Chapter 4: The Goodbye Picnic

Charlotte.

I told Adonis I would think about it, but the moment he asked that question, I already had my answer.

It was a no. I am not willing to share my husband, especially with my best friend. I’d rather leave and never come back, and that’s what I planned to do.

Today is my last day in the pack.

I had already packed my clothes secretly, after finishing my chores I planned to leave. I wanted to serve the pack one last time, in gratitude for taking me in and raising me over the years. My stay here was pleasant until a few days ago, I owe them at least a thank you.

From the weather, I could tell it was going to rain, a reminder to start my trip early. I didn’t have any place in mind, I planned to go wherever my legs would take me, even though I knew how dangerous the journey would be I was determined to leave.

“Charlotte.”

I turned around with a bowl in my hand. Kiana was at the door, I was surprised to see her, she hasn’t spoken to me since that night.

She walked over to the sink where I was washing the dishes and she hugged me. I stood frozen in place wondering what was happening.

As she pulled away from the hug, “I’m sorry about everything.” She said, “I know it’s not your fault, you didn’t ask for this. It was stupid of me to ask you to reject him.” She said in a bitter tone.

“Will you find it in your heart to forgive me?”

It seemed too good to be true. I left the plate in the sink, took out my gloves, and hugged her tightly. “I missed you so much.” I said as I nuzzled my face into the crook of her neck.

“I’m glad you’re not mad at me anymore.”

Not talking to Kiana has left me exhausted. At one point I thought about rejecting Adonis for her sake, but given my poor health I know there’s a good chance I won’t be able to bear the pain of rejection, so I shut the thought down.

“I’m glad everything turned out fine, although this was no guarantee that I would stay. In fact, Kiana’s forgiveness made me want to leave even more because since I can’t bear the pain of rejection, getting out of their lives is the only thing I can do for the both of them to be truly happy.”

“Come, I have something for you.” She took my hand and pulled me out of the kitchen.

“Tada,” Kiana cheered as she removed her palms from my eyes.

We were in an open field, on the grass there was a white cloth with bowls of food around it.

“Yes! Picnic.”

I smiled, it was the perfect parting gift. Who knows how she would react if she found out that today is the last day she will see me. I wonder if she would beg me to stay. I pushed my thoughts aside and sat down on the grass, ready to dig into the food.

A few minutes into the feast, my head started hurting and my vision became blurry. The moment was blurry, but I could see Kiana smiling at me. It was then that I noticed that she hadn’t taken a single bite of the food she had prepared. Even though she complained about her brothers all the time, she never said anything about Adonis, which I found strange since he had been the main topic of our conversation in the past. “What is going on?” I couldn’t help but ask as the headache intensified.

“Oh my God,” She laughed, “How naive of you, do you really think you can end this by just running away?”

Wait, how did she know? I was struggling to remain conscious at the time. I don’t know what she put in the food, but it was turning my senses off.

“I will probably live the rest of my days in fear of your return. We can’t have that now, can we?’

I could tell she was up to no good. “What are you going to do?” I could barely get the words out.

She ran her fingers over my face, “It’s a surprise, but don’t be afraid, I assure you, you will like it.”

I woke up to a dark sky, but that wasn’t the part that worried me. A strong hand wrapped around my waist and I felt a male presence behind me. In panic, I jumped out of bed, falling with a loud thud.

I heard him growl, I could tell who it was by his scent. Adonis, but the question is how I got into his bed.

My head hurt and my memory was foggy. The scenes of my last meeting with Kiana filled my head. Oh no.

Adonis got up from the bed yawning, he stopped when his eyes landed on me. I was lying naked on the floor, he was naked too. His expression showed that he was as confused as I was.

“Charlotte?” He called out unsure. “What is going on here?”

“Honestly, I have no idea,” I said as I got up from the floor to look for my clothes scattered around the room. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a blood stain on the bed. It was then I took note of the throbbing pain between my legs.

Kiana’s last words filled my head,”It’s a surprise, but don’t be afraid, I assure you, you will like it.”

This was all her doing, to get me to bed with Adonis, but the question is, why? I immediately got dressed and, as if on cue, the door kicked open.

Kiana walked in with Zayd the alpha behind her, her lips showing a smile while the alpha looked displeased.

I was going crazy, what’s going on here?

“See I was right, alpha,” Kiana said upon entering the room, “Charlotte drugged Adonis and forced him to mate with her in order to be Luna.”