Alpha's Bargain - Book cover

Alpha's Bargain

Rida Naveen

Chapter 2: The Mystery Guy

Autumn

Two days?

A year?

My head spun as I knocked back my chair. The noise echoed through the house. I ran up the stairs and nobody made a move to follow me.

I had to leave in two days?

That was five days before my birthday! My heart thundered in my chest, and I felt a need to throw up the little food I had managed to force down.

Suddenly, I realized that this was done on purpose. Father was afraid I would find my mate here, and then he would have never let me go.

My anger intensified threefold. I clenched my fists to avoid going downstairs and doing something I’d severely regret later.

And why was Father making the whole thing sound as though it was a short school trip?

This was so wrong.

My whole life, I’d never defied my father. I was the “good girl” and Dion always teased me about it. But no matter what I did, Dion was still Father’s favorite.

Father knew I loved my people and I’d give my life for them. He knew I would not say no to this. So what was one year to me? Nothing. It was nothing.

But it was the fact that he had decided to keep it a secret from me up until now that boiled my blood.

My mind spun, conjuring up ways to defy Father. I knew he didn’t care what I did as long as it didn’t hurt his reputation. I think it was finally my turn to do what I wanted, consequences be damned.

I’d get wasted and dance the night away. Hopefully someone close to Father would be a witness to me doing so. I’d show him what I can really do; maybe I’d spend the other two nights the same way.

Grabbing my phone, I speed-dialed Rin.

“Babe! What’s up?”

“I’ll explain everything later, but I want to take you up on that offer.”

For years, Rin had been out partying late with new guys every day. She’d been begging me to come with her, but I’d abstained.

Being the alpha’s daughter, I’d assumed that type of behavior wasn’t appropriate. But that would surely change. I was going to take full advantage of the two days I had left.

I knew that I was acting like an immature child, but I was tired of being neglected.

Father was never home to see what I was up to. I was the backup child, the useless one—until now. He was only forced to need me for this, while Dion was everything my father ever wanted in a child.

Over the last few years, he seemed to meld more and more into the mold Father had set out for him. This terrified me, but I knew Dion could never be as heartless.

Whenever he’d come home, we’d spend every second together to make up for the time apart.

Though, now, we weren’t as close as we used to be. Many things changed as time went by, including our relationship.

Rin’s vivacious squeal at the other end of the line brought me out of my melancholy thoughts.

“Be at my house in ten!” she screamed into the phone before hanging up.

I ran swiftly down the stairs before Father confronted me for my behavior. I heard Dion call my name, but I didn’t want to deal with him either.

I let my wolf take control as I stepped out. My senses immediately sharpened, and I gasped in a deep breath of clean air through my snout.

Dead leaves flew around; the weather had gotten colder recently, much to my dismay. I did appreciate the fact that I couldn’t feel the frigid wind as much due to my layers of fur.

Unlike Dion, who preferred his wolf form over human, I appreciated them both for their unique qualities.

Stretching my limbs out, I made my way to Rin’s house. Air whipped around my body as I tore through the woods. Five minutes later, I was at her door, which was left unlocked for me.

I noticed Rin’s mom sitting in the living room once I walked inside. She was my absolute favorite.

No denying, I thought of her as my own mom because of how much time I spent with her and Rin. We’d basically grown up together, meeting the first time in second grade.

“Autumn, baby, how are you? Rin’s upstairs in her room.”

“Great, Mrs. Rock! Thank you,” I said with fake enthusiasm I’d mustered from deep inside myself.

A few seconds later, I burst into Rin’s room.

“I’m in the bathroom!” I heard her say in a muffled voice.

I shook my head at the mess of clothes in her room. Sexy heels hung on her bedpost and hangers littered the floor.

Picking up the dress on top of the pile of clothes on her bed, I held it up to myself and snorted. This would definitely get Father’s attention.

The dress was a dark maroon, and it barely made it halfway down my thighs. My legs looked like they stretched on for miles, even longer than they usually looked with my five-foot-nine height.

The back of the dress dipped down to the bottom of my spine, and I shivered at the thought of going outside with this on. I’d never worn something this revealing in my life, but I knew it was more than perfect.

Rin made her way out of the bathroom and gasped when she saw me.

“I knew that was going to be the one, babe! Go put it on, and then I’ll work on your makeup!”

God, who knew she would be this excited to finally take me to the club again? If I’d known, I would’ve agreed to join her sooner.

In the bathroom, I stripped down and put on the dress. It smoothly slid over my head and the material clung to every part of my toned body.

Whereas Rin was all curves, I was more on the muscular side. Although lately, I’d decreased my training time and started eating more fatty foods. That’s why I could see Rin-like curves forming.

I had to say, I was loving them. As I stared at myself in the mirror, I marveled at how much I looked like my mother.

Though I’d only seen her in pictures, the resemblance was uncanny. I had almost all her features: straight brown hair, beautiful eyebrows, her nose, and mouth. Except for my green eyes, which were from Father.

Right now, they reflected how I felt: disoriented, broken.

They churned with pain and determination, but mostly uncertainty. I clenched my jaw to prevent breaking down right there. Rin screaming at me to hurry up broke my chain of thoughts.

I opened the bathroom and she squealed dramatically. Rolling my eyes, I made my way to her.

My best friend was the biggest drama queen and I loved her for it. She brought light into my life. Light I definitely needed.

“Autumn, hurry and sit!”

Rin pulled out various makeup products and I started to talk. As the words tumbled out of my mouth, tears threatened to spill out. I wasn’t one to cry, but I’d been holding it in for so long.

Not having family around to love you was the worst feeling ever. I constantly felt lonely, but I never let Rin or Nan see it. A sob made its way through me, but Rin wasn’t having any of it.

“Oh, hell no. You’d better not cry! I’ve worked so damn hard on your makeup; you look even hotter than me and you know how near impossible that is.”

A laugh spilled out of my mouth. Just like that, she’d made me feel better. I loved this girl.

“Okay, babe, you can look in the mirror now,” Rin said with excitement in her voice.

I slowly turned around and was astonished at the person I saw staring back at me. I did do my makeup every once in a while, but Rin had really worked her magic.

My lips popped out against my pale skin tone. They were a deep maroon, matching my dress. The smoky eye and fake lashes combination had me looking like a dangerous mystery.

“Wow. Thank you,” I managed to choke out.

“I didn’t do anything, babe. I just took your beautiful features and enhanced them,” she replied. “Now, let’s go and get drunk, baby!”

We slipped on oversized jackets to block out the cold and rushed down the stairs, saying goodbye to Mrs. Rock on the way.

There was a special club for elites around twenty minutes away. I had VIP passes due to being the alpha’s daughter.

I didn’t like the special treatment and attention, but tonight, I knew it would work in my favor. Someone would definitely tell Father about what I’d been up to tonight, and I’d very much enjoy his reaction.

Stepping out, we shook off the jackets. I already felt the wind biting into my skin. Still, I walked to the front of the line, not regretting my decision one bit.

We already had people turning their heads because who wouldn’t recognize my green eyes? They were “special,” running in the family.

The bouncers nodded their heads at us and let us inside, pushing others aside to give us space.

The smell of sweat and perfume intermingled, hitting me square in the face.

The music was so loud that the floor vibrated, and beautiful neon lights flashed around as barely dressed girls danced on the tiny stages.

My eyes lingered on the couples in the club, causing my heart to clench out of jealousy.

I ignored the odd feeling. I wasn’t here to pity myself; I was here to relish in a night of non-mated males and strong drinks.

A waiter with a bunch of shot glasses came by. He nodded his head at us and extended his arm to offer us some. Rin and I each grabbed two.

I downed one and then the other—the smooth liquid burning my throat felt amazing. It had been too long. Downing one more, I dragged Rin to the dance floor.

Bodies rubbed against us as we made our way to the middle. I danced with Rin until my body was covered with a thin layer of sweat, allowing the almost-deafening music to take hold of me.

She winked at me and moved toward a good-looking guy who had been eyeing her for the last hour. The drinks had definitely kicked in as I felt my limbs loosen and my mind relax.

As I made a move to grab another shot, two warm hands grabbed my waist and pulled me back against a very muscular front. I stumbled a bit before he tightened his grip on me, making sure I didn’t fall.

He slowly caressed the side of my bare back with his thumbs. It felt phenomenal.

My hands automatically moved back onto his head. I was surprised at the length my hands had to reach in order to run my fingers through his silky hair.

My brain took a while to figure out that the man was tall. Very tall. I hadn’t had male contact in a while, and it was exactly what I needed to forget my troubles.

I lazily moved my hands out of his hair and into the air while swaying my hips and grinding against him. A low groan emitted from his throat, causing me to flush.

He continued to run his hands slowly down the sides of my body. A shudder ran through me; my body felt like it was burning.

The mysterious guy planted soft kisses on my neck, and I tilted my head to give him more access. I felt him smiling against my neck.

Curiosity made me twist my neck to catch a glance at the man making me feel this way.

When I saw his face, I held back a gasp.

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