Leah's POV
"That shouldn't be true… It shouldn't be…" My eyes got wet.
It seemed the misery had not ended.
Cool breeze blew through the windows to touch my skin, and it gave me the urge to throw up. Cristine got a bowl for me to pour out the whitish substance from my body.
"It's true," Cristine said.
There was no longer a need for me to argue.
The man who seemed to be the doctor left the room.
I closed my eyes, and the incident of Amon ending everything we shared was playing out in my head, and it caused tears to roll out of my eyes as though everything was happening again.
"If he had marked me sooner… There wouldn't have been a possibility for him to meet someone else… But she was pregnant…"
Cristine had another bowl beside the bed, and she pressed my skin with a small towel that was soaked inside it.
"Arrrh…" I groaned when she touched my head with it.
"Sorry,"
The room was silent for a while, and it made the ticking sound of the clock become loud to my ears. It was already midnight, and a burning lamp was used to light up the room.
"No one should know I'm pregnant… No one should."
Cristine narrowed her eyes at me like she could start up an argument, but was holding herself back.
"What do you intend to do?" She twinned our fingers together.
"Nothing… Just keep the incident that happened to heart… It should be between us."
She left my side, paced up and down the room with her hands folded before coming to stand so close to me.
"You can't hide it… Everyone would know…"
She made sense, but I couldn't stand the shame. In the Crescent pack, the pack I belonged to, only mates were considered fit to be pregnant. Moreover, my father and mother were Alpha and Luna.
It was against their standard.
"At least for now, no one should know."
***
About two weeks passed, and my father, Roshan, was hosting a party in the late hours of the evening. I was forced to attend.
I had always locked myself in my room ever since I returned home.
My mum, Andrea, was sitting beside me, and her eyes had barely left me.
"You've never been yourself." Her hand rubbed against the back of my hand. "Your skin has become pale."
But I tried to shrug it off. "It's nothing, I'm alright."
Her eyes scrutinized my whole body, spending longer time on my belly. "Tell me, did something happen to you?"
Her face had turned pale recently, always looking at me, touching my neck to confirm nothing was wrong with me, but she'd never seemed satisfied. Concerning her question? It wasn't the first time she was asking, and I always gave her the same answer.
"I'm good," I said, forcing my lips to form a smile as though the activities of the party had caught my interest.
I left her side afterwards. I felt like throwing up, and I didn't want her to notice. I returned, but sat at the far end of the hall. Cristine hadn't come to the party, and my eyes went all around.
"It's good for members of this pack, the Crescent pack, to always gather together in their Alpha's palace for drinks," Roshan said, raising a glass of wine.
Just then, I caught sight of one of his friends, Gerald, who was an Alpha of a different pack. His eyes were fixed on me.
I bent my head low to avoid him, but each time I had to raise my head, our eyes always met.
I felt someone touch me, but looking around, I found no one. On returning my gaze on Gerald, his face formed a strange smile that I couldn't read, and gradually, it turned intense. Was it possible he touched me from where he was?
That was too unlikely, but he seemed to know.
"Leah…" I heard a whisper.
But no one was that close to me.
I got on my feet, stomping out of the hall. Just then, I heard someone laugh. Gerald was laughing, but it couldn't be loud enough for me to hear.
Someone else could have joined him to mess with me, I thought.
Outside, I was taking a stroll, going a bit far from the palace. The urge to throw up came again, and I had to look for a spot to let it off me.
Again, I felt someone touch my back.
"Leah," I heard a man's voice call me.
"Gerald?"
My breathing tensed up. It felt as though cold water was poured on me, completely soaking my gown and dripping to the ground. This feeling… I had no idea what it was. His fingers touched my arm.
I jolted.
"Sorry." He made an attempt to hold me up. "I lost sight of you."
I turned to face him, and he offered me the small towel he was holding as though he knew I would need it before coming outside. "You can clean yourself up."
I was staring at him as though there was something written on his face. The urge to throw up came again, and I had to turn my back at him.
His scent, the scent of fresh grapes got to my nostrils. I almost pressed my nose against him.
"I'm Alpha Gerald," he said. "It's obvious that you already know."
I stayed mute.
"Are you okay?" He touched my upper arms.
"Did you do all that?" I asked, but he seemed not to understand. "Like you touched me… You whispered into my ears…"
"How is that possible? We were far apart."
Maybe I was thinking too much, or hallucinating. I shrugged it off, but we stayed silent, staring into each other's eyes.
"I have to go get some rest."
I was walking out on him, but always turning back to have another look at him. He wasn't following from behind, but I could tell that his eyes were still fixed on me.
I thought of going back to talk, but since I was already walking away, I felt I had to continue.
I got to my room, but soon after, I heard a knock on my door.
"Leah." I heard Gerald's voice.
He later followed me?
I held the doorknob, contemplating if I should open or not. His scent came through the sides of the doors, and that must have been convincing enough for me to let him in.
"Please open," he said.
I just had to.
We gazed at each other, not taking a step backward or forward. My breathing took a different pace. I could also hear him. It was uneven.
His hands touched my upper arms. "I caught your scent from where I was…"
I just nodded.
His hands crept down to hold my fingers. "I know you understand this feeling… I know you do…"
"What… What feeling is this?"
He just smiled, gave a light squeeze on my jaw, and we found ourselves sitting on my bed, still holding our fingers.
"Hmmm…" I wanted to say something, but I couldn't remember.
He hadn't said anything to me. His eyes were feeding themselves on my body. They could have seen through the silk gown I was wearing, and could easily see my boobs without much effort.
"Leah…" He took a low tone.
My whole body stiffened.
His hands moved to touch my thighs. I gasped, but I did not move his hands away like I felt I should have done.
"I can't control myself…" He kissed my lips, but withdrew himself.
I grabbed him by his neck, and pressed him against me. Our tongues danced, and I could feel the fresh taste of grapes, just like his scent. His hands went underneath my gown, grabbing my panties.
"Is this… Is this the mating process of new found mates?" I breathed into his ears.
"Yes," he said, his hands gripping my boobs and kneading them softly. "We are mates… You heard my voice in your head, didn't you? Only mates can mindlink."