Chapter 32

Your Obsession

********Blake POV*********

My gaze didn't abandon my phone screen as I continuously gazed at the message Nero sent me a while back, "Call Jason. We got into an argument. I think he's going to act stupid and come get you tonight! Talk him out of it."

That's all he had to say. The toxic part of me was hoping that there would be more. But he hasn't sent anything else.

My fingertips were so close to the letters on my keyboard, but my pounding heart was making me nervous to write anything.

It took a while for me to calm my shaking hands and write back, "I talked him out of it, and he's not going to come tonight."

After pressing send, I held in my breath when I saw that he read my message.

The three little dots kept popping up and fading every second which only increased my anxiety the entire time I waited for him to reply.

But at last, the dots faded, and it was just seen underneath my message, and finally, my gaze abandoned my phone screen, focusing my attention on my dresser.

My heart abruptly skipped a beat when my phone unexpectedly made a beeping noise, and I gazed at its screen, staring at Nero's message with moist eyes, "Let's end us tonight. I will inform you when I get there."

My hands were shaking as I typed four letters, "Okay," and then sent.

The bright light from my phone suddenly appeared dim in my eyes as I watched my tears hit the screen, and all I wanted to do was scream!

I couldn't stop myself from trembling as I clapped my hands over my mouth, suppressing my voice as a cry threatened to escape my lips.

Squeezing my mouth even tighter, I felt sick to my stomach, and I tried so hard to sedate the feeling but it wasn't working.

'This is for the best,' I whispered in my head. 'You will be okay.'

That was a lie. I have been beaten and bruised a couple of times, but there was nothing more painful than this.

Grabbing the edge of my mattress, I clasped onto it as I let out a silent scream, shutting my eyelid tightly.

"Miss! Your father asked me to bring you your dress for tonight." Jessica's voice echoed into the room along with the sound of a gentle knock.

Raising my eyelids, I stared at the door, knowing that I couldn't let her see me in this state.

After tossing my phone on the sheet, I walked out of the room, headed into my bathroom, and stopped at the basin.

My reflection stared at me with puffy red eyes, and I hated looking back at her.

Hastily, I washed my face and left the sink, heading back into the room to open the door for Jessica.

Once I did, she handed over the bag to me with a smile and then walked off.

After returning to my bed, I unzipped the bag and stared at the dress within it, feeling hesitant to pick it up.

The fact that Loki was going out of his way to make me presentable for tonight was annoying, and knowing that the only reason he was putting in this much effort made me disgusted.

Slowly, I pulled out a crystal blue dress, gazing at the glamorous pattern and fiber, and I just knew that it is going to make me draw attention tonight which hated.

My guess wasn't wrong because at seven-fifteen when I got done dressing, I stood before the mirror and froze.

The gown was breathtaking, and styling it with a straight plain braid and silver heel just made the entire look perfect.

"Blake?" Loki called out from the other side of my door, and I grew stiff, glaring at my reflection.

After taking a moment to compose myself, I turned away from the mirror and walked over to the door, opening it to see Loki grinning at me.

Widening his smile, he dragged his gaze from my face, down to my heels, and then announced, "You look perfect!"

Looks are truly deceiving because I felt like crap. But I returned a smile and said, "Thanks."

"You have your mother's eyes, and her beauty," Loki said, looking solely at my face.

One look at him, and I knew that that was not a compliment, but a reminder of what is at stake tonight.

"Why did you leave her for Loretta?" I mumbled beneath my breath, hoping for an answer I knew that I was never going to get.

"The guests have started arriving. We should head to the grand hall." Loki said, forsaking looking at me.

As he turned to leave, I clenched my phone and asked, "You are going to stay true to your promise, right?"

"It's up to you, Blake, to make me an honest man, so watch what you do tonight," Loki said, walking off.

Drawing a breath, I looked after him for a brief while before following him, convincing myself with every step that I was doing the right thing.

When we got to the grand hall, I forced my lips into a smile, walking into the room.

Almost the entire pack was there, and it felt overwhelming to have caught their attention the moment I stepped into the room.

Following closely behind Loki, he led me towards Mr. and Mrs. Noble, and I felt a bit reluctant when Karen and my eyes locked.

The calmness on her face couldn't mask the look of hate in her eyes as Loki and I stopped in front of the Nobles.

"You look gorgeous, darling." Mrs. Noble softly uttered as she pulled me in for a cheek kiss.

It felt weird to be in her arms, but I endured it and was glad when she finally let me go.

Slapping Killain gently on his back,  Mr. Noble let out a laugh and announced, "You made a wise choice, son!"

Within a split second, Loki joined him in giggling, and it was just infuriating to see the look of pride on both of their faces.

"Excuse me," I mumbled, turning away to leave.

"Where are you going?" Loki suddenly asked.

When I looked back at him, he had this troubled look on his face almost as though he was scared of his jailbird running off.

Frustrated, I didn't think my words through and said in annoyance, "To use the bathroom. Will that be a problem?"

"The ceremony will soon start. Your sister assured me that Nero is almost here, so you should hurry back." Loki said as his brows slightly furrowed.

Not replying, I walked off, and once I was safely inside the bathroom upstairs, I rested my palms on the basin and let out a long breath to calm myself.

Suddenly, the bathroom door opened, and I hastily looked to my right, staring at Karen as she walked inside.

"Ain't you afraid to be alone and in close space with me?" I mocked, annoyed by the scowl on her face.

The silence was all I got from her for a couple of seconds before she hardened her face and mumbled, "Why are you suddenly with my brother?"

"What?" I uttered, thrown off by her question.

"I know why Killain is with you, but why him?"

"I don't owe you an explanation for my choices in life."

Staring solely into my eyes, Karen scoffed and then mumbled, "I really had my bet on Mr. Fang, and you."

"Well, too bad because the romantic relationship between us only exists in your imagination," I told her boldly, but it felt as though I had stabbed myself with my own words.

"Are you saying that now because you were stupid enough to let Luna have him even though he doesn't belong to her?"

"Did I hit you so hard that you have lost your sanity?"

Giving me a hard stare, Karen didn't speak, and I was about to walk past her when she blurted out, "The day you become one of us, Nobles, will be a day that I am dead, and that's why I am even bothering to tell you any of this."

The seriousness in her expression had me hesitating about my decision to walk out and leave her to her madness.

"Luna is Killian's mate, and to be honest, I would rather her be with my brother than a psychopath like you!" Karen uttered calmly. "So, I don't know what game you are playing here, but I need you to stay the hell away from my brother and my family."

"Luna and Killain" I whispered, trying to make sense of her words.

"My brother is only with you for your body and because of his sense of duty to our family. But to be honest, I don't get what he sees in you. You are not that eye-catching!"

"Did you say Luna is Killain mate?"

"When did I start speaking another language!"

What insanity is fate playing at right now! This is not the time for me to start having second thoughts or feeling something other than what I had programmed myself to feel for tonight.

"I should get back downstairs," I mumbled, trying to walk past her

But Karen stepped in my way and said, "You think I am lying? Fine! I will show you proof, so you can stop your obsession and get away from my brother."

A Liar

Staring at Karen's serious expression, I knew that she wasn't kidding, and a part of me wanted to run as far as I can, away from her away from whatever she had to say because I knew I knew that I wouldn't have the strength to give in to my father's wants if I start having second thoughts.

"I don't need proof. I need you to get out of my way." I told her.

At that moment my phone buzzed, and I anticipated who message I just received which left me scared to look at the screen.

Pretending as though she didn't hear a thing I said, Karen pulled out her phone from her purse and mumbled, "Just listen."

"Karen, move!" I raised my voice at her as fear squeezed my heart.

"Are you sure you want to get violent when the entire pack is downstairs?"

"Can you just stop"

The careless look in her eyes told me that I was going to hear this whether I like it or not, and I brace myself for it.

After taking a long look at me, she focused on her screen, and a couple of minutes later, I heard Karen's voice, "Killain, you must be kidding me! Blake! Are you seriously settling for someone like her!"

"It's not like I have a choice, Karen! Luna refused to acknowledge the bond that we share, and she has her mother's backing on this!!" Killian's harsh voice echoed from the speaker.

"Have you tried talking to them! I will accept anyone right now, but Blake. Maybe if you put more effort into Luna and"

"Don't you think I have tried! Apparently, we are not wealthy enough for her daughter's standard. That's what Loretta said to my face. So Blake is my last option."

"Killian!"

"I know what I felt when I saw Luna at that party, and I know that she felt it too. But I can not force the truth out of her not when Loki and Loretta are her parents."

My phone buzzed again, and my teeth sank into the skin of my bottom lip as I tried to shut down my thoughts.

"The rest of the recording is just me shouting at him about how much I detest you and don't want you as my sister-in-law, and him trying to convince me why he doesn't mind marking you," Karen said after pausing the audio.

A third buzz echoed from my phone, and I held back my breath, looking at Karen, staring back at me as though she was waiting for me to say something.

"I have listened to your recording, now can you step aside." I calmly uttered, squeezing my phone.

"Okay. So are you going to leave my brother alone since you know he doesn't belong to you?!" Karen let out with a frown.

"I would, but the decision is not mine to make. Like Killian, my hands are tied. Now move."

A frown settled on Karen's face as she glared at me. Then she tightened her lips in a firm line, looking really pissed before walking out of the room, slamming the door hard.

My chest raised high and then dropped as I fought against my emotions, feeling stuck in a dilemma that felt like my worst nightmare.

It took a while for me to get my emotions together, and I was ready to go back into the grand hall when my phone buzzed again, I finally gained the strength to take a look at the screen and click on Nero's texts.

After reading through them, I rushed out of the bathroom, headed downstairs, ignoring the grand room, and rushed for the front door.

But I immediately stopped halfway down the corridor when I heard Killian's voice, "Blake?"

Feeling hesitant, I stopped, slowly turned, and gazed at him, faking a weak smile.

A look of confusion clouded his expression as he mumbled, "Where are you going? Everyone is waiting for you in there."

"Huh" I whispered.

The sound of footsteps interrupted my thoughts, and then I heard Nero's voice, "Blake,"

His last message said that he was coming inside to find me. But I didn't expect that he would leave his car so quickly.

'Don't turn around, Blake.' I cried in my head.

"We should head inside. Your dad is restless, and I assured him that I was going to find you." Killian said, his cold eyes focused above my head. "You too, Karen!"

A sense of nervousness swept through me when I heard Karen's heels sound, approaching me from the back.

When she walked past me and her brother, heading for the grand hall, I couldn't help wondering what she was doing with Nero, and if it was a coincidence that they were together.

Clutching onto my purse, I walked over to Killain, refusing to gaze back, knowing that it was way too late to amend and reenact my decision to leave Nero.

We headed into the grand hall together, and after Killain and I joined Loki and his father, I heard Luna call out, "Babe!"

'Don't look, Blake. If you don't sacrifice for what you want, what you want becomes the sacrifice.' I mumbled in my head, giving Loki a faint smile as he grinned at me.

At that moment, Luna's soft giggle echoed in my ears followed by her words, "I am glad that you are here. Now the ceremony can start."

"But what do you want, Blake?" I whispered, pinching my dress.

The answer was so freaking selfish the instant I realized it, and I finally turned around, meeting Nero's gaze immediately.

His eyes were calm as he stared into mine, and I knew right then and there that I had made the worst mistake of my life by walking away from him.

"Now that we are here as a pack, I feel satisfied to announce that tonight my daughters have legally become an adult and are old enough to be marked by their mates," Loki announced.

Then he eyed Killain and me, smiled, and said, "And the good news is, they have found their mates."

Feeling his eyes on me, my focus shifted off Loki, and I gazed back at Nero, realizing that he was looking solely at me.

Why did I hesitate to believe that he loved me and that he would protect me? Maybe it's because, with him, I was never sure certain about us. To be fair, he didn't give me much to be confident about.

It's wrong what Luna is doing to Nero, and I want to believe that he doesn't know that she is deceiving him that Karen didn't tell him what she told me. But will it be right of me to walk up to him and kiss him right now?

Even though I was suppressing my urge to do it, I wanted to do it so badly to claim Nero openly. But is that what he wants? I am scared afraid to drag him in my mess. With Luna, things would be easier for him, unlike me getting him deeper involve in shitty life.

'I think I have cost you enough headaches. It's better this way that you don't know how much I am dying inside slowly at the thought of being with someone other than you.' My brain tortured me with these words as I darted my gaze away from Nero.

"Tonight, we will all be witness to my daughter Blake getting claimed by Killain Noble, and Luna marked by Nero Fang," Loki announced, and cheering aroused in every corner of the room.

The tears I had been holding back wet my cheeks as I stared at Nero, and my shaking lips curved into a weak smile. But he frowned at me, and his eyes burned with anger.

Looking down at Luna's hand around his arm, he grabbed onto her wrist and gently pulled her hand off him.

"When were you going to tell me that you have been lying to me all this time?" Nero blurted out as he glared at her when she looked up at him.

"Wh-at what is going on?" Loretta cried, looking as confused as I was.

For a second, Nero eyed me, giving me a hard look. Then he gazed at Luna and said, "Shouldn't you be getting marked by Killain?"

"What?" Luna whispered.

Well, I guess Karen snitched on Luna to him too. She must really despise me to doing something like this and putting Luna in such a state.

"I know I haven't been totally open with you, and that I never told you that I am cursed. It's a generation thing, and I don't have the ability to find who my mate is. That's why I trusted you when you said that I was your mate!" Nero uttered calmly.

"What!" Luna blurted out with fear dancing in her eyes.

"But did you have to make a fool of me, making me believe that I was your mate?"

"I I ne-ver I never lied to you."

Silent fell between both of them, and that's when I realized how dead the room had become.

"Well then, between you and Miss Noble, one of you guys is lying because she claimed that you are her brother's mate, and you are only with me because of my cash," Nero said, frowning at her. "So who's the liar here?"