Page 37 of Cruel Alpha: Season One

“Noted. I’ll have to keep in mind that books are the way to your heart.”

His gaze lingers on me, and I know I should have some discouraging remark, but it seems I’m fresh out of snide comments.

“Whenever you speak of your mother it’s only ever in fondness.”

I draw a deep breath before responding. “She was the kind of woman who could onlybespoken of in fondness, so…”

His eyes soften a bit, and I try not to let it get to me. “Some women just have a gift about them where motherhood is concerned. They set a standard that few others can ever truly attain.”

Warmth spreads through me as I recall the years I was able to spend with Mom. They were too few and too long ago to seem fair, but I’m grateful for them nonetheless.

“Yes, well, I got lucky, I suppose.” I force a smile when I’m done, and Caspian seems to sense that it’s not quite natural. “Holidays were the best. She just had this way of making everything so…special.”

Only now does he lean away from his work, seeming to focus more onmethan whatever task he’d been tending to before I arrived.

“Tell me more.”

He stares attentively as I continue.

“Well, for starters, she was what my father used to call anover decorator,” I share with a laugh. “Especially the Winter Feast. From top to bottom, inside and out, our home was bright and cheerful. Just like Mom,” I add. But my smile fades, because I’ve come to learn that the brighter someone’s light shines in your life, the absence of that light is even more apparent once they’ve left you.

“She sounds lovely,” Caspian says, and I simply nod.

“That she was.”

There’s a weightiness in the room now that it’s gone quiet. Partly because this conversation may have been our first that hasn’t been riddled with hostility. Partly because I can’t seem to be close to this man without objectifying him.

Not that he’d mind, I’m sure.

He breathes deep, and I know the second I’m caught. His keen sense of smell has likely alerted him of the slight change in my scent, making him aware of this effect he has on me. In other words, it’s time to make my exit.

“Anyway, I should be getting to bed. This book won’t read itself.”

I stand, only for Caspian to call my name again. It rolls off his tongue, deep and easy.

“Annalise.”

I’m tempted to just keep walking, pretending I didn’t hear him calling out, but it’s like my body won’t allow it. As my feet turn me to face him once more, I realize he still has a hold on me. One so strong that it seems to even overshadow my distaste for him, his choices.

“Yes?” I finally answer, sounding far more docile than I intend to.

“You know… you’re always welcome here,” he says, gesturing around his study, and I don’t miss the undertone of hope in his voice. “Even when I’m working, or if I give theappearanceof being too busy to bother… that’s never true for you.”

He pauses, and I get the impression he’s waiting for me to speak, but I feel the need to be cautious. So, silence seems like the most appealing option.

“You don’t have to walk on eggshells around me,” he adds. “This is your home, too. And as my mate, no space here is off limits to you.”

There’s this stupid tug in my heart, brought on by the air of kindness I’ve detected. He isn’t wrong. I’ve made it a point to exist in this space as a guest, mostly because I haven’twantedto get comfortable here. Only, as the weeks have stretched into months, I’m beginning to accept that this place is, in fact, my home now.

I stare into his dark eyes and feel myself softening toward him again. Even after such a bad taste was left in my mouth following our last encounter. He has this uncanny way of tearing down my walls, making me nullify my own vowto keep him on the outside.

“You trust me to just… snoop?” I ask, smiling a little when I cross both arms over my chest.

He gives a casual shrug and a smirk to match. “If I trust you with my clan, I sure as hell better trust you with my home.”

My heart flutters again. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

The smile he flashes means he isn’t likely discouraged by my callousness.

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