Page 41 of Rejected By My Stepbrother Alpha
After seven years of living without Asher, how could seeing him again make me feel like I couldn’t live another day without him?
I sighed and looked down at the moon’s reflection on the pond. All of a sudden, the hair on the back of my neck stood up.
Quickly, I turned and scanned the woods, but I didn't see anything. The forest was quiet tonight. The oak trees and bushes were still and silent. The only sound I could hear was the faint hoot of an owl. After a moment, my heartbeat began to return to normal, and I let out a sigh of relief.
I knew that I was on edge because I had just seen Asher after all these years. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. The new intense look in his gorgeous hazel eyes. The brown beard with a red tint that my fingers itched to feel. The insistent, annoying urge to simply be next to him that hadn't faded over time.
Although it felt good to snub him today, something deep inside of me still yearned for him, and I had no idea why. Despite everything that he had put me through, there was still a pull anddesire for him that was soul deep. We used to be Fated Mates but our bond was broken. Asher had made sure of that.
My phone vibrating in the pocket of my jeans was a welcome distraction. I smiled when I saw that Maeve had texted me.
Maeve and I had always kept in touch and three years ago, I invested in her makeup company, Sweet and Sinful Shades. My investment turned out to be a good business venture for both of us. Sweet and Sinful Shades was now a million-dollar business. Now, Maeve was married and had two twin girls. Since Maeve and I were both businesswomen and parents, it was hard to get together.
But when I told her that I was traveling back to BloodMoon for work, she demanded that we find the time to see each other. She wanted our kids to be best friends despite living so far away. She was convinced they would get along despite their four year age difference.
I opened up my messages and read the one from Maeve.
How did it go with Asher today?? Please tell me that you kneed him in the balls. Also, I can't believe you're only a few hours away from me! I NEED to see you soon.
Her text made me laugh, and instead of just messaging her back, I wanted to call her. What had happened with Asher—and all of my complex emotions about it—was too long to explain over text. And I knew I’d feel better after hearing my best friend's voice.
But before my thumb could hit the “call” button, a noise came from behind me that filled my body with cold dread.
That sound was unmistakable.
It was the pounding of a wolf's paws on the ground…headed right for me.
Chapter 15
Complicated
Asher
The pounding of my feet on the forest floor did nothing to drown out the tornado of thoughts wreaking havoc in my head. After seven long years without her, Ivy was back. It had been hours since our meeting, and the shock caused by her sudden appearance still hadn't worn off. When I went home to my apartment, the only thing on my mind was Ivy—well, she went by Ivinia now.
After pacing for the entire evening, I decided to go for a run to try to clear my head.
It wasn’t working.
Thousands of questions bombarded me as I ran through the quiet, dark woods. Why did Ivy pretend not to know me at the meeting? Why did I care so much about her snubbing me and flat-out refusing to work with my company when I was the one who sent her away? What had she been doing all these years besides working? Was she single? I didn't see a wedding ring on her finger, and I did look for it.
At least I knew the answer to the question I’d been dwelling on since she left. Ivy had been living in the ColdCrest Pack territory. This I had figured out on my own since that was where Blackwood Inc. waslocated. Their territory was as far as you could get from mine. Was that why she went there?
That thought made my heart pang with regret, and I rubbed my chest.
The biggest question I had was why I still had such an intense desire for her even after I broke our Fated Mates bond. The need for her was so overwhelming it was like there was a creature clawing in my chest, trying to get out—or more accurately, trying to get to Ivy. My wolf was in agreement. Even now, he was going crazy in my head, demanding that I transform so that we could find her.
I quickened my pace until my feet were barely touching the ground. I was practically flying through the woods, trying to outrun my frantic mind. Idly, I registered the sound of scattering leaves at my feet and the hoot of an owl above me. Usually, when I ran in my human form, I jogged on the running trail through the city because I liked the view of Sun Fire. But instinct had pulled me toward the woods tonight.
Maybe because Ivy was at the forefront of my mind, and these were the same woods that I had rejected her in. Wasn’t it ironic how Ivy had done the same thing to me today—rejected me in front of an audience? I couldn't stop picturing Ivy's face when she had smiled right before she said her company didn't want to work with mine. Had she enjoyed rejecting me?
Could I blame her if she did?
Remorse filled me for the way I rejected her so cruelly in front of the entire pack. Right after we discovered we were Fated Mates, I wouldn’t even allow her a conversation to talk things through.
I’d been grieving for my father, who had been on his deathbed, but now that I could look back on that night with hindsight, how I had treated her was unacceptable. If my father had been there, he would have vehemently disagreed with the way I had treated her.
Ivy and I had such a complicated history. Our short time together was filled with lust, betrayal, and heartache. I went back and forth with myself on whether Ivy was in on her mother's plans. I wished that I could just know the truth, but it wasn’t like Ivy would give me the time of day if I tried to talk to her again.
