Chapter Three

Rhett’s POV

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I manage to say. I want to snarl, but my stupid wolf is too busy being restless and practically begging me to lean into the touch. I have no fucking idea why.

“Really?” He asks. The hatred in his eyes is unmistakable, despite the smirk on his face.

That breaks me, but who am I to complain?

I had caused it… making my best friend a target for bullying because I was too cowardly to stand up to my father. Because I felt hating Cassian would have made my father less suspicious of my friendship with him… to protect him.

Stupid, I know.

There is no salvaging this.

“You are overestimating your importance. Let go,” I say coldly, meeting his gaze with equal intensity and praying hard to the Goddess that he can’t see the conflict buried inside me. “Or else.”

The eyes are the window to the soul—my mom used to say when she was still alive. I am hoping right now that it is not true.

“Or else what?” he questions, lifting his brows. He’s not backing down.

“You don’t want to find out, trust me.” I make sure the coldness in my voice is still there.

I am Rhett Reed, the future alpha of the Blackridge Pack—I can handle him. “Your little pepper spray stunt this morning?” I scoff. “Oh, trust me, I’ll fucking punish you for that.”

Cassian smirks and moves even closer. I can feel his hot minty breath on my face as one hand touches my cheek slightly. “Punish me? I have a few ideas—”

“Fuck off!” I yell, pushing him with a sudden force. He stumbles backwards into a table but steadies himself, then looks up at me with those eyes.

My heart is racing in my chest as I wonder if it is just me that I am reading meaning into it because I am in denial.

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Cassian is every fucking where and I hate it.

The yells from my coach barely register in my head as he is reprimanding both me and my teammate on the training rink.

How am I supposed to explain that the real reason I am far from okay and being able to focus is because my roommate is sending me into a frenzy. First, I had been yelled at for beinf thirty minutes late—Cassian had locked me in and I was only able to leave the room by jumping through the window, only to get reprimanded by dorm security for breaking the rules.

I had gotten to the training rink and he was there, watching my every move. I wanted to show him how dominant I was, instead i kept making mistakes and had rammed into my teammate who decided to retaliate.

“He pushed me first so I shouldn’t even be getting yelled at!” Jacob snarls angrily. “Just cause he’s captain, y’all be taking his fucking side.”

“I am not taking anyone’s side… I am only trying to…”

I zone out again, looking at him.

“Rhett!” Comes the angry voice of my coach. “Take your position again…”

I nod and skate over to the other edge of the rink

“You’ve been distracted lately,” comments Matt, who is my beta in training. “Is everything alright with you?”

“Of course.”

“You sure? You kind of ran off last night, and I didn't even see you in class today.”

I shrug, not bothering to answer. What exactly am I supposed to say to him? That I am losing my shit over my ex best friend, and my wolf who should have been grounding me is currently losing his shit about the scent of a mate we haven’t been able to identify.

She’s close by, I know it. Deep down, I wonder if it will be as easy as I have planned.

Hi. I’m rejecting you as my mate because I already have someone set to marry by my father.

That couldn’t be too hard, right?

But what if my wolf goes crazy over rejecting her

“You are doing that shit again,” says Matt as he swings his puck.

“What?”

“Zoning out.”

One hour later, training is over. I take a quick shower in the locker room, pack up my stuff and head towards the exit. Cassian is there and immediately his arms wrap around my shoulders, pulling me in the direction of the dormitories.

“What the hell are you doing?” I seethe, trying to take his arm off but it wouldn’t even budge. I look behind me to see some of my teammates who are leaving too staring and then whispering amongst themselves.

Fuck, no.

Goddess please let them not think in that direction.

“You’re slacking Rhett,” Cassian finally says aftee few minutes of silence. “You look pathetic on the ice. Always getting distracted—“

“Because of you!” I snap. “So leave me the hell alone for fucks sake!”

“Nuh-uh.” He’s enjoying this way too much and I hate it.

We get to the dorm and he finally lets me go, using my key that he stole to open the door. I push my way in angrily, wanting to just sink into my bed and forget about everything.

But seating on my bed is none other than my father, a magazine in his hand.

A magazine that shows two men holding each other intimately.