Page 51 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
“I have LEGO too! Do you wanna play?”
“Sure, I would—”
“Ollie,” Leila’s voice cut in, sharp, “what did I say about inviting strangers to play games with you?”
Stranger.
The word sliced straight through my chest.
I turned to her. Her expression was tight, chin lifted in challenge. But she was tapping her foot, fingers fidgeting, like she couldn’t wait for me to get the hell out of her house.
“I’m not a stranger, Leila,” I said, voice low.
She didn’t back down. She just stared at me, defiant.
My gaze dropped—unintentionally. Her soaked shirt clung to her skin, the outline of her bra visible through the fabric. My throat dried. Her nipple peaked slightly against the red lace.
And just like that, I was right back where I shouldn’t be—wanting her. The sharp, unrelenting kind of want that made my pulse throb and my wolf stir.
I wanted to pin her against the counter. Remind her with my mouth, my hands, that I was never a stranger to her. Not to her body. Not to her heart. Not to her wolf.
She caught the direction of my gaze and her body went rigid. Clearing her throat, she stepped away, breaking the pull between us.
“Why don’t you head upstairs and get started on tidying up your room, Ollie?” she said quickly. “I’ll be up in a moment.”
Ollie groaned at the mention of homework, but didn’t argue. He turned to me with a smile. “Thanks again for helping, Luca!”
He waved and darted up the stairs.
And then it was just us.
The moment the boy’s footsteps vanished, the air around us changed.
“Why did you lie about Ollie being your neighbor’s kid the other day?”
Leila tensed. Her fingers curled slightly at her sides, her gaze flicking past me like she hadn’t heard the question. But I saw the shift in her jaw and the way her throat worked as she swallowed.
“Who’s the father of the kid?” I asked.
Leila recoiled, eyes wide. Shocked. But I wasn’t in the mood for soft landings. I needed to know. I needed to understand if this thing clawing inside me—this feeling—meant something real.
“What right do you have to ask me that, Luca?” she whisper-yelled, her voice sharp with disbelief. “Look, I appreciate you returning the Labubu and fixing the sink, but you need to go. Now.”
She turned to leave, already walking out of the kitchen. I didn’t follow. I stayed rooted, jaw clenched.
“I’m not going anywhere until you answer my question.”
A scoff tore from her. “God, someone really needs to cut down that audacity of yours.” She spun around, eyes blazing. “You’re not the Alpha of the Bronx. You’re not Alpha in my life. You’re not even in my life, Luca. So you don’t get to storm in here demanding answers like I owe you anything.”
“Damn right I do!” I snapped, voice rising before I could rein it in. “If you’ve had my son all this time—and kept him from me—”
“He’s not your son!” Leila hissed, her voice low and tight, trying not to shout. “Get over yourself, Luca. After what you did to me? If I ever found out I was pregnant with your child, I would’ve terminated it.”
I saw red.
“After what I did to you?” I scoffed, bitter laughter escaping my throat. “Fuck, Leila. Do you really want to go there? You stole from me. You cheated on me. You spread your legs for another goddamn man—”
“Damn you, Luca!” she snapped, trembling now. “If you want tobelieve I cheated, fine. Hold onto that. But believe this too—Ollie is not yours. I would never want you to father my child. Because the moment things get hard, you run. Just like you ran from me.”
