Page 32 of The Alpha's Pretend Mate

"I'm not," Cassius cut him off, his voice firm. "I would never hurt Alysa. You know that."

Aleksander studied him for a long moment, his expression softening slightly. "Do I? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like lines are blurring. And if this ends badly…"

"It won't," Cassius said, more confidently than he felt. "I promise, Aleks. I won't hurt her."

Aleksander held his gaze for a long moment before nodding. "You better not," he said, his voice low and laced with warning. "Because best friend or not, Alpha or not, if you break her heart, I'll break you."

With that, Aleksander turned and walked away, leaving Cassius alone with his tumultuous thoughts. He looked across the room, his eyes finding Alysa. She was talking with Wren, her smile bright, but he could see the tension in her shoulders, the way her eyes kept darting around the room.

What have we gotten ourselves into?

As Cassius made his way back to Alysa, he felt the weight of Aleksander's words, of the kiss, of the past two weeks pressing down on him. The line between pretense and reality had blurred beyond recognition.

All he knew was that when he looked at Alysa, he felt something he'd never felt before. Something that both terrified and exhilarated him.

Something that felt dangerously close to love.

Chapter 8 - Alysa

The morning sun pierced through the curtains, casting a warm glow across Alysa's face. She groaned, burying her head deeper into the pillow. Another day of pretending. Another day of stolen glances and lingering touches that meant nothing. Or did they?

Get it together, Alysa. This isn't real.

She dragged herself out of Cassius’s bed, padding toward the kitchen. The scent of freshly brewed coffee hit her nose, and she found him already there, Aurora balanced on his hip as he poured himself a cup.

"Morning," he mumbled, his voice still thick with sleep.

Alysa's heart skipped a beat. Cassius's hair was tousled, and his shirt was rumpled. He looked… domestic—like this was their real life together.

It was the weekend, so Abigail would not be coming to the estate. It was just her and Cassius and Aurora today.

Great.

"Morning," she replied, reaching for her own mug. Their fingers brushed, and she jerked back, nearly spilling coffee everywhere.

Cassius caught her wrist, steadying her. "Careful," he murmured, his touch sending sparks up her arm.

Alysa cleared her throat. "Thanks. Um, about yesterday…"

"The ceremony?" Cassius raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I was thinking… maybe we should talk about how long we're going to keep this up."

Cassius set Aurora in her highchair, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"

"Well, the deal's done. Shouldn't we… I don't know, stage a breakup or something?"

The words tasted bitter on her tongue, but she forced them out anyway. It was the logical thing to do, wasn't it?

Cassius's jaw tightened. "It would look strange if we suddenly split right after the ceremony. Marcus is already suspicious. We need to keep this going, at least for a while longer."

Alysa's stomach churned. More pretending. More torturing herself with what-ifs and maybes. But she nodded, plastering on a smile. "Right. Of course. We wouldn't want to raise any red flags."

Just a few more weeks of this. You can do it. You have to.

Alysa knew he was right. Yet, pretending for even one more day made her insides twist with frustration. Her gaze flicked to Aurora, who was strapped comfortably to Cassius’s chest, babbling innocently. Alysa's heart softened, but that only made it worse.

I can’t keep pretending this is just an act. Not when it feels so real.

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