Emily

Tori's POV

The house was vast and wide as we walked through it. I could not stop staring around, wondering if I would somehow get lost in this house now that it would be my new home.

This was what opulence was—the golden crests that adorned the walls and the exotic flower vases that held a bundle of roses.

He walked briskly, making me try my hardest to keep up with him as he turned a corner, his back lean and taut as though he was not striding faster than any average person.

The room he led me to was painted blue. It was a nursery that held different kinds of toys and different pictures of a smiling boy and Adrian.

I stared at one picture long and hard. The man in that portrait, holding the giggling boy, was a far cry from the man that now led me into the room.

I wanted to ask if he was a twin, but somehow I knew he would not take that lightly.

In the room sat a boy, his back turned against us, but his dark hair unmistakably like his father's.

“Kylian, it’s good to see that you are awake,” Alpha Adrian said, his voice carrying a particular softness that I did not know it could.

The boy whipped around quickly, dashing into his arms as he grinned from ear to ear.

I could see the smile that also blossomed on the face of Adrian. So this was the man he was with his son.

“I would like you to meet someone. Her name is…” he said, turning to look at me as though realizing he did not know my name.

I gave the boy a small smile as I bent down to his height, outstretching my hands.

“My name is Tori, and it’s so nice to meet you, Kylian,” I said to him.

I did not know what I was expecting. I knew I was obviously not expecting a big hug from him too, but I was also not expecting the scowl that he gave me.

“Who is she, Dad?” he asked, ignoring my outstretched hands and talking about me as though I was not in the room with them.

“She is your new babysitter. She will be around to keep you company and make sure you do your homework and feed you,” Alpha Adrian said.

“She wants to do everything that Mum always does? Are you bringing her here to replace Mum?” he asked.

I swallowed. This would be harder than I thought.

Adrian also did not seem to know how to answer the question, and so the boy continued.

“I don’t like her. I can do my homework myself, and I can feed myself. I just want my mum,” he said, his voice breaking at the last part, and my heart went out to him.

What sort of mother abandons her little child without a single word? I could not imagine myself doing it to the baby in my womb, even though I hated his father.

“Kylian, you won’t be talking like that to her, okay? She will be staying to help you. She is not replacing your mum, and I already told you, your mum will be back soon,” Alpha Adrian finally said.

The boy just looked at me, his eyes holding a little anger. He turned back to look at his father and, without a single word to either of us, went back to the table where he had sat before.

I heard a small sigh escape Adrian’s lips as he said to him,

“We will be back soon. And I will get you that toy you said you wanted. How does that sound?” he asked, obviously trying to win him over.

No response.

He motioned to me to follow him, and I obliged, the rejection of the little child still stinging my heart, reminding me a little too much of the man that rejected me a few days ago too.

“He will come around soon. His mother’s absence has made a mark on his mood, but I know he will snap out of it soon. We will go get your belongings, and then you will return back here. I have a few meetings to attend to.

You should try taking him to the park—he loves that,” Alpha Adrian said, dishing out all the rules without even turning to look at me.

I took note of every single word he said, making a mental note to pick up a few chocolates for the boy on my way back.

We had barely gotten into the car when I heard a shrill voice call from behind, the sound sickening me to my stomach.

“Baby! Where have you been all throughout the night?” the voice said.

The owner was a tall, brown-skinned woman with boobs too big for the shirt she was wearing and the skirt that she seemed to have intentionally rolled up to her laps—too tight for comfort.

I turned to look at Alpha Adrian, who had a look of boredom on his face.

Was this, perhaps, his wife? Had she come back?

My heart thudded at the prospect of losing the job I just got. It sank into me.

She pulled him into a sloppy kiss, trying to get an emotion from him, but nothing. He did not reciprocate, neither did he touch her.

She seemed to scoff in anger as she pulled away from him, her gaze finally settling on me.

“And who is this?” she asked, her eyes holding disgust. I knew I did not look my best—from my messy hair that I did not have the time to comb out, down to my clothes that probably smelt like booze.

“She is the new babysitter for Kylian,” Adrian said.

I did not know why I had expected him not to answer, but when he did, it left a twinge of anger in me.

She gave me a once-over, walking towards me, her boobs shaking with each step she took.

She stretched out a perfectly manicured hand to me and said,

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Emily, Adrian’s girlfriend,” she said.