Chapter 48

Chapter 48

I felt the heat rise in my cheeks. How dare he tell me what I can and cannot do with my life? I did not care that he was the Alpha King; it was my life!

“You’re not listening to me,” I said firmly. “He is interfering with every part of my life. What’s the point of protecting my life if I can’t even live it?”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“My clients don’t want to talk to me because of him! My colleagues are avoiding me! I’m supposed to represent Ever After Weddings, and Lily is breathing down my n*eck because Jeffrey’s presence is making us look bad after the first day!”

I forced myself to take a deep breath. It did nothing to stem my anger.

“It’s one thing for him to check my food to make sure that there’s nothing in it. It’s something else entirely for him to walk around with a firearm strapped. to his hip, acting like he’s going to set it off if someone sneezes the wrong way.”

I knew that I was probably offending Jeffrey, who was standing just a couple feet behind me, but I didn’t care at that moment. I only cared about making my point to Andrew.

Andrew breathed deeply through his nostrils.

“So long as you live under my roof,” he said, “I will ensure that you are protected to the fullest extent of my power, whether you like it or not.”

“Then it’s a good thing that I’m looking for a new apartment, huh?”

I didn’t think that I could make Andrew Dubois speechless, but that seemed to do it, at least for a minute. I wished that I could decipher the emotions going through his mind at that moment, but his face was completely impenetrable.

When he finally spoke, he spoke slowly, as though measuring each word carefully before letting it escape his mouth.

Just because you move out, does not mean that I will stop caring about you,” he said. “I will continue to protect you wherever you go, and you will not be able to stop me. I am your Alpha King, and it is my responsibility to keep you

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Chapter 48

safe.”

I growled in frustration. I wanted to get up and storm out of his home office, to storm out of his mansion entirely, but something kept me planted in my seat. Something did not feel right about how he continued to fight me..

Why was he putting up such resistance over this?

“He cares about you,” Susan said.

“I know, but it feels like there’s something else, something deeper…”

I forced myself to calm down and reached out to grab Andrew’s hand. He lifted his brows in surprise at the contact, but he did not move away.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “I know that this isn’t only about me and my life. being in danger. Please, tell me what’s going on.”

He squeezed my hand, his eyes never leaving mine.

“You won’t want to hear it,” he said.

“Yes, I do.”

“It’s not an easy subject to talk about.”

“Just take your time. I have nowhere else to be, unless you would rather I go scrub some toilets right now.”

Andrew’s eyes roved over me.

“I don’t know, I would love to see that a*s bent over a toilet bowl.”

We both chuckled.

Andrew squeezed my hand again and sighed.

“I don’t suppose that you’ve heard about what happened to my last three Lunas?”

I froze. Of course, I had heard the rumors about him killing his last three Lunas during some uncontrollable superpowered bloodbath under the full- moon. Still, I hadn’t thought about them in months; they just didn’t match up with the Andrew Dubois that I knew.

Chapter 48

I decided to be a little ambiguous about what exactly I knew.

“I’ve heard a few things here and there,” I replied.

“Well, let’s just say that if I had had more guards-or maybe the right guards- on duty with my Lunas, then maybe nothing would have happened to them. It’s one of the biggest regrets of my life so far. Maybe even the biggest.”

I blinked in confusion.

Was he saying that the rumors were true? If they were, how could more or better guards have stopped what had happened? After all, no number of guards would be a match for a supercharged Alpha King.

But maybe the rumors weren’t true. Maybe he was referring to something else that the guards could have stopped, something similar to what had happened. to me. But what could that have been, then?

“There’s no way that you could have known,” I said, even though I wasn’t entirely sure. After all, I didn’t know what the situation was for any deaths. Maybe he did know something that no one else did.

of their

“Not the first time, but it seems like I never learn. I will never let that happen. again.”

He leaned forward over the desk. His face took on a fierce intensity.

“I will do anything to protect the women in my life, and that includes you.”

“And I admire that about you. I just want to be able to live my life to the fullest.”

Andrew sat back in his chair.

“I know. You should be able to. All I want is for you to be able to actually live.”

“It seems that we’re at an impasse, then.”

He laughed a little.

“I suppose we are.” He sighed. “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I know that it’s hard to adjust to having a guard on you all the time.”

And I’m sorry for resisting the idea so much. I can give it another shot. I’m sure that people will get used to the idea after a few days.”

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Chapter 48

Andrew shook his head.

“No, no, there’s no need. I’ll put Jeffrey back on my detail. I’m not sure he’ll be happy being taken away from such a beautiful view, but he’ll get over it.”

He winked at me, and I giggled.

“Would you mind doing me one favor, though?” he asked.

I co cked my head.

“What is that?”

“I bought a bulletproof vest in your size. Would you please wear it while you’re outside of the mansion, at least until we know that you’re out of danger?”

I gave him a tight-l*pped smile.

“Sure. No problem.”

“Thank you. I’ll have a maid bring it to your room later tonight so that you can try it on, but it should fit. You have no idea what this means to me.”

“It’s the least that I can do, considering everything that you’ve done for me.”

I was about to stand up when Andrew put his hand on mine again.

“Oh, there’s one more thing.”

“Yes?”

“Nothing that I said about my Lunas can leave this room. Understood?”

1 could tell from his tone that this was now my Alpha King speaking to me, not Andrew. I nodded.

“As you wish.”

Thank you. You can go.”

I nodded again and headed for the door, grateful when Jeffrey did not follow Despite being sworn to secrecy, I could not get my mind off of what Andrew had said about his Lunas. What could have happened to them, and how did that connect to what was happening to me now?