"You are going to college. I'll surely miss you around the house," he said, forcing a smile.

Lucia took a deep sigh and said, "okay."

As the day of her birthday came close, it seemed things had taken a turn for the worse. Brian had gone back to his old self. He had resumed his usual cold and hostile attitude.

One cool evening, she ventured out of the house and embarked on a stroll to relieve herself of boredom after she felt completely abandoned by Brian. Yes, he was in, but he buried himself in a book as usual and hadn't spoken to her for days.

As she walked along a stretch of road, she was lost in thought, completely oblivious of her immediate surroundings.

In a split second, while not looking, she collided with a street light pole and fell onto the ground. The impact was so much that she passed out. By the time she opened her eyes, she found herself in a hospital ward.

Her sojourn in the hospital lasted for about five days during which time Brian made it a point of duty to visit her every day. She was also visited by her parents, the Alpha and his Beta.

The Beta proved to be very loyal and nice member of the pack. He was always around. Sometimes, he would be left alone with her even when all the others have left.

He was actually one of the few who didn't believe in the forced mate bond between Lucia and Brian. His disposition to the relationship showed clearly on his face on the day of the meeting that was called by the Alpha.

Only a wolf with a highly developed wolf instinct could have read his mind on that day, but Lucia did read him correctly.Though he didn't approve of it, he didn't make any contrary comments when asked to air his views. Like a loyal Beta that he is, he had to abide by the Alpha's decision.

On the day of her discharge from the hospital, she was allowed to go back home and continue her bed rest. Very much against her wish, she was taken back to Brian's apartment. She would have preferred not to go back there if she had her way. But she had no option.

She was gently assisted into the back seat of the car and Brian drove her back home.

"