Page 69 of Cruel Alpha Bully

We pull up at Jill’s. I can see Gina is anxious, but eager to get answers. As we walk up the pathway to the front door, I want to reach out and take her hand, but I don’t know if we’re reconciled that much yet, so I hold back.

Gina knocks firmly on the door. When Jill answers it, I see shock flash across her face briefly before she smiles warmly at us.

“Hi guys,” Jill chirps. “What can I do for you?”

“May we come in, Jill?” Gina asks.

Jill frowns, just a little, then gestures for us to come in, stepping back from the doorway. “Of course,” she says. “It’s so good to see you two together. Come in and sit down.”

Gina’s face tightens up a little, but she doesn’t frown or say anything, just heads into the main room and sits down. When I sit next to her, Gina takes my hand and gives it a squeeze. The tightness in my chest eases a little.

“Jill, we need to talk to you,” Gina says. “There has been a miscommunication here, and I believe you are responsible.”

Jill’s smile gets wider, and at the same time, her eyes go a little cold. “I don’t know what you mean, Gina. You always were emotional. No doubt the pregnancy has made you even more edgy.”

I feel Gina’s hand squeeze mine again, and I squeeze back.

“Do I look emotional right now, Jill?” Gina asks calmly.

Jill smiles. “It’s always hard to tell with you. You take things so very seriously that when things are only meant as a joke, sometimes you don’t react right away.”

Gina takes a deep breath, and I can tell she’s upset, but as far as I’m concerned, she has every right to be. And she doesn’t look emotional at all.

“Jill, at Jenks’ party, you told me that you had been with Bae.”

A shock crackles through me like I just touched a live socket. This is news to me.

“Gina,” Jill replies, “I didn’t say that.”

Gina frowns slightly, as if she’s going over the conversation again. “I know that you were all over him when he walked into the party. Then, not long after, I spoke to you and you suggested—if not outright said—that you and Bae had been an item. That you always wanted him.”

“Gina.” Jill uses that gentle, slightly condescending tone again, “I think you’re putting words in my mouth.”

“Jill,” I say firmly, “you told me Gina was pining for her old life in Denver. That she wanted to break the mate bond. Why would you say that?”

Jill turns to me, and her smile is bright and sweet. Nothing like the fake grin she gives Gina. “Bae, you deserve someone who is invested in you, and the pack. Gina isn’t.”

“Why would you say that?” Gina asks with hurt in her voice. “I never said that.”

“Don’t upset yourself,” Jill says to her in a soothing tone. “No one wants you to overreact.”

“Jill,” I say in a slightly harder tone because I want her to pay attention, “I need you to talk to me for a second. I don’t appreciate anything you’ve said to Gina so far, and I’m really starting to believe this is between us. You have outright lied, to both of us. I want an explanation.”

Jill’s eyes widen, and her lip trembles. She looks like she’s about to cry. “Bae, it isn’t fair,” she says. “You should be with me. We’ve always had a connection, and I should be your mate. I’m Carson’s daughter—I’m meant to be with the alpha. With you.”

After these words are spoken, a heavy, dense silence falls. It feels like any sound will shatter everyone in the room.

“Jill,” I say again, very firmly now. “If you have felt a connection between us, it was one-sided. I have never felt anything for you, and as far as I’m concerned, there never has been, nor will there be, any romantic feelings between us.”

“But—”

“No,” I cut her off. “Gina has always had my heart, from the very beginning. Even if there was no mate bond, I would choose her over anyone else every single time.”

Jill stares at me, her lip trembling even worse now. She blinks hard, her eyes shimmering. “Bae, I—”

“We’ve heard enough, Jill,” Gina says. “We will speak to you about this later. You’ve done considerable damage to the pack with your selfish actions. I don’t know if your father knows about this, but he soon will.”

Gina gets up, and I follow her out the door and over to the car. I take both her hands and look into her eyes.

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