Pregnant by The Fake Mate

06- Madson P.O.V

The car ride to Dylan house felt silent and tense, with the only audible sound being the air conditioning running. Not even my cousin Lizzie, who usually talked a lot, said a word during the half-hour journey. Only the dark landscape of dry trees could distract me from the tense moment, so I decided to focus my attention on what was outside. The night sky with the faintly shining full moon served as a reminder in the dark night that I was marked for the worst event of my life during these two years in the pack: the Lupercalia party. It was the moment when every rational being in the pack turned into a primitive, s*x and adrenaline-craving savage, when our wolves emerged fully into our reality and played without fear of consequences.

And while I was thinking about actions without fear of the possible consequences, a strange idea crossed my mind. A foolish suspicion that couldn't possibly be true. But for just a moment, it seemed so real. What if... I wondered... What if Dylan Palatino manipulated the council to ensure this dinner happened, specifically today? A plausible reason to have me around since there was no reason to discuss anything with me. What if this dinner in honor of my uncle was just a mere detail to see me again? My wolf was pleased with this line of thinking, and I crossed my legs, taking a deep breath. Who was I kidding? There was no way the alpha would even remember me, let alone go to such extremes for my sake. A complete nobody. I was just a poor and clueless girl he had caught drawing out of disrespect. Nothing more!

But when we finally arrived at the alpha's property, and I saw my cousin's boyfriend in the hall with two other council members, my eyes immediately fell on Antony, and there was something in his expression that I couldn't quite read, something suspicious. As if the whole thing were somehow related to me, and he knew it. But how? Why? I didn't have time to scrutinize Antony's gaze as I would have liked, nor to address the issue directly.

My Aunt Raquel grabbed Lizzie and me by the shoulders, brimming with barely contained excitement as she advanced up the hall staircase toward her daughter's boyfriend.

"What a fabulous place! Our alpha has excellent taste in decorations," she praised, looking at the marble pieces with sculpted wolves on each side of the door.

I rolled my eyes, knowing that anything that screamed "a lot of money" would be praised that night. "Don't you agree, Madson?" she asked, taking my attention away from Lizzie and Antony, who were talking.

"Yes, Aunt," I replied, impatient.

My aunt didn't seem satisfied with my comment, and she was about to retort with some kind of insult when one of the council members decided to introduce himself.

"It's a great pleasure to finally meet the Chase family, Madson," he said, bowing his head gallantly.

My aunt put on the whitest smile possible, changing her mood suddenly. "I'm the one who thanks you, Beta Romero," she replied, batting her eyelashes full of dark eyeshadow. "And this must be your lovely daughter Antony talks about so much?" she asked, bringing her evaluative gaze to me.

I raised my eyebrows in surprise; it was obvious that I wasn't Antony's romantic partner. Even Lizzie seemed uncomfortable with this, even though her boyfriend was right beside her, squeezing her waist to control the demon that wanted to emanate from her.

"No, sir, my name is Madson," I replied, uncomfortable with the subject.

"Madson, an interesting name for a young lady," the council member replied, looking at me more closely than I would have liked. Don't get me wrong, Beta Romero was a handsome man for his 30 years. He had an air of surfing and the beach in every muscle detail under his dress shirt and the bronze of his golden skin. He was the kind of man who stood out at 6'1" with so many visible masculine details, and if that weren't enough, his curly hair and the bright commercial smile completed the package. Finally, the silence became palpable until my uncle arrived in the hall. Romero put on an excited smile and greeted him warmly, slapping his back with tenderness.

"Congratulations, my brother!" he celebrated.

"Thank you, old friend! Thank you!" he replied, awkwardly.

"Come on, let's take these beautiful ladies inside," Antony said, holding Lizzie close to him in protest when she tried to pull away.

Romero seemed pleased with Lizzie's reaction, as if he were enjoying playing with her mind, poking and discovering which buttons he could press until she exploded in his face. At first, I felt sorry for her, but then I remembered the reasons for everything that had happened in the last few days and led me to the river. I no longer felt sorry for her, especially after her comment about my father early in the morning.

"f**k her," my she-wolf barked. I mentally agreed as I observed each extravagant painting decorating the hallway leading to the dining room.

"This decoration is magnificent!" my aunt finally said, trying to suck up to Alpha again.

"It was decorated by Dylan's grandmother," Romero informed me, giving me an interested look once again. I raised my eyebrows and stared back at him. He grinned crookedly and turned his head, as if he had seen a joke that I was not part of.

"Please make yourselves comfortable, take a seat," said a voice I recognized from afar. I didn't have to look far to see him; Dylan Palatino stood out from everyone else. There was some kind of magnetism about him, something beyond. He was sitting at a large, wide wooden table that was already completely filled on the left side with council members. There were two couples from old generations of betas and three couples of deltas. It seemed a bit cruel considering that the oldest delta couple was close to ninety years old and it must have been hard for them to stay for long at an event like this, which required hours and hours. Nevertheless, the elderly couple seemed happy to participate, caring about such a small event as this one.